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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Voulgaroktonou, post: 7652112, member: 84047&quot;]In 355 AD, the Caesar Julian delivered a panegyric in honor of his kinsman and emperor Constantius II. Although I often don&#039;t remember what I did yesterday, I DID remember from having read this fifty years ago that the word Βασιλευς appears in the first line! </p><p><br /></p><p>I am not suggesting that this is the earliest instance of its use. To do that, one would need to research the inscriptional corpora such as the huge &quot;Inscriptiones Graecae&quot; set. </p><p><br /></p><p>Πάλαι με προθυμούμενον, ὦ μέγιστε βασιλεῦ, τὴν σὴν ἀρετὴν καὶ πράξεις ὑμνῆσαι καὶ τοὺς πολέμους ἀπαριθμήσασθαι, καὶ τὰς τυραννίδας ὅπως ἀνῄρηκας, τῆς μὲν λόγῳ καὶ πειθοῖ τοὺς δορυφόρους ἀποστήσας, τῆς δὲ τοῖς ὅπλοις κρατήσας, τὸ μέγεθος εἶργε τῶν πράξεων, οὐ τὸ βραχὺ λειφθῆναι τῷ λόγῳ τῶν ἔργων δεινὸν κρίνοντα, ἀλλὰ τὸ παντελῶς τῆς ὑποθέσεως διαμαρτεῖν δόξαι.</p><p><br /></p><p>I have long desired, most mighty Emperor, to sing the praises of your valour and achievements, to recount your campaigns, and to tell how you suppressed the tyrannies; how your persuasive eloquence drew away one usurper’s bodyguard [Vetranio]; how you overcame another<a href="https://www-loebclassics-com.proxy.libraries.uc.edu/view/emperor_julian-oration_i_panegyric_constantius/1913/pb_LCL013.5.xml#note_LCL013_5_2" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://www-loebclassics-com.proxy.libraries.uc.edu/view/emperor_julian-oration_i_panegyric_constantius/1913/pb_LCL013.5.xml#note_LCL013_5_2" rel="nofollow"> [Magnentius]</a> by force of arms. But the vast scale of your exploits deterred me, because what I had to dread was not that my words would fall somewhat short of your achievements, but that I should prove wholly unequal to my theme.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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