Scholarly texts on Sulla, the civil war, & the Roman army

[SOCL]

I am looking for recommendations for texts regarding Sulla, the civil wars of the pre-Pompey era (i.e. Sulla/Marius, Sulla/Cinna, Sertorius), and the Roman army during that period. In general, I am seeking to learn more about and better understand the careers and personalities of the two great rivals of the period, Sulla and Marius, as well as their lieutenants, Lucullus and Cinna, and how they were able to manipulate/convince their respective armies to work and function in their favor, in favor of their respective agendas. To give you an idea of where I am going, I have recently read the following texts on or related to the subject:

Keaveney, Arthur. Sulla: The last republican (2nd ed.).
Keaveney, Arthur. The Army in the Roman Revolution.
Flower, Harriett I. Roman Republics.
Lendon, J.E. Soldiers and Ghost.
Syme, Ronald. The Roman Revolution.

Generally, I am seeking scholarly material that avoids the more simplistic, parrot-like repetitive narratives. Although such texts may at times offer insights, they are, in my opinion, in general too concerned with retelling the events, often in a disjointed, almost haphazard manner. One I can think of in particular was Richard Holland's Augustus: Godfather of Europe, which attempted to assert the idea that Augustus was, politically, the heir of Sulla in the vein of Syme and Keaveney, but failed to communicate even the simplest ideas in a logical and thematic manner, never fulfilling this thesis.

I am currently considering staring Erich Gruen's The Last Generation of the Roman Republic, but aside from addressing Syme's arguments in The Roman Revolution otherwise appears to only cover the period following Sulla to the war between Octavian and Antony/Cleopatra. Any thoughts on this? Or what about Tom Holland's Rubicon? Any thoughts or suggestions? I'm open to all and both.

[Gaius Julius Caesar]

Rubicon is an interesting book, but unfortunately, the other books I have read which covered this era escape me at the moment, as I am not at home right now.

[Epictetus]

If you are looking for scholarly texts, you probably shouldn't look at Holland's Rubicon. It is more historical entertainment. I enjoyed it, but I didn't learn anything from it.

There was a long discussion about it here: Rubicon by Tom Holland - history book or thinly veiled novel.

[SOCL]

I (tried) to start Holland's book today during the commute to work, but found myself nodding in and out. It most definitely reads like an attempt at a novel, though not nearly as bad as the Dando-Collins books... Besides which, the fact he described as a popular "radio personality" in the front did not inspire any hope or confidence.

I have the sick, lingering feeling I may have exhausted the greater part of the English scholarship on the topic, with the exception of the more illusive and (thus) very expensive texts, such as Keaveney's Lucullus, Federico Santangelo's Sulla, the Elites and the Empire, and Morstein-Marx's Hegemony to Empire. I'm just not sure I can justify to my girlfriend spending the $100+ on one of these...

Still, any other thoughts? Perhaps on related topics, such as the lead up to Sulla covering eras like the Gracchai, etc?

[Nathan Ross]

There's always Hildinger's Swords Against the Senate, which seems to hit your target area pretty squarely. I haven't read it, and it sounds rather less 'scholarly' than you might want (bit too much simplistic retelling of events?), but perhaps worth a look...

You didn't mention Scullard's From the Gracchi to Nero either - too obvious? Apparently a bit dated now in some areas, but a respectable text nonetheless.

One book on Sulla that would certainly fall outside your 'scholarly' focus would be the bizarrely titled The Sword of Pleasure, actually a novelistic 'autobiography' of the dictator, but written back in 1961 by the eminent scholar Peter Green (before he became so eminent!). It sounds fascinating...

- Nathan

[SOCL]

I think I may have come across a bit snobbish in my first few posts. I certainly do not think that all narrative histories are bad or unscholarly; my point was to express my frustration at the vast majority, which are often both disjointed and lacking in scholarship. In this case, I suppose I define "scholarship" as having original research and ideas rather than simply retelling/recreating the events.

There's always Hildinger's Swords Against the Senate, which seems to hit your target area pretty squarely. I haven't read it, and it sounds rather less 'scholarly' than you might want (bit too much simplistic retelling of events?), but perhaps worth a look...

I leafed through Hildinger's text when it first came out some years ago, but did not actually get a chance to finish it. It's certainly on my shortlist of texts to read.

You didn't mention Scullard's From the Gracchi to Nero either - too obvious? Apparently a bit dated now in some areas, but a respectable text nonetheless.

I had forgotten about Scullard! I will certainly look into this text. Age is not necessarily a factor, of course, since I read Syme.


Another text that came to mind was Pat Southern's The Roman Army: A Social and Institutional History. I still need to do a search of the forums for opinions, but any quick thoughts on this?

Other texts I really, really want to get in the same subject-area include Arthur Eckstein's Senate and General and W.V. Harris' War and Imperialism in Republican Rome. Unfortunately, these too are rather expensive/outside my budget range (for the moment).

[Narukami]

Although a bit tangental, you might take a look at The Assassination Of Julius Caesar -- A People's History Of Ancient Rome by Michael Parenti (c2003 ISBN: 1-56584-942-6).

Professor Neil Faulkner opined: "M Parenti's book is an excellent read and a refreshingly acerbic indictment of the Late Republican ruling class, but the analysis of Caesar and what he represented is naive." (Rome Empire Of The Eagle c2008, p329). I disagree with the latter part of this judgement -- I think Parenti's take on Caesar is right on the money, though I will admit being sympathetic to Caesar. Parenti's book is also an excellent essay on Ancient Scholarship and the agendas historians bring to this topic.

If you have not already read Parenti's book you might find it interesting.

:wink:

Narukami