description: As private secretary to the Emperor Hadrian, Suetonius gained access to the imperial archives and used them (along with eye-witness accounts) to produce one of the most colorful biographical works in history. The Twelve Caesars chronicles the public careers and private lives of the men who wielded absolute power over Rome, from the foundation of the empire under Julius Caesar and Augustus, to the decline into depravity and civil war under Nero, and the recovery that came with his successors. A masterpiece of anecdote, wry observation and detailed physical description, The Twelve Caesars presents us with a gallery of vividly drawn — and all too human — individuals.Robert Graves's celebrated translation, sensitively revised by Michael Grant, captures all the wit and immediacy of Suetonius' original.
language: English
title: The Twelve Caesars
titlecomplete: The Twelve Caesars
characters: Julius Caesar (Roman emperor), Caligula, Titus (emperor), Augustus, Titus Flavius Domitianus, Aulus Vitellius, Lucius Livius Ocella Servius Sulpicius Galba, Nero (emperor), Marcus Salvius Otho, Vespasian, Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus
genres: Historical, Biography, Politics, Roman, Nonfiction, Ancient, Ancient History, Literature, Classics, History
ratings_count: 19827
series: The Lives of the Twelve Caesars
publisher: Penguin Classics