Ambrose. Penance of Theodosius.
It was when Maximus was triumphant in Gaul that the celebrated Ambrose, archbishop of Milan, was sent to the usurper's camp to demand the dead body of the murdered Gratian. But this intrepid prelate made himself still more famous for his defense of orthodoxy against the whole power of Valentinian II. and his mother. He is also immortalized for the chastisement he inflicted upon Theodosius himself for the slaughter of Thessalonica. The emperor was in Milan when intelligence arrived of a sedition in the city, caused by factions of the circus, during which Boderic, the commander of the imperial troops, was killed. This outrage was revenged by the wanton massacre of seven thousand people. The news of this barbarity filled Ambrose with horror, and he wrote a letter to the emperor, which led to his repentance; but as he was about to enter the basilica, the prelate met him at the door, and refused admission until he had expiated his crime by a rigorous penance, and the emperor submitted to the humiliation—an [pg 634] act of submission to the Church which was much admired—an act of ecclesiastical authority which formed a precedent for the heroism of Hildebrand.
Theodosius defends the church.
Under the influence of the clergy, now a great power, Theodosius the same year promulgated an edict for the suppression of all acts of pagan worship, private and public, under heavy penalties, and the Church, in turn, became persecuting. At this lime the corruption of the Church made rapid progress. Pretended miracles, pious frauds, the worship of saints, veneration of relics, ascetic severities, monastic superstitions, the pomp of bishops, and a secular spirit marked the triumph of Christianity over paganism. The Church was united to the State, and the profession of the new faith was made a necessary qualification for the enjoyment of civil rights. But the Church was now distinguished for great men, who held high rank, theologians, and bishops, like Augustine, Ambrose, Chrysostom, Gregory, Nazianzin, Basil, Eusebius, and Martin of Tours.
Death of Theodosius. Arcadius and Honorius.
Theodosius died in Milan, in the arms of Ambrose, A.D. 395, and with him the genius of Rome expired, and the real drama of the fall of the empire began. He was succeeded by his two sons, Arcadius and Honorius, the one in the East and the other in the West, the former being under the tutelage of Rufinus, the latter under the care of Stilicho, master-general of the armies. Both emperors were unworthy or unequal to maintain their inheritances. The barbarians gained fresh courage from the death of Theodosius, and recommenced their ravages. The soldiers of the empire were dispirited and enervated, and threw away their defensive armor. They even were not able to bear the weight of the cuirass and helmet, and the heavy weapons of their ancestors were exchanged for the bow. Thus they were exposed to the deadly missiles of their enemies, and fled upon the approach of danger. Gainas the Goth, who commanded the legions, slew Rufinus in the presence of Arcadius, who abandoned himself at Constantinople to the influence of the eunuch Eutropius, most [pg 635] celebrated for introducing Chrysostom to the court. The eunuch minister soon after was murdered in a tumult, and Arcadius was then governed by his wife Eudoxia, who secured the banishment of Chrysostom.
Final division of the empire.
The empire was now finally divided. A long succession of feeble princes reigned in the East, ruled by favorites and women, at whose courts the manners and customs of Oriental kings were introduced. The Eastern empire now assumes the character of an Eastern monarchy, and henceforth goes by the name of the Greek empire, at first, embracing those countries bounded by the Adriatic and Tigris, but gradually narrowed to the precincts of Constantinople. It lasted for one thousand years longer, before it was finally subdued by the Turks. The history of the Greek empire properly belongs to the mediæval ages. It is our object to trace the final fall of the Western empire.
Alaric. Defeat of the Goths. Stilicho.
Under Honorius, the Visigoths, ruled by Alaric, appear in history as a great and warlike people. Stilicho, the general of Honorius, encountered them unsuccessfully in two campaigns, in Macedonia and Thessaly, and the degenerate cities of Greece purchased their preservation at an enormous ransom. In the year 402, Alaric crossed the Alps, and Honorius fled to the marshes of Ravenna, where, protected by the shallow sea, the Western emperors a long time resided. Stilicho gained, however, a great victory over the Goths at Pollentia, near Turin, and arrested the march of Alaric upon Rome. The defeated Goth rose, however, superior to this defeat, celebrated by the poet Claudian, as the greatest victory which Rome had ever achieved. He escaped with the main body of his cavalry, broke through the passes of the Apennines, spread devastation on the fruitful fields of Tuscany, resolved to risk another battle for the great prize he aimed to secure, even imperial Rome. But Stilicho purchased the retreat of the Goths by a present of forty thousand pounds of gold. The departure of Alaric from Italy, which he had ravaged, was regarded by the Roman people as a [pg 636] complete and final deliverance, and they abandoned themselves to absurd rejoicings and gladiatoral shows.