Augustus: The Biography by Jochen Bleicken (PDF)

Description

The great modern biography of Augustus, founder of the Roman EmpireBorn to a plebeian family in 63 BC, Octavian was a young solder training abroad when he heard news of Julius Caesar’s brutal assassination – and discovered that he was the dictator’s sole political heir. With the opportunism and instinct for propaganda that were to characterize his rule, Octavian rallied huge financial, military and political backing to eliminate his opponents, end the bloody turmoil that had so long wracked Rome and, finally, take autocratic control of a state devoted to republicanism. He became Augustus – Rome’s first Emperor, and the founder of the greatest empire the world had ever seen.In this monumental biography, translated into English for the first time by Anthea Bell, Jochen Bleicken tells the story of a man who found himself a demi-god in his own lifetime and paints a portrait of one of the most dramatic periods of Roman history.

User’s Reviews

Reviews from Amazon users which were colected at the time this book was published on the website:

⭐The book begins with a comprehensive description of the assassination plot against Julius Caesar. The description of the rise to power of this obscure nephew of Caesar (how Octavius ultimately became Augustus), pandering to the plebeians, manipulating Antony and Lepidus to overcome the conspirators, and then neutralizing Lepidus and driving out Antony is fascinating, even if the reader is a bit revolted by the duplicity and cruelty exercised. Augustus became emperor as a military dictator; he administered the empire through a docile senate while he expanded the empire through a series of very competent generals (which he was not), including his friend Agrippa and his heir Tiberius. Unlike most popular histories the book clearly distinguishes known facts, logical inferences from known facts, and tantalizing mythology.

⭐I really wanted to like this book, and went about a hundred pages before giving up on it. My overriding issue was with the translation. It was consistently awkward, and the translator often used the wrong word or incorrect expression. I also found myself re-reading portions in order to understand what was being said. Many of the reviewers here actually praised the translation (and the woman won awards for this, according to the book blurb) but I totally didn’t see it. It was always obvious that I was reading a translation by someone who does not have a mastery of written and idiomatic English. On the plus side, there is an incredible amount of detail in this biography, so if the writing isn’t too important to you, it will be an informative read.

⭐I’ve read Augustus bios by Goldworthy, Everitt, Jones, and a couple others I forget. Bleicken’s is the best. Excellent use of the sources, doesn’t try to know what we can’t from the historical record, but makes some strong and persuasive inferences from what we do have. He avoids romanticizing or excusing Augustus. It’s a long, detailed book, not for the casual reader, but anyone seriously interested in Roman history or this ancient leader who founded an empire should pick up this book.

⭐Probably the best biography I have read of any historical figure in Roman History. A fascinating portrait not only of Augustus, but of the Roman World in which he lived. Highly recommended.

⭐A summary of the review on StrategyPage.Com’Originally published in Germany in 1998, the late Prof. Bleicken’s life of Augustus was widely hailed as an outstanding achievement, but has only recently been rendered into English. As much a “life and times” as a true biography – if only because much of Augustus’ life shaped the times – Bleicken provides an enormous amount of information on the man and the events which shaped his career and which he helped shape. Bleicken often offers very detailed accounts of military operations, such as in his look at the campaign of Actium, in which he carefully analyses the course of events, and discusses some of Antony’s “missed opportunities.” Bleicken opens with a quick look at events leading up to Caesar’s dictatorship, and his assassination. About a third of the work deals with the rise of Augustus – or Octavian as he would have been called – from relative obscurity to overlord of the Roman world, with the balance covering the construction of the principate, the complexities of the succession, and expansion of the empire through the death of Augustus. This is an excellent work, well worth reading for anyone seriously interested in Roman history.’For the full review, see StrategyPage.Com

⭐I have given this Five Stars as it is obviously a very good biography and has been finely translated. I would add however that for those like myself who enjoy the forward momentum of biographies, a life story from birth to death, half of this book leaves such in order to concentrate upon an analysis of the constitution of the Roman World and of how such differed between Republic and Empire. For me this became heavy going. Nevertheless, it is a great biography of Augustus and for those with a deep interest in the nuts and bolts of the Roman World, an even greater work of scholarship.

⭐While authors with great media connections receive lavish praise for lesser works, this book may slip you by. Don’t let it. It’s magnificent. The quality of the printing itself is excellent and the writing and analysis are superb. The translator should be highly commended – you would never guess this was translated from German, so beautifully is it worded. I’m halfway through and it’s breathtakingly better than any other book on ancient Rome that I have read.

⭐Finding it a hard read. The sentences sometimes don’t quite make sense and the logic doesn’t always stack up. Lots of historical detail.

⭐excellent, would recommend

⭐Excellent well written

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