Book Review : The Twelve Ceasars

Suetonious, the illustrious author of "The Twelve Ceasars", lived in the time of Emperor Hadrian (he of the Wall). The affable historian, we are told, was dismissed from the service of the Emperor for "indiscreet behaviour" with the Empress Sabina while Hadrian was away on a campaign. (That Hadrian was probably having a very 'gay' time of it himself is...umm...irrelevant.)

Nevertheless, Suetonious' account of the life, reign and loves of the Ceasers, from Julius to Dominitian, makes for a very interesting read. For one thing, Suetonious seems to have functioned blissfully independently of the Office of the Censor. His carefree account of the personal lives of the rulers of Rome, their sexual orientation and various perversities (Valhalla knows I'll never look at Nero and Agrippina the same way again) is the ancient equivalent of The Daily Mirror's Gossip Pages.

But there's more to "The Twelve (XII looks much better doesn't it?) Ceasars" than racy accounts of orgies and incest. It is also one of the few 'insider' accounts we have of daily life in the Rome of Julius and Gaius, of Augustus and Titus. Suetonious faithfully relates how votes were bought and sold, Senators traded like horses and favours extended in exchange for money. (Now why does that sound so familiar?). He tells of the public adulation that greeted Caligula on accession, the despair of Augustus at the promiscuity of his daughter Julia and the earthy good-humour of Vespasian.

He relates the flaws of Julius and Vespasian just as frankly as he relates the (very) few good points about Nero and Caligula. While he doesn't shy away from passing judgement on the Twelve, his account appears to be very fair and unbiased in its relation of facts. At the same time, he freely admits when he is basing his account on hearsay and rumour, which is more than modern historians are likely to do.

Of the twelve Ceasars whose stories Suetonious so faithfully sets down, it's interesting that only two died of natural causes, and son succeeded father only once. The racy tale of palace intrigue, bloody coups, street revolutions and madcap dictators reads a lot like a modern thriller - shocking, unexpected, and hard to put down.

In all, if you have even a passing interest in Ancient History, you can't miss this one.

Buy it here