In opening with an account of Nero's ancestors, Suetonius follows a standard practice in imperial biographies.

2-5	cui rure .... imperasse traduntur: lit. "to-whom returning once from-the-country twin young-men with-more-majestic appearance from a-meeting are-said to-have-ordered ....".
4	forma: ablative of quality.
5	imperasse traduntur .... nuntiaret: Do not imagine it is necessary to supply ut before nuntiaret. The two clauses are set down side by side in coordination, without any attempt to express a connection between them however closely they might be connected in thought. (MBA 121; cf. MBA 129, note, and 149, note 1). This is known as parataxis, as opposed to hypotaxis, or subordination. Parataxis is not unusual in English. It gives an effect of terseness and compression. So a savage might say, "Me hungry, me eat" (parataxis), where we sophisticates might say, "Since I am hungry, I shall eat" (hypotaxis). Consider too the following examples from Goodbye Columbus, by Philip Roth, who has a keen ear for American colloquialisms: "I'll see it I'll believe it"; "You don't know a little psychology these days, you're licked"; "What do you think, a chicken cleans itself?". An advertisement for a four-wheel drive vehicle proclaims, "You drive it - you buy it - it's that good!" And give a wide berth to anyone who threatens paratactically, "You toucha my car, I breaka you face."
5-6	uictoriam: On the battle of Lake Regillus, see OCCL 480, OCD 1297. A quinarius in our antiquities museum commemorates the event: the reverse depicts the Dioscuri riding with couched spears into battle. Each wears a cuirass, a cloak and a cap surmounted by a star. (GRC, coin 22.) Further to Warmington on the fashion among Roman nobles for affecting mythical origins, see GRC, coins 35 and 36.
7	malas: from mâla, mâlae, f., "cheek, cheek-bone". Cf. mâlô,* "I prefer"; mâlum, "apple"; malus,* "bad"; mâlus,* f., "apple-tree"; mâlus, m., "mast". (Unmarked vowels are short.) The words marked * are covered in the following old mnemonic: malo - I would rather be malo - in an apple tree malo - than a wicked man malo - in adversity. Willard Espy comments, "It is a marvel that four identical Latin words can be plausibly translated into a complete and complicated English sentence." (Another Almanac of Words at Play (1981), 21) True, but I look forward to the day when someone devises a mnemonic to cover all six confusable words.
9	et = etiam.
9-10	magna pars .... fuerunt: The subject pars, a collective noun, here has a plural verb. (KMP 199)

11	Further to Warmington on the two Cn. Domitii, see OCD 492, s.v. "Domitius Ahenobarbus, Gnaeus" (2) and (3). "Suetonius is definitely wrong on the alternation of the praenomina after the three-three sequence, for the consul of 122 BC gave his praenomen to his elder son, the consul of 96 BC, thus leaving four consecutive Gnaei before the alternation becomes visible." (Bradley, ad loc.)
13	Gnaei, Luci: genitives of definition, qualifying praenomina (12). (MBA 304)
18	accepimus: In other words, Suetonius did not do his own research.
19-20	pluris e familia .... arbitror: lit. "I-consider (it)-to-be-worthwhile several from the-family to-be-discovered". referre: impersonal; cf. refert, "it is of concern, importance". (MBA 310)
20	quo facilius appareat: A final clause containing a comparative is normally introduced by quo.
20-22	quo facilius .... ingenita rettulerit: Suetonius has clearly made up his mind about Nero's character and, typically, does not change it
21-22	ut tamen .... ingenita rettulerit: a limiting consecutive clause. (MBA 111)

23	atauus eius Cn. Domitius: See again OCD 492, s.v. "Domitius Ahenobarbus (3), Gnaeus".
24	offensior has no strong comparative force.
24-25	quod alium .... locum cooptassent: clause of alleged reason. (MBA 484)
26	Domitius' law had a chequered history; it was abrogated by Sulla but restored by Julius Caesar's tribune Titus Labienus in 63 BC. Under the Principate the Senate selected the priests, but their choice was subject to approval by the Emperor and ratification by the people.
27	Allobrogibus Arvernisque superatis: Warmington correctly charges Suetonius with mistaken identity. For the real conqueror of the Gauls, see again OCD 492, s.v. "Domitius Ahenobarbus (2), Gnaeus". "Of rather more importance than deciding which victories were won and by whom is the basic involvement of Domitius in the subjection and initial pacification of Narbonensis, which inaugurated an association of long standing between this area and the Ahenobarbi." (Bradley, ad loc.) Today Narbonne has few visible remains of the Roman occupation apart from an amphitheatre, a bridge and a splendid series of inscriptions reflecting public and private life.

2	Licinius Crassus: See OCD 857, s.v. "Licinius Crassus, Lucius". "He was known especially for his rhetorical wit, with which the present dictum is perfectly in keeping." (Bradley, ad loc.)
3-4	haberet, esset: subjunctives in subordinate clauses in oratio obliqua.
4	huius filius: See OCD 492, s.v. "Domitius Ahenobarbus (1), Lucius".
5-7	"It is clear from Suet. Iul. 23.1 that Caesar was prepared to submit to an investigation before the senate, but the outcome was inconsequential - three days of debate with Caesar defending himself in three speeches. No record of the sequel remains, but the speeches made by Domitius were later used as anti-Caesarian propaganda." (Bradley, ad loc.)
7-8	mox consul .... retrahere temptavit: "Caesarian possession of an area traditionally associated with the Ahenobarbi will have particularly rankled Domitius." (Bradley, ad loc.)
9	factionem: In attempting to determine the meaning of factionem in this context, Bradley refers to Suetonius, Iulius 34.1, per tumultum successor ei nominatus, and accordingly concludes that tumultus and factio are synonymous. See the translation.

10	unde dimissus: Caesar's clemency to his enemy Domitius was typical of him. He may well have abhorred civil strife. Perhaps too he hoped Domitius would join him.
10-11	Massiliensis obsidione .... suo confirmasset: Recall the longstanding interest of the Domitii in southern Gaul. "(Caesar) has no record of a siege of Massilia before the arrival of Domitius. It is more likely that Domitius encouraged the city to support Pompey than to maintain neutrality, but after Domitius was twice defeated in naval battles by the Caesarian admiral D. Brutus, Massilia capitulated to Caesar." (Bradley, ad loc.)
12	acie Pharsalica: local ablative. On the absence of a preposition see KMP 268.
13	uir neque satis constans: His sudden desertion of the Massilians is a striking example. Cicero also regarded him as a fool: nec me M'. Lepidi, L. Vocaci, Ser. Sulpici comitum paeniteret, quorum nemo nec stultior est quam L.Domitius nec inconstantior quam Ap. Claudius. (Att. 8.1.3)
14-15	in desperatione .... ita expauit....: lit. "in despair of-(his)-circumstances he so dreaded death sought through-fear ....".
15	paenitentia: ablative of cause.
16-17	quod .... temperasset: a clause of alleged reason. (MBA 484)
18-19	solus censuit hostium numero habendos: a case of "He who is not with us is against us". Domitius was not only a coward (see line 14 above) but a uniquely cruel person.

20	On his son see OCD 492, s.v. "Domitius Ahenobarbus (4), Gnaeus".
21-22	"Domitius is conscius but insons. The most reasonable view should be to regard Domitius as sympathetic to the organisation of the conspiracy against Caesar but not among those who actually struck the blows." (Bradley, ad loc.)
22	quamquam insons: On quamquam with a single word, see Woodcock 249, Note (ii). lege Pedia: In 43 BC, Quintus Pedius, Caesar's nephew, carried a law providing for the trial of Caesar's murderers.
24	post utriusque interitum: There were two battles at Philippi in 42 BC. Cassius died in the first; Brutus, in the second.

27	pari lege: the Pedian law. solus: "It is not known whether he was the only one to be pardoned and to continue his cursus in this way. Of the sixty people allegedly involved in the plot to remove Caesar, only about a third can be identified; of these in turn knowledge is scarce after Caesar's death. At Iul. 89 Suetonius makes it clear that practically all the conspirators soon died in one way or another, and of those definitely known to have been implicated in the conspiracy none subsequently held the consulship. Domitius may therefore have been unique in this respect." (Bradley, ad loc.)
30	legatus: In the light of his previous experience in charge of a fleet, Domitius very likely received a naval command.
33	transiit ad Augustum: So did many others. Cleopatra was anathema to them. Compare the exultant tone of Horace's ode celebrating Octavian's victory at Actium: Now we must drink, now beat the earth with carefree foot, now, comrades, is the time to deck the couches of the gods with a feast fit for the Salii. Before this it would have been wrong to bring out the Caecuban from ancestral storerooms, while the queen, with her herd of mutilated "men", foul with disease, was preparing mad ruin for the Capitol and destruction for our empire. Her hopes knew no bounds; she was drunk with the sweets of Fortune. But her raving was quelled when scarcely one of her ships survived the flames, and her mind, bedevilled by Mareotic wine, was brought to fear reality by Caesar. (Odes 1.37.1-16, tr. D. S. Barrett) Augustum: clearly an anachronism.

2	ex hoc Domitius nascitur: See OCD 492, s.v. "Domitius Ahenobarbus (2), Lucius". His marriage to Augustus's niece is testimony to the high political status of his family and helped ensure his loyalty to the Principate.
5	triumphabibus should be triumphalibus. After 19 BC a victorious general who was not a member of the imperial family was not permitted to celebrate a triumph but was given instead the triumphal ornaments, the toga picta, tunica palmata, corona laurea and scipio. He might also erect a statue of himself as triumphator. Dio ascribes the origin of the award to Agrippa's persistent refusal to hold the triumph already voted him, but the real reason is more likely to have been Augustus' wish to diminish any potential threat to imperial security that might arise from the ambitions of a successful military commander." (Bradley, note on 15.2, line 2)
7	censorem L. Plancum .... aedilis coegit: Such behaviour showed a total disregard for the importance of Plancus's office. On this victim of Domitius's rudeness, see OCD 1000, s.v. "Munatius Plancus, Lucius". The antipathy between the two can perhaps be explained by the fact that Plancus, a former adherent of Antony, led a faction which supported Cleopatra.
8	honore: ablative of time when.
9	mimum: OCD 982, s.v. "mime", the second half (Roman). Conservative Romans would have been outraged by this lack of grauitas.
9-11	The staging of various shows would have been part of Domitius's role as aedile, but Suetonius has just mentioned the praetorship and consulship in line 8. The dates of his cursus given by Warmington are open to conjecture, and Suetonius is not necessarily describing Domitius' actions in chronological order.

13	Antonia: OCD 113, s.v. "Antonia (2)".
13-14	omni parte uitae detestabilem: On the other hand, Velleius Paterculus 2.10.2 describes him as nobilissimae simplicitatis iuuenem, like his father. See Warmington's last note on 4.1.
14	On this Domitius' role as comes, proconsuls and legates, like city magistrates, regularly set up an unofficial consilium or think-tank, to advise them on details of administration and jurisdiction. It was usual for them to act on the advice of such a body. Domitius could well have been a member of Germanicus's consilium without being listed as such. comes ad Orientem ....: Cicero would have expanded this to a full clause, e.g. cum comes abiisset ad Orientem ....
20	oculum eruit: "Gouging out the eyes seems to have been a favourite mode of attack among the Italians; cf. Aug. xxvii.4, Nero xxvi.2, and the frequent allusions in comedy." (J. C. Rolfe, Loeb edition, ad loc.)

21-22	argentarios .... fraudauerit: The equivalent today would be defaulting on one's Bankcard.
24	in posterum: This would have been no consolation for the contestants he had already cheated.
25	maiestatis: OCD 913-914 gives a full explanation and history of the phenomenon. The last two paragraphs are particularly relevant to the present work. P. Y. Forsyth, "A Treason Case of A.D. 37", Phoenix 23 (1969). 204-207, argues persuasively that there was a scheme to install Domitius as Tiberius's successor.
27	On Pyrgi, see, for interest only, OCD 1282. Pyrgis: locative. aquae: genitive of definition.
28	sublato filio Nerone: A father picked up his newborn child from the ground as part of the process of recognition. Be sure to see R-L 474 for further details.
28	Agrippina: OCD 776-777, s.v. "Iulia Agrippina".

30	natus est: Pliny the Elder, NH 7.45-46, states that, according to Agrippina's memoirs, Nero emerged feet first, and that this was an ill omen. Anti: locative. See OCD 113. post .... quam: The separation of this conjunctive into two parts is known as tmesis (Greek, "a cutting"). It often occurs today in abusive or angry speech, e.g. many ALP stalwarts continue to gnash their teeth about "Mundingbloodyburra", which, in February 1996, thrust the conservative forces back into power in Queensland. MEU 624 gives more polished examples.
31	XVIII. Kal. Ian.: The complexities of the Roman calendar are unravelled in KMP 498. tantum quod: OLD 1906, s.v. "tantus" (10).
32	ut radiis prius quam terra contingeretur: two subjunctive clauses rolled into one. ut .... contingeretur is a consecutive clause; prius quam .... contingeretur, a temporal clause with an additional idea of end in view. (MBA 442)
35-1	Domitius' words are clearly a prediction after the event.
1	malo publico: ablative of quality.

2	"infelicitas is one of the key concepts around which Suetonius constructs the biography of Nero. It is specifically exemplified at 39.1, and Nero's loss of power in 68 is determined by predictions of his fate which have the same theme (46; cf. also 49.2, fatalem horam). There is thus an ironic twist in Nero's own reference, 40.3, to his perpetua singularisque felicitas. The fatalistic view of Nero still appears in modern discussion." (Bradley, ad loc.)
3	die lustrico: The ceremony of lustratio, or purification, had many applications beyond the naming of a newborn child. (OCD 893) The Romans believed childbirth defiled both mother and baby. That the same belief exists in the Judaeo-Christian tradition is shown, e.g. in Luke 2.22, "After their purification had been completed in accordance with the Law of Moses....". Cf. the Christian rite of "churching" after childbirth, which has persisted to our own day. See further Raymond E. Brown et al. (eds), The Jerome Bible Commentary (1968), Vol. II, p.726, sections 112-113.
5-6	Grammatically speaking, mox modifies adoptatus est. It also belongs closely in sense with the word that follows it, principe.

9	trimulus, the diminutive of trimus, perhaps carries an additional notion of pity.
10	On the complex phenomenon of Roman inheritance, see OCD 758. The last paragraph is particularly relevant to the early imperial period. While the law was clearly on Nero's side, Gaius would certainly have been a formidable opponent in reality. "Caligula is said to have encouraged bequests to himself from people not even known to him. The object in naming an emperor in a will was to safeguard the remainder of the inheritance for the prescribed heir. In this case Domitius may well have had reason to worry about the implementation of his will, given his involvement in a possible conspiracy to secure the succession for himself shortly before Tiberius' death." (Bradley, ad loc.)
12	relegata: OCD 1297-1298, s.v. "relegation". Despite subinde (11), Agrippina was actually exiled some twelve months before Domitius' death.
15	paternas opes: the whole estate presumably, not merely his original share. Crispus Passienus inherited his great wealth from his adoptive father Gaius Sallustius Crispus, great-nephew and adopted son of the historian Sallust and counsellor of Augustus and Tiberius. Suetonius, in his life of Passienus, mentions a rumour that Agrippina was to blame for his death.

16-17	gratia, potentia: For the distinction between these and words of similar meaning, see MBA p. 406, footnote. Agrippina returned under an amnesty granted by Claudius in 41 to those unjustly expelled by Gaius.
19	meridiantem: an excellent time for a murder - or for seeing (dreaming?) things. The streets are empty and all is quiet. Cf. Acts of the Apostles 10.9-16 (Peter's vision of a descending sailcloth, full of a host of creatures), 22.6-11 (Paul's unearthly experience on the road to Damascus). Both events occur around midday. As Noel Coward testifies in his famous song of 1931, the siesta is still widely practised and its benefits widely acknowledged, with one notorious exception: Mad dogs and Englishmen Go out in the midday sun. The Japanese don't care to, The Chinese wouldn't dare to, The Hindus and Argentines sleep firmly from twelve to one, But Englishmen detest a siesta ....
19-20	qui eum ....strangularent: a relative final clause.
20	additum: sc. est.
21-23	On snakes, particularly as guardians, see OCD 1417-1418. pulvino, cervicalia: an example of "elegant variation", the too obvious avoidance of repetition, something we usually try to avoid in English. One winces, for example, to read , "Mr John Redmond has just now a path to tread even more thorny than that which Mr Asquith has to walk," one of the many examples cited in a scathing discussion of the subject in MEU 130-133. On the other hand, elegant variation in poetry or other imaginative writing can produce a cumulative effect that is highly pleasing. In Beowulf 28.17-30, for example, a boat is called "sea-boat", "wave-floater", "sea-goer", "foamy-necked vessel", "well-fashioned vessel", "wave-goer", "broad-bosomed vessel" and "ocean-wood winsome" within the space of fourteen lines.
24	uoluntate: ablative of accordance, found with or without e(x).

28	matura pueritia: ablative of quality.
30	undecimo aetatis anno: Further to Warmington, see OCD 1576-1577, s.v. "Valeria Messal(l)ina". On Roman adoption see OCD 13. "Nero's adoption has particular importance in it meant not simply the provision of an heir to a private estate but of a potential successor as princeps to Claudius. If a successor were needed quickly [because of Claudius's poor health], Nero was more suitable than Britannicus on grounds of age. Hence [a] dispensation from the statutory requirements of the law was probably gained for the practical political advantage it brought. Finally, [however], after the adoption there are signs of equal tribute to Britannicus and Nero. This does not suggest, as far as Claudius was concerned, that there was any thought of overlooking the public career of Britannicus." (Bradley, ad loc., abridged and slightly adapted)
30-31	Annaeus Seneca: OCD 96-98, s.v. "Annaeus Seneca (2), Lucius".
32-33	ferunt Senecam .... uisum (esse) sibi per quietem Caesari praecipere: lit. "They-say Seneca to-have-seemed to-himself through the-quiet to-be-teaching to-Gaius Caesar."
34	immanitate: "The examples of immanitas which follow date respectively from 51-53. Hence breui and primum potuit (35) are of little value here. Suetonius pays no attention to chronology." (Bradley, ad loc.)
35	See OCD 339, s.v. "Claudius Caesar Britannicus, Tiberius".
1-2	quod .... salutasset: alleged reason.
3-4	Bradley observes that the trial was the culmination of a struggle between Lepida and Agrippina for influence both at court and over Nero.

5	On the tirocinium fori, a virtual coming of age ceremony, which coincided with the assumption of the toga uirilis, see R-L 476-477. The coinage reveals that Nero at the same time became a supernumerary member of the priestly colleges. All of these honours were of basic importance in preparing Nero for public life. (Bradley, ad loc.)
9	Bradley points out that Tacitus mentions a fourth speech, which secured for Apamea a remission of taxation because of a recent earthquake. (Annals 12.58.1)
10	et = etiam.
11	sacro Latinarum: sc. feriarum. The Latin festival was a religious ceremony celebrated annually by the peoples of Latium on the Mons Albanus. (R-L 205-206, which covers praefectus urbi also; 365) On feriae in general, see OCD 593, s.v. "festivals, Roman".
13	ut assolet: In other words, the praefectura urbis was not wholly honorary.
13-14	quamuis interdictum a Claudio esset: Claudius's rulings apparently did not always count for much, at least in court circles.
14	Octaviam: On Nero's tragic child-wife, see OCD 336-337, s.v. "Claudia Octavia"; 1059, s.v. "Octavia" (a play about her life, attributed to Seneca). See also Warmington's note on 35.2. duxit uxorem: sc. in matrimonium. By contrast, the term for a woman marrying is nubere, lit. "to put on the veil for", with a dative of (dis)advantage. "In political terms the marriage was of great significance since it united the two halves of the dynasty and eliminated Octavia as a potential marriage partner for supporters of Britannicus who might have attempted to stall the succession of Nero." (Bradley, ad loc.)

17	inter horam sextam septimamque: The later time of death given in the Apocolocyntosis represents the 'official' version of events which misrepresented the exact time of Claudius's death, and which Seneca presumably was content to condone and propagate. The obscurity surrounding Claudius's death is best appreciated from Tacitus, who never actually mentions the fact that Claudius died." (Bradley, ad loc.) Suetonius's reference here is also rather cryptic.
18	excubitores: See R-L 450 on excubiae.
18-19	According to Tacitus, Agrippina waited for the "right" time to be announced by Chaldaean astrologers before allowing (!) Nero to appear publicly. (Annals 12.68.3)
20	Palati: here one or other of the imperial residences on the Palatine Hill.
21-22	The fact that Nero attended the praetorians before the Senate speaks volumes for the importance of the former. His acceptance by them is a tribute to Agrippina's skill in stage-managing a smooth transition from Claudius to Nero. At the same time, raptim suggests Nero was anxious to win the Senate's acceptance as soon as he decently could. "Britannicus was safely under the watch of Agrippina in the palace, but the possibility of demonstrations on his behalf was not thereby automatically eliminated." (Bradley, ad loc.)
23-24	The mere fact that the title pater patriae was proposed indicates that it was by now a standard component of imperial honours. On the other hand, we know of no instances of its being conferred at the beginning of a reign.

25	ostentatione: ablative of origin.
25ff.	At last Suetonius regales us with an account of Nero's good deeds. In this section, Nero's predominant virtue is pietas, towards Claudius, his father Domitius, his mother Agrippina and his birthplace Antium. (OCD 1182) "The demonstration of pietas towards the previous ruler became a conventional feature of any accession even when, as here, there might be a reaction against preceding policies or personalities. It assisted the process of the transference of power. There is no reason to suppose that ostentatio is anything but literally exact and without any adverse connotations." (Bradley, ad loc.) Claudius received a funus censorium. (R-L 481) laudavit: Tacitus gives the details in Annals 13.3.
26	consecravit: See OCD 1338-1339, s.v. "ruler-cult, II Roman". GRC coin 53 describes Nero as DIVI CLAVD. F. The title, however, did not last long. Bradley believes that the deification of Claudius, while not rescinded, gradually became neglected. On Seneca's Apocolocyntosis, see OCCL 43.
27-28	matri summam .... publicarumque permisit: Further to Warmington, Agrippina's influence may well have been strongest behind the scenes. Witness the deaths at the beginning of Nero's reign of Iunius Silanus (OCD 790, s.v. "Iunius Silanus (3), Marcus") and Narcissus (OCD 1026, s.v. "Narcissus (2)").
31	Antium: See again OCD 113.
32	"After sixteen years' service in the praetorian guard veterans might often retire to take part in the public life of Italian municipalities; their wealth could be very attractive." (Bradley, ad loc.)
32-33	per domicilii translationem: If this involved a forced uprooting, it must have caused considerable resentment.
33	ubi: a relative adverb, equivalent to the demonstrative ibi.
34	portum: OCD 666-667, s.v. "harbours", especially the last paragraph.

35	ex Augusti praescripto imperaturum se professus: "In spite of the obvious attempt to win the approval of and to secure a cooperative relationship with the senate, there is no question of a derogation of the powers of the absolute ruler." (Bradley, ad loc.) Rulers ancient and modern have regarded judicious reminiscence of a revered predecessor to be good politics. Vespasian found it to be expedient to use on his coins reverse types favoured by Augustus, e.g. the Altar of Providence. In this way he sought to win acceptance for his new dynasty and provide it with a firm foundation. In 1981, the Shah of Iran, in an address-in-reply to a message of homage, stood in front of the palace of Persepolis and uttered these words: Hail, Cyrus, founder of the Persian Empire and immortal hero of human history .... On this historic day when the whole country renews its allegiance to its glorious past, I call history to witness that we, the heirs of Cyrus, have kept the promise made 2500 years ago. We have remained loyal to our mission, we have made our culture an instrument of peace and love. There followed an incredible march past of imperial warriors, authentically garbed and equipped, from different eras of the country's past. Clearly the Shah was seeking to legitimise his rule by building a bridge between himself and the great kings of the past. In 1989, the Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, with an election in prospect, made great play of transferring provincial barons' powers of patronage and budget control to the seventy per cent of Indian voters who live in the countryside. In so doing, he invoked the memory of his namesake Mahatma Gandhi, proclaiming he was fulfilling a promise made during Mahatma's struggle for independence. In 1997, when William Clinton took the oath of office for his second term, he noted that he could see from the steps of the Capitol building the Lincoln Monument where Martin Luther King gave his famous "I have a dream" speech in 1963. He then said: Martin Luther King's dream was the American dream. His quest is our quest - the ceaseless striving to live out our true creed. His hearers responded warmly. On the widespread belief that the initial years of Nero's rule, the so-called "quinquennium Neronis", were excellent, see OCD 1037, s.v. "Nero", the second and third paragraphs.
2	The goddess Liberalitas appears frequently on Nero's coins, though Clementia does not. "Clementia signifies an enlightened leniency in the treatment of political offenders by the princeps and is the prerogative of an absolute ruler since its exercise presupposes an imperial position supra leges." (Bradley, ad loc.) comitatis: a private quality, separate from policy.
3	uectigalia: Further to Warmington, see OCD 1228, s.v. "portoria".
5	quartas: used as a substantive, partes being originally understood. On Augustus's social legislation, designed to foster traditional family life, see LR 47-52.
5-6	Further to Warmington, see OCD 376, s.v."congiarium".
6	quadringena: Shaky on numerals? See KMP 90. Insert a comma after nummis.
8	quingena: sc sestertia. (KMP 493 d)
8-9	praetorianis .... gratuitum: "The measure is in keeping with the general favour shown to the praetorians throughout the reign. Further donations were given after the murder of Agrippina and the disclosure of the Pisonian conspiracy, doubtless successful efforts to guarantee military loyalty at moments of political crisis." (Bradley, ad loc.)

9-12	On Seneca's De clementia, referred to by Warmington, see OCCL 171. While we have here one example of clementia, others are hard to find. A flash in the pan perhaps?
10	supplicium usually refers to the punishment of death. (MBA page 416, note)
11	capite: On this ablative with a verb of condemning, see GL 378.3. uellem: basically a subjunctive of conditioned futurity, referring to past time. (MBA 152)
14	On the Campus Martius as a venue for exercise, see OCD 284.
15	declamauit: See OCD 436-437, s.v. "declamation". saepius has no strong comparative force. recitauit et carmina: See OCD 1295-1296, s.v. "recitatio".
17	supplicatio: See OCD 1436, s.v. "supplication, Roman".