Letter 5008: King Theodoric to Anastasius, Governor [Consularis].

CassiodorusAnastasius|c. 522 AD|Cassiodorus
imperial politics

King Theodoric to Anastasius, Governor [Consularis].

It is fitting that Your Sublimity show steadfast obedience to our commands, so that what is arranged by sound planning may be carried through to effect. A wise man knows how to fulfill his duties with moderation and to manage delegated tasks with practical skill, without the stain of earning anyone's displeasure.

We therefore order you to dispatch a civil enforcement officer to the city of Faenza [Faventia, in modern Emilia-Romagna], so that squared stone blocks may be transported to the city of Ravenna under our orders, without any harassment or loss to the inhabitants. In this way we may rejoice in our purpose fulfilled, while removing any occasion for complaint.

Modern English rendering for readability. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek for scholarly use.

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