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4This was what took place then. The following year Publius Servilius and Lucius Antonius nominally became consuls, but in reality it was Antonius and Fulvia. She, the mother-in -law of Caesar and wife of Antony, had no respect for Lepidus because of his slothfulness, and managed affairs herself, so that neither the senate nor the people transacted any business contrary to her pleasure. 2At any rate, when Lucius urged that he be allowed to celebrate a triumph over certain peoples dwelling in the Alps, on the ground that he had conquered them, Fulvia for a time opposed him and no one was for granting it, but when her favour was courted and she gave permission, they voted for the measure unanimously; 3therefore, though it was nominally Antonius who . . . and celebrated a triumph over the people whom he claimed to have vanquished (in reality he had done nothing deserving a triumph and had held no command at all in those regions), yet it was actually Fulvia. . . . At all events, she assumed a far prouder bearing over the affair than he did, because she had a truer cause; 4for to give any one authority to hold a triumph was a greater thing than to celebrate one which had been received at another’s hands. Except that Lucius donned the triumphal garb, mounted the chariot, and performed the other rites customary in such cases, it was Fulvia herself who seemed to be giving the spectacle, employing him as her assistant. 5It took place on the first day of the year, and Lucius plumed himself as much as Marius had done on the circumstance that he held it on the first day of the month in which he began his consulship. 6Moreover, he exulted even more than Marius, claiming that he had voluntarily laid aside the trappings of the procession and had assembled the senate in his civilian dress, whereas Marius had done so unwillingly. And he added that scarcely a single crown had been given to Marius, whereas he himself had obtained many, and particularly from the people, tribe by tribe, an honour which had been conferred upon no former victor—in his case owing to the influence of Fulvia and to the money which he had secretly lavished upon various persons.
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