The Portrayal of the Generals and Armies in Tacitus' Annals

Abstract

Tacitus began the Annals with the death of Augustus in order to emphasize the moment when the autocratic system of government he had established became a permanent fixture in the Roman state when it was passed on to his successors, the Julio-Claudian Emperors. Tacitus chose the annalistic form to present his history in order to record the major events of political, military and constitutional importance within these formative years of the empire. This thesis offers a historiographical study of Tacitus' Annals in order to demonstrate how he utilises the Roman army and its generals as a means of emphasising the political environment in these embryonic years of the empire. This study is valuable in that it shows how, by use of various literary devices, Tacitus gives his opinions of the emperors by contrasting their actions and behaviours with their generals and armies. His descriptions of res externae, the actions of the armies, is designed to counterbalance what he claimed was sorrowful res internae within the Roman state itself.Scholars' views on Tacitus qualities as an historian range from the belief that he was truthful and reliable to the view that the Annals was mostly a work of literature and of little value for historical fact. Woodman, Kajanto and Haynes argue that Tacitus'work was more a work of rhetorical invention, like that of the poets. Mellor likens him to such historical novelists as Tolstoy and George Eliot. Syme, Mendell and Martin express their belief that Tacitus was a reliable and honest historian. In this thesis, I examine Tacitus' style and language in order to show how his method of writing plays a crucial role in developing the themes of the Annals. Tacitus often uses rhetorical devices such as innuendo and obfuscation and plays with the structure of his narrative in order to make specific points about the emperors and their armies. Through a careful examination of these devices I will show how Tacitus uses the army and the Praetorian Guard to make a larger point about the nature of imperial power in the early principate. In the first chapter I will argue that Tacitu'account of the relationship between the senatorial generals and the emperors in the Annals exposes the tensions that were rife in the early years of the principate. I will do this through an examination of Tiberius' relations with Germanicus and other generals who were at war during his reign. The chapter will end with an examination of Corbulo and how his presentation in the Annals reflects on the emperor Nero. This argument will be developed further in my second chapter, which will examine the western legions. I will analyse the Rhine and Pannonian mutinies that took place in the reign of Tiberius. There will follow a study of Germanicus' armies fighting in the wars in Germany, the campaigns against Florus and Sacrovir in Gaul and the revolt of Tacfarinas in North Africa, all of which were designed to reflect on Tacitus' portrayal of Tiberius. I will then turn to the revolt of Boudica which exposes Tacitus' views on peace and highlights his views on the debauchery that was rife in Nero's court. The third chapter will involve a study of the armies of the east. This will bring into prominence Tacitus' negative portrait of Nero who appears as a corrupt princeps, in contrast with the excellence of his general Corbulo. In this section Tacitus' uses the topos of luxuria to characterise the dissolute eastern legions before they are successfully disciplined by Corbulo. This will be discussed in detail. The final chapter will focus on the Praetorian Guard, which Tacitus saw as an army imposed on the senate and people of Rome. This study will include a detailed analysis of the Praetorian Prefects and show how their characterisation reflects Tacitus' perception of the emperors they served. By examining these aspects of the Annals, I will show that Tacitus utilises the armies, the generals and the Praetorian Guard in order to emphasise the problematic nature of imperial power in the early principate.