The Annals

The Reigns of Tiberius, Claudius, and Nero

Cornelius Tacitus
Translated by J. C. Yardley and Introduction and Notes by Anthony A. Barrett

Oxford World's Classics

A lively new translation of ancient historian Tacitus' account of the reigns of three of Rome's most memorable emperors, Tiberius, Claudius, and Nero, accompanied by a wide-ranging and informative introduction and notes.
Tacitus' gripping account of the bloody reigns of Tiberius and Nero includes plotting, murder, poisoning, suicide, uprisings, death and destruction. In particular it contains the suppression of the revolt led by Boudicca in Britain, the great fire of Rome under Nero, and persecution of the Christians.
The translation aims at readability without sacrificing accuracy and is based on the recent Latin Heubner text, with variations noted in an appendix. The introduction and notes, designed with the non-specialist reader in mind, are the work of a Roman historian who has published widely on the early Roman emperors.
The edition includes maps, a glossary of Roman terms, a glossary of place names, and a full index of names and places.

The Annals

The Reigns of Tiberius, Claudius, and Nero

Cornelius Tacitus
Translated by J. C. Yardley and Introduction and Notes by Anthony A. Barrett

Description

'He was atrocious in his brutality, but his lechery was kept hidden... In the end, he erupted into an orgy of crime and ignominy alike'

Such is Tacitus' obituary of Tiberius, and he is no less caustic in his opinion of the weak and cuckolded Claudius and the 'artist' Nero. The Annals is a gripping account of the Roman emperors who followed Augustus, the founder of the imperial system, and of the murders, sycophancy, plotting, and oppression that marked this period in Rome. Tacitus provides the earliest and most detailed account of Boudicca's rebellion in Britain, and his history also relates the great fire of Rome in the reign of Nero, and the persecution of the Christians that followed. He deplores the depravity of the emperors, whose behaviour he sees as proof of the corrupting force of absolute power.

J. C. Yardley's translation is vivid and accurate, and Anthony A. Barrett's introduction and notes provide invaluable historical and cultural context.
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The Annals

The Reigns of Tiberius, Claudius, and Nero

Cornelius Tacitus
Translated by J. C. Yardley and Introduction and Notes by Anthony A. Barrett

Oxford World's Classics

Author Information

Cornelius Tacitus

Translated by J. C. Yardley, former Professor and Head of Classics at the Universities of Calgary and Ottawa, and Introduction and Notes by Anthony A. Barrett, Professor Emeritus of Classics, University of British Columbia