Quintus Horatius Flaccus was born in 65 B.C. at Venusia, in southern Italy. His father, a freed slave, made sure he got a good education at Rome and then sent him to Athens for further study. After Julius Caesar was assassinated (44 B.C.), Horace joined Brutus’ army, later returning to Rome and assuming a modest position in the Roman Treasury. Eventually he was introduced to Maecenas by Virgil, and in time won acceptance to the inner circle and was given a small farm in the Sabine hills.
