Rome's Religious History Livy, Tacitus and Ammianus on their Gods [Paperback]

Explores the writings of three ancient historians on the role of the gods in Rome's history.This book is a detailed exploration of the way that Livy, Tacitus and Ammianus Marcellinus wrote about the role played by gods in Rome's past. These men wrote around the time of Christ, at the beginning of the second and the end of the fourth century respectively and though their lives or periods did not overlap, a great deal of consistency can be seen in the way they write about their gods and the way they presented religion. They are best described as 'fine-tuning' religion for their own times.This book is a detailed exploration of the way that Livy, Tacitus and Ammianus Marcellinus wrote about the role played by gods in Rome's past. These men wrote around the time of Christ, at the beginning of the second and the end of the fourth century respectively and though their lives or periods did not overlap, a great deal of consistency can be seen in the way they write about their gods and the way they presented religion. They are best described as 'fine-tuning' religion for their own times.Livy, Tacitus and Ammianus Marcellinus wrote about the role played by gods in Rome's past. These men wrote around the time of Christ, at the beginning of the second and the end of the fourth century, respectively. Though their lives and periods did not overlap, a great deal of consistency can be seen in the way they presented, or fine-tuned, religion for their times.Acknowledgements; Note on the texts; 1. Introduction; 2. Livy and the invention of Roman religion; 3. Gods and men in Livy; 4. Tacitus and the restoration of Rome; 5. Ammianus and a final settlement; 6. Conclusions; Bibliography; Index locorum; Subject index.'The book is well-produced & A full index locorum and a useful subject index serve the reader well.' Jan den Boeft, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam'This is a comprehensive and interesting piece of informed research & So very thorough and thoroughly referenced, confidently explol3