The Partial Historians The Partial Historians

Whilst 401 BCE was a tense year inside ancient Rome, we can assure you that there will be a plebeian win to close the year. Victory at last!















Episode 152 - Victory at Last!















Surrounded by Enemies







The Romans were facing war with several enemies, thanks to Capena and the Falerii joining their conflict with Veii. And they weren’t going to take the loss of Anxur lying down. This calls for the mother of all levies! The magistrates had to try and enlist any man they could get their hands on, young or old. Rome needed to make sure all her bases were covered at home and abroad.







The catch was that a larger army required an increase in funding. Rome was apparently paying soldiers now, right? The military tribunes with consular power came up with a genius plan – a war-tax! What form did this tax take? Crops? Bronze? Your first-born child? The only thing we can rule out is coinage, as the Romans were not using that yet.  







Regardless of the mode of payment, the people were distinctly displeased by this new policy. They were already having to work extra hard with so many men serving in the army. And of course, the tribunes of the plebs were NOT HAVING IT. This was a total scam.















Rome Just Can't Get Enough







With the people all riled up over these issues, the elections for the tribunes of the plebs fell flat. Not enough men were elected to fill the positions. The patricians saw an opportunity to try to weasel their way into the office, but they didn’t get away with that. However, they did manage to convince the newly elected tribunes to co-opt some colleagues that had been given the patrician stamp of approval.







This was in direct conflict with the Trebonian Law of 448 BCE, which was meant to prevent anyone being co-opted. As luck would have it, one of the descendants of the original Trebonius who had championed this law was serving as tribune in 401, and he vigorously protested this violation.







The people were furious about these signs of corruption and the three tribunes who had colluded with the patricians knew they needed to come up with a distraction. Why not turn everyone’s attention to Sergius and Verginius? They had made such a mess of things in 402 BCE. They were the perfect scapegoats.















Conflict of the Orders?







Tensions remained high throughout 401 BCE as Sergius and Verginius were put on trial, the tribunes fought the war-tax and the men on the frontlines weren’t getting paid. Somewhere in this strange mixture of collusion and conflict between the patricians and plebeians, something momentous was brewing…















Dr G and Dr Rad are celebrating the election of the first military tribune with consular power.







Touchdown!







Publius Licinius Calvus became the FIRST official plebeian to be elected as military tribune with consular power, set to serve in 400 BCE. Victory at last, Licinius, victory at last.  







We're excited - can you tell?







If you want to know why he was the chosen one, you’ll need to tune in next time! The suspense….







Need to catch up on Sergius and Verginius’ epic bitch fight? Listen to our previous episode on 402 BCE.







Things to Look Out For:









* Clever use of diversions







* Laws being broken







* SO MANY potential anachronisms

Neil returns to discuss more about some of the major sites of interest in the regal period of Rome. We recommend his podcast Ancient History Hound to you. You can also find out more details about Neil's work at his website: The Ancient Blogger.















Special Episode - Exploring Place in Regal Rome with Neil, The Ancient Blogger - Part 2!







When Life Gives You Lemons?







It's time to take a tour of Rome's most infamous subterranean chamber, the Tullianum, aka the Carcer.









* What did Livy know about the place? And what that might tell us about the site in its earliest history?







* Does the archaeological structure make sense with the historiographical timeline?







* Possible connections to Tullius Hostilius or Servius Tullius? Other potential etymological possibilities?









The Essential Precursor to Rome’s Success?







Of course, we're talking about the Cloaca Maxima!







Water, human waste, rats, and methane - is the Cloaca Maxima just a little more dangerous than generally thought? We take a tour with Neil to find out.







The Circus Maximus - Older is Better?







There aren't many flat places in Rome, so the natural valley that is home of the Circus Maximus marks it out as special. The natural contours shape the space and set the scene for how the Romans then adapted that space into an early sporting arena. Major sporting events included horse racing (in various configurations) and boxing, though in a very different style than you’d see today.







It wasn't just about the sports though - it was also about being seen. Social standing takes on a new meaning when only some people get chairs.







Why Does Rome Need Ostia?







Well, a harbour can be a great asset to a developing city! Neil takes us through some of the important details associated with the site of Ostia, as the location of the early castrum, and the engineering modifications of the salt lagoons.















Horrea (storehouses) at Ostia Antica. Photograph by Jean-Pierre Dalbéra via Flickr.







Sound Credits







Our theme music was composed by the amazing Bettina Joy de Guzman







Automated Transcript







Lightly edited for Latin terminology and to support our wonderful Australian accents!







Dr G 0:15Welcome to The Partial Historians.







We explore all the details of ancient Rome.







Dr Rad 0:23Everything from political scandals, the love affairs, the battles wage, and when citizens turn against each other. I'm Dr. Rad.







Dr G 0:33And I'm Dr. G. We consider Rome as the Romans saw it by reading different authors from the ancient past and comparing their stories.







Dr Rad 0:44Join us as we trace the journey of Rome from the founding of this city.







Dr G 0:57Hello, and welcome to this very special episode of The Partial Historians. I am Dr. G.







Dr Rad 1:06And I am Dr. Rad.







Dr G 1:08And we are really, really excited to welcome back, Neil, for what is part two of our extravaganza exploration of regal Rome in terms of its layout and what's going on with like, the landscape and things like this. So as you know,

We jump into the year of 402 BCE and Rome and Veii are tooth and nail in siege mode. In addition to this, Rome is rapidly approaching the end of the 5th century BCE, a date that is meaningful for historians and scholars but less significant for the Romans who understood the years through the names of the magistrates more than being overly interested in the base ten system.















Episode 151 - Factional Foibles







Watch your back!







Rome’s siege of Veii continues so there’s good reason to see six military tribunes with consular power in the role this year. But it may be the case that Rome’s military preoccupation with Veii is about to become costly. Just ask the Rome’s new garrison at Anxur in Volscian territory…







Siege Developments







Now you’d be forgiven for thinking a siege is not the most exciting form of warfare. And if it was just Rome versus Veii, it may indeed have remained a boring affair. But sometime in this year, it seems that Veil’s northern neighbours have realised that Veii falling to Rome might be terrible for them. Enter the Capenantes and Falscians and cue siege chaos! How will the situation be resolved? Tune in to find out.















Map of Veii including cities to the north Capena (Capenantes) and Falerii (Falsicans).







Things to Listen Out For









* The joys of Cornettos







* Skipping through the daisies







* A hideous sandwich situation







* Consideration of the extent of the powers of the tribunes of the plebs







* A potted introduction to the 3rd century CE writer Dio Cassius







* Some details about the archaeological record between Veii and Rome during this period







* A new record with the Partial Pick!







* A very late background contribution from one of our star podcats :)









Our Players for 402 BCE







Military Tribunes with Consular Power









* Gaius Servilius P. f. Q. n. Ahala (Pat)







* Quintus Servilius Q. f. P. n. Fidenas (Pat)







* Lucius Verginius L. f. Opetr. N. Tricostus Esquilinus (Pat)







* Quintus Sulpicius Ser. f. Ser. n. Camerinus Cornutus (Pat)







* Aulus Manlius A. f. Cn. n. Vulso Capitolinus (Pat)







* Maelius Sergius L. f. L. n. Fidenas (Pat)

















Our Sources









* Dr Rad reads Livy 5.8.1







* Dr G reads Diodorus Siculus 14.38.1; Fragmentvm de Praenominibus; Fasti Capitolini; Dio Cassius Book 6.23ish







* Arizza, M., Rossi, D. 2022. ‘The territory between Veii and Rome in the Archaic period: Rural structures as territorial markers of cultural frontiers’ Frontière.s, Revue d’archèologie, histoire et histoire de l’art Volume 6: 49-62. https://journals.openedition.org/frontieres/1297







* Bradley, G. 2020. Early Rome to 290 BC (Edinburgh University Press). Broughton, T. R. S., Patterson, M. L. 1951. The Magistrates of the Roman Republic Volume 1: 509 B.C. – 100 B.C. (The American Philological Association)







* Cornell, T. J. 1995. The Beginnings of Rome: Italy and Rome from the Bronze Age to the Punic Wars (c. 1000-264 BC) (Taylor & Francis) Forsythe, G. 2006. a href="https://www.google.com.

It is not often that we get to say that there is a new translation of a classical text that has taken the world by storm. But that was exactly what happened when Professor Stephanie McCarter released her 2022 translation of Ovid’s Metamorphoses. We were honoured that Professor McCarter agreed to talk to us about the mysterious Ovid and her process of translation.







Stephanie McCarter is currently a Professor of Classics at the University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee. She published a monograph entitled Horace between Freedom and Slavery: The First Book of Epistles in 2015 and a translation of Horace’s Epodes, Odes and Carmen Saeculare in 2020.







We would like to warn our listeners that this episode will touch on instances of violence and sexual assault. This is not one to listen to with the kids in the car.















Special Episode - Ovid's Metamorphoses with Professor Stephanie McCarter







Who was Ovid?







Ovid is one of our favourite Latin poets over at the Partial Historians. This is partially due to his work, which can be touching but also highly comedic. However, it is also because Ovid himself is hard to figure out.







He lived and worked during the reign of Augustus but claimed to have been exiled in approximately 8 CE. Academics are still trying to figure out what Ovid did that was so terrible… or whether he was making it up entirely!







Whatever he was up to, Ovid’s back catalogue is pretty impressive. He composed the Amores, the Heroides, the Fasti, the Ars amatoria, and his masterpiece, the Metamorphoses.















Translating Ovid for the 21st Century







Translation is an immensely difficult and often underappreciated task. We don’t mean getting out your dictionary and figuring out a passage here and there. We delve into the technique of translating an entire work, trying to make it accessible and enjoyable for a new generation, whilst staying true to the voice of the original author. Whew! What an undertaking.







Professor McCarter’s translation of the Metamorphoses is the first English translation of the work by a woman in many decades and it seems to have struck a nerve. There are many episodes of sexual violence in this work that have been softened or glossed over in previous translations. McCarter’s work aims to be more accurate and direct in the language, not shying away from the troubling aspects of these myths. This has allowed themes to emerge more clearly from text.







It was a delight to talk to someone as passionate and dedicated to their work as Professor McCarter. Her work highlights the way that translations often reflect the values of their creator and their context, hence the need for fresh interpretations.















Things to look out for:









* The powerful art of Elizabeth Columba







* An amazing New Yorker article on McCarter’s work







* The uterus and double helix cleverly woven into the mind-blowing cover art for McCarter’s book by Aiko Tezuka







* Professor McCarter makes reference to concordances as part of her process. These are essentially word indexes – very handy tools for translators!

It is 403 BCE and we’re about to be blinded by some rhetorical fireworks. The situation between Rome and Veii is getting more serious.























Episode 150 - Rhetorical Fireworks







We've Got Chills, They're Speechifying!







As the Romans prepare for a long siege, the suggestion was casually made that the soldiers will need to remain in winter quarters. The Romans were not used to being in the field this long and the tribunes of the plebeians were immediately suspicious. Is this why military pay had just been introduced? To distract the people whilst forcing them to live in a state of slavery? Outrageous. Nonetheless, this is what the plebeians get when they keep electing patricians into office.







One of the military tribunes decides to hit back at the tribunes with their own epic speech. Who better for the task than the uber-patrician Appius Claudius? Let's watch those rhetorical fireworks fly!







Appius’ speech, with its’ mixture of conservatism and logic, is so effective that he wins some of the people over. As everything hangs in the balance, word reaches Rome of a serious setback at Veii. A sneaky night attack led to all the Roman siege equipment being destroyed by fire and some of the soldiers had died trying to extinguish the blaze.















Aule Metele (The Orator). A hollow-cast bronze showing an Etruscan male known as Aulus Metellus or Aule Metele in Roman-style clothing, dated to early 1st century BCE.. While this figure is not from our time period, the combination of Etruscan and Roman culture and the speechifying aspect of this statue seemed appropriate! Courtesy of https://www.collegesidekick.com/study-guides/boundless-arthistory/later-etruscan-art







This disaster tips the balance in favour of Appius’ arguments. Patricians and plebeians put their differences aside so that they could focus on the war effort. Those Etruscans were asking for it!







The senate no longer had to worry about whether the people were on board regarding winter service. Romans from various backgrounds were throwing themselves at the senate, begging to be allowed to go to war.







Who knew that war could make people so happy? That’s the Romans for you!







Please Sir. I Want Some... More?!







Camillus, one of the Furii clan, makes his debut in this year as one of the censors. In order to pay for some of these new expenses, the censors introduced some new taxes on unmarried men and …orphans. Way to be harsh, Rome!







Our Players 403 BCE







Military Tribunes with Consular Power









* M’. Aemilius Mam. f. M. n. Mamercinus (or Mamercus) (Pat) Cos. 410, Mil. Tr. c. p. 405, 401







* L. Valerius L. f. P. n. Potitus (Pat) Cos. 392, Mil. Tr. c. p. 414, 406, 401, 398







* Ap. Claudius P. f. Ap. n. Crassus Inregillensis (Pat) Cos. 349 ?







* M. Quinctilius L. f. L. n. Varus (Pat)







* L. Iulius Sp.? f. Vopisci? n. Iullus (Pat)







* M. Furius – f. – n. Fusus (Pat)







* ? M. Postumius (Pat)







* ? M. Furius L. f. Sp. n. Camillus (Pat) Mil. Tr. c. p. 401, 398, 394, 386, 384, 381







* ? M. Postumius A. f. A. n. Albinus Regillensis (Pat) Mil. Tr. c. p. 426









Censors









* M. Furius L. f. Sp. n. Camillus (Pat) Mil. Tr. c. p. 401, 398, 394, 386, 384, 381







* M. Postumius A. f. A. n. Albinus Regillensis (Pat) Mil. Tr. c. p. 426

We are thrilled to sit down with Neil, The Ancient Blogger and host of the Ancient History Hound podcast to explore space and place in the Roman regal period.







Neil, or ancientblogger as he's more commonly known, studied ancient history at degree level and then completed an MA in Classical Civilisation. Though he has a full time job he spends most of his time creating content on  Instagram, X, YouTube and TikTok - just search for ancientblogger. He also has a website ancientblogger.com and several years ago started what is now the Ancient History Hound podcast, where he covers a wide array of topics from ancient history.







He also gets the chance to volunteer at schools around Brighton where he helps students with Greece and Rome, the latter usually whilst  wearing his legionary armour. As his website states - he's all about ancient history and passionate about making the topic accessible to one and all."















Special Episode - Exploring Place in Regal Rome with Neil, The Ancient Blogger - Part 1















Neil seems to have found himself in a museum of ancient vases while wearing a tshirt of ancient vases!







What was the landscape of regal Rome like?







There's no doubt that the topography of ancient Rome was very different to what we are able to see today. With the restraints around archaeological work you can expect in a city that is still as important and vibrant as the capital of Italy, it is partly through evidence on the ground and partly through reading the ancient sources that we can come to grips with what ancient Rome may have been like in its very early iterations.







The Palatine and the Aventine







Neil takes us through the importance of hills in general, in Italy, and for Rome in particular. Romulus has a connection with the Palatine hill and Remus is connected with the Aventine. Neil delves into the details of the wolves in this area including the development of the Lupercalia rites and the significance attached to blood sacrifice in cultivating the meaning of place.







The early pomerium







How did it the sacred boundary of Rome work? Where was it? What were the implications for trying to cross it with early armies? None of these questions can be answered definitely because evidence is thin on the ground archaeologically speaking, but considering later written sources offers some ways into the topic. Looking to read more on this topic, consider Koortbojian, M. 2020. Crossing the Pomerium: The Boundaries of Political, Religious, and Military Institutions from Caesar to Constantine (Princeton University Press)







The Campus Martius







The campus Martius ‘Field of Mars’ was the site of the potential murder of Romulus, Rome’s first king. The area covers a fair amount of land next to the Tiber and we consider some of its historical details.







The Tarpeian Rock







Bound up with the early defence of Rome is the Capitoline Hill where the earliest defences of the city were thought to have been built. We explore the stories that the Romans told about how the rock got its name. This leads into a consideration of how death was treated in respect to place.







The First Bridge over the Tiber