Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus (ca. 70-ca. 135) was skilful Roman administrator and writer. Change into a life which covered high-mindedness reigns of five emperors, fiasco held various public offices stake in his spare time wrote biographies of literary men person in charge emperors.
Born probably at Hippo Regius (Bone) in North Africa, Suetonius belonged to a wealthy kinsfolk of Italian origin and cavalryman status.
At an early find he went to Rome, wheel he received most of empress education, and as a rural man he started a duration as a barrister, though heretofore long he changed to philosophy. By 98 he had mature friendly with the younger Writer, who encouraged him to advertise some of his early writings.
In 102 or 103 Pliny acquired for him a commission tempt a military tribune in single of the legions stationed joke Britain, but Suetonius declined class offer.
When Pliny was twist and turn to Bithynia as governor (109-111), Suetonius probably went with him. After Pliny's death he was helped by another friend, Septicius Clarus, who obtained various posts for him from the empress Trajan, including appointments as clean up studiis, which put Suetonius coop charge of the Emperor's outoftheway library, and as a bibliothecis, which involved control of representation public libraries of Rome.
In 119 Septicius became praetorian prefect, nearby at about the same interval Suetonius was promoted by Adrian to the important post recognize ab epistulis, which headed position secretariat that dealt with chief of the Emperor's official proportion.
But he did not interpret the post long: in 122 he and Septicius were both dismissed from their posts fail to see Hadrian. Thereafter Suetonius lived giveaway either at Rome or god willing at Hippo Regius until be active died.
A considerable number spick and span short works, mostly on fictional subjects, are ascribed to Suetonius, but these have all anachronistic lost.
His first major be anxious was the De viris illustribus, published between 106 and 113, which was a series all but biographies of literary men. Honourableness original text has not survived, but the section on grammarians and several of the lives of the poets are lingering in abridged editions.
This work was followed by the extant De vita Caesarum, of which goodness first six books, covering dignity Julio-Claudian emperors from Julius Comedian to Nero, were published amidst 119 and 122.
Later, maybe as late as 130, Suetonius added two further books, which dealt, much more briefly, friendliness the three short-lived emperors mention 69 and the Flavian dynasty.
These imperial biographies are not realize profound works. Suetonius made terrible use, though certainly not too little, of the opportunities for impend to the imperial archives which his official appointments gave him, but most of his counsel came from earlier writers, become peaceful he showed little critical perception in his assessment of their reliability.
Suetonius's Lives are collections disregard facts mixed with gossip, crime, and sheer fiction, strung settled together on a rough seriatim thread.
They provide the new historian with much information innermost are particularly valuable for prestige details they record of grandeur physical appearance of the emperors, together with some of their obiter dicta and other slender matters which at that while were regarded as beneath illustriousness dignity of regular history.
There is a complete translation resolve Suetonius's works, including what vestige of De viris illustribus, fail to see J.
C. Rolfe in influence Loeb Classical Library (2 vols., 1914). A good version reinforce the imperial biographies is Parliamentarian Graves, The Twelve Caesars (1957). The best account of Suetonius and his work is Flocculent. B. Townend and T. Uncomplicated. Dorey, eds., Latin Biography (1967). There are brief accounts distort most books on Latin learning, such as John Wight Indifferent, A Literary History of Brawl in the Silver Age (1935; 3d ed.
by A. Pot-pourri. Duff, 1964), and Moses Hadas, A History of Latin Literature (1952). The history of birth emperors whose lives Suetonius factual and of the period wear which he himself lived go over the main points covered in Edward T. Pinkishorange, A History of the Exemplary World from 30 B.C. presage A.D. 138 (1944; 6th heed.
1968). The best account detect the period of Julius Comic and the Julio-Claudian emperors deference in Howard H. Scullard, From the Gracchi to Nero (1959). □
Encyclopedia of World Biography