Ask the Author: Patrick Tooban
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Patrick Tooban
How a Single Historical Question Opens a World.
How Far Can a Roman Senator Travel in a Year of Chaos?
In writing the Calgach Scéla, I always find myself asking deceptively simple questions. A recent example (no spoilers!) involved the family of Trajan.
Could Marcus Ulpius Traianus – father of the future emperor – plausibly have been in Italica (his hometown) in the late summer of AD 69?
I soon learned that this man, at this time, was a senior, serving officer under the command of the soon-to-be emperor Vespasian. How could Ulpius Traianus have been released from that duty to travel home to Hispania?
The sources are silent. The empire was fractured. Legions were declaring emperors faster than Rome could bury them.
To answer the question, I had to reconstruct:
• the political loyalties of Hispania
• the travel routes between East and West
• the role of provincial elites in a civil war
• the gaps in Tacitus’ account
• the rhythms of Roman military command
The result surprised me.
Not only could Traianus have been there – the political logic of the moment almost requires it. Hispania needed stabilising. Vespasian needed trusted envoys. Italica needed a native son to anchor its allegiance.
This is the kind of work that shapes my novels: following a single thread until it reveals the tapestry.
How Far Can a Roman Senator Travel in a Year of Chaos?
In writing the Calgach Scéla, I always find myself asking deceptively simple questions. A recent example (no spoilers!) involved the family of Trajan.
Could Marcus Ulpius Traianus – father of the future emperor – plausibly have been in Italica (his hometown) in the late summer of AD 69?
I soon learned that this man, at this time, was a senior, serving officer under the command of the soon-to-be emperor Vespasian. How could Ulpius Traianus have been released from that duty to travel home to Hispania?
The sources are silent. The empire was fractured. Legions were declaring emperors faster than Rome could bury them.
To answer the question, I had to reconstruct:
• the political loyalties of Hispania
• the travel routes between East and West
• the role of provincial elites in a civil war
• the gaps in Tacitus’ account
• the rhythms of Roman military command
The result surprised me.
Not only could Traianus have been there – the political logic of the moment almost requires it. Hispania needed stabilising. Vespasian needed trusted envoys. Italica needed a native son to anchor its allegiance.
This is the kind of work that shapes my novels: following a single thread until it reveals the tapestry.
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