History UsefulNotes / SuetoniusPaulinus

* NeverMyFault: In one of his supposed speeches to his men at Watling Street, he declared that the gods always sided with those who had been wronged. While Boudica's forces did massacre three cities, it was Suetonius's side that threw the first punch - namely, flogging her and then raping and flogging her daughters while forcing her to watch - out of [[EvilIsPetty petty sadism.]] Sure, ''he'' had nothing to do with that, but his side [[CreateYourOwnVillain wronged hers first.]] Of course, even recognizing these wrongs he could have seen his side as the just one because of [[RevengeByProxy Boudica's]] [[DisproportionateRetribution actions]].

* NeverMyFault: In one of his supposed speeches to his men at Watling Street, he declared that the gods always sided with those who had been wronged. While Boudica's forces did massacre three cities, it was Suetonius's side that threw the first punch - namely, flogging her and then raping and flogging her daughters while forcing her to watch - out of [[EvilIsPetty petty sadism.]] Sure, ''he'' had nothing to do with that, but his side [[CreateYourOwnVillain wronged hers first.]] Of course, even recognizing these wrongs he could have seen his side as the just one because of [[RevengeByProxy Boudica's]] [[DisproportionateRetribution actions]], but even that falls somewhat flat since said actions, while brutal, were pretty much the [[DeliberateValuesDissonance standard military code in those days]], and he proved to be NotSoDifferent in that regard.

* NeverMyFault: In one of his supposed speeches to his men at Watling Street, he declared that the gods always sided with those who had been wronged. While Boudica's forces did massacre three cities, it was Suetonius's side that threw the first punch - namely, flogging her and then raping and flogging her daughters while forcing her to watch - out of [[EvilIsPetty petty sadism.]] Sure, ''he'' had nothing to do with that, but his side [[CreateYourOwnVillain wronged hers first.]] Of course, even recognizing these wrongs he could have seen his side as the just one because of [[RevengeByProxy Boudica's]] [[DisproportionateRetribution actions]].

* TheMentor: Was a mentor to Gnaeus Julius Agricola, who would later follow in Suetonius's footsteps by becoming Governor of Britannia, defeating several more local tribes, further Romanizing the locals to adopt Roman Customs, and even invading Scotland.

* PetTheDog: Before leaving Londinium, he evacuated as many civilians as he could. Because of this there were people who survived Boudica's Rebellion who would otherwise have been murdered.

* SmallNameBigEgo: A downplayed example. According to Tacitus,""Britain was in the hands of Suetonius Paulinus, who in military knowledge and in popular favour, which allows no one to be without a rival, vied with Corbulo, and aspired to equal the glory of the recovery of Armenia by the subjugation of Rome's enemies. He therefore prepared to attack the island of Mona which had a powerful population and was a refuge for fugitives." In other words, he thought conquering a small island on the cold northern frontier would be equal to conquering a wealthy eastern kingdom.

* NeverMyFault: In one of his supposed speeches to his men at Watling Street, he declared that the gods always sided with those who had been wronged. While Boudica's forces did destroy three cities, it was Suetonius's side that threw the first punch - namely, flogging her and then raping and flogging her daughters while forcing her to watch - out of [[EvilIsPetty petty sadism.]] Sure, ''he'' had nothing to do with that, but his side [[CreateYourOwnVillain wronged hers first.]]

* UngratefulBastard: Zig-zagged. On one hand, he was dismissed from his position following Boudica's revolt. On the other hand, Nero's reason for firing him was entirely pragmatic: while Suetonius had nothing to do with the rape and flogging of Boudica and her daughters, he had certainly stepped on a few toes here and there prior to the revolt[[note]]such as kicking a native tribe out of their capital city and turning it into a rest stop for Roman veterans without bothering to relocate said natives[[/note]], so it's entirely possible (if not likely) that he would have provoked a revolt sooner or later. Replacing him with nicer governors kept an even more destructive conflict from occurring. This is somewhat subverted though as a lead tessera found in Rome features both his and Nero's names and symbols of victory, suggesting that the Emperor at least commemorated his victory.

* RousingSpeech: According to Dio, he gave Three of these. One to each division of his army. According to Tacitus, however, he only gives one blunt (yet no less rousing) speech to his army.

* UngratefulBastard: Zig-zagged. On one hand, he was dismissed from his position following Boudica's revolt. On the other hand, Nero's reason for firing him was entirely pragmatic: while Suetonius had nothing to do with the rape and flogging of Boudica and her daughters, he had certainly stepped on a few toes here and there even prior to the revolt, so it's entirely possible (if not likely) that he would have provoked a revolt sooner or later. Replacing him with nicer governors kept an even more destructive conflict from occurring. This is somewhat subverted though as a lead tessera found in Rome features both his and Nero's names and symbols of victory, suggesting that the Emperor at least commemorated his victory.

* UngratefulBastard: Emperor Nero was this to him. Suetonius suppressed a large rebellion in Roman Britain (one that Nero's own advisor Seneca provoked), keeping the region in Roman Hands and avenging thousands of murdered Roman Civilians. Yet Nero's response was to find an excuse to fire Suetonius. This is somewhat subverted though as a lead tessera found in Rome features both his and Nero's names and symbols of victory, suggesting that the Emperor at least commemorated his victory.

* CavalryRefusal: At the Battle of Watling Street, one of the legions Suetonius called in refused to answer the call. The commander in charge of that legion committed suicide after Suetonius won.

* FutureImperfect: As you can see, large chunks of his life are lost to history.
* HereWeGoAgain: Boudica's Rebellion is actually the second time Suetonius suppressed a native uprising against Roman Rule. The first time was in Mauritania.

* TheMentor: Was a mentor to Gnaeus Julius Agricola, who would later follow in Suetonius's footsteps by becoming Governor of Britannia, defeating several local tribes, and even invading Scotland.

* RememberTheAlamo: According to Dio this was the crux of the speech he gave to one of the three divisions of his army before the Battle of Watling Street, calling upon his soldiers to avenge those killed in Camulodunum.

* RousingSpeech: According to Dio, he gave Three of these. One to each division of his army. According to Tacticus, however, he only gives one blunt (yet no less rousing) speech to his army.
* SmallNameBigEgo: A downplayed example. According to Tacitus,""Britain was in the hands of Suetonius Paulinus, who in military knowledge and in popular favour, which allows no one to be without a rival, vied with Corbulo, and aspired to equal the glory of the recovery of Armenia by the subjugation of Rome's enemies. He therefore prepared to attack the island of Mona which had a powerful population and was a refuge for fugitives." In other words, he thought conquering a small island on the northern frontier would be equal to conquering a wealthy eastern kingdom.

* HistoricalVillainUpgrade: We know very little about him, and one of the few acts of his recorded was his [[PetTheDog evacuating the citizens of Londinium]], but because he opposed [[HistoricalHeroUpgrade Boudica]] he is often painted as a monster. It's highly unlikely that he was involved in the [[RapeAsDrama rape of her daughters]] or that he ordered the slaughter of all those women and children at Watling Street. How he felt about it after the fact is also known.
* NoodleIncident: While Suetonius was relieved of his post because the Emperor feared his reprisals would provoke more uprisings, the official reason was that he lost some roman navy ships. How, or even if, he lost entire ships is unknown.

* RoaringRampageOfRevenge: After defeating Boudica's Rebellion, he launched punitive actions against the tribes that rebelled. What those actions were is never specified, so we don't know if it was a case of KickTheDog or PayEvilUntoEvil. What we ''do'' know is that the full measure of his plans was never realized, as he was dismissed from his position before he could.

* PetTheDog: Before leaving Londinium, he evacuated as many civilians as he could. Because of this there were people who survived Boudica's Rebellion who would otherwise have died.

* HistoricalVillainUpgrade: We know very little about him, and one of the few acts of his recorded was his [[PetTheDog evacuating the citizens of Londinium]], but because he opposed [[HistoricalHeroUpgrade Boudica]] he is often painted as a monster. It's highly unlikely that he was involved in the [[RapeAsDrama rape of her daughters]] or that he ordered the slaughter of all those women and children at Watling Street. However it is unknown whether or not he was completely oblivious (some think he had no way of knowing, others think he at least knew of the former and looked the other way).

* HistoricalVillainUpgrade: We know very little about him, and one of the few acts of his recorded was his [[PetTheDog evacuating the citizens of Londinium]], but because he opposed [[HistoricalHeroUpgrade Boudica]] he is often painted as a monster. It's highly unlikely that he was involved in the [[RapeAsDrama rape of her daughters]] or that he ordered the slaughter of all those women and children at Watling Street, but some think he at least knew of the former and looked the other way.

Before he could finish his campaign, however, Suetonius and the Roman politicians involved were recalled to Rome. If they were expecting a reward for their efforts, they were sorely mistaken: Nero berated them for provoking the rebellion, and promptly stripped them of their positions to prevent them from doing so again. Suetonius's successors quickly undid all of the punitive measures he had installed and restored good relations with the natives (including the remaining Iceni) by [[PetTheDog treating them better]].

* ObligatoryWarCrimeScene: At the Battle of Watling Street, the Iceni brought their families in wagons along to watch the expected victory. When the Iceni lost, the Roman Soldiers killed said families in a fit of rage. It is unlikely that Suetonius ordered this.

** On the flip-side, it should be kept in mind that several of his military campaigns were ''very'' brutal, so he was hardly a saint.

In 69 AD, in the Year of Four Emperors, he supported Emperor Otho. He took a more cautious approach in this war, but his opinion was overruled and Otho was defeated and ultimatly killed. Suetonius avoided being punished for his role in the war [[BlatantLies by claiming he lost the battle on purpose]].

After the rebellion was ended, Suetonius (perhaps pissed off over the 70,000 people the rebels killed) launched punitive actions and forced the surviving Iceni to relocate to a Romanized Town and to give up their culture.

Instead of being grateful for defeating a major rebellion and avenging 70,000 dead Romans, Emperor Caligula feared Suetonius's retalitory measures would provoke more hostility. So he removed Suetonius from office (on the basis that he lost some ships), and replaced the man with a friend.

* FinalBattle: The Battle of Watling Street, in which he finally defeated Boudica's Uprising. There would never be a native British Uprising against Roman Rule again.

* HistoricalVillainUpgrade: We know very little about him, and one of the few acts of his recorded was his [[PetTheDog evacuating the citizens of Londinium]], but because he opposed [[HistoricalHeroUpgrade Boudica]] he is often painted as a monster.

* UngratefulBastard: Even though he defeated a major rebellion, effectively keeping Britain in The Roman Empire, Emperor Nero removed Suetonious from office instead of thanking him.

* RoaringRampageOfRevenge: After defeating Boudica's Rebellion, he launched punitive actions against the tribes that rebelled. What those actions were is never specified, so we don't know if it was a case of KickTheDog or PayEvilUntoEvil.

* In Assassin's Creed, he is a Templar Villain who gets killed by the fictional Assassin Quintus Metus Falco.

* FinalBattle: The Battle of Watling Street, in which he finally defeated Boudica's Uprising.

* ObligatoryWarCrimeScene: At the Battle of Watling Street, the Iceni brought their families in wagons along to watch the expected victory. When the Iceni lost, the Roman Soldiers killed said families in a fit of rage. It is unlikely that Suetonius ordered this.

* UngratefulBastard: Even though he defeated a major rebellion, effectively keeping Britian in The Roman Empire, Emperor Nero removed Suetonious from office instead of thanking him.
* RememberTheAlamo: According to Dio, this was the crux of the speech he gave to one of the three divisions of his army before the Battle of Watling Street.

* RoaringRampageOfRevenge: After defeating Boudica's Rebellion, he launched punitive actions against the tribes that rebelled. What those actions were is never specified, so we don't know if it was a case of KickTheDog or KickTheSonOfABitch.

* TheCaligula: Suetonius himself probably wasn't one, but his boss was the TropeNamer.

* HistoricalVillainUpgrade: We know very little about him, and one of the few acts of his recorded was his [[PetTheDog evaucating the citizens of Londinium]], but because he opposed [[HistoricalHeroUpgrade Boudica]] he is often painted as a monster.
* PetTheDog: Before leaving Londinium, he evaucated as many civilians as he could. People survived Boudica's Rebellion who would otherwise have died.
* UngratefulBastard: Even though he defeated a major rebellion, effectively keeping Britian in The Roman Empire, The Emperor removed him from office instead of thanking him.

-->-- '''Gaius Suetonius Paulinus''' at The Battle of Watling Street

* RousingSpeech:
** According to Dio he gives three to his men before the battle of Watling Street, one to each division.
--> Suetonius to the first division (according to Dio): "Up, fellow-soldiers! Up, Romans! Show these accursed wretches how far we surpass them even in the midst of evil fortune. It would be shameful, indeed, for you to lose ingloriously now what but a short time ago you won by your valour. Many a time, assuredly, have both we ourselves and our fathers, with far fewer numbers than we have at present, conquered far more numerous antagonists. Fear not, then, their numbers or their spirit of rebellion; for their boldness rests on nothing more than headlong rashness unaided by arms or training. Neither fear them because they have burned a couple of cities; for they did not capture them by force nor after a battle, but one was betrayed and the other abandoned to them. Exact from them now, therefore, the proper penalty for these deeds, and let them learn by actual experience the difference between us, whom they have wronged, and themselves."
--> Suetonius to the second division (according to Dio): "Now is the time, fellow-soldiers, for zeal, now is the time for daring. For if you show yourselves brave men today, you will recover all that you have lost; if you overcome these foes, no one else will any longer withstand us. By one such battle you will both make your present possessions secure and subdue whatever remains; 2 for everywhere our soldiers, even though they are in other lands, will emulate you and foes will be terror-stricken. Therefore, since you have it within your power either to rule all mankind without a fear, both the nations that your fathers left to you and those that you yourselves have gained in addition, or else to be deprived of them altogether, choose to be free, to rule, to live in wealth, and to enjoy prosperity, rather than, by avoiding the effort, to suffer the opposite of all this."
--> Suetonius to the third division (according to Dio): "You have heard what outrages these damnable men have committed against us, nay more, you have even witnessed some of them. 2 Choose, then, whether you wish to suffer the same treatment yourselves as our comrades have suffered and to be driven p101out of Britain entirely, besides, or else by conquering to avenge those that have perished and at the same time furnish to the rest of mankind an example, not only of benevolent clemency toward the obedient, but also of inevitable severity toward the rebellious. For my part, I hope, above all, that victory will be ours; first, because the gods are our allies (for they almost always side with those who have been wronged); second, because of the courage that is our heritage, since we are Romans and have triumphed over all mankind by our valour; next, because of our experience (for we have defeated and subdued these very men who are now arrayed against us); and lastly, because of our prestige (for those with whom we are about to engage are not antagonists, but our slaves, whom we conquered even when they were free and independent). 4 Yet if the outcome should prove contrary to our hope, — for I will not shrink from mentioning even this possibility, — it would be better for us to fall fighting bravely than to be captured and impaled, to look upon our own entrails cut from our bodies, to be spitted on red-hot skewers, to perish by being melted in boiling water — in a word, to suffer as though we had been thrown to lawless and impious wild beasts. 5 Let us, therefore, either conquer them or die on the spot. Britain will be a noble monument for us, even though all the other Romans here should be driven out; for in any case our bodies shall for ever possess this land."
--> Suetonius(according to Tacticus): "Despise the savage uproar, the yells and shouts of undisciplined Barbarians. In that mixed multitude, the women out-number the men. Void of spirit, unprovided with arms, they are not soldiers who come to offer battle; they are bastards, runaways, the refuse of your swords, who have often fled before you, and will again betake themselves to flight when they see the conqueror flaming in the ranks of war. In all engagements it is the valour of a few that turns the fortune of the day. It will be your immortal glory, that with a scanty number you can equal the exploits of a great and powerful army. Keep your ranks; discharge your javelins; rush forward to a close attack; bear down all with your bucklers, and hew a passage with your swords. Pursue the vanquished, and never think of spoil and plunder. Conquer, and victory gives you everything."

--> Suetonius to the first division (according to Dio): "Up, fellow-soldiers! Up, Romans! Show these accursed wretches how far we surpass them even in the midst of evil fortune. It would be shameful, indeed, for you to lose ingloriously now what but a short time ago you won by your valour. Many a time, assuredly, have both we ourselves and our fathers, with far fewer numbers than we have at present, conquered far more numerous antagonists. 2 Fear not, then, their numbers or their spirit of rebellion; for their boldness rests on nothing more than headlong rashness unaided by arms or training. Neither fear them because they have burned a couple of cities; for they did not capture p99them by force nor after a battle, but one was betrayed and the other abandoned to them. Exact from them now, therefore, the proper penalty for these deeds, and let them learn by actual experience the difference between us, whom they have wronged, and themselves."
--> Suetonius to the first division (according to Dio): "Now is the time, fellow-soldiers, for zeal, now is the time for daring. For if you show yourselves brave men to‑day, you will recover all that you have lost; if you overcome these foes, no one else will any longer withstand us. By one such battle you will both make your present possessions secure and subdue whatever remains; 2 for everywhere our soldiers, even though they are in other lands, will emulate you and foes will be terror-stricken. Therefore, since you have it within your power either to rule all mankind without a fear, both the nations that your fathers left to you and those that you yourselves have gained in addition, or else to be deprived of them altogether, choose to be free, to rule, to live in wealth, and to enjoy prosperity, rather than, by avoiding the effort, to suffer the opposite of all this."
--> Suetonius to the first division (according to Dio): "You have heard what outrages these damnable men have committed against us, nay more, you have even witnessed some of them. 2 Choose, then, whether you wish to suffer the same treatment yourselves as our comrades have suffered and to be driven p101out of Britain entirely, besides, or else by conquering to avenge those that have perished and at the same time furnish to the rest of mankind an example, not only of benevolent clemency toward the obedient, but also of inevitable severity toward the rebellious. 3 For my part, I hope, above all, that victory will be ours; first, because the gods are our allies (for they almost always side with those who have been wronged); second, because of the courage that is our heritage, since we are Romans and have triumphed over all mankind by our valour; next, because of our experience (for we have defeated and subdued these very men who are now arrayed against us); and lastly, because of our prestige (for those with whom we are about to engage are not antagonists, but our slaves, whom we conquered even when they were free and independent). 4 Yet if the outcome should prove contrary to our hope, — for I will not shrink from mentioning even this possibility, — it would be better for us to fall fighting bravely than to be captured and impaled, to look upon our own entrails cut from our bodies, to be spitted on red-hot skewers, to perish by being melted in boiling water — in a word, to suffer as though we had been thrown to lawless and impious wild beasts. 5 Let us, therefore, either conquer them or die on the spot. Britain will be a noble monument for us, even though all the other Romans here should be driven out; for in any case our bodies shall for ever possess this land."

Gaius Suetonius Paulinus was a [[TheRomanEmpire Roman Governor]] of Britain. His most famous achievement was defeating [[http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/UsefulNotes/Boudica Boudica]] during her rebellion.

* UngratefulBastards: Even though he defeated a major rebellion, effectively keeping Britian in The Roman Empire, The Emperor removed him from office instead of thanking him.

* BlatentLies: In The Year of Four Emperors, he supported Emperor Otho. When Otho was defeated, Suetonius avoided punishment by claiming he lost an important battle on purpose. This is almost certainly a lie, but it worked because he wasn't prosecuted.