Politics, Philosophy and Empire in the Fourth Century: Select Orations of Themistius

by Peter Heather (Translator), David Moncur (Translator)

Around the year 350, a young orator and philosopher called Themistius delivered a speech to the Emperor Constantius II in Ancyra (modern Ankara). Themistius found great favor with the Emperor, who catapulted him into the Constantinople Senate in 355. He was similarly favored by subsequent emperors – Jovian (363–64), Valens (364–78) and Theodosius (379–95). This volume presents translations of a selection of the speeches of Themistius, grouped into chapters that deal either with a key period in the evolution of his career or with a sequence of events of particular historical significance.

Genres: History

320 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 2001

About the author

Peter Heather is currently Professor of Medieval History at King's College London. He has held appointments at University College London and Yale University and was Fellow and Tutor in Medieval History at Worcester College, Oxford until December 2007.