Roman Historiography

Republican

Syllabus

PURPOSE:• This course is about Latin, History and Historiography.

• Our subject will be Sallust's Bellum Catilinae. • Our object, first and foremost, is to further your ability to read and translate Latin with careful attention given to grammar, syntax and style.

• To provide necessary context for Sallust and the BC, we must also familiarize ourselves with the political history of the Late Republic.

• Our final objective is to examine the art of classical historiography and to analyze Sallust's distinctive contribution to Roman Historiography.

Syllabus

REQUIRED TEXTS:• Ramsey, Sallust's Bellum Catilinae  (Oxford

University Press; 2007)  

– our primary text– copious notes on grammar &

syntax– current annotated

bibliography– maps

Syllabus

STRONGLY RECOMMENDED:• McGushin, Sallust:

Bellum Catilinae (Duckworth Publishers; 2002)

– vocabulary– copious historical

commentary– notes on grammar &

syntax– VOCABULARY

Syllabus

• This course is not just about translating Sallust, it’s about Roman political history and historiography.

• To that end the Ramsey edition is essential and the McGushin commentary invaluable. 

• Please obtain copies of both.

SyllabusREQUIRED TEXTS:• Taylor, Party Politics in the

Age of Caesar (University of California Press;

1961)

– Sather Lectures– a classic work on political

life at the end of the Republic– discusses the evolution of

Roman politics– easy prose style– explains many Roman political

oddities– essential for anyone interested

in Roman Republican politics • and/or enrolled in CL341

SyllabusREQUIRED TEXTS:• MacDonald, Cicero Orationes vol.x

In Catilinam I-IV, Pro Murena, Pro Sulla, Pro Flacco (Harvard University Press;1976)

– supplement our main text– Cicero's own take on the

Catilinarian conspiracy• Catiline's conspiracy, one of the

best documented events from the late Republic, gives us the rare opportunity to analyze not just one literary version of these events, but to think critically about the divergences between Sallust's and Cicero's accounts, and to try to make sense of "what really happened" during this chaotic period of Roman history.

– possible paper topic

Syllabus

GRADING:Participation  25%Exam (10/3)  25%Paper (12/6)  25%Final Exam (12/12)  25%

Sallust, Bellum Catilinae

approaches

literaryhistoricalpolitical

historiography

history

context

30 minute Review of

roman history• April 21, 753BC

– 753-716 Romulus– 750 Greek colonies established in Italy– 700 Etruscan civilization dominates– 715-674 Numa Pompilius– 673-642 Tullius Hostilius– 642-617 Ancus Marcius– 616-579 L. Tarquinius Priscus– 600 Forum Romanum built– 578-535 Servius Tullius– 535-510 L. Tarquinius Superbus

30 minute Review of

roman history cont.

• 509BC Establishment of the Republic– 508 Creation of the position of Pontifex Maximus – 494 First Secession of the Plebs in Rome.

• Creation of the tribunes of the plebs, two elected annually– 471 Concilium Plebis created; office of tribune recognized– 451 Decemviri establish code of 12 tables– 449 Secession of the plebs

• lex Valeria Horatia grants tribunician inviolability.– 447 Creation of position for two quaestors, elected by the tribal assembly.

– 445 lex Canuleia: consuls replaced by military tribunes with consular powers; allows plebeians and patricians to marry;

– 421 The number quaestors is increased to four, opened to plebeians.

– 409 Three of the elected quaestors are plebeians.

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30 minute Review of

roman history cont.

• 390 Gauls sack city of Rome, capitol saved. 7month siege; invaders are bought off.

• 367 Lex Liciniae Sextiae restores the Consulship, plebeians admitted to the office of consul.

• 366 Offices of Praetor and Aedile added to Cursus Honorum.

• 343-41 First Samnite War, Rome occupies Campania

• 328 Etrurian & Campania annexed• 312 rural tribes in Rome number 27• 304 Second Samnite War• 298-290 Third Samnite War

– central & southern Italy under Rome• 295 Rome expands north to Po Valley

30 minute Review of

roman history cont.

• 282-75 war with Pyrrhus• 285-41 First Punic War• 264 All of Italy under

Roman control• 218-202 Second Punic

War• 214-205 First

Macedonian War• 200-197 Second

Macedonian War• 149-146 Third Punic War• 136-121 First Sicilian

Slave War

30 minute Review of

roman history cont.

• 133 Tiberius Gracchus tribune• 123-122 Gaius Gracchus tribune• 111-105 Jugurthine War• 104-100 Marius consul• 90-88 Social War• 88 Sulla: First Mithridatic War• 88 Sulla's march on Rome with his army• 82 Sulla becomes dictator• 71 Crassus crushes Spartacus• 71 Pompey defeats Sertorius' rebellion in Spain

• 70 Consulship of Crassus and Pompey

30 minute Review of

roman history cont.

• 63 Pompey defeats Mithridates• 60 First Triumvirate: Pompey, Crassus, & Julius

Caesar• 58 - 50 Caesar conquers Gaul• 53 Crassus killed in (battle) of Carrhae• 49 Caesar crosses the Rubicon• 48 Pharsalus (battle); Pompey Killed In Egypt• 46 - 44 Caesar's dictatorship• 44 End of Civil War• 43 Second Triumvirate: Marc Antony, Lepidus, &

Octavian• 42 Philippi (battle)• 31 Actium (battle)• 27 Octavian becomes Augustus

Roman History recap

• 8th c traditional founding• 7th c Etruscan domination• 6th c Republic established• 5th c Struggle of the orders• 4th c Italy expansion• 3rd c Punic wars• 2nd c Mediterranean expansion• 1st c Internal struggles

Sallust

• 86 Born at Amiternum– Sabine municipium

• 85-56 Sallust’s lost years…– Pythagorian cultist

• Strange puerile sacrifices– Adulterous swine

• Fausta (Milo’s wife)• and a host of other Roman matrons

• 55 quaestor?• 52 tribune• 50 expelled from Senate

– Political purge?

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Sallust

• 49 Illyricum – command of legion

• Setback at Curicta• 47 praetor-elect

– mutiny mess up

• 46 Africa campaign– regained Senate seat– Cercina– Governor of Africa

• 45 accused of res repetundae

Sallust

• 44 retirement– horti Sallustiani– historian

• 35 death– May 13

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works

• Bellum Catilinae – after 43

• Bellum Iugurthinum– 41-40

• Historiae– Incomplete

Historiography

• Pre-Sallust– Annalistic

•not analy(s)tic

– narratores rerum•brevity, truthfulness only virtues•boring??

– L. Cornelius Sisenna 67BC•puerile quiddam

Sallustian Style

• brevitas• vocabulary

– archaisms– neologisms

• infinitives run amok• inconcinnitas• Quintilian’s verdict