The ''Epitome de Caesaribus'' is a Latin historical work written at the end of the 4th century.
It is a brief account of the reigns of the
Roman emperors from
Augustus
Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pri ...
to
Theodosius the Great
Theodosius I ( grc-gre, Θεοδόσιος ; 11 January 347 – 17 January 395), also called Theodosius the Great, was Roman emperor from 379 to 395. During his reign, he succeeded in a crucial war against the Goths, as well as in two ...
. It is attributed to
Aurelius Victor
Sextus Aurelius Victor (c. 320 – c. 390) was a historian and politician of the Roman Empire. Victor was the author of a short history of imperial Rome, entitled ''De Caesaribus'' and covering the period from Augustus to Constantius II. The work w ...
, but was written by an anonymous author who was very likely a pagan. The author used the so-called ''
Enmannsche Kaisergeschichte
The ('Enmann's History of the Emperors') is a modern term for a hypothesized Latin historical work, written in the 4th century but now lost.
The German scholar Alexander Enmann made in 1884 a comparison of several late Roman historical works and ...
'' and the (now lost) ''Annales'' of
Virius Nicomachus Flavianus
Virius Nicomachus Flavianus (334–394 AD) was a grammarian, a historian and a politician of the Roman Empire.
A pagan and close friend of Quintus Aurelius Symmachus, he was Praetorian prefect of Italy in 390–392. Under the usurper Eugenius ( ...
(a friend of
Quintus Aurelius Symmachus
Quintus Aurelius Symmachus signo Eusebius (, ; c. 345 – 402) was a Roman statesman, orator, and man of letters. He held the offices of governor of proconsular Africa in 373, urban prefect of Rome in 384 and 385, and consul in 391. Symmachus ...
). Although very brief in length and not always reliable, it also contains some useful information.
Bibliography
* Jörg A. Schlumberger: ''Die Epitome de Caesaribus. Untersuchungen zur heidnischen Geschichtsschreibung des 4. Jahrhunderts n. Chr.'', C.H. Beck, Munich 1974.
External links
''Epitome de Caesaribus''(Latin text)
*
' (English translation)
{{Authority control
4th-century Latin books
Roman Empire in late antiquity
Latin histories