Vespasian

by Barbara Levick

From a pre-eminent biographer in the field, this well-documented and illustrated biography examines the life and time of the emperor Vespasian and challenges the validity of his perennial good reputation and universally acknowledged achievements. Examining received opinions on Vespasian, Barbara Levick examines how this plebeian and uncharismatic Emperor restored peace and confidence to Rome and ensured a smooth succession. Outlining how he gained military experience and political skills, Levick goes on to explore how Vespasian coped with the military, political and economic problems of his reign, and his evaluation of the solutions to these problems, before she finally examines his posthumous reputation. Part of the bestselling Roman Imperial Biographies series, Vespasian will engage, enthral and inform both students of classical studies and history, and the general classical enthusiast alike.

Genres: History, Biography, Nonfiction, Ancient History, Roman

310 pages, Paperback

First published July 20, 1999

About the author

Barbara M. Levick is a British historian, specializing in ancient history. She was educated at St Hugh's College, Oxford, and, since 1959, has been a Fellow of St Hilda's College, Oxford (now emeritus). She is a prolific writer and occasional broadcaster on Roman history.

Levick is best known to the general public for her biographies of Roman emperors.

Reviews

[Brandon Sitch · Rating 4 out of 5]

To oversimplify, the Julio-Claudians get the most attention; the five emperors after the Flavians the most praise. However, the Flavians, that oft-forgotten middle child, strike me as the most informative. If you understand the Flavians—their ideology, successes/failures, innovations/conservations, and the dynasty's narrative arc as a whole—you understand the first three centuries of the Roman Principate. I don't believe that this is true for any other set of emperors. In this, Levick's biography is crucial.

[Joseph Adelizzi, Jr. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well, after one abortive attempt I finally made it through this academic, well-researched dry read. Surely I picked up some interesting information, but it was much harder work than it should have been. This book is as much a biography as a shadow is a portrait, and I'd say it is not strictly about Vespasian as much as a comparative study of Vespasian vis-a-vis other Roman Emperors.

I purchased. I started. I finished.

[Andrew Dockrill · Rating 2 out of 5]

As a personally who reads biographies for casual reading both popular history and what might be considered critical advanced reading biographies, I must say this book was a painfully dry read, Barbara Levick -who very clearly knows her information - should stick to doing research and have someone else with a little flare and flow write her books. This is the second book of hers I have read, the first being Claudius and that one was, while admittedly not as bad, was still a tremendous feat and slog to get through - I think Levick and I are done. The book is chronologically written which makes it more accessible to a novice on the man and relatively speaking - easy to follow - but my god the writing is so stale and thick. Unless you are writing a paper and need academic references I would say stick to Youtube documentaries on him even though I try to avoid documentaries when I can he is a simple enough man that documentaries cannot lead you astray.

All in all it was interesting to read about Vespasian the man who brought Rome out of the year of the four emperors and also began construction on the Flavian Amphitheatre also known as the Collusium

[Brock Tarlton · Rating 2 out of 5]

Unfocused. Doesn't really stick to an argument or clear thesis. Also, do we really need to know centurion-level detail to understand Vespasian??

[Terence · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a very dense biography of the Roman emperor Vespasian (69-79), and a more general history of the establishment of the Flavian dynasty (69-96); Levick assumes a very solid knowledge of Roman history in the reader.

Which - if you have one - makes this a highly recommended book. Levick presents a balanced account of Vespasian's life and his (and his family's) impact on the development of the Principate.

[Windsor · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good information book, but tends to focus not at all on the dynasty, which I think should be the point of a book on this emperor. Vespasian is seen as the perfect roman, although almost ignoring Flavian family dynastic problems, such as the favoritism of Titus over Domitian, which caused the death of Titus. Overall, a good book, but lacks the completeness that other books in the series have.

[David · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had looked forward to reading this book. It is very academic and dense. Enjoyable in places but I am not sure based on the hours spent I learned as much as I could have. I did skim in some places.

[Tim Baldini · Rating 5 out of 5]

B. Levick's bio on Vespasian was well overdue when it appeared in 1999. It still remains a fundamental work about the Flavian dynasty.

[Rena Sherwood · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is a book for academics only. I gave up about page 50 because I am not an academic. Good book for swatting flies, though.