Tacitus the Historian

Tacitus: The Great Fire of Rome and the Pisonian Conspiracy (Annals 15)

In this course, Dr Ed Bispham (University of Oxford) explores Book 15 of Tacitus' Annals. We begin by considering Tacitus as a historian. How does he construct his history, and how much can we trust him? We then give a general overview of Nero's life and times, from his accession to the throne in the mid-50s AD to his death in 68 AD. Finally, we look at the three main episodes of Book 15 of the Annals: the conflict with the Parthians in Armenia, the Great Fire of Rome, and the Pisonian Conspiracy.

Tacitus the Historian

In this module, Ed looks at Tacitus the historian; who he was, what he wrote, and how much we can trust him. In particular, he discusses the hexadic structure of the Annals - i.e. its construction out of blocks of six books - noting Book 15's position as the turning point of the third, Neronian hexad. Finally, he asks what makes Tacitus' history tick, arguing that that Tacitus is overwhelmingly concerned with the relationship between the Emperor and the Senate.