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Histories (Latin:Historiae) is a Roman historical chronicle byTacitus. Writtenc. 100–110, its complete form coveredc. 69–96, a period which includes theYear of Four Emperors following the downfall ofNero, as well as the period between the rise of theFlavian dynasty underVespasian and the death ofDomitian.[1] However, the surviving portion of the work only reaches the year 70 and the very beginning of the reign of Vespasian.
Together, theHistories and theAnnals amounted to 30 books.Saint Jerome refers to these books explicitly, and about half of them have survived. Although scholars disagree on how to assign the books to each work, traditionally, fourteen are assigned toHistories and sixteen to theAnnals. Tacitus' friendPliny the Younger referred to "your histories" when writing to Tacitus about the earlier work.[2]
By the time Tacitus had completed theHistories, it coveredRoman history from AD 69, followingNero's death, to AD 96, the end ofDomitian's reign. TheAnnals deals with the five decades before Nero, from AD 14, the reign ofTiberius, to AD 68, when Nero died.[1]
In one of the first chapters of theAgricola, Tacitus states that he wishes to speak about the years ofDomitian, ofNerva, and ofTrajan. In theHistories, the project has been modified: in the introduction, Tacitus says that he will deal with the age of Nerva and Trajan at a later time. Instead, he covers the period that started with the civil wars of theYear of Four Emperors and ended with the despotism of theFlavians. Only the first four books and the first 26 chapters of the fifth book have survived, covering the year 69 and the first part of 70. The work is believed to have continued up toDomitian's death on September 18, 96. The fifth book contains—as a prelude to the account of Titus' victory in theFirst Jewish–Roman War—a short ethnographic survey of the ancientJews—and is an invaluable record of the educated Romans' attitude towards that people.
Tacitus wrote theHistories 30 years later, not long after Nerva's seizure of power, which bore similarities to the events of the year 69, when four emperors —Galba,Otho,Vitellius, andVespasian — each took power in quick succession. The mode of their accession showed that because imperial power was based on the support of the legions, an emperor could now be chosen not only at Rome, but anywhere in the empire where sufficient legions were amassed.[citation needed]
Nerva, like Galba, came to the throne by senatorial designation, after the violent death of the previous emperor, Domitian. Like Galba, Nerva had to deal with a revolt ofPraetorians and like Galba, he had designated his successor by the traditional expedient ofadoption. Galba, described by Tacitus as a feeble old man, had chosen a successor unable, due to his severity, to obtain the faith and the control of the troops. Nerva, instead, had consolidated his power by making a link between the throne and Trajan, who was general of the Upper Rhine legions and popular throughout the army. It is probable that Tacitus was a member of the imperial council in which Trajan was chosen to be adopted.
In the first book of theHistoriae, a speech put in the mouth of Galba makes clear Tacitus' ideological and political position. Galba's pure respect for formality and lack of political realism rendered him unable to control events. In contrast, Nerva adopted Trajan, who was able to keep the legions unified, to keep the army out of imperial politics, to stop disorder among the legions, and thus to prevent rival claimants to the throne. Tacitus was sure that only theprincipatus (the "prince", that is, themonarchical emperor) could maintain peace, the fidelity of the armies, and the cohesion of the empire.
DiscussingAugustus Caesar's rise to power, Tacitus says that after theBattle of Actium, the unification of the power in the hands of a prince was necessary to keep the peace. The prince ought not to be a tyrant, like Domitian, nor a fool, like Galba. He should be able to keep theimperium safe, while saving the prestige and the dignity of the Senate. (Seneca addresses the same point). Tacitus considered the rule of theadoptive Emperors the only possible solution to the problems of Empire.
The style of narration is rapid, reflecting the speed of the events. The narrative rhythm leaves no space to slow down or digress. To write effectively in this style, Tacitus had to summarize substantial information from his sources. Sometimes he skips parts; more usually he divides the story into single scenes and, in this way, creates a dramatic narration.
Tacitus is a master at describing a mass of people. He knows how to portray the mass when it is calm; he knows equally how to show the threat of insurrection and panic-stricken flight.[opinion]
Tacitus writes from the point of view of an aristocrat. He shows fear, mixed with disdain, for the soldiers' tumult and for the rabble of the capital. He also holds in low esteem those members of the Senate whose behavior he describes with malice, insisting upon the contrast between their public image and the unconfessable reality: adulation, conspiracy, and ambition. TheHistoriae is a grim work; it speaks throughout of violence, dishonesty, and injustice.
Tacitus skillfully shows the characters, alternating short and sharp notations with complete portraits. His technique is similar to that ofSallust: incongruency,parataxis, and loose stylistic structure combine to make the characters sharp. The influence of Sallust is clear in the rest of Tacitus' style as well. Tacitus improves on the method, stressing the tension betweengravitas, which connects the narrative with the past, andpathos, which makes it dramatic. Tacitus lovesellipsis of verbs and conjunctions. He uses irregular constructs and frequent changes of subject, to give variety and movement to the narration. It often happens that when a sentence seems finished, it is extended with a surprisingtail that adds a comment, which is usually alluding or indirect.[citation needed]
It has been theorized that Tacitus' style is based on that ofPompeius Trogus, due to the similarity between his style and that of the laterJustin in hisHistoria Philippicae et Totius Mundi Origines et Terrae Situs, which was based on the work of Trogus. However, this interpretation is disputed, and an alternative is that Justin's style was based on the work of Tacitus.[3]
| Book | Subject |
|---|---|
| 1 | Reign ofGalba, thenOtho.Vitellius threatens Otho's reign. |
| 2 | Otho loses to Vitellius atBedriacum; Otho's suicide.Vitellius ascends to the emperorship, is challenged byVespasian. |
| 3 | Vitellius is challenged by Vespasian in Italy. Vitellius's forces collapse, and Vitellius is murdered by Vespasian's troops. |
| 4 | Batavian units of the Roman Army revolt, beginning of theBatavian War. Vespasian and his sonDomitian are discussed.. |
| 5 | Titus is placed in command of theFirst Jewish–Roman War. Batavian War ends. |
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