44with the capture of valens the tide had now fully turned in favour of vespasian. the movement had been begun in spain by the first legion adjutrix,114 whose reverence for otho's memory made them hate vitellius. they carried the tenth and the sixth115 with them. the provinces of gaul soon followed suit. britain was bound to his cause by the favour felt for one who had been sent there by claudius in command of the second legion, and had fought with great distinction in the war. but the adherence of the province was to some extent opposed by the other legions, in which many of the centurions and soldiers had been promoted by vitellius. they were used to their emperor and felt some doubt about the change. 45this quarrel between the legions and the constant rumours of civil war, encouraged the britons to take heart. their chief instigator was one venutius. he was of a ferocious disposition and hated the name of rome, but his strongest motive was a private quarrel with queen cartimandua, a member of a powerful family, who ruled the brigantes.116 her authority had lately increased, since she had betrayed king caratacus into the hands of the romans, and was thus considered to have provided claudius caesar with material for his triumph.117 thus she had grown rich, and with 53prosperity came demoralization. she threw over venutius, who was her husband, and gave her hand and kingdom to his squire, vellocatus. this crime soon proved the ruin of her house. the people supported her husband: she defended her lover with passionate ferocity. venutius therefore summoned assistance and, aided by the simultaneous revolt of the brigantes, brought cartimandua into dire straits. she petitioned for troops from rome. our auxiliaries, both horse and foot, then fought several engagements with varying success, but eventually rescued the queen. thus the kingdom was left in the hands of venutius and the war in ours.
46almost simultaneously a disturbance broke out in germany, where the inefficiency of the generals, the disaffection of the troops, the strength of the enemy, and the treachery of our allies all combined to bring the roman government into serious danger. the causes and history of this protracted struggle—for such it proved—we must leave to a later chapter.118 amongst the dacians119 also there was trouble. they could never be trusted, and now that the army was moved from moesia they were no longer under the restraint of fear. at first they remained quiet and awaited developments. but when they saw italy in the flames of war, and found the whole empire divided into hostile camps, 54they fell upon the winter-quarters of the auxiliary infantry and cavalry and began to occupy both banks of the danube. they were on the point of storming the roman camp as well, when mucianus, who knew of the victory at cremona, sent the sixth legion120 against them. for the empire was in danger of a double foreign invasion, if the dacians and the germans had broken in from opposite directions. but here, as so often, rome's good fortune saved her by bringing mucianus on the scene with the forces of the east just at the moment when we had settled matters at cremona. fonteius agrippa, who had for the last year been pro-consul in asia, was transferred to the government of moesia. his forces were strengthened by a draft from the defeated vitellian army, for in the interest of peace it seemed prudent to distribute these troops over the provinces and to keep their hands tied by a foreign war.
47the other peoples soon made their voices heard. pontus121 had suddenly risen in a general rebellion at the instigation of a foreign menial, who was in command of what had once been the royal fleet. he was one of polemo's freedmen, by name anicetus, who had formerly been influential and resented the change which had converted the kingdom into a province of the roman empire. he accordingly enlisted the 55maritime tribes of pontus in vitellius' service, attracting all the neediest ruffians with promises of plunder. at the head of no mean force he suddenly fell upon trapezus,122 an ancient and famous city, founded by greek settlers on the frontier of the pontic kingdom. there he cut to pieces the auxiliaries, who had once formed the king's body guard, and, after receiving the roman franchise, had adopted our ensigns and equipment, while still retaining all the inefficiency and insubordination of greek troops. anicetus also set fire to the fleet123 and thus enjoyed complete mastery of the sea, since mucianus had moved the pick of his cruisers and all his troops to byzantium. the sea was overrun by natives too, who had hurriedly built themselves boats. these, which they call 'arks',124 are broad-bottomed boats with low sides, built without any brass or iron rivets. in a rough sea, as the waves rise higher and higher, the height of the sides is raised by the addition of planks which, in the end, enclose the whole boat under a sort of roof. they are thus left to toss up and down on the waves. they have bows at both ends and the paddles can be used on either side, since it is as easy and as safe to row in one direction as in the other.
48this state of things attracting vespasian's attention, he was obliged to send out a picked force of detach56ments from the legions under virdius geminus, a soldier of tried experience. he attacked the enemy while they were dispersed in all directions in quest of plunder, and drove them back to their ships. he then had some liburnian cruisers hurriedly constructed and ran anicetus to ground in the mouth of the river chobus,125 where he had taken refuge with the king of the sedochezi tribe, whose alliance he had purchased by bribes. at first, indeed, the king endeavoured to protect his petitioner by using threats of violence, but he soon saw that it was a choice between making war or being paid for his treachery. the barbarian's sense of honour was unequal to this strain. he came to terms, surrendered anicetus and the other fugitives, and thus put an end to 'the slaves' war'.
this victory delighted vespasian: everything was succeeding beyond his hopes: and to crown all the news of the battle of cremona now reached him in egypt. he hurried forward all the faster towards alexandria with the object of bringing starvation126 upon vitellius' defeated troops and the inhabitants of rome, who were already feeling the pinch of diminished imports. for he was at the same time making preparations for an invasion of the adjacent province of africa127 by land and sea. by cutting off their corn supply he hoped to reduce the enemy to famine and disunion.
