Customer Reviews

The Praetorship in the Roman Republic: Volume 1: Origins to 122 BC

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Although many classical historians have focused on the Senate, the consulship or the tribunate as political posts in the Roman Republic, few have investigated the origins and development of the praetorship. Unfortunate because this office was long treated as a springboard to the consulship by Roman politicians. The position was also one of enormous influence as it involved not only judicial functions, but was a gubernatorial post to administer the provinces. Addressing these issues, Brennan has done an outstanding work in researching the evolution of this important administrative post in the Roman republican system.

Brennan studies how the praetorship evolved as purely a military post in the Early Republic to one involving judicial functions as well as the administration of the later Republic's vast domains encompassing most of Europe, North Africa, and Asia Minor. Brennan carefully sifts through historical texts and other evidence to support his conclusions as to the origins of this office, its evolution, its functions, and how it affected the republican stystem as a whole.

This is a fine scholarly work by an author who has clearly done his homework. Brennan's work is definitely a great contribution to the field and addresses some neglected areas in that still vast academic subject. I wouldn't recommend this work as an introductory text as its depth and scope would already require an advanced knowledge of Roman history. I strongly recommend this book to anyone who has more than a fleeting interest in political science, sociology, anthropology, or classical studies.

This is an execellant work that details from difficult and choatic historical sources the history of the development of the Roman Praetor. This powerful position that developed during the Roman Republic set the stage for the expansion of the later Empire. Brennan has done a masterful job at presenting the often confusing information on the subject into a dense but very understandable form. His analysis is thurough and much needed in an area of research that has not been well developed. For anyone who is interested in Roman history, the history of modern political institutions or the development of administrative power in an ancient nation, this is your book.