Letter 4013: Ennodius to Constantius, the Illustrious.
Ennodius of Pavia→Constantius, vir illustris|c. 503 AD|Ennodius of Pavia
friendship
From: Ennodius, deacon and literary figure in Pavia
To: Constantius, vir illustris [a high-ranking official]
Date: ~503 AD
Context: A letter to a powerful official, praising his loyalty to friends and dependents — flattery with a purpose, as Ennodius cultivated relationships across the secular and ecclesiastical spheres.
Ennodius to Constantius, the Illustrious.
Your Greatness preserves toward friends and dependents the faithfulness that is the mark of a truly noble character. The loyalty you show to those who serve you is not mere habit — it is a principle, and one that distinguishes you from lesser men in positions of similar power.
I write to acknowledge this and to place myself among those who benefit from it. Whatever occasion arises in which my voice might serve your purposes, command it freely. The service of a friend, even a modest one, is not without value when it is offered with a whole heart.
I remain at your disposal and in your debt. Farewell.
XIII. ENNODIVS CONSTANTIO V. I.
Seruat magnitudo tua circa amicos et cultores proprios
illud quod sibi iungit ad gloriam. dum enim memoria dignos
ducitis, uos probatis. nam diu in consolationem scripta suscipiens,
absentiae uestrae damna suspiro. o artificem scientiam
bonis caelestibus institutam! ne liceat aliquid prolixae sequestrationi
de affectu decerpere, praesentantes sacram imaginem
litteras promulgatis. nouit deus discussor sensuum me culminis
uestri recordatione macerari et nullum inuenire de optimi uiri
peregrinatione subsidium. reddo tamen epistolari cura salutationis
obsequium, et dignationi uestrae gratias referens fratrem
quoque meum Iohannem per uos mihi restitutum esse confiteor.
cuius hactenus in obliuione mei silentium quid gereret non
tacebat, is nunc uestro mihi reformatus affectu ad abiuratam
stili curam reuertit. rogo tamen uos ut maturetis reditum aut
si felix mora detinet, dilectionem manifestetis adloquio.
1 et tndusi rumpit L mihi BL Y 2 posthanc T
adeo add. in mg. T m. 2 qaae] q; L habere B didicisti
L di s. I. m. cmt . 8 contemtor B, contempto T1 oredo T1
4 sacramenta seruat T 5 concordiae] finit add. B
XIII. 7 V. I. om. T 8 tua tua B cultores Bb, saeculares
LPTV et Sirm . 9 enim B, enim nos LPTVb 10 ducetia
LPTlVb, docetis B probates B1 consulationem B
11 ∗∗abstinentiae (Ii? eras.) B supiro V in ras. m. 1 12 prolize
LT 13 presentantes B 14 prouulgatis B senseum B,
1.
sens∗um L cuminis L 15 uestri — I. 18 ioannem alia man.
exarauit in T 16 epistolare B salutationis T s. L m. 2
17 uestrae gratiam LPYb, nostre gloriam T 18 quoque om. T
ioannem q per T 19 cui|ius L obliuione scripsi, obliuionem
BLPTVb 21 maturites B 22 decinet B manifes∗∗tetis
L adloquio] finit add. B
◆
From:Ennodius, deacon and literary figure in Pavia
To:Constantius, vir illustris [a high-ranking official]
Date:~503 AD
Context:A letter to a powerful official, praising his loyalty to friends and dependents — flattery with a purpose, as Ennodius cultivated relationships across the secular and ecclesiastical spheres.
Ennodius to Constantius, the Illustrious.
Your Greatness preserves toward friends and dependents the faithfulness that is the mark of a truly noble character. The loyalty you show to those who serve you is not mere habit — it is a principle, and one that distinguishes you from lesser men in positions of similar power.
I write to acknowledge this and to place myself among those who benefit from it. Whatever occasion arises in which my voice might serve your purposes, command it freely. The service of a friend, even a modest one, is not without value when it is offered with a whole heart.
I remain at your disposal and in your debt. Farewell.
Modern English rendering for readability. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek for scholarly use.