Chapter 44
Original Latin
112 hunc unum diem, unum, inquam, hodiernum diem, hoc punctum temporis, quo loquor, defende, si potes. cur armatorum corona senatus saeptus est, cur me tui satellites cum gladiis audiunt, cur valvae Concordiae non patent, cur homines omnium gentium maxime barbaros, Ituraeos, cum sagittis deducis in forum? praesidi sui causa se facere dicit. non igitur miliens perire est melius quam in sua civitate sine armatorum praesidio non posse vivere? sed nullum est istuc, mihi crede, praesidium: caritate te et benevolentia civium saeptum oportet esse, non armis.
113 eripiet et extorquebit tibi ista populus Romanus, utinam salvis nobis! sed quoquo modo nobiscum egeris, dum istis consiliis uteris, non potes, mihi crede, esse diuturnus. etenim ista tua minime avara coniunx quam ego sine contumelia describo nimium diu debet populo Romano tertiam pensionem. habet populus Romanus ad quos gubernacula rei publicae deferat: qui ubicumque terrarum sunt, ibi omne est rei publicae praesidium vel potius ipsa res publica, quae se adhuc tantum modo ulta est, nondum recuperavit. habet quidem certe res publica adulescentis nobilissimos paratos defensores. quam volent illi cedant otio consulentes; tamen a re publica revocabuntur. et nomen pacis dulce est et ipsa res salutaris; sed inter pacem et servitutem plurimum interest. pax est tranquilla libertas, servitus postremum malorum omnium, non modo bello sed morte etiam repellendum.
114 quod si se ipsos illi nostri liberatores e conspectu nostro abstulerunt, at exemplum facti reliquerunt. illi quod nemo fecerat fecerunt. Tarquinium Brutus bello est persecutus, qui tum rex fuit cum esse Romae licebat; Sp. Cassius, Sp. Maelius, M. Manlius propter suspicionem regni appetendi sunt necati: hi primum cum gladiis non in regnum appetentem, sed in regnantem impetum fecerunt. quod cum ipsum factum per se praeclarum est atque divinum, tum expositum ad imitandum est, praesertim cum illi eam gloriam consecuti sint quae vix caelo capi posse videatur. etsi enim satis in ipsa conscientia pulcherrimi facti fructus erat, tamen mortali immortalitatem non arbitror contemnendam.
Musean translation
Complete machine-assisted Musean translation made directly from the Latin in separate source-only tasks; all 46 chapters and 119 sections retained. Source-language model review is recorded with the raw witness. Latin transcription: Perseus Project, Tufts University, CC BY-SA 4.0; this adaptation uses the same license.
112 Defend this one day—this one day, I say, today—this instant in which I am speaking, if you can. Why is the Senate hemmed in by a ring of armed men? Why do your henchmen listen to me with swords in their hands? Why are the doors of Concord’s temple not open? Why do you bring into the Forum, with their arrows, men of the most barbarous of all peoples, the Ituraeans? He says he does it for his own protection. Then is it not better to die a thousand times than to be unable to live in one’s own country without an armed guard? But that is no protection, believe me. You ought to be surrounded by your fellow citizens’ affection and goodwill, not by weapons.
113 The Roman people will tear those weapons from you and wrench them away—may we survive to see it! But however you treat us, believe me, you cannot last long while you pursue those designs. Indeed, that wife of yours, so free from greed—I describe her without insult—has owed the Roman people a third installment for far too long. The Roman people have men to whom they can entrust the helm of state. Wherever in the world those men may be, there lies the republic’s entire defense—or rather, the republic itself, which so far has only avenged itself, not yet recovered itself. The republic certainly has young men of the highest birth ready to defend it. Let them withdraw as far as they please in the interests of peace: the republic will call them back. The name of peace is sweet, and peace itself brings safety; but there is all the difference in the world between peace and slavery. Peace is freedom undisturbed; slavery is the worst of all evils, to be repelled not only by war but even by death.
114 And if those liberators of ours have removed themselves from our sight, they have still left us the example of their deed. They did what no one had done. Brutus pursued Tarquin in war, a man who had been king when kingship was lawful at Rome. For suspected designs on kingship, Spurius Cassius, Spurius Maelius and Marcus Manlius were put to death. These men were the first to attack with swords not someone aspiring to reign, but someone reigning. Their deed is in itself splendid and divine; it also stands before us to be imitated, especially since they have attained a glory that heaven itself seems scarcely able to contain. Though the consciousness of so noble a deed was reward enough in itself, I do not think a mortal should despise immortality.
Plain English translation
Complete machine-assisted Plain English translation made independently and directly from the Latin in separate source-only tasks, not from the Musean edition or a historical English translation; all 46 chapters and 119 sections retained. Latin transcription: Perseus Project, Tufts University, CC BY-SA 4.0; this adaptation uses the same license.
112 Defend this one day, if you can. Just one, I say—this very day. This moment, as I’m talking. Why does a ring of armed men surround the Senate? Why do your henchmen listen to me with swords? Why aren’t the Temple of Concord’s doors open? Why do you bring Ituraeans with arrows into the Forum? They’re the most savage people of all. He says he’s doing it for his protection. Isn’t dying a thousand times better than that? Better than needing armed guards to live in your own city? But believe me, that isn’t real protection. You need your fellow citizens’ love and goodwill around you, not weapons.
113 Rome’s people will rip those weapons away from you. They’ll wrench them from your hands. I hope we come through unharmed! But whatever you do to us, you can’t last long. Believe me, not while you follow these plans. Your wife isn’t greedy at all. I say that without any insult. She owes Rome’s people a third installment. And it’s far past due. Rome’s people have men they can hand the state’s helm to. Wherever those men are in the world, all the republic’s protection is there. Better still, the republic itself is there. So far, it has only avenged itself. It hasn’t won itself back. The republic certainly has young nobles ready to defend it. They can give way as much as they like for peace. The republic will still call them back. The word “peace” sounds sweet. Peace itself brings safety. But peace and slavery are very different things. Peace means freedom without disturbance. Slavery is the worst evil of all. We must fight it off with war, even with death.
114 Our liberators may have removed themselves from our sight. But their deed remains an example. They did something nobody had done before. Brutus fought a war against Tarquin. Tarquin was king when Rome still allowed kings. Spurius Cassius, Spurius Maelius, and Marcus Manlius were killed on suspicion of seeking kingship. These men were the first to attack with swords, not someone seeking kingship, but someone already ruling as king. The deed itself is magnificent and godlike. And it’s there for others to copy. Besides, those men have won such glory! Heaven itself hardly seems big enough to hold it. Knowing they’d done something so wonderful was reward enough. Still, I don’t think a mortal should dismiss immortality.
About this section
Chapter 44 is part of Second Philippic by Marcus Tullius Cicero. This page sets the Latin original beside 2 direct-source translations, so any line can be checked against the source. It is chapter 44 of 46 in the work, which is kept in the Roman tradition.
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