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Augustus
Constitutional changes, administrative revisions, factional rivalry, and war are all themes that Professor Jones develops within the main narrative. He treats separately such topics as finance, religion, social policy, literature and the arts, and the sources of this crucial period in the history of Rome. Professor Jones discusses the career of Augustus in the context of the turbulent times of the breakdown of the Roman Republic into civil war. He shows how dependent Augustus' rise to power was upon his adoption by Julius Caesar, and traces the ruthless and unscrupulous way in which Augustus exploited his unique position as "Caesar's heir." But he demonstrates that Augustus's continuing success was all his the adopted son succeeded in solving the political crisis which, because he had failed to do so, had cost the father his life. For Augustus was a consummate politician, and it was his great achievement to establish a form of government which proved more or less stable for over two centuries.
210 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1970
3 people are currently reading
82 people want to read
About the author
A.H.M. Jones
28 books11 followersArnold Hugh Martin Jones (9 March 1904 – 9 April 1970) — known as A.H.M. Jones — was a prominent 20th century British historian of classical antiquity, particularly of the later Roman Empire.
Jones's best-known work, The Later Roman Empire, 284–602 (1964), is considered the definitive narrative history of late Rome and early Byzantium, beginning with the reign of the Roman tetrarch Diocletian and ending with that of the Byzantine emperor Maurice. One of the most common modern criticisms of this work is its almost total reliance on literary and epigraphic primary sources, a methodology which mirrored Jones's own historiographical training. Archaeological study of the period was in its infancy when Jones wrote, which limited the amount of material culture he could include in his research.
He published his first book, The Cities of the Eastern Roman Provinces, in 1937. In 1946, he was appointed to the chair of the Ancient History department at University College, London. In 1951, he moved to Cambridge University and assumed the same post there. He was elected a Fellow of the British Academy in 1947.
Jones was reportedly an extremely fast reader with an encyclopedic memory. His disdain for "small talk" sometimes made him seem remote and cold to those who did not know him well, but he was warmly regarded by his students. He was sometimes criticized for not fully acknowledging the work of earlier scholars in his own footnotes, a habit he was aware of and apologized for in the preface to his first book.
Jones died of a heart attack in 1970 while traveling via boat to Thessaloniki to give a series of lectures.
Since Jones's death, popular awareness of his work has often been overshadowed by the work of scholars of Late Antiquity, a period which did not exist as a separate field of study during his lifetime. Late Antiquity scholars frequently refer to him, however, and his enormous contributions to the study of the period are widely acknowledged.
Jones's best-known work, The Later Roman Empire, 284–602 (1964), is considered the definitive narrative history of late Rome and early Byzantium, beginning with the reign of the Roman tetrarch Diocletian and ending with that of the Byzantine emperor Maurice. One of the most common modern criticisms of this work is its almost total reliance on literary and epigraphic primary sources, a methodology which mirrored Jones's own historiographical training. Archaeological study of the period was in its infancy when Jones wrote, which limited the amount of material culture he could include in his research.
He published his first book, The Cities of the Eastern Roman Provinces, in 1937. In 1946, he was appointed to the chair of the Ancient History department at University College, London. In 1951, he moved to Cambridge University and assumed the same post there. He was elected a Fellow of the British Academy in 1947.
Jones was reportedly an extremely fast reader with an encyclopedic memory. His disdain for "small talk" sometimes made him seem remote and cold to those who did not know him well, but he was warmly regarded by his students. He was sometimes criticized for not fully acknowledging the work of earlier scholars in his own footnotes, a habit he was aware of and apologized for in the preface to his first book.
Jones died of a heart attack in 1970 while traveling via boat to Thessaloniki to give a series of lectures.
Since Jones's death, popular awareness of his work has often been overshadowed by the work of scholars of Late Antiquity, a period which did not exist as a separate field of study during his lifetime. Late Antiquity scholars frequently refer to him, however, and his enormous contributions to the study of the period are widely acknowledged.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
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February 27, 2023Read for class. Rome under Augustus was whack🤨
February 17, 2023
Three stars only because of the readability. The content quality is excellent. Read for class but also satisfies a niche interest of mine!
August 15, 2012
By any normal standard, this isn't a very good book. It's all information, no art, no style, without a whit of entertainment value. It's clearly written for an academic audience of students and scholars who have either no choice to read it or an intense interest in the subject.
However, anyone even casually interested in the life of Augustus and, more importantly for this book, his accomplishments will find a tremendous amount of information crammed into this small book. Every sentence is another fact - many of them interesting facts. The author doesn't stop there, however, and includes virtually every possible fact right down to the smallest possible details that have been handed down through history. If the entire chapter on the financial reforms to the early Roman Empire enacted by Augustus don't test the endurance of the casual reader, then the lists of Augustus' praetors, legates, quaestors, prefects, aediles, and other appointees broken down by year throughout the reign, like the Greek ships sailing for Troy, most likely will.
Clearly, Professor Jones set out to write a comprehensive compendium of the facts of Augustus' life, based on all surviving sources, not at all to create a biography in the usual sense, intended to engage a lay audience with a mild interest in the subject. And he succeeded marvelously.
However, anyone even casually interested in the life of Augustus and, more importantly for this book, his accomplishments will find a tremendous amount of information crammed into this small book. Every sentence is another fact - many of them interesting facts. The author doesn't stop there, however, and includes virtually every possible fact right down to the smallest possible details that have been handed down through history. If the entire chapter on the financial reforms to the early Roman Empire enacted by Augustus don't test the endurance of the casual reader, then the lists of Augustus' praetors, legates, quaestors, prefects, aediles, and other appointees broken down by year throughout the reign, like the Greek ships sailing for Troy, most likely will.
Clearly, Professor Jones set out to write a comprehensive compendium of the facts of Augustus' life, based on all surviving sources, not at all to create a biography in the usual sense, intended to engage a lay audience with a mild interest in the subject. And he succeeded marvelously.
October 18, 2024
Still the premier book of the life and reign of Augustus, with the bare minimum of amateur psychoanalysis that most contemporary writers can't help themselves from delving into.
The chronology of his life is about half the book and the other half being a survey of his organization of the "restored" Republic. A lot more space dedicated to the different constitutional settlements that created the principate as well as the formation of the imperial bureaucracy that would define the next 200 years of Roman politics. Perhaps the typical lay reader would prefer a book that went more heavily into his biographical details and psychoanalysis, but the textbook-like character of the second half of the book is quite useful as a reference, even if it isn't as exciting.
The chronology of his life is about half the book and the other half being a survey of his organization of the "restored" Republic. A lot more space dedicated to the different constitutional settlements that created the principate as well as the formation of the imperial bureaucracy that would define the next 200 years of Roman politics. Perhaps the typical lay reader would prefer a book that went more heavily into his biographical details and psychoanalysis, but the textbook-like character of the second half of the book is quite useful as a reference, even if it isn't as exciting.
April 5, 2017
One of the most authoritative books on Augustus.
September 1, 2016
Excellent look into the History of Rome's 1st Emperor.
February 10, 2015
An in-depth and detailed history, but incredibly dull and tedious to read through.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews