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The Sack of Rome in AD

Michele Renee Salzman

Memory and Meaning. Pagans and

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Deutsches Archologisches Institut Rom

The Sack of Rome in AD

The Event, its Context and its Impact

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November

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Michele Renee Salzman
Memory and Meaning
Pagans and
it is dangerous to generalize too directly from the
political discourse generated by activists and politi-
cal professionals to the ideas and beliefs of ordinary
citizens, even if the latter are sympathetic with move-
ment groups. But it is also the case that if discourse
has no resonance with the public it would fade in
prominence1.
The sieges that led to Alarics sack of Rome in the course of this book []. It is a mistake to see
challenged the religious faith of many Romans; what
kind of a God allowed this catastrophe? In the imme-
diate aftermath of the events of August , and
though , Augustine tried to answer the doubts raised
by these events for his North African congregants with
a series of sermons. In one sermon he vividly articulates
his audiences concerns as a dialog between a Roman,
whom he calls a pagan, and a perplexed Christian:
But what can I [the Christian] say to the pagan 2 . He
[the pagan] is insulting me.
Whats he [the pagan] saying to you? How is he in-
sulting you?
Look, when we used to sacrifice to our gods, Rome
continued to stand. Now, because the sacrifices of
your God have won the day and been so frequent-
ly offered, and the sacrifices of our gods have been
stopped and forbidden, look what Rome suffers3.
Augustines pagan, like his Christian neighbor, explains
the events that led to as the result of divine anger; in
a series of hostile, confrontational questions, the pagan
raises doubts about the benefits of Christianity and the
present calamities are explained as the result of the dis-
ruption of traditional religion.
Yet, according to Alan Camerons recent book, The
Last Pagans of Rome, no good evidence exists to suggest
Williams , .
Augustine uses the term pagan here with derogatory
intent, as do several other of the Christian sources be-
low. Though the term pagan or Hellene may not have
been originally pejorative, as Cameron , has
argued, the use of this term by Augustine and fifth cen-
tury Christian leaders cited in this paper represented
this group as the other in pejorative contexts. Where
the word pagan is not explicitly used and hence trans-
lated, I will refer to non-Christians and non-Jews as
traditional religionists.
that the pagan in this work or those in the early fifth
century texts to be discussed below were in any kind of
open conflict with Christians or even were a significant
concern to church or state:
It has traditionally been assumed that paganism re-
mained dominant well into the fifth century. This is
little more than speculation, based not on evidence
but assumptions, assumptions that will be reassessed
the occasional pagan prefect in the first decade or two
of the fifth century as proof that paganism remained
strong and anti-pagan legislation ineffective. Heresy
was the real worry for both church and court. As far
as paganism was concerned, it was enough that there
was no more sacrifice and the temples were closed.
The stragglers would soon come over; the conversion
of the few remaining pagans mattered little to the
church or the state4 .
If Camerons view is correct, the aggressive pagan in
Augustines sermon is no more than a rhetorical con-
struct, born out of a tradition of apologetic literature,
good for Christians to think with. But is Cameron
right? Was there, in Peter Browns words, no place for
resentment, for regret, still less for anger at the success
of so much blasphemy against the gods and continued,
unspoken fear of their vengeance?5 Was there no pagan
response incited by the fall of Rome?
It seems likely that in the early fifth century some
traditional religionists survived and expressed such
emotions in responding to the events that led to the
sack of Rome in . I say this knowing that we do not
have much in the way of direct testimony from pagans.
What survives, in most cases, are hostile Christian
Aug. serm. ,, translation here and throughout by
E. Hill (New York ) with adaptations by author.
Sed quid dico pagano? insultat mihi. Quid tibi dicit?
unde tibi insultat? Ecce quando faciebamus sacrificia
diis nostris, stabat Roma; modo quia superavit et abun-
davit sacrificium Dei vestri, et inhibita sunt et prohibita
sacrificia deorum nostrorum, ecce quid patitur Roma.
Cameron , and . In agreement with Cam-
erons vies of the conversion of the empire, see Barnes
and Barnes .
Brown , .

representations of pagans which, as Rita Lizzi Testa
noted, are often apt to exaggerate6 . That our sourc-
es are such is because most of the extant fifth century
texts are written by Christians, and Christianity did, in
time, silence alternative religious choices, whether they
were pagan, heretical Christian, or Jewish. Nonetheless,
by reading certain texts by Christians against the grain,
in conjunction with some few texts by traditional reli-
gionists, I propose that we can discern a particular set of
identifiable pagan emotions and attitudes in response
to the fall of Rome, the memory of which was part of an
ongoing dialogue over the nature of divine power and
religious tradition in relation to the Roman state.
In my view, depictions of pagan attitudes and emo-
tions in Christian texts worked because they resonated
with their respective audiences. And they resonated, I
contend, because they were familiar enough from con-
temporaries, as well as from texts and popular culture 7.
So, while Cameron is certainly right that pagans did
not turn to leading a political party after as it was
once argued, there is good evidence to indicate that
traditional religionists survived into the early fifth
century and expressed their anger and fear, remem-
bering the fall of Rome as a sign of divine anger and
raising the kinds of troubling questions attributed to
them by Christian leaders8 . Indeed, such emotions at
times spilled out into violence in the fifth century in
the west as in the east9. That some Christians were feel-
ing equally susceptible to such emotions and to pagan
interpretations only made it all the more important for
Christian leaders to confront pagan explanations of
the meaning of .
To interpret how pagans felt and responded to , I
will begin, in part one of this paper, by focusing on the
sermons of two Christian leaders who discussed the
Lizzi Testa , .
Madden , , in her study of the pagan deities and
their worship exclusive of the City of God concludes:
[] it was not necessary that he (Augustine) should
give complete characterizations of ceremonial rites,
the duties of the organized priesthoods, and the pro-
cedure in festivals held in honor of the pagan gods, as
these were details with which the people of that time
were quite familiar. [] [Augustine included referenc-
es to the pagan divinities and their worship since he ]
made a direct appeal to his contemporaries to abandon
every vestige of paganism and to grasp the full signifi-
cance of Christianity.
For those who have construed the pagan response to
the sieges of Alaric and the sack as political, see Heinz-
berger , ; Matthews , ; and Kahlos, , passim calls Christian bishops and lead-
Demandt Brummer , . See too the dis- ers opinion makers.
cussion by Cameron , .
Michele Renee Salzman
sack, namely Augustine, who preached on this topic in
, and the bishop of Rome, Leo, who also preached
on the sack in the s. Because we know their sermons
were not only preached to their respective congrega-
tions in North Africa and Rome, but also circulated to
wider audiences of clerics and lay people from a range
of places and social classes, their depictions of pagans
takes on a potentially wider meaning10. Moreover, the
pagans they depict are not just the educated elite, of-
ten Neoplatonists, so often discussed in scholarship on
late Roman traditional religion. Both Augustines and
Leos sermons depict generic pagans who were hostile
and fearful of divine retribution, blaming the barbari-
an invasions and sack on the disruption of traditional
religion.
As these two bishops make their case, they both adopt
what sociologists tell us is typical for leaders when they
aim to construct a group identity; both men compare
and contrast their group with those whom they iden-
tify as the moral other against which ones own group
stands as a bulwark. This political demonizing, as Rhys
Williams has shown in the modern world, is a com-
mon outcome of the symbolic discourse of politics11.
But this strategy only succeeds because the discourse
has resonance; it if lacked this, as Williams notes, it
would fade in prominence12 . Precisely because pagans
and their interpretation of still had resonance into
the mid-fifth century, Christian opinion makers con-
tinued to depict pagans as angry, resentful, and fearful
of divine retribution for failing to sacrifice and venerate
the pagan deities13. That this rhetoric was still relevant
explains why it was still used in the mid-fifth century
sermons of Leo ().
To better understand responses to by traditional
religionists, it will be necessary to turn, in part two of
Salzman , .
For the copying, editing and circulation of Augustines
sermons, see De Bruyn , , and Hill ,
introduction who notes the testimony of Possid. vita
Aug. , to people making copies of Augustines ser-
mons and keeping of copies in the library at Hippo
where some were revised as well as made available. For
Leos sermons, see CCSL , cxciii (ed. A.Chavasse);
and Neil , . As to the preachers audience, I
do not agree with Macmullen , , but rath-
er with Rousseau , , who sees Christian
preachers as able to reach a wide audience with their
rhetoric.
Williams , .
Williams , , cited as the epigram to this paper.
Memory and Meaning

this paper, to the evidence for how pagans interpreted
the meaning of ; this is based largely on the work of
the historian Olympiodorus, whose history was used by
later fifth and sixth century historians14 . Pagans, as the
New History of Zosimus demonstrates, remembered
as the failure of correct religious procedures. Zosimus,
depending on Olympiodorus, blamed the Christians for
the demise of the city and its empire15. In sharp con-
trast, Christian historians, like Sozomen and Orosius,
sought to remember these events as just punishment by
god, a view that we can also see in the earlier sermons
of Augustine and Leo.
This papers attempt at retrieving responses of tradi-
tional religionists even on the level of feelings and at-
titudes along with an appreciation of conflicting views
of divine power that lay at the heart of debates over the
meaning of is highly relevant to the historical
understanding of this period. On the one hand, the re-
trieval of a traditional religionist response better allows
us to assess the argumentation and rhetorical tools of
Christian leaders. The depictions of pagans as morally
other is a kind of violence which, though non-violent,
was effectively used by Christian leaders16 . On the other
hand, reconstructing responses of traditional religion-
ists bears on the much vexed question of the religious
transformation of the city and empire. If the respons-
es of traditional religionists and their interpretations
of the period were ongoing concerns to fifth should interpret the sack. The text suggests that some in
century Christian leaders, we cannot agree with those
scholars who see the conversion of the empire as more
or less ended by the fourth century in the western em-
pire17. The religious transformation of Rome, its city and
empire, remained a concern for the church and the state
into the fifth century. Though pagans were no longer in
the majority and were declining in numbers, recon-
structing their emotions and arguments about contem-
porary events helps us to better understand how the
empire moved from a pagan to a post-pagan world. In
this transformation, bishops used pagans to reinforce
the collective identity of their Christian communities
whose faith was challenged by the fall of Rome to Alar-
ic18 . Pagans remembered these same events quite dif-
ferently.
Christian constructions of pagan responses to
Augustines Sermons on the Sack of Rome
Augustine preached some eight sermons between
that refer, directly or indirectly, to the sack of Rome19.
I want to begin with Sermon , noted above, though
it was delivered late in since it offers an instance of
a pagan response as a challenge to Christians. Indeed,
the date for this sermon was in itself significant; Sermon
was preached on the birthday of Romes two patron
saints, Peter and Paul, June , , likely in Carthage20.
Augustine devotes almost half of the sermon (sections
out of ) to helping his audience better respond to
insulting pagans and thus explaining how Christians
his audience had fled Rome and some Christians were
feeling disillusioned21. Some Christians wondered why
the memoriae of the apostles and other martyrs had not
saved the city from destruction; they, like their pagan
neighbors, saw such places as holy sites and expected

See notes below for Olympiodorus text and Denis ; Miscellanea Agostiniana [Rome ],
some relevant. , ; serm. (= PL , ); serm. (=
See notes below for Zosimuss text and some rel- serm. Casin. , ; Miscellanea Agostiniana
evant bibliography. ,); serm. (= PL ,); ser. urb. exc.
Shaw , : Violence is not just the specific (= CCSL , ). For these sermons studied as
acts of physical hostility [] But also the surrounding a unit, see especially, Fredouille ; De Bruyn ;
world of speech and writing of which these acts were a and Doignon .
living part. Hill, , n..
Cameron , is a sophisticated analysis ex- Aug. serm. ,: Sic et tu nolebas quid? forte amittere
ploring what the end of paganism would mean, and peculium tuum, quod hic relicturus eras? Attende ne
for pagan converts as essentially a fourth cen- cum relinquendo remaneas. Nolebas ante te mori forte
tury phenomenon among the aristocracy. See too, dis- filium tuum, nolebas ante te mori uxorem tuam. Quid
cussions of the conversion of the empire based on high enim, et si Roma non caperetur, non aliquis vestrum
office holders as taking place with Constantine, e. g. prior moriturus erat? Nolebas ante te mori uxorem
Barnes and Barnes . tuam; nolebat uxor tua mori ante se virum suum: am-
Brown , . bobus obtemperaturus erat Deus? Ordo penes ipsum
Aug. serm. a (= serm. Denis , CCSL , ); sit, qui novit ordinare quod creavit: obtempera tu vol-
serm. Denis A (= serm. Denis ; CCSL ,); untati.
Sermon (= CCSL,); Sermon A (= serm.

them to offer protection to worshippers22 . Augustines
sermon indicates that there were those in his audience
who, though Christian, shared the perspective of the
pagan interlocutor. Some pagans, according to Augus-
tine, claimed that the sack was the direct result of the
end of sacrifices and interpreted the fall of the city as a
sign of divine wrath23.
Explaining the sack as the result of the anger of the
gods accords well with pagan notions of divinity. This
explanation was clearly influencing the Christians in Au-
gustines audience, which is why Augustine counsels con-
gregants to stop discussing these matters with pagans:
For the time being, give him [the insulting pagan] a
very short answer, to get rid of him. You, however,
should have quite other thoughts. You werent called,
after all, to embrace the earth, but to obtain heaven
[]24 .
Augustine attacks the pagan interlocutor as a lover of
worldly felicity and grumbler against the living God,
who prefers to serve demons and sticks and stones25.
Augustines dismissal of the pagan as morally inferior
is an effective rhetorical tool that allowed him to reen-
force Christian group identity. Yet even so, Augustine
cannot so easily ignore the grumblings of pagans. He
continues to address them by turning to events from
their history; Rome was burnt twice under pagan gods,
once by the Gauls and once by Nero, and only once un-
der Christian times!26
Going against his own advice to stop conversing with
pagans, Augustine repeats the arguments of the pagan
who complains that the present disaster is worse than
Aug. serm. , : Iacet Petri corpus Romae, dicunt
homines, iacet Pauli corpus Romae, Laurentii corpus
Romae, aliorum martyrum sanctorum corpora iacent
Romae; et misera est Roma, et vastatur Roma; affligi-
tur, conteritur, incenditur; tot strages mortis fiunt, per
famem, per pestem, per gladium. Ubi sunt Memoriae
Apostolorum? Quid dicis? Ecce hoc dixi: Tanta mala
Roma patitur; ubi sunt Memoriae Apostolorum? Ibi
sunt, ibi sunt sed in te non sunt.
Aug. serm. ,, cited above note.
Aug. serm. ,: vocatus es ad felicitatem terrenam,
sed ad caelestem; non ad temporales successus et pros-
peritatem volaticam et transitoriam, sed ad aeternam
cum angelis vitam.
Aug. serm. ,: Tamen et huic amatori carnalis fe-
licitatis, et murmuratori adversus Deum vivum, volenti
servire daemoniis et lignis et lapidibus, cito responde.
Aug. serm. , : Sicut habet historia eorum, incen-
dium Romanae urbis hoc tertium est; sicut habet his-
toria eorum, sicut habent litterae ipsorum, incendium
Romanae urbis, quod modo contigit, tertium est. Quae
modo semel arsit inter sacrificia Christianorum, iam
Michele Renee Salzman
the past ones and criticizes the Christian god who has
not protected his followers. This argument reiterates
common ancient expectations of reciprocity between
worshipper and divinity.
It is the strength of this criticism that leads Augus-
tine to assert that it was the distinctive mark of the
Christian to endure temporal evils so as to hope for ev-
erlasting goods. The promise of eternal rewards cannot
satisfy the pagan, however, since he is limited to want-
ing earthly satisfactions, and indeed, Augustines pagan
interlocutor goes on to bemoan the rising number of
devastations under the Christian god27.
In the face of criticism of the inability of the Christian
god to protect his worshippers, Augustine takes another
line of argument. Augustine proclaims the need to turn
away from the pagan; in the basilica where Christians
and non-Christians (including potential pagan con-
verts) could listen, he turns his attention to Christians:
Right now, brothers and sisters, lets leave the pagans
out of it for a moment or two, lets turn our eyes on our-
selves28 . Augustine admonishes his audience to con-
sider their own flaws and sins, to be angry not at God,
but at themselves; for their sins they are being punished
by earthly catastrophes29. He develops the parable of
the two slaves; both are disobedient, but the one who
knows true God will be beaten more than the one who
does not. Hence, the Christian is suffering so that he
can act better than his pagan neighbor. Better to suffer
now, than for eternity, as will be the fate of the pagans
who are now insulting Christians by underscoring the
suffering in these Christian times30.
bis arserat inter sacrificia paganorum. Semel a Gallis
sic incensa est, ut solus collis Capitolinus remaneret;
secundo a Nerone, nescio utrum dicam saeviente an
fluente, secundo igne Roma flagravit. Iussit Nero im-
perator ipsius Romae, servus idolorum, interfector Ap-
ostolorum, iussit, et incensa est Roma. Quare, putatis,
qua causa? Homo elatus, superbus et fluidus delectatus
est Romano incendio. Videre volo, dixit, quomodo ar-
sit Troia. Arsit ergo sic semel, bis, tertio modo: te quid
delectat contra Deum stridere pro ea quae consuevit
ardere?
Aug. serm. ,: Sed in ea, inquiunt, passi sunt tanta
mala tam multi Christiani. Excidit tibi, Christianorum
est pati mala temporalia, et bona sperare sempiterna?
Tu quisquis paganus es, habes quod plangas; quia et
temporalia perdidisti, et aeterna nondum invenisti.
Aug. serm. ,: Iam, fratres, dimittamus paululum
paganos foris, oculum ad nos convertamus. Evangeli-
um praedicatur, totus mundus plenus est. Antequam
Evangelium praedicaretur, latebat voluntas Dei [].
Aug. serm. ,.
Aug. serm. ,.
Memory and Meaning
This pagan questioning of the ability of the Christian
god to help human worshippers is a continuing problem
for Christians and is so discussed frequently in Augus-
tines sermons; it is the same issue at the heart of Ser-
mon , preached in , likely in Carthage soon after
Sermon 31. Again the audience is concerned about
the recent destruction, hence Augustine devotes five of
the thirteen sections of this sermon (sections ) to
its interpretation. Here Augustine claims that pagans
and even some Christians are attacking him:
But he shouldnt say these things about Rome,
people have been saying about me. Oh, if only he
would shut up about Rome! As though I were hurl-
ing taunts, and not rather interceding with the Lord,
and in whatever way I can be encouraging you. Far
be it from me to hurl taunts. [] So what am I saying,
when I dont shut up about Rome , other than what
they say about our Christ is false, that its he that has
ruined Rome, that gods of stone and wood used to
protect Rome? Add the value of bronze; add more,
that of silver and gold [] There you have the sort of
guardians to whom learned men (docti homines) have
entrusted Rome, having eyes and unable to see. Or if
they were able to save Rome, why did they themselves
perish before?32
Augustine states that learned men (docti homines)
are blaming Christ for the ruin of the empire. Within
the context of this sermon, this must refer to pagans
who advance the worship of idols instead of devotion
to Christ33. Pagans connected the loss of idols and rites
with the sack for Augustine notes that on account of
these adversities they blaspheme our Christ34 . His ref-
erence to damaged idols is also an allusion to contem-
porary imperial policy; the closure of temples and the
Perler , for this date. Augustine mentions phemant Christum nostrum.
Carthage in Sermon ,.
Aug. serm. ,: Sed non dicat de Roma, dictum est
de me: O si taceat de Roma: quasi ego insultator sim,
et non potius Domini deprecator, et vester qualiscum-
que exhortator. Absit a me, ut insultem. Avertat Deus
a corde meo, et a dolore conscientiae meae. [] Quid
ergo dico, cum de illa non taceo, nisi quia falsum est
quod dicunt de Christo nostro, quod ipse Romam per-
diderit, quod dii lapidei Romam tuebantur et lignei?
Adde pretium, aerei. Adde plus, argentei et aurei []
Ecce qualibus Romam docti homines custodibus com-
miserunt, habentibus oculos, et non videntibus. Aut si
Romam servare potuerunt, quare ipsi ante perierunt?
Some scholars have attributed these remarks to Chris-
tians, but in the light of the criticism of Christ, pagans
seem the only possible source. For diverse opinions on
this, see De Bruyn , notes and .
Aug. serm. ,: propter istas adversitates blas-
removal of images had been reiterated by recent laws
of Honorius in /35. So, Augustine argues, some
cities, like Carthage, had remained safe even though its
idols, in this case the cult of Caelestis, had been over-
thrown36 . Despite this rhetoric, when the bishop of
Carthage in tried to celebrate Easter in Caelestiss
shrine and attempted to close it to pagans, there was
a widespread outbreak of pagan unrest, fueled too by
a pagan prophecy that Caelestis herself would restore
pagan rites37.
Pagans were arguing that the Christian disrespect for
cult statues had angered the gods, and had led to the
barbarian invasions that destroyed Rome. In Sermon
, Augustine once more turns to history to counter
this criticism, though here to more recent history. Rad-
agaisus, labeled a pagan, had threatened Rome, leading
some pagans to claim that the loss of their traditional
gods and rites had brought this disaster upon Rome.
Radagiasuss defeat at the hands of Christian soldiers in
is said to prove the power of the Christian god38 .
Ironically, Augustine is here using the same line of rea-
soning as pagans by arguing that the true god is the
one who can bring victory, although this view was cer-
tainly familiar for it had been advanced by Christians
for over a century39. Perhaps it is in part the weakness of
this argument, given the reality of the fall of Rome, that
brings Augustine back to his earlier line of reasoning,
namely to assert that such things are merely fleeting
concerns; and so he can dismiss pagans for chasing af-
ter earthly things, desiring earthly things, placing their
hopes in earthly things40. Only Christians will be hap-
py for eternity because they have dismissed the value of
the temporal world, an argument that Augustine will
develop at length about the two cities in the civitas dei.
Cod. Theod. , , (/), and again Cod. Theod.
, , ().
Aug. serm. ,: Carthago in nomine Christi manet,
et olim eversa est Coelestis, quia non fuit coelestis, sed
terrestris.
Quodv. prom. ,,; Salv. gub. ,,. ; ,,. See
too Salzman , .
Aug. serm. ,. Radagaisuss assault led the pagans
in Rome to reconsider sacrifice and the City seethed
with blasphemy; see Oros. hist. ,,. Augustine
returns to this set of ideas in Aug. civ. ,.
See, for example, Eusebius on Constantine, and Drake
.
Aug. serm. ,: Isti autem blasphematores, terrena
sectantes, terrena desiderantes, in terrenis spem po-
nentes, cum ista velint nolint perdiderint, quid tene-
bunt? ubi remanebunt?
 Michele Renee Salzman

It is striking, nonetheless, that in the wake of , pa-
gans and Christians turned to the same proof texts to
make some meaning out of recent events. The prophecy
of Jupiter in Aeneid , predicting that the em- the theme Augustine accents again in another sermon,
pire of the Romans would be without end was known
to all school childern, and became part of the pagan in-
terpretation of , as it was for Christians. The eterni-
ty of Romes empire, predicted by Jupiter, depended on
divine support; denigration of the state cult and failure
to sacrifice would thus threaten the survival of the state,
or so pagans would argue. Augustine also accepts this
text as true, but reads the prediction allegorically; the
empire without end promised to the Romans is that
of the heavenly kingdom, not the earthly Roman one.
The need to rebut these lines emerges if we consider
how widespread this view was. Independent testimony
of this view comes from the survival of a late fourth or
fifth century inscription discovered near the Scala San-
ta in the Lateran; though the original location is uncer-
tain, the inscription reproduces verses of Vergil, includ-
ing the prophecy of an empire without end (,) in the
longest citation of Vergil ever found41. These preserved
lines attest to the popularity of this prophecy, and the
idea of Roma Aeterna in late antiquity, among pagans
and Christians42 . Even Augustine accepts these verses
with his allegorical reading, though it must have been
grating to pagan readers to hear him defending Virgil
by claiming that the poet had been pressured into mak-
ing such an elliptical statement in order to flatter the
emperor43.
Over a two year period of sermonizing, Augustine
developed a set of responses to answer the concerns
of pagans and Christians after the sack. Sermon
A, preached soon after the sack in September ,
makes no direct reference to the sack though it shows
Augustine thinking of how to help Christians explain
adversity. They should not question the reason for
Gods acts, and they should see that the wicked who
thrive now will suffer with eternal judgment44 . This is
delivered three days later, Sermon A. Now, the pa-
gans are branded impious and infidels by Augustine
when they ridicule the faithful45. As Augustine tries to
reenforce his congregations faith, complaints surface
that there are many misfortunes in Christian times!
and that Christianity is the culprit46 . Again, it seems
likely that the attackers are pagans. He refers to them
again as impii and in the next section turns to the
amphitheater in Hippo Diarrhtys and mocks the kind
of piety it teaches: Brothers you see the amphitheat-
er which now falls. Extravagance built that. You think
that piety built it? It was built by none other than the
extravagance of godless men. Dont you wish that what
extravagance built will someday fall down, and that
what piety builds will rise?47 The pagan definition of
piety, writ large in the amphitheatre, was a traditional
object for Christian leaders to denounce48 . But such acts
of piety, branded pagan, continued to fund repairs to
amphitheaters into the fifth century as is perhaps best
demonstrated in Rome49.
According to Augustine, pagans responded to by
blaming the Christians for no longer worshipping the
traditional gods. Pagans pointed to the citys destruc-
tion, and argued on the basis of history and poetry,
notably Vergil. In his sermon On the Destruction of the
City of Rome, Augustine even asserts that some pagans
dared to turn to scripture to mock the Christian god50.
Citing Abrahams intercession with God on behalf of
Sodom51, these men impiously attack our Scriptures
and are not those who search them with reverence;
the impious, who can here be only the pagans, ask
vehement and formidable questions52 . Based on the

Panciera, , ; and the discussion by Ista omnia, mala quibus nos conteris, praedicta erant;
Machado , . securi sumus quia ventura sunt et bona. Quando nos et
Paschoud . mali simul emendamur, fit voluntas tua.
Aug. serm. ,. Aug. serm. A,: Attendite enim, fratres, et videte
Aug. serm. A,. amphitheatra ista, quae modo cadunt. Luxuria illa ae-
Aug. serm. A,: Christianorum fides, quae ab impiis dificavit; putatis, quia illa pietas aedificavit? non illa
et infidelibus irridetur, haec est, quia nos dicimus esse aedificavit nisi luxuria hominum impiorum. Non vultis
aliam vitam post istam. ut aliquando cadat quod luxuria aedificavit, et surgat
Aug. serm. A,: Ecce temporibus Christianis quan- quod pietas aedificat?
ta mala sunt! Ante tempora Christiana quanta bona Kahlos , .
abundabant! Non erant tanta mala. Ista de pressura See, for example, Orlandi .
amurca exit, per cloacas currit; os ipsius propterea ni- Aug. urb. exc., with commentary and text by OReilly
grum est, quia blasphemat: non splendet. Oleum relu- . On the authenticity of this Sermon, see now too
cet. Invenis autem alium hominem de pressura ipsa, et De Bruyn , .
de ipsa tritura quae illum trivit; numquid non ipsa trit- Gen. ,.
ura est, quae illum trivit? Audistis vocem amurcae, au- Aug. exc. urb. (II): Quid ergo dicemus, frater? Occurrit
dite vocem olei: Deo gratias! Benedictum nomen tuum! enim nobis quaestio vehemens et valida, praesertim ab
Memory and Meaning
assumption that God would have saved Rome, just as
he would have saved Sodom, for the sake of at least ten
righteous individuals, the question is raised about this
recent destruction in Rome: In such a great number of
the faithful, in such a great number of chaste men and
women dedicated to God, [] was it impossible to find
fifty just people, or forty, or thirty, or twenty, or even
ten?53 Augustine responds to this paraphrase of Scrip-
ture with the assertion that though there are people in
Rome who are viewed as righteous by commonly ac-
cepted standards, by Gods standards one cannot claim
them to be wholly righteous. Moreover, God showed his
mercy by sparing many of Romes inhabitants, for a city
is more than its houses54 . This important distinction
between the physical city (urbs) and the human com-
munity or commonwealth (civitas) will lie at the heart
of Augustines later work, civitas dei. But in this sermon
Augustine reminds his congretation of in order to
unite the pious Christians against the impious pagans:
And would that this may serve as an example to inspire
fear [] so Rome also has endured a single tribulation,
in which the pious man has either been freed or cor-
rected, the impious has been condemned either to
death and eternal damnation, or a life of blasphemy and
damnation; due to Gods mercy, the city was amended
not destroyed55. Fear and obedience are the lessons of
for Christians according to Augustine.
This lengthy sermon sums up many or Augustines
thoughts on the sack, and for that reason, suggests a
date late in , though time and place are not attest-
ed. Augustine is intent on refuting pagans who dared
to use Scripture to explain the sack of Rome as the fail-
ure of the Christian god. The hostility and vehemence
with which Augustine contests these arguments make
for an engaging sermon. Nonetheless, it seems highly
likely that Augustines rhetoric would not work if the
arguments and attitudes he attributes to pagans did not
resonate with contemporaries. That recently convert-
ed Christians or potential converts might share some
hominibus qui scripturis nostris impietate insidiantur,
non qui eas pietate requirunt; translation by OReilly
, .
Aug exc. urb. (II): et dicunt maxime de recent excid-
io tantae urbis: Non erant Romae quinquaginta isti?
In tanto numero fidelium, sanctimonialium, conti-
nentium [] nec quinquanta iusti inveniri potuerunt,
nec quadraginta, nec triginta, nec viginti, nec decem?;
translation by OReilly , .
Aug exc. urb. (VI): An putatis, fratres, civitatem in
paretibus et non in civibus deputandum?
Aug exc. urb. (): Atque utinam valeat ad exemplum
timoris [] Sic et unam tribulationem Roma pertulit
in qua vel liberatuss vel emendatus est pius, impius
of the doubts of their pagan neighbors, lends urgency
to Augustines interpretation. After all, he had only a
few years earlier preached directly to pagans and to the
uncommitted in the hopes of converting them to Chris-
tianity56 . Lepelley, for one, has showen how an earlier
sermon, entitled Contra Paganos, attacks pagans and
provides evidence for the survival of paganism into the
fifth century57.
Leos Sermon , pagans, and the sack of Rome in
Another, little noted indicator of the pagan response to
is the sermon that Leo, bishop of Rome (),
delivered to commemorate Alarics invasionin late Au-
gust or early September in Rome in the years .
This sermon, , was one of those circulated after the
first five years of the pontificate of Leo; hence it appeared
in a collection in Italy soon after 58 . Leos view of the
sack and how to best interpret its meaning were prom-
ulgated well beyond the day and church where the ser-
mon was delivered.
As Leos Sermon shows, the church at Rome saw
as a religious challenge, of such import that they in-
stituted a day for its commemoration and to give thanks
for the survival of the city. Leos sermon indicates that
the Church in Rome had continued to commemorate the
liberation of Rome down to his own pontificate59. Leos
concern to continue this thanksgiving service reflects in
part contemporary anxieties he faced in the early s.
After the fall of Carthage ( October ), the Vandals
threatened the whole Mediterranean area. They reached
Sicily, and were poised to attack peninsular Italy. Ten-
sions ran high in Rome especially as negotiations con-
tinued until, in , ValentinianIII accepted the treaty
offered by Geiseric, the Vandal leader60. A day to give
thanks and celebrate Romes earlier victory over barbar-
ians may well have attracted crowds. But with the
treaty, the people in Rome could feel safe again61; this
may also help to explain Leos complaint about church
attendance on this day:
autem damanatus, damnatus inquam []; translation
by OReilly , .
See Aug. serm. augm [= ed. F.Dolbeau, Paris ,
]; and B [= ed. F.Dolbeau, Paris , ], both
dated to . For the translation, see Hill ,
.
See Lepelley , .
For this collection of sermons after his first five years
in office, see Chavasse , . ; and Neil , .
Leo M. serm. ,. For the text, see note below.
Gillet .
Chavasse , has suggested this as a reason for
dating Leos Sermon to late . While this scenario
is possible, there is no firm evidence to support such a

The religious devotion with which the whole body of
the faithful used to come together to give thanks to
God for the day of our chastisement and of our lib-
eration, has recently been neglected by almost every-
one, as the very scarcity of the few who were present
has shown. It brings much sadness to my heart and
produces very great anxiety62 . [Italics added by au-
thor]
Such ingratitude is equivalent to impiety since sal-
vation, Leo states, is owed more to the veneration of
the saints (cura sanctorum) than to the circus games
(ludi Circensium) (Sermo ,) []63.
Leo is concerned that Romes salvation be correctly
understood; Let us attribute our deliverance not, as the
impious (impii) think, to the effects of stars, but to the
inexpressible mercy of the Almighty God, who willed to
soften the hearts of raging barbarians64 . The impious
folk impii is Leos term for pagans, and he has so used
it in other contexts, though here he may have extend-
ed it to the Manicheans and to other heretical groups
as well65. Leos reference to the softening of barbarians
hearts (Sermon ,), refers to Alarics departure from
the city after three days of looting. But if it was God
who softened the barbarians hearts, it was the bishop
who had to convey thanks and lead the community in
prayers on this day of chastisement and liberation. For
Leo, the good will of god is maintained through the
prayers of thanks mediated by the bishops intersession.
This is a direct refutation of the views of the impii who
claimed that their gods saved the city.
By assuming responsibility for the survival of the
city, Leo also asserted the centrality of the empire the
temporal realm to the Church. This emphasis on the
city as the care of the bishop helps to explain why Leo
sought to maintain the memory of and thanksgiving
precise dating; rather, any year between must
be allowed, i.e. any time within Leos first five years as
bishop.
Leo M. serm. , (CCSL A, ): Religiosam de-
votionem, dilectissimi, qua ob diem castigationis et
liberationis nostrae, cunctus fidelium populus ad agen-
da Deo gratias confluebat, pene ab omnibus proxime
fuisse neglectam, ipsa paucorum qui adfuerunt raritas
demonstravit.
Leo M. serm. , (CCSL A, ): Quis hanc urbem
reformavit saluti? Quis a captivitate eruit? Quis a ca-
ede defendit? Ludus Circensium, an cura sanctorum,
quorum utique precibus divinae censurae flexa senten-
tia est.
Leo M. serm. , (CCSL A, ): [] et libera- nostrarum elemosinarum celebraretur oblatio. Quod
tionem nostram, non, sicut opinantur impii, stellarum
effectibus, sed ineffabili omnipotentis Dei misericordiae
Michele Renee Salzman
for Romes survival in the annual yearly cycle of the
Church. Moreover, Leo claimed that he did so in op-
position to those who supported other means to secure
Romes survival ludi. Leos derogatory references to
the circuses and demons associated with pagans sound
like formulaic topoi66 . But in truth, Honorius had come
to Rome soon after the sack and celebrated games there
in part to reassert the imperial presence in a reviving
city67. Leos hostility toward the games was part of his
sustained opposition to the traditions of Romes sena-
torial aristocratic civic leaders who, soon after the sack
and continuing still, in the s, spent large sums of
monies on the games that competed with the ceremo-
nies in church. A series of inscriptions from the Col-
osseum dating before show how elites and emper-
ors manifested their support for games in this public
space68 . We see this same motivation to compete with
the games when Leo, established a specific day in the
annual calendar of the Roman Church for the Collects,
the collection of charity in the parishes in Rome on the
same day as the Ludi Plebeii in November; he stated,
quite openly, that this day was chosen in order to de-
stroy the snares of the Devil and to be most profitable
to the growth of the Church69.
Leos efforts at undermining rituals now labeled as
pagan in the mid-fifth century city were part of his ef-
fort to redirect traditional patterns of patronage. Mon-
ies spent on the games by Romes lay elite, still tainted
by their pagan associations, would be better spent on
the Christian community in Rome. Hence Leo, like Au-
gustine, portrays such pagan traditions as morally infe-
rior and denigrates them as the work of demons.
Based on frequency of mention, Leo is more con-
cerned about pagans even than Manichees in his ser-
mons. He derides Manichees specifically in eight ser-
deputantes, qui corda furentium barbarorum mitigare
dignatus est.
For impii used of pagans, see Leo M. serm. ,; ,;
,. For Leos concern about Manichees and heretics,
see especially, Maier , .
Kahlos , .
Gillett .
See Orlandi , . and .
Leo M. serm. (CCSL , ): [] ad destruendas
antiqui hostis insidias in die quo impii sub idolorum
suorum nomine diabolo serviebant. Leo M. serm. ,
(CCSL , ): [] ut quia in hoc tempore gentilis
quondam populus superstitiosius daemonibus servie-
bat, contra profanas hostias impiorum sacratissima
quia incrementis Ecclesiae fructuosissimum fuit,
placuit esse perpetuum.
Memory and Meaning
mons, whereas he attacks pagans in sixteen70. The range
of terms to describe pagans varies from impii to gen-
tilis or gens, but the contexts are always derogatory;
nine of the sixteen times pagans are lumped with Jews,
and portrayed as the moral other, and seven times
pagans are derided on their own71. No one would say
that there were not Manichees or Jews in Rome against
whom these sermons were directed; we should not dis-
miss the evidence from Leos sermons that non-Chris-
tians i. e. pagans were also still in Rome, expressing
emotions and explanations for events based on tradi-
tional religious ideas72 . Such attitudes, and the likeli-
hood that Christians would respond positively to such
views, helps explain why they were still perceived as
a problem to mid-fifth century Christian leaders who
were eager to maintain the faith of their congregations.
Pagan interpretations of Alaric and the sack of : the
History of Olympiodorus
Two other extant accounts of the sack of Rome allow
us to discern more clearly how some pagans interpreted
the meaning of ; both are by Greek historians, one
by the late fifth/early sixth century pagan Zosimus, and
the other by the mid-fifth century Christian writer of
Church history, Sozomen; both writers are acknowl-
edged to have relied for their accounts on the now frag-
mentary history of Olympiodorus of Thebes of the years
CE, as demonstrated by their similarities to
the fragments and to each other73. The ninth-century
Byzantine patriarch, Photius, however read the entire
work and, presumably drawing on its preface, noted that
Olympiodorus described himself as a native of Egyptian
Thebes, a professional poet, and a Hellene in his reli-
gion, that is, a pagan74 . The pagan sympathies of Olym-
piodorus are apparent in the fragments and in the works
For Leo on the Manichees, see Leo M. serm. ,; ,;
,; ,; ,; ,; ,; ,. For Leo on pagans, monium, . Photius describes Olympiodorus as
see Leo M. serm. ,; ,; ,; ,; ,; ,; ,; Hellenen ten thraskeian a Hellene in religion.
,; ,; ,; ,; ,; ,; ,; ,; ,. Matthews ; Gillett ; Treadgold ; Cameron
For pagans derided without Jews, see Leo M. serm. ,;
,; ,; ,; ,; ,; , Gillett ; Treadgold ; Cameron , .
For Manichees in the fourth century, see especially
Beduhn ; and for the fifth century, note above;
for Jews in late antiquity, see especially Rutgers .
It is one of the great misfortunes for historians of the
fifth century that what are called the Fragments of
Olympiodorus History of the years CE are re-
ally only the bald summary made of it by the Byzantine
patriarch Photius; see Matthews , and note .
Blockley , prints only Fragments. I will be refer-
ring to his edition in this paper.
Photiuss introduction to Olymp. Bibliotheca cod. ,
based on his history75. Hence, Olympiodoruss history
represents a pagan interpretation of , and records a
pagan response as well.
Olympiodoruss Pagan History
Scholars concur that Olympiodorus was remarkably
well informed about contemporary history in the west
and in the east76 . His position as a diplomat at the court
at Constantinople allowed him to observe people and
events at close hand. He traveled widely on embassies,
and the history shows signs of this in its precise top-
ographical detail. Unlike most other literary histories,
Olympiodorus included Latin terms for titles and even
quotations in Latin, as well as traditional dating by con-
sular year, and statistics for things like distances, size
of armies, sums of monies, among other things77. Rare,
too, is Olympiodorus independence of judgment as
demonstrated by his notices for such controversial fig-
ures as Stilicho and Constantius78 .
Like Ammianus, Olympiodorus appears in his own
history as an actor79. Olympiodoruss last attested ap-
pearance in his work is of particular import for this
paper, since it evidently took him to Rome where, in
addition to expressing amazement at the colossal size
of some of the monuments and private houses, and at
the wealth that aristocrats expended on games, he also
referred to the usurpation of Johannes ()80. This
fragment has led many historians to connect Olympi-
odoruss visit to Rome to the embassy, sent by the East-
ern emperor Thodosius II, to install his young cousin
Valentinian III on the western throne. Valentinians
proclamation at Rome, which took place on Octo-
ber, would then be the latest event in the history81. In
any case, this fragment indicates that Olympiodorus
was in Rome some fifteen years after the sack on official
= Olymp. (ed. R.C. Blockley, Liverpool ), Testi-
, .
Thompson , ; Matthews , ; Tread-
gold , .
Matthews .
His first appearance is in as a member of an em-
bassy to the Hunnish King Donatus; Olymp. Biblioteca
cod. , = Blockley fr.; and see Matthews ,
.
Olymp. Biblioteca cod. , . = Blockley fr. ;
and Biblioteca cod. , = Blockley fr. .
Olymp. Biblioteca cod. , = Blockley fr. .
See too Mathews .

business. As part of the eastern embassy, Olympiodorus
would have had access to documents and histories, but
more importantly, he could speak with people who had
lived through the sieges and sack of Rome a mere fifteen
years before82 . This would explain his precise knowl-
edge about events in the west.
Olympiodorus was a pagan who showed his religious
sympathies in his history83. So, for example, in a pas-
sage that Zosimus likely adapted from Olympiodorus,
we see praise for the courageous stand of the pagan gen-
eral Generidus who resigned his appointment in protest
against a law of Honorius that prohibited pagans from
holding office84 . In another passage in Zosimus again
attributed to Olympiodorus, we find praise for Attaluss
consul, Tertullus, a man whom Orosius called a pagan
and whose desire to be consul and pontifex has been
seen as a statement about his religiosity85. In another
fragment, Olympiodorus remarks the power of a pagan
statue. It had stood in Sicily, opposite the crossing from
Rhegium, and was believed to protect Sicily by prevent-
ing the flow of lava from Mount Etna; it was said to have
prevented Alaric from fleeing to Sicily after his retreat
from Rome in . But once the Christian Constanti-
us had ordered the statues removal, volcanic eruptions
and barbarian attacks on Sicily took place, proof of the
power of the pagan gods86 . Olympiodorus brands as
impious (anousiourgon) the orthodox Olympius, whom
Augustine had praised87. These passages serve as indi-
rect advice in a work dedicated to a Christian emperor,
TheodosiusII; though the Christian government denied
the validity of pagan gods and ancestral rites, pagans
and especially their cult objects could still offer help to
the empire if they were respected and could do harm if
they were not88 . This pagan interpretation is applied to
and is articulated openly by Zosimus.
See Treadgold , .
Matthews ; Cameron ,
Zos. , . The law referred to is Cod. Theod. ,, Olymp. Biblioteca cod. , (= Blockley fr.); Zos.
( CE).
Zos. ,,. Orosius calls Tertullus a pagan, Oros. hist.
,,. Cameron , , argues that the phrase in Treadgold , .
Zosimus (consul et pontifex) is formulaic because he
finds it used of a Christian in Paul. Nol. epist. , .
However, Paulinus used this phrase metaphorically to
try to convince a Christian that he can gain more hon-
ors than these in the next world; this does not negate
the literal reading of this phrase when used by Zosi-
mus. Hence, I remain convinced that Tertullus was a
pagan; see too Salzman , .
Olymp. Biblioteca cod. , calls Olympius anou-
siourgon (= Blockley fr. ). For the statue that stood
there, cf. CIL , = ILS of B.C. noting a stat-
Michele Renee Salzman
Zosimus and Sozomen on a pagan religious response
Since Photius claims that Olympiodoruss history ended
in with the reassertion of Eastern imperial authority
in the west through the placement of Valentinian III on
the throne, Olympiodorus was well aware that sack
had not ended the western Empire, nor the city; in-
deed, it is in one of his fragments that we learn that the
city had recovered to such an extent that by , the city
prefect wrote that the supplies were insufficient for the
growing population89. Yet, this note of optimism is lack-
ing in Zosimus narrative; he saw in the reasons writ
large for the demise of the empire. This is why Book
of his history presumably once went, or was intended to
do down to Alarics capture of Rome in August of 90.
Zosimuss view was that Christianity was one of the pri-
mary causes for the declining empire; the barbarization
of the empire was the other91. Indeed, for Zosimus, the
neglect of pagan ceremonies had destroyed the gods
protection of the empire and efficacy of portents and
oracles. This is a view that he adopted, it would appear,
from Olympiodorus92 .
Zosimus account of the pagan rituals during Alarics
siege is worth including in its entirety, for it is based, like
that of Sozomens, on Olympiodorus. The problem be-
gins with the failed embassy to Alaric to lift the second
siege of the city, dated to 93. As Zosimus describes it,
these men were despairing of all human resources yet
then these same leaders remembered the help which
used to come to the city in crises and how, by neglect-
ing ancestral customs, they were left destitute of that
succor94 . It is as they are reflecting on this aporia that
the urban prefect, Pompeianus, chances upon a possible
solution:
As they were in the midst of these considerations,
Pompeianus, prefect of the city happened upon
ue ad fretum near Rhegium, discussed by Matthews
, .
,,; ,; Aug. epist. . For Olympius, see
too PLRE II () .
Olymp. Biblioteca cod. , (= Blockley fr.).
Ridley , xiii.
For the impact of ignoring pagan ritual, see Zos. ,
(Paschoud , ) and , , with translation
above.
For more on Zosimus view of religion, see Paschoud
.
Zos. with notes by Paschoud , .
Zos. ,; translation here and in subsequent passages
from Ridley , , with adaptations by author.
Memory and Meaning
(enetuxe) some Tuscans visiting Rome, who said
that a city called Narnia had been freed from dan-
ger; prayers to the gods and devotion in the ancestral
manner had caused violent thunder and lightning,
which had driven off the barbarian menace. His con-
versation with these men made Pompeianus realize
just how much priests could help, () but remember-
ing that most people were Christians, he was anxious
to proceed with greater caution, and confided com-
pletely in Innocent the bishop of Rome. The latter
considered the citys safety more important than his
own convictions and consented to the private practice
of the rites which they knew. () The priests, however,
declared that this would not help the city because the
customary rites had to be performed publicly by the
senate on the Capitol and in the Forum, but no-one
dared to participate in the ancestral worship, so they
dismissed the men from Tuscany and began to court
the barbarian []95.
Zosimuss account makes Pompeianus into a leader who
happened upon enetuxe some men from Etruria. In-
deed, this notion of chance, Tyche/ enetuxe, as a deter-
minant factor in events is part of Olympiodoruss world
view, and he uses it elsewhere to explain Alarics failed
negotiations with Honorius as well as Saruss disrup-
tion of their negotiations96 . Pompeianuss role appears
differently in Sozomens history, and will be discussed
below, but the image of the Christian bishop, Innocent,
is far from flattering; Innocents decision to approve pri-
vate rituals is explained as going against his faith. No
other source describes Innocents role in this affair, but
it is the kind of detail that a pagan author would have
relished so as to denigrate a Christian bishop. Indeed,
Innocents absence from Rome at the time of the sack as
part of an embassy to petition the emperor on behalf of
the Roman people lends credence to Zosimuss explana-
tion that Pompeianus consulted him before approving
these public rites, for it acknowledges the status of the
bishop in this crisis97.
Zosimuss account of Tuscan priests who were fa-
miliar with prayers to the gods and ancestral rites has
been interpreted by F.Paschoud and others to indicate
Zos. ,.
Matthews .
Dunn , argues that Innocent was in Ravenna
in and again in ; he dates Innocents epist. (PL
,) to , and not . If he is correct, then See Fest. : Public sacra, quae publico sumptu pro
Innocent could have been in Rome in , making Zo-
simus account plausible. As far as we know, Innocents
absence from Rome at the time of the sack was not
cause for criticism. Some Christians saw his absence
as providential; see Oros. hist. ,, = CSEL ,.
the survival of Etruscan haruspices, diviners trained in
the reading of entrails and observing meteorological
phenomena98 . Since these men are said here to be us-
ing prayers to bring about thunder and lightning, some
historians have criticized Zosimus for misunderstand-
ing the nature of the rites of the haruspices. However,
Zosimus is far from being precise, and his text merely
notes men who were Tuscans who wanted to use tradi-
tional rites, including prayers and processions, to call
upon divine aid. Hence, these men appear authentic in
their desire to use pagan rites, and should not be read
necessarily as evidence for the survival of Etruscan ha-
ruspices99. Certainly, their insistence on public rites to
validate their effect rings true to pagan traditions100.
According to Zosimus, the failure to perform these
pagan rites led to further wickedness;
The evil spirit which had taken possession of man-
kind now drove those in the city concerned with this
task [of raising funds] to the ultimate wickedness.
() They decided to make up the deficiency from
the decoration on the statues of the gods. This was
simply to render objects consecrated by holy rites and
decorated as befitted their guardianship of the citys
eternal prosperity, lifeless and inefficacious after the
diminution of the rites [] And since everything
conducive to the citys ruin had to happen at once,
they not only stripped the statues, but even melted
down some made of gold and silver, including that
of Bravery, which the Romans called Virtus. When
this was destroyed, whatever bravery and virtue the
Romans possessed disappeared, as experts in religion
and ancestral worship had foretold101.
Zosimuss criticism for desecrating cult images accords
well with what we know of Olympiodoruss views, based
on extant fragments, as noted above. The divine spir-
it that appeared after the failure of the rites is but one
more sign that the sack of Rome was owed, according to
traditional religionists, to divine anger for not perform-
ing traditional rites and veneration of pagan gods.
If we compare Zosimuss version of these events with
that of the mid fifth century Christian historian So-
zomen who also relied on Olympiodorus History, we
See Paschoud , , , ; and Cameron ,
.
For a thorough discussion of the diviners and the evi-
dence for them, see Paschoud : .
populo fiunt, quaeque pro montibus, pagis, curiis, sa-
cellis; at privata, quae pro singulis hominibus, familiis,
gentibus fiunt. See too Cameron , .
Zos. ,.

see marked differences in interpretation. Sozomen, one
of the most polemical of the mid fifth century church
historians and a trained lawyer, sharpened the religious
conflict element102:
After the siege had lasted for some time [] Those
among the senators who still adhered to pagan super-
stition, proposed to offer sacrifices in the Capitol and
the other temples; and certain Tuscans, who were
summoned by the prefect of the city, promised to
drive out the barbarians with thunder and lightning;
they boasted of having performed a similar exploit at
Narnia, a city of Tuscany [] The event (i.e. the sack
of Rome), however, proved that no advantage could be
derived from these persons for the city. All persons of
good sense were aware that the calamities which this
siege entailed upon the Romans were indications of
Divine wrath sent to chastise them for their luxury,
their debauchery and their manifold acts of injustice
towards each other, as well as towards strangers103.
Like Zosimus, Sozomen notes that the Romans consid-
ered undertaking traditional rites to ward off Alaric,
but he attributes this to the active intervention of pa-
gan senators and of the unnamed prefect of the city. In
describing the rites of the Tuscans, Sozomen has so ab-
breviated them that they are not in keeping with what
we know of Tuscan rituals, nor does he indicate, as did
Zosimus, that the Tuscan diviners used prayer to arouse
lightening, a plausible explanation104 . Because Sozomen
recounts the same detail, told in Zosimus, about the
success of the diviners in warding Alaric away from
Narnia, we can see that both authors used the same
text, Olympiodoruss History, but the omission of the
damaging remark about the bishop Innocents accept-
ance of private pagan rites is in keeping with his reli-
gious sympathies. In fact, Sozomen does not say if the
rites happened or not; the fate of the city is the result of
the Christian gods just wrath for the moral failings of
the Romans.
Sozomens account has led some historians to see
this narrative as evidence for a pagan political reaction
in which Pompeianus was a leader of the pagan party105.
This seems unlikely, because little evidence for such an
attack exists even in Sozomen. However, in both authors
Pompeianuss openness to pagan rites suggests that he
See too Salzman, , . See Cameron , for bibliography.
Soz. ,. Translation here by C.D. Hartranft (Oxford Kahlos .
), with slight modifications.
In my view, neither this passage nor Zos. , should
be used to argue for the survival of Etruscan haruspic-
es, as did Heinzberger, . For problems in this
view, see Paschoud , . See my discussion above.
Michele Renee Salzman
and others still believed in their efficacy and advocated
for them in this dire situation. At the least, Pompeianus
was either a lapsed pagan who had to realize (epeisin)
the truth of ancestral rites, or one of the unaffiliated
types, whom Kahlos has called incerti, open to pagan
and Christian ideas at the same time and unwilling to
commit106 . Given that both accounts show the urban
prefects desire to pursue pagan rites, the only other ref-
erence to Pompeianuss religiosity as most pagan (hel-
lenistaton) supports the view that he was seen as a tra-
ditional religionist who advocated non-Christian rites
in this crisis107.
Following Olympiodorus in his account, Sozomen,
like Zosimus, attributes the fall of the city to Divine
wrath. But Sozomen refers to the anger of the Chris-
tian god, enraged at the proposed pagan rites and the
Romans sins. For Zosimus, however, the divine wrath
of the pagan gods for not performing rites and sacrifices
lets loose an evil spirit that led the pagans to destroy
their own idols to raise the money to pay Alarics ran-
som. Given Olympiodoruss known pagan sympathies,
it seems likely that Zosimus here is representing the
formers view. The pagan and Christian explanations
for use the same divine explanatory systems; they
merely diverge on the nature of the god who sent Alaric.
Conclusion
The emotions and attitudes with which traditional reli-
gionists viewed the events that culminated in the sack
of Rome in are significant components of the inter-
pretive framework that they applied to understand their
world. Though no longer a majority, and no longer able
to perform many of the public communal acts of cult
life (e.g. sacrifice), traditional religionists survived into
the fifth century. However, Alarics invasion, sieges and
the sack of Rome were crises that they read in religious
terms as the manifestation of divine anger; the fall of
Troy in the Aeneid was the archetype of a fallen city
familiar to traditional religionists and Christians alike,
and it too fell due to divine wrath. Jupiters promise for
Roma aeterna was made to a pagan Rome, an idea that,
as noted above, had widespread currency. Traditional
In the Greek Life of Saint Melania, Pompeianus is
called most pagan (hellenikotatos); see Vit. Melani-
ae ch. , (ed. Gorce, Paris ). For the counter
view of Pompeianus as not a pagan, see Cameron ,
.
Memory and Meaning

religionists argued that the disruption of their rites own groups identity. Indeed, it is to support the faith
sacrifice, processions, banquets had incited the an- of Christians that Augustine preached in one of his
ger of the gods. Failure to venerate the gods had fueled sermons against pagans in , that they should:
this catastrophe. This much we can gather about pagan Pay attention [] so that you may be strong and have a
emotions and interpretations from extant texts, and good defense against the pagans108 . In this sermon he
from self-professed pagans, notably Olympiodorus and adopts the same strategy that he used when he made his
Zosimus. audience refute pagan views of ; he literally tells his
The emotions, attitudes and interpretations of Christians to turn away from the pagans in the church,
by pagans were also deemed important to fifth century as in Sermon ,, and focus on their own faith. By
Christian leaders. The sack of Rome had raised doubts shunning pagans as morally other, Augustine tried to
in Christian communities about the power of their god unite his Christian congregation, and Leo, later in the
and his protection of the now Christian state. Many century, does the same.
of these Christians were, no doubt, recent converts I have argued that Christian anxiety about pagan in-
themselves. And like their pagan neighbors, many terpretations of resonated with Christian audiences
were similarly afraid of divine anger, a fact that made not merely because of the gifted rhetoric of preachers,
them all the more susceptible to the arguments of their but because the attitudes and emotions Christians at-
pagan or uncommitted neighbors. That is why Chris- tributed to pagans were recognizable in their neigh-
tian preachers, like Augustine and Leo, addressed pa- bors and in the daily life of the late antique world. Iron-
gan interpretations of in sermons and encouraged ically, the pagan response to is best known because
congregants to shun those who raised such questions. it became part of the Christian explanation for the fall
Bishops explained that the sack was punishment for sin; of the city. But such Christian interpretations were not
they recommended prayers for forgiveness and grati- divorced from reality. The fall of Rome in evoked a
tude to god for surviving the sack as a means of winning range of range of emotions and meanings for Christians
divine favor. and traditional religionists, the study of which shows
By branding the pagan response to as a de- how very complicated was the process by which the em-
monic threat, Christian leaders also reinforced their pire became non-pagan.

Aug. serm. augm, (= ed. F.Dolbeau, Paris ,

).
 Michele Renee Salzman

Abbreviations

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Brown P. Brown, Review of Alan Cameron, The Last Pagans of Rome, New York Re-
view of Books, . April , .
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CCSL Corpus Christianorum Series Latina
Chavasse A. Chavasse, Sancti Leonis Magni Romani pontificis tractatus, Corpus Chris-
tianorum. Series Latina A (Turnhout ).
CSEL Corpus Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum Latinorum
De Bruyn T. S. De Bruyn, Ambivalence within a Totalizing Discourse. Augustines Ser-
mons on the Sack of Rome, JEChrSt /, , .
Demandt Brummer A. Demandt G. Brummer, Der Prozess gegen Serena im Jahre , Historia
, , .
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reactions de Jrome et dAugustin, Revue des tudes Augustiniennes , ,
.
Drake H. Drake, Constantine and the Bishops (Baltimore ).
Dunn G. D. Dunn, The Care of the Poor in Rome and Alarics Sieges, in: G.D. Dunn
D.Luckensmeyer L.Cross (ed.), Prayer and Spirituality in the Early Church
V. Poverty and Riches (Strathfield, NSW ) .
Fredouille J.-C. Fredouille, Les Sermons dAugustin sur la chute de Rome, in: G.Madec
(ed.), Augustin prdicateur (). Actes du Colloque international de
Chantilly, sept. , Collection des tudes Augustiniennes, Srie Anti-
quit (Paris ) .
Gillett A. Gillett, The Date and Circumstances of Olympiodorus of Thebes, Traditio
, , .
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.
Harris W. Harris, History, Empathy and Emotions, AuA , , .
Heinzberger F. Heinzberger, Heidnische und christliche Reaktion auf die Krisen des west-
rmischen Reiches in den Jahren (Bonn ).
Hill E. Hill (ed.), Sermons. The Works of S. Augustine. A Translation for the st
Century. Part III Volume ( A) (New York ).
Hill E. Hill (ed.), Sermons. Newly Discovered Sermons. The Works of S. Augustine.
A translation for the st Century. Part III Volume (New York ).
Kahlos M. Kahlos, Debate and Dialogue. Christian and Pagan Cultures ca.
(Aldershot ).
Memory and Meaning

Lepelley C. Lepelley, Laristocratie lettres paenne. Une menace aux yeux dAugustin,
in: G.Madec (ed.), Augustin prdicateur (). Actes du colloque inter-
national de Chantilly ( septembre ) Collection des tudes augustini-
ennes. Srie antiquit (Paris ) .
Lizzi Testa R. Lizzi Testa, Ambroses contemporaries and the Christianization of north-
ern Italy, JRS , , .
Machado C. Machado, Religion as Antiquarianism. Pagan Dedications in Late Antique
Rome, in: J.Bodel M.Kajava (ed.), Dediche sacre nel mondo Greco-Romano,
ActaInstRomFin , , .
Macmullen R. Macmullen, The Preachers Audience, Journal of Theological Studies ,
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Madden M. D. Madden, The Pagan Divinities and Their Worship As Depicted in the
Works of Saint Augustine Exclusive of the City of God. (Ph.D. Catholic Uni-
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ton, D.C. )].
Maier H. Maier, Manichee! Leo the Great and the Orthodox Panopticon, JEChrSt
/, , .
Matthews J. F. Matthews, Olympiodorus of Thebes and the History of the West (A.D.
), JRS , , .
Matthews J. F. Matthews, Western Aristocracies and Imperial Court A.D. (Ox-
ford ).
Neil B. Neil, Leo the Great. Early Christian Fathers (London ).
OReilly M. V. OReilly (ed.), Sancti Aurelii Augustini De Excidio Urbis Romae Sermo.
A Critical Text and Translation with Introduction and Commentary (Wash-
ington, D.C. ).
Orlandi S. Orlandi, Epigrafia anfiteatrale dellOccidente romano VI. Roma. Anfiteatri
e strutture annesse con una nuova edizione e commento delle iscrizioni del
Colosseo (Rome ).
Panciera S. Panciera, His ego nec metas rerum nec tempora pono. Virgilio in uninedita
iscrizione romana, in: S.Panciera, Epigrafi, epigrafia, epigrafisti. Scritti vari
editi e inediti () con note complementari e indici (Rome )
[= StTardoant , , ].
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latin a lpoque des grandes invasions (Neuchtel ).
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Paschoud F. Paschoud (ed.), Zosime. Histoire Nouvelle ,. Livre V (Paris ).
Paschoud F. Paschoud, Eunape, Olympiodore, Zosime. Scripta minora. Recueil darti-
cles, avec addenda, corrigenda, mise jour et indices (Bari ).
Perler O. Perler, Les voyages de saint Augustin (Paris ).
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 Michele Renee Salzman

Rutgers L. V. Rutgers, Archaeological Evidence of the interaction of Jews and Non-

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Address

Prof. Dr. Michele Renee Salzman

Department of History
HMNSS Building
University of California, Riverside
Riverside, CA
USA
michele.salzman@ucr.edu
Contents

Vorwort . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Johannes Lipps Carlos Machado Philipp von Rummel

The Sack of Rome in AD. An Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Philipp von Rummel

Ereignis und Narrativ. Erzhlungen der Plnderung Roms im August
zwischen Textberlieferung und Archologie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Riccardo Santangeli Valenzani

Dallevento al dato archeologico. Il sacco del 410 attraverso la documentazione archeologica . . . . . . . . .

I. CONTEXT

Arnaldo Marcone
Roma caput mundi. Il significato simbolico della citt inconquistata . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Carlos Machado
The Roman Aristocracy and the Imperial Court, before and after the Sack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Michael Kulikowski
The Failure of Roman Arms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

II. EVENT

Ralph W. Mathisen
Roma a Gothis Alarico duce capta est. Ancient Accounts of the Sack of Rome in CE . . . . . . . . . .

Johannes Lipps
Alarichs Goten auf dem Forum Romanum? berlegungen zu Gestalt, Chronologie
und Verstndnis der sptantiken Platzanlage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Antonella Corsaro Alessandro Delfino Ilaria de Luca Roberto Meneghini

Nuovi dati archeologici per la storia del Foro di Cesare tra la fine del IV e la met del V secolo . . . . . . . .

Fedora Filippi
Nuovi dati da Campo Marzio e Trastevere . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
 Contents

Stefania Fogagnolo
Testimonianze del sacco del in un cantiere edilizio a Trastevere
(Conservatorio di San Pasquale Baylon) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Carlo Pavolini
Le conseguenze del Sacco di Alarico sul Celio. Alcune ipotesi dagli scavi recenti . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Paola Quaranta Roberta Pardi Barbara Ciarrocchi Alessandra Capodiferro

Il giorno dopo allAventino. Dati preliminari dai contesti di scavo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Axel Gering
Mit oder ohne Alarich. Geballte Einsturzkatastrophen, Abri und der monumentale
Wiederaufbau des Forums von Ostia im . Jh. n. Chr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Franois Baratte
Vaisselle dargent et bijoux. Des tmoins du sac de ? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Alessia Rovelli
410, il sacco di Roma e la testimonianza delle monete . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Franz Alto Bauer

Saccheggi e distruzioni nellanno 410? Nuove problematiche e nuove prospettive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Paolo Liverani
Alarico in Laterano e sullEsquilino. Due casi e qualche riflessione . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

III. IMPACT

Michele Renee Salzman

Memory and Meaning. Pagans and . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Mischa Meier
Alarico Le tragedie di Roma e del conquistatore. Riflessioni sulle Historiae di Orosio . . . . . . . . . . .

Neil McLynn
Orosius, Jerome and the Goths . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Silvia Orlandi
Le tracce del passaggio di Alarico nelle fonti epigrafiche . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Bryan Ward-Perkins Carlos Machado

and the End of New Statuary in Italy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Contents

Clementina Panella
Roma e gli altri. La cultura materiale al tempo del sacco di Alarico . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Roberto Meneghini
Le vicende del 408410 e la comparsa delle sepolture urbane a Roma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Elio Lo Cascio
La popolazione di Roma prima e dopo il . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Christine Delaplace
La stratgie des Goths aprs et leur installation par lEmpire romain en Aquitaine () . . . .

Peter Heather
and the End of Civilisation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Walter Pohl
and the Transformation of the Roman World . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .