{Bridsh  Museum . )


88  THE    YEAR    OF  FOUR   EMPERORS

Galba  and  Piso  had  been  slain,  the  former  in  the
Forum,  the  latter  by  the  temple  of  Vesta,  in  which
he  had  taken  sanctuary,  and  the  Senate  had  conferred
upon  Otho  the  title  of  Augustus.
But  he  was  not  destined  to  enjoy  in  peace  the
Empire  which  he  had  won  by  treachery.  Immedi-
ately on  his  accession  it  became  known  that  not  only
had  the  legions  of  Upper  Germany  refused  to  take
the  oath  of  allegiance  to  Galba  on  the  ist  of  January,
and  called  upon  the  guard  to  elect  a  new  Emperor —
they  had  been  exasperated  by  the  appointment  of
Hordeonius  Flaccus,  an  aged  and  incapable  general,
in  place  of  their  beloved  Verginius  Rufus  (p.  82) — but
that  the  troops  of  the  Lower  Province  had  taken
the  more  decisive  step  of  saluting  their  commander,
Aulus  Vitellius,  the  son  of  Claudius'  co-censor,  as
hnperator.  Homage  was  first  rendered  to  Vitellius
by  Fabius  Valens,  commander  of  the  First  Legion,
who  arrived  at  Cologne  with  a  troop  of  horse  on  the
2nd  of  January.  The  news  spread  with  lightning
speed  ;  within  twenty-four  hours  the  armies  of  the
Rhine  were  united  in  their  allegiance,  and  the
governors  of  the  adjoining  provinces  of  Gaul  soon
followed  suit.
