Peter Jones
Annus Horribilis
69 AD: The Year of the Four Emperors
By Gwyn Morgan
Oxford University Press 288pp £17.99 order from our bookshop
As Tom Holland’s Rubicon and Persian Fire thrillingly demonstrate, the most enjoyable history tells a story, and the Roman historian and politician Tacitus (c AD 56–120), who in his time served as both consul and provincial governor, had no better material with which to start his Histories than the dramatic events that unfolded during the year AD 69, which saw three changes of emperor as various claimants battled it out to succeed the wretched Nero.
Sign Up to our newsletter
Receive free articles, highlights from the archive, news, details of prizes, and much more.@Lit_Review
Follow Literary Review on Twitter
'We may not be able to shield ourselves from irrational passions such as hatred, anger, envy, mockery and pride, or from the buffetings of circumstance, but we can rise above them by obtaining insight into their nature and their causes.'
https://literaryreview.co.uk/the-poetry-of-reason
Sign up to our e-newsletter!
Get highlights from the new issue and selected archive articles, as well as exclusive competitions and subscription offers delivered straight to your inbox.
https://literaryreview.co.uk/freenewsletter
'Some Labour MPs who were shocked by Corbyn’s rise behaved appallingly ... Not only were they disloyal; they also had no coherent strategy for removing Corbyn or an alternative left-of-centre project.'
@steverichards14 https://literaryreview.co.uk/the-accidental-leader