Tacitus
Tacitus
PubliusCornelius Tacituswas a senator and a historian of the Roman Empire. The surviving portions of his two major works—the Annals and the Histories—examine the reigns of the Roman emperors Tiberius, Claudius, Nero, and those who reigned in the Year of the Four Emperors. These two works span the history of the Roman Empire from the death of Augustus in AD 14 to the years of the First Jewish–Roman War in AD 70. There are substantial lacunae in the surviving texts,...
NationalityRoman
ProfessionHistorian
religious religion superstitions
Christianity is a pestilent superstition.
hate men mind
It is a characteristic of the human mind to hate the man one has injured.
confidence
There can never be a complete confidence in a power which is excessive.
ends careless
Keen at the start, but careless at the end.
neighbour
I am my nearest neighbour.
law precedent found
It is found by experience that admirable laws and right precedents among the good have their origin in the misdeeds of others.
violence malice
Bottling up his malice to be suppressed and brought out with increased violence.
views multitudes
The views of the multitude are neither bad nor good. [Lat., Neque mala, vel bona, quae vulgus putet.]
powerful remembrance ill
The powerful hold in deep remembrance an ill-timed pleasantry. [Lat., Facetiarum apud praepotentes in longum memoria est.]
children liberty fool
[That form of] eloquence, the foster-child of licence, which fools call liberty. [Lat., Eloquentia, alumna licentiae, quam stulti libertatem vocabant.]
law kind cycles
In all things there is a kind of law of cycles. [Lat., Rebus cunctis inest quidam velut orbis.]
fortune good-fortune
We are corrupted by good fortune. [Lat., Felicitate corrumpimur.]
character fame modest
Modest fame is not to be despised by the highest characters. [Lat., Modestiae fama neque summis mortalibus spernenda est.]
fall danger should
If we must fall, we should boldly meet the danger. [Lat., Si cadere necesse est, occurendum discrimini.]