In Factorum et Dictorum Memorabilium 4.7.5, Valerius Maximus recounts the death of Publius Caelius (the Roman commander at Placentia during the civil wars of the 80s BC). He portrays it as a tragic assisted suicide driven by old age, severe illness, and a refusal to be captured by the approaching Cinnan army. [1, 2]

Rather than focusing solely on Caelius, the passage serves as a moral exemplum highlighting the profound loyalty (pietas) and gratitude of his social subordinate, Lucius Petronius, who aided Caelius in death and then took his own life. [1, 2]

The Latin Text

The specific portion of Valerius Maximus 4.7.5 detailing the final sequence is as follows: [1]

"...erat ob Octauio consule Placentiae praepositus Caelius. qua a Cinnano exercitu capta et senior iam et graui ualitudine adfectus, ne in potestatem hostium ueniret, ad auxilium dexterae Petroni confugit. quem is ab incepto consilio frustra conatus abstrahere in isdem supremis necessitatibus comes illi datus est: nam et Caelius iugulo eius ferro coniecto mortis securitatem accepit, et Petronius dominum adfectu sequi quam superesse maluit." [1]

English Translation

"...Caelius had been placed in charge of Placentia by the consul Octavius. When the city was captured by Cinna's army, being already an old man and afflicted by severe illness, he fled to the help of Petronius' right hand so that he would not fall into the power of the enemy. Petronius, having tried in vain to dissuade him from his intended plan, became his companion in those ultimate, inevitable moments: for Caelius, once the blade was driven into his throat [by Petronius], received the safety of death, and Petronius preferred to follow his master out of affection rather than survive him." [1, 2, 3]

Key Linguistic and Narrative Features

• The Motive: Caelius is motivated by a combination of external threat (ne in potestatem hostium ueniret- "lest he fall into enemy hands") and physical frailty (senior iam et graui ualitudine adfectus). [1, 2]
• The Method: The phrase ad auxilium dexterae Petroni confugit ("fled to the assistance of Petronius' right hand") introduces the assisted suicide. It culminating in iugulo eius ferro coniecto ("the blade having been driven into his throat"), illustrating the graphic physical reality of the death blow. [1]
• The Philosophical Twist: Valerius oxymoronically calls Caelius’s violent death mortis securitatem ("the safety/security of death"), framing suicide as a logical refuge from the political vengeance of the Cinnan forces. [1, 2]
• The Reciprocal Sacrifice: The emphasis immediately shifts away from Caelius's death to Petronius’s choice to die with him (comes illi datus est), driven by an emotional refusal to outlive his patron (sequi quam superesse maluit). [1, 2]

I can translate other segments of this section or provide historical context on the Siege of Placentia and the Cinna-Octavius conflict. Would you like to explore that? [1, 2, 3]