Suetonius most famous work of the lives of the 12 caesars along with his shorter. In order to more fully paint the picture of the times, we have had written and interspersed in chronological order, the lives of all the distinguished associates of the twelve caesars, male and female, which we trust will be a great improvement on any previous edition. The twelve caesars chronicles the public careers and private lives of the men who wielded absolute power over rome, from the foundation of the empire under julius caesar and augustus, to the decline into depravity and civil war under nero and the recovery that came with his successors. Not much is known about the life of gaius suetonius tranquillus. Suetonius the twelve caesars world public library ebooks. Suetonius goes to great lengths to reveal the way these men really were, as human beings. The first edition of the novel was published in 119, and was written by suetonius.
Each emperor is dissected, and his actions beyond politics and. It is a gossipy chronicle with a fascinating perspective on the lives of the first twelve roman caesars that significantly intersects with second temple judaism and the birth and spread of christianity. Suetonius tranquillus, the lives of the caesars, suetonius. Augustus, tiberius, gaius caligula, claudius, nero, galba, otho, vitelius, vespasian, titus, domitian. The lives of the twelve caesars, complete by suetonius free ebook. The twelve caesars book xiv ausonius on the twelve caesars whose lives were written by suetonius tranquillus in single verses i. He neither dwells on the civil wars which sealed the fall of the republic, nor on the military expeditions which extended the frontiers of the empire. The twelve caesars by suetonius translated by robert graves. The lives of the twelve 12 caesars modern library books series an unexpurgated english edited with notes and an introduction by joseph gavorse gaius suetonius tranquillus published by published by the modern library, new york first thus edition. I marked up my print copy while listening to a hour audio book.
Suetonius writes a detailed memoir about each of the kings, outlining in vivid detail their actions, their lives, their. Nov 10, 2004 free kindle book and epub digitized and proofread by project gutenberg. On the life of the caesars commonly known as the twelve caesars, is a set of twelve biographies of julius caesar and the first 11 emperors of the roman empire written by gaius suetonius tranquillus. The twelve caesars is probably the most in depth book ever written about the personal lives of the twelve caesars. This collection, apparently entitled caesares, does not survive, but it was a source for a later biographical collection, known as historia augusta, which now forms a kind of sequel to suetonius work. English entry page to the complete latin text and an english translation of the work.
Suetonius wrote his lives of the twelve caesars in the reign of vespasian around a. The twelve caesars julius caesar, augustus, tiberius, caligula, claudius, nero, galba, otho, vitellius, vespasian, titus, and domitiancreated an empire which dominated the then known world and influenced it for a millennium. Over the last couple of days, i read the twelve caeasars cf. Suetonius the twelve caesars followed an established convention of the short biographical essay, which lent itself to convivial sharing before an audience but could also be used to explore important themes. The work, probably written around 121ad in the reign of hadrian, therefore covers the crucial and highly eventful period of roman history from the end of the republic to the reign of domitian. Suetonius documents an early reputation for honesty but also a tendency toward. Suetonius composed his material from a variety of sources, without much concern for their reliability. Ausonius, on the twelve caesars whose lives were written. Septicius clarus, prefect of the praetorian guard, his lives of the caesars. The twelve caesars served as a model for the biographies of 2nd and early 3rdcentury emperors compiled by marius maximus. The twelve caesars chapter 1, gaius julius caesar summary. To get rid of the report, nero fastened guilt and inflicted the most exquisite tortures on a class of persons hated for their abominations, called christians by the populace. The twelve caesarsjulius caesar, augustus, tiberius, caligula, claudius, nero, galba, otho, vitellius, vespasian, titus, and domitiancreated an empire which dominated the then known world and influenced it for a millennium.
The lives of the twelve caesars, to which are added, his lives of the grammarians, rhetoricians, and poets. The twelve caesars by suetonius in epub, fb2, txt download ebook. Ausonius, on the twelve caesars whose lives were written by. Suetonius lives of the twelve caesars is a little hard to read at first if youve been out of the loop for almost two millennia for he essentially wrote a tabloid on the rulers of his time and if youre not familiar with the names of the minor players from other sources, you will miss a lot of context. The twelve caesars by suetonius, 1957 online research. Her pregnancy at the time of the marriage led to suspicions that drusus was the result of his stepfathers adultery with her. In about 141 bc it was retariffed at 16 asses, to reflect the decrease in weight of the as. The twelve caesars chronicles the public careers and private lives of the men who wielded absolute power over rome, from the foundation of the empire under julius caesar and augustus to the decline into depravity under nero and the recovery that came with his successors.
Chapter 1, gaius julius caesar summary and analysis. The twelve caesars chronicles the public careers and private lives of the men who wielded absolute power over rome, from the foundation of the empire under julius caesar and augustus, to the decline into depravity and civil war under nero. The lives of the twelve caesars is a work of biography, and its strength is the expounding upon human character, rather than history. The twelve caesars by gaius suetonius tranquillus, translated by robert graves 1965. Suetonius the lives of the twelve caesars read by derek jacobi abridged.
The lives of twelve caesars gaius suetonius tranquillus. The plan adopted by suetonius in his lives of the twelve caesars, led him to be more diffuse on their personal conduct and habits than on public events. This masterpiece of observation, immortalized in robert gravess classic. The twelve caesarschronicles the public careers and private lives of the men who wielded absolute power over rome, from the foundation of the empire under julius caesar and augustus, to the decline into depravity and civil war under nero. So began one of the most wellknown, infamous persecutions of christians. Free kindle book and epub digitized and proofread by project gutenberg. By suetonius tranquillus rita mae brown, author of rubyfruit jungle and several mystery series, first read suetonius lives of the caesars in college. Specifically suetonius relates how each of these successive emperors of the roman empire dealt with the office of supreme power.
The lives of the twelve caesars, free pdf, ebook global grey. He chronicled the extraordinary careers of julius, augustus, tiberius, caligula, claudius, nero, vespasian and domitian and the rest in technicolour terms. The lives of the twelve caesars career account web service. The book was published in multiple languages including english, consists of 363 pages and is available in paperback format. The lives of the twelve caesars, to which are added, his lives of the grammarians, rhetoricians. Suetoniuss work describes the lives of romes first 12 leaders from julius caesar to domitian hence it is best known today as the twelve. Oct 25, 2008 over the last couple of days, i read the twelve caeasars cf. The lives of the twelve caesars, to which are added his lives of the grammarians, rhetoricians, and poets. Lives of the caesars by suetonius the 102nd greatest. Start your 48hour free trial to unlock this lives of the caesars study guide and get instant access to the following critical essays. Other articles where lives of the caesars is discussed. Drusus the elder, claudius caesars father, who was first named decimus and later nero, was born in 38bc to livia, less than three months after she wedded augustus. Oct 25, 2007 the twelve caesars chronicles the public careers and private lives of the men who wielded absolute power over rome, from the foundation of the empire under julius caesar and augustus to the decline into depravity under nero and the recovery that came with his successors.
Julius caesar, the divine 3, lost his father 4 when he was in the sixteenth year of his age 5. As private secretary to the emperor hadrian, the scholar suetonius had access to the imperial archives and used them along with eyewitness accounts to produce one of the most colourful biographical works in history. Suetonius the twelve caesars home essay suetonius the twelve caesars title. Free download or read online the twelve caesars pdf epub book. Each emperor is dissected, and his actions beyond politics and professionalism revealed. Buy the twelve caesars by suetonius with free delivery. The twelve caesars chronicles the public careers and private lives of the men who wielded absolute power over rome, from the foundation of the empire under julius caesar and augustus, to the decline into depravity and civil war under nero, and the recovery and stability that came with his successors. The work was written in 121 during the reign of the emperor hadrian, while. Suetonius tranquillus, the lives of the caesars alexander thomson, ed.
Suetonius, who lived through a period of stable but despotic imperial rule, wanted to explore. Dec 31, 2002 as private secretary to the emperor hadrian, suetonius gained access to the imperial archives and used them along with carefully gathered eyewitness accounts to produce one of the most colourful biographical works in history. History of the twelve caesars by suetonius librarything. The value at its introduction was 10 asses, giving the denarius its name which translates to containing ten. The twelve caesarschronicles the public careers and private lives of the men who wielded absolute power over rome, from the foundation of the empire under julius caesar and augustus, to the decline into depravity and civil war under nero and the recovery that came with his successors. Here take the twice six caesars into whose sovereignty the sway of rome passed long ago, leaving the consuls second in authority. All content included on our site, such as text, images, digital downloads and other, is the property of its content suppliers and protected by us and international laws. His biographies consist of the ancestry and career of each emperor. The lives of the twelve caesars, complete by suetonius. The lives of the caesars include the biographies of julius caesar and the eleven subsequent emperors. He died at the age of sixtyfive, and was immediately deified, not merely by.
The twelve caesars quotes showing 1 of nothing is more unpredictable than the mob, nothing more obscure than public opinion, nothing more deceptive than the whole political system. Romulus, the founder of rome, had the honor of an apotheosis. The main characters of this history, classics story are nero, caligula. On the life of the caesars concentrates on the acts and personalities of the julioclaudians and their. In his way, some person having thrust into his hand a paper, warning him against the plot, he mixed it with some other documents which he held in his left hand. His work is unparalleled in detail and is a rich primary source on the history of rome. The work was written in 121 during the reign of the emperor hadrian, while suetonius was hadrians personal secretary.
Suetonius, who lived through a period of stable but despotic imperial rule, wanted to explore the nature of imperial power and how a. Formerly, when livia, after her marriage with augustus, was making a visit to her villa at veii, an eagle flying by, let drop upon her lap a hen, with a sprig of laurel in her mouth, just as she had seized it. In fact, many scholars believe that it was during this time period that the apostle paul was crucified and peter was. Suetoniuss the twelve caesars explores vice and virtue in ancient. The work, written in 121 during the reign of the emperor hadrian. Lives of the twelve caesars, the abridged naxos audiobooks. The lives of the twelve caesars by gaius suetonius. Suetonius lives of the twelve caesars is a little hard to read at first if youve been out of the loop for almost two millennia for he essentially wrote a tabloid on the rulers of his time and if youre not familiar with the names of the minor players from other sources, you will miss a. Gaius suetonius tranquillus c75 c160 ad the twelve caesars is a set of twelve biographies of julius caesar and the first 11 emperors of the roman empire.
A single verse here records each of those emperors of whom. Part of a large site containing many greek and latin texts. Pdf the twelve caesars book by suetonius free download. After the dismissal of both men for some breach of court etiquette, suetonius.