In 196bc, after the Romans defeated king Filip of Macedonia, there were celebrated with great solemnity the so-called Isthmic games, where an immense multitude of inhabitants of all the lands which had been subjected to king Filip of Macedonia had gathered. On this occasion, after the proconsul Titus Quinctius Flaminius and the Romans commissaries occupied the seats reserved for them at this festivity, the herald, stepping in the center of the arena, spoke in the Latin language these words: that the Roman Senate and the general Titus Quinctius Flaminius, following the defeat of king Filip, order that all the inhabitants of the provinces which had been under the rule of king Filip, be exempted from all the taxes, and live according to their own laws. Hearing the voice of the herald, an extraordinary joy got hold of the entire mob. They could not believe that they had understood well what had been said, and looked at one another with astonishment, as if all this were only the illusion of an empty dream….and being unable to believe their own ears, they asked their neighbors.
The herald was called again, because each of them wanted, not only to hear, but also to see the one who announced their freedom; then the herald pronounced again the same words. The mob, in its excess of joy, started to applaud with repeated shouts, which seemed without end, so that is was easy to understand that for this mob the dearest of all riches was freedom (Livy, Hist. rom. I. XXXIII. 92).
Also in Latin was made the publication of the new organization of Macedonia, and in 167bc the consul Emilius Paulus, after defeating king Perseus of Macedonia, convoked an assembly at Amphipolis. Here, in the middle of an immense multitude of Macedonians, and in the presence of the 10 representatives sent by Rome to regulate the affairs of the conquered country, the consul Emilius Paulus presented in Latin language the wish of the Senate and its decisions, while the praetorian Octavius, who was also present, repeated the same words, interpreting them in Greek language (Livy, Hist. rom. I. XLV. 29).
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