Tacitus, Annals, 15.20­-23, 33­-45. Latin Text, Study Aids with Vocabulary, and Commentary, 2013a

turned into an implicit threat to Nero. Cassius Dio (cited above) suggests
that Torquatus gave away his wealth as a safety measure, to pre-empt being
murdered to fill the imperial purse. Under Nero, plain to see, it’s damned if
you do and damned if you don’t.
We are still hearing the charges made against him. The
use of quin (‘moreover’) here helps the accusers to magnify his treason. All
large Roman households had freedmen in senior positions who managed
the business and administrative responsibilities of their masters.
Under the Republic, these
titles would have been common in noble households. However, with the
imperial household becoming the centre of power, these titles became
essentially offices of state, which in turn meant that their use by anyone else
but the emperor could be interpreted as a sign that this person harboured
hopes of usurping the throne. The polysyndeton again exaggerates the
number of Torquatus’ crimes.
The genitive of quality summae
curae (‘of the highest, i.e. imperial, administration’) goes with both nomina
and meditamenta (a Tacitean neologism for meditatio). Nero’s henchmen
charge Torquatus with putting on a dress-rehearsal for his ascent to the
throne, which implies that he is plotting Nero’s overthrow.
35.3 tum intimus quisque libertorum vincti abreptique; et cum damnatio
intimus quisque libertorum vincti abreptique [sc. sunt]Nero’s henchmen
go for Torquatus’ key servants: intimus quisque (singular in form, but plural
in sense – hence the verbs are in the plural) refers to those whom he held
in closest confidence.
Torquatus knew which way the wind was blowing and took the usual way
out while the final verdict was still outstanding: ‘Suicide was employed
(A. 6,29) to anticipate condemnation, and to ensure an easier death, proper