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Epitome of Roman History
Florus, born apparently in Africa, lived in Spain and in Rome in Hadrian's time. He wrote, in brief pointed rhetorical style, a summary of Roman history (especially wars) in two books in order to show the greatness and decline of Roman morals. It is based chiefly on Livy. It was perhaps planned to reach his own times, but the extant work ends with Augustus's reign (30 BCE-14 CE). This Epitome is a useful rapid sketch of Roman military history.
Poetry by Florus is also available in the Loeb Classical Library, in "Minor Latin Poets, Volume II."
Poetry by Florus is also available in the Loeb Classical Library, in "Minor Latin Poets, Volume II."
400 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1929
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
January 1, 2021
Epitome of Roman History
By Annaeus Florus (about 70AD – 140AD)
Several authors by the name of Florus are mentioned in Roman History. The author of this work is likely the one who lived at the time of the emperor Hadrian. He was a contemporary of Suetone.
His work, the Epitome of Roman History is a condensed version of Roman History, spanning over seven hundred years, from Romulus to Augustus. From its humble beginning to its greatness and its decline.
Like Seneca, though not using the same divisions, Florus uses as a comparison of the life of a person, from childhood to virile man and the decline of old age.
The work is not a reduced version of Tacitus or Livy’s History of Rome. The style of Florus’ writing is quite different and visibly authentic. He is using a colourful and pleasant vocabulary to describe events precisely in good sequence and never boring. He knows how to recall lively images of actions with intelligent comments of his imagination.
Having said that, it is also true that our author has made a good number of chronological and geographical mistakes. May these serve as proof of authenticity if need be.
Florus is writing his History like an epic poem; the reader will notice how the author is proud of his origins; how often he mentions the Romans as the Royal Nation.
The fact the author wanted a condensed version of history, made him reduce time scales to a minimum and the reader may have the impression that Roman History was just a long list of wars, one after the other. Wars of conquest and in the end civil wars.
But from works of other authors, the reader of Roman History will know how long many of these wars have lasted, how devastating they were and the number of victims just unimaginable, considering that the warriors used only weapons of steel or bronze and no gunpowder.
This relatively short work of History gave A. Florus great celebrity in the middle ages when it was widely used as a textbook in schools.
Editors of the seventeenth century were rivalling to translate the work into French, English, Danish etc. up to twelve languages at the time.
This work can certainly serve as a reference book for readers starting in Roman History.
There will be rich material and suggestions for further reading.
By Annaeus Florus (about 70AD – 140AD)
Several authors by the name of Florus are mentioned in Roman History. The author of this work is likely the one who lived at the time of the emperor Hadrian. He was a contemporary of Suetone.
His work, the Epitome of Roman History is a condensed version of Roman History, spanning over seven hundred years, from Romulus to Augustus. From its humble beginning to its greatness and its decline.
Like Seneca, though not using the same divisions, Florus uses as a comparison of the life of a person, from childhood to virile man and the decline of old age.
The work is not a reduced version of Tacitus or Livy’s History of Rome. The style of Florus’ writing is quite different and visibly authentic. He is using a colourful and pleasant vocabulary to describe events precisely in good sequence and never boring. He knows how to recall lively images of actions with intelligent comments of his imagination.
Having said that, it is also true that our author has made a good number of chronological and geographical mistakes. May these serve as proof of authenticity if need be.
Florus is writing his History like an epic poem; the reader will notice how the author is proud of his origins; how often he mentions the Romans as the Royal Nation.
The fact the author wanted a condensed version of history, made him reduce time scales to a minimum and the reader may have the impression that Roman History was just a long list of wars, one after the other. Wars of conquest and in the end civil wars.
But from works of other authors, the reader of Roman History will know how long many of these wars have lasted, how devastating they were and the number of victims just unimaginable, considering that the warriors used only weapons of steel or bronze and no gunpowder.
This relatively short work of History gave A. Florus great celebrity in the middle ages when it was widely used as a textbook in schools.
Editors of the seventeenth century were rivalling to translate the work into French, English, Danish etc. up to twelve languages at the time.
This work can certainly serve as a reference book for readers starting in Roman History.
There will be rich material and suggestions for further reading.
March 3, 2025
A concise summary, this is excellent for teaching Roman history.
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August 10, 2023"Ego nolo Florus esse", e iure meritoque, aggiungerei. La carrellata asettica delle guerre combattute da Roma si accompagna a uno stile di pretenziosa brevitas che strizza l'occhio ad autori ben più quotati. Un ottimo bignami per passare l'interrogazione dal grammaticus, in attesa di un più sostanzioso Sallustio.
March 12, 2015
Fun to read! Goes fast, provides "wikipedia-quality" synopsis of Roman history up to the time of Augustus and Christ.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews