The Histories - (Penguin Classics) by Tacitus (Paperback)

About the Book

"In AD 68 Nero's suicide marked the end of the first dynasty of imperial Rome. The following year was one of drama and danger. In the surviving books of his Histories the barrister-historian Tacitus, writing some thirty years after the events he describes, gives a detailed account of the 'long but single year' when four emperors emerged in succession: Galba, the martinet; Otho, conspirator and dandy; Vitellius, the unambitious hedonist; and the ultimate victor, Vespasian, who established the Flavian dynasty. With great vividness and emotional power, Tacitus' gripping narrative lays bare corruption, injustice and folly, and sheds lasting light on the nature of power. This revised version of Kenneth Wellesley's translation has sensitively updated it to render it more accessible to the modern reader. This edition contains a new introduction by Rhiannon Ash discussing Tacitus' life and his contemporary audience, a note on the text, further reading, a glossary of place and peoples, expanded notes and a chronology"--P. [4] of cover.

Book Synopsis

In AD68 Nero's suicide marked the end of the first dynasty of imperial Rome. The following year was one of drama and danger though not of chaos.

In the surviving books of his Histories the barrister-historian Tacitus writing some thirty years after the events he describes gives us a detailed account based on excellent authorities. In the 'long but single year' of revolution four emperors emerge in succession: Galba Otho Vitellius and Vespasian - who established the Flavian dynasty.

Rhiannon Ash stays true to the spirit of Wellesley's prose whilst making the translation more accessible to modern readers.

Review Quotes

" In all the records of Rome there can scarcely be another year that is so full of calamity, or that displays so clearly the strength and weakness of the Romans."
-Kenneth Wellesley, from his original introduction to "The Histories"

About the Author

Tacitus studied rhetoric in Rome and rose to eminence as a pleader at the Roman Bar. In 77 he married the daughter of Agricola, conqueror of Britain, of whom he later wrote a biography. His works include the Germania and the Historiae.