871 



SYMMACHUS. 



SYNCELLUS, GEORGE. 



872 



style, and, like all the letter- writers of that time, he took the letters of 

 the younger Pliny as his model. The style is concise and animated, 

 but is far from the natural and beautiful simplicity which characterises 

 the letters written iu the better period of Roman history. Yet the 

 letters of Symmachus, especially those of the tenth book, which give a 

 full account of the manner in which he discharged his duties as prefect 

 of Rome,, and also contain the above-mentioned address to the 

 emperors, are of peculiar interest iu regard to the history, constitution, 

 and administration of the Roman empire. Many points connected 

 with these subjects and with the history of the Roman law would 

 be entirely unintelligible to us without these letters. Symmachus 

 also distinguished himself as an orator, but his orations are lost, 

 with the exception of some fragments. A. Mai discovered fragments 

 of eight orations of Symmachus in a palimpsest of the Ambrosiau 

 library at Milan, which he published under the title ' Q. Aurelii Sym- 

 machi Octo Orationum ineditarum partes. Invenit notisque declaravit 

 A. Mai,' Mediolani, 8vo, 1815. (Reprinted at Frankfurt, in 8vo, 1816.) 

 Afterwards some other fragments of the orations of Symmachus were 

 discovered in a palimpsest of the Vatican library, which are printed in 

 an appendix to 'Juris Civilia Antejustiniauei Reliquiae ineditaj,' &c., 

 cura A. Mai, Roma?, 8vo, 1823. These fragments were again increased 

 by Peyron with some new ones from a MS. now at Turin. They are 

 printed iu his 'Annotationes ad Inventarium Bibliothecse Bobbio- 

 nensis," p. 182, &c. The style of these orations is on the whole the 

 same as that of the letters, and they are equally valuable as histo- 

 rical documents for the history of the empire during the time of 

 Symmachus. 



The first edition of the letters of Symmachus appeared at Strasburg 

 in 4to, 1510. This edition however contains only 317 letters, whereas 

 all the subsequent editions contain 965. A complete edition was 

 published at Basel, 8vo, 1549. After this there followed three other 

 important editions; one by Juretus, Paris, 1580, and a second edition, 

 4to, 1604, with notes; the second by Jac. Lectius, Geneva, 1587, and 

 reprinted, Svo, 1599 ; it contains the notes of Juretus with some by 

 Lectius. The third and best edition is that by C. Scioppius, Mogun- 

 tia;, 4to, 1608. Other editions are that of Philip Pareus, Neapoli 

 Nemetum, 1617 and 1628; reprinted at Frankfurt, 8vo, 1642, and that 

 of Leyden, in 12mo, 1653. 



(Symmachi Vita, by J. Gothofredus, in the edition of Pareus; Heyne, 

 Opmc. Acad. vi., p. 15, &c. ; J. Gurlitt, Susiana in Sym'inachum, 

 Hamburg, 4to, 1818 ; Fabricius, Biblioth. Lat. iii., p. 204, &c. ; A. 

 Mai, in the introduction to his edition of the Orations of Sym- 

 machus.) 



Besides the three persons of the name of Symmachus mentioned 

 above, there are several others of the same name who lived about or 

 after the time of the one whose name is at the head of this article. 

 L. Aurelius Symmachus was consul in A.D. 330, together with Galli- 

 canus : another of precisely the same name was consul with Aetius, iu 

 A.D. 446. Q. Aurelius Memmius Symmachus, perhaps a grandson of 

 the letter-writer and orator Symmachus, was consul in A,D. 485, and 

 was the father of Rusticiana, the second wife of Boethius. (Alcimus 

 Avitus, ' Epist.' 31 ; Enuodius, vii. 25.) His graudson Q. Aurelius 

 Anicius Symmachns was consul with Boethius, the son of the great 

 Boethius, in A.D. 522. 



Besides these there are several Latin writers of the name of Symma- 

 chus, of whom however nothing is known : 1. Symmachus, the author 

 of an historical work consisting of several books. Jornandes, in his 

 work 'De Rebus Geticis" (c. 15, &c.), quotes a long extract from the 

 fifth book, which relates to the history of the emperor Maximinus. 

 2. Several poets of the name of Symmachus : one is simply called 

 Symmachus, another Q. Aurelius Symmachus, and a third L. Aurelius 

 Avianus Symmachus. Several epigrams of these poets are still 

 extant. 



(Burmann, Anihol. Lat., ii. 143 ; H. Meyer, Antkolog. Veter. Latin. 

 Epigrammatum et Poemat., i., p. 105, &c.) 



SY'MMACHUS, a native of Sardinia, and a deacon, was elected 

 bishop of Rome, by part of the clergy, A.D. 493, after the death of 

 Anastasius II., whilst another part of the clergy, supported by several 

 senators, elected a priebt called Laurentius. The matter was referred 

 to Theodoric, king of Italy, who decided in favour of Symmachus. The 

 schism however continued for several years, and in the year 500 the 

 partisans of Laurentius rose in arras, and a great tumult took place at 

 Rome, iu which much blood was shed, and the virgins consecrated to 

 God were violated. At last Theodoric came to Rome, and convoked a 

 council, 502, known in church history by fche name of ' Concilium 

 Palmare,' in which Symmachus cleared himself of several charges of 

 licentiousness and rapacity, and was confirmed in Lis see. 



Symmachus is said to have condemned the Manichacaus, and burnt 

 their books at Rome. He wrote an apologetic treatise, in which he 

 repelled several insinuations against bis doctrines, which were put 

 forth by Auashasius I., emperor of the East, and at the same time 

 censured that emperor for the part he had taken in favour of Acacius, 

 the late patriarch of Constantinople, who had opposed the decrees of 

 the council of Chalcedon. Trasmund, king of the Vandals, in Africa, 

 having exiled to Sardinia several African bishops, Symmachus sent 

 them assistauce from Rome. Symmachus also repaired and embellished 

 many churches at Rome, founded hospitals, and ransomed many 

 slaves. He died in 514, and was succeeded by Hormisdas. 



SYMONDS, REAR-ADMIRAL SIR WILLIAM, C.B., F.R.S., 

 Surveyor of the Navy, was born on the 24th of September 1782, 

 entered the navy at an early a^e, and during the early part of his 

 career was much engaged in active service on the coasts of France 

 and Spain, and iu the West Indies. But his reputation chiefly rests 

 upon liis skill as a naval architect. Notwithstanding the innovation 

 in established usage which had been made by the genius and vigour 

 of Seppings [SEPPINGS, SIR ROBERT] destroying tho force of those 

 prescriptive restraints which had so long trammelled the older ship- 

 wrights, enterprise in naval architecture was still checked by the 

 custom of building ships of certain dimensions, which had been 

 officially established, a restriction with respect to tonnage was always 

 imposed on constructors. It remained for Commander Symonds to 

 procure the removal of this restriction. He was first allowed, but 

 under, it is said, a very unusual and restrictive penalty, to construct 

 a corvette, the Columbine. To her he was appointed, December 4, 

 1826, and so great was the success which attended him in the experi- 

 mental cruises he made during the next twelve months, that he was 

 advanced, as a reward, to post-rank, by a commission bearing date 

 December 5, 1827. In these cruises the sailing qualities of Captain 

 Symonds's ship were compared with those of other ships constructed 

 respectively by Sir Robert Seppings, the School of Naval Architecture, 

 and Captain Hayes. And although no fact directly conducive to 

 improvement in naval architecture was established by these and sub- 

 sequent trials, it was found that great superiority in cruising was 

 exhibited by the Columbine, and the zeal and devotion of Captain 

 Symonds were farther rewarded. At the beginning of 1831, by the 

 munificence of the late (fourth) Duke of Portland, he was enabled to 

 build, as an improvement upon tho Columbine, the 10-guu brig Pan- 

 taloon, the triumph of which vessel led to the construction, under his 

 superintendence, of the Vernon 50, Vestal 26, Snake 1C, and other 

 ships. Improved velocity and greater stability, obtained by great 

 breadth of beam, and diminution of breadth immediately below tho 

 water-line, were the characteristics of these new vessels. The restric- 

 tion arising from the prescribed limit of tonnage was first broken 

 through in the case of the Vernon, which Captain Syinonds was 

 allowed to construct free from that impediment. And, even whilst 

 she was upon the stocks, she was considered to present such excellent 

 qualities, that it was deemed Captain Symonds had already given 

 sufficient proof of his skill in naval architecture to be entitled to the 

 highest post and responsibility in that profession. In 1832 on the 9th 

 of June, he was offered, and accepted, the office of Surveyor of the 

 Navy, iu succession to Sir Robert Seppings. This appointment was 

 associated with the entire removal of restriction as to the amount of 

 tonnage in ships of the navy. Captain Symonds therefore had liberty 

 for the exercise of judgment and talent in designing ships, which had 

 not been granted to the commissioners or surveyors of the navy before ; 

 so that he might at once build ships on the best conditions of 

 excellence that both science and practice had yet indicated. This 

 freedom from conditions in determining the dimensions of ships, was 

 taken ample advantage of by him; having a great principle to bring 

 out in practice, he applied it with a decision, which, in a short time, 

 altered the general character of no inconsiderable part of our navy. 

 He had the merit of having boldly taken the lead in a path which 

 future constructors, intending to carry on improvements in our ships, 

 may pursue with the highest advantage. Considerable difference of 

 opinion exists as to the value of the totality of qualities possessed by 

 Captain Symonds's ships; but it was remarked in 1849, two years 

 after he had retired from office, that of the 180 vessels of different 

 kinds, built during the period of sixteen years, for which he was 

 surveyor of the navy, and all upon the same principles of construc- 

 tion, as already noticed, and as originally adopted in the Pantaloon, 

 none had foundered. 



Captain Symonds received the honour of knighthood in 1836. He 

 had received the thanks of the Admiralty in 1830 for a memoir con- 

 taining 'Sailing Directions for the Adriatic Sea;' and again, in 1837, 

 for " the valuable qualities of his several ships, and for improvements 

 introduced by him into the navy," he was elected a Fellow of the 

 Royal Society on June 4th, 1835, and nominated a C.B. of the Civil 

 division in 1848. In 1854 he became a Rear-Admiral on the retired 

 list. He died, March 30, 1856, on his voyage from Malta to Marseille. 



(O'Byrne, Naval Biographical Dictionary ; Fincham, History of 

 Naval Architecture, &c.) 



SYNCELLUS, GEORGE (redpyws Siry/ceAAos), was a monk and 

 abbot at the end of the 8th and the beginning of the 9th century after 

 Christ. His surname was given him from his being the ' Syncellus ' 

 of Tarasius, patriarch of Constantinople, who died in A.D. 806. George 

 Syncellus died about the year 800. 



His ' Chronography ' ('E/cAoy^ xP OJ/0 7/' a< ? ) ' ar ) * B a history of the 

 world, arranged in chronological order, from the Creation to the reign 

 of Diocletian. The intention of the writer was to include the whole 

 period down to A.D. 800. It is little more than a copy of the ' Chro- 

 nicon' of Eusebius. It was published from a manuscript in the royal 

 library at Paris, which was obtained at Corinth in 1507 by Jac. Goar, 

 in a folio volume, containing the Greek text, a Latin version, aud notes, 

 together with the 'Breviarium' of Nicephorus, Paris, 1652, reprinted 

 at Venice in 1729. It is also contained in the Bonn collection of the 

 Byzantine writers, in which it forms, with ' Nicephorus,' two volumes, 



