Customer Reviews

The Sons of Caesar: Imperial Rome's First Dynasty

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Does the world need yet another book on the Caesars and the fall of the Republic? Well, yes, actually, as long as it is written with the clarity and probing analysis of Phillip "Maty" Matyszak. In The Sons of Caesar, the good Cambridge doctor of history offers a penetrating study of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, the convoluted and dysfunctional family that presided over Rome's transition from Republic to Empire.

I have read my share of modern books on the early empire, and they seldom improve upon the primary sources of Tacitus and Suetonius whose histories make excellent reading in their own right. The main problem with the two Roman historians are their biases. Tacitus the senator shared his order's jealousy and loathing for the imperial family, while Suetonius the equestrian let his history be colored by scandalous gossip whose veracity is sometimes in doubt. Taking their two accounts together, the ages have held all the early emperors (with the possible exception of Augustus) in a very dim light indeed. But given the biases at work how fair is the assessment? Matyszak is willing to take a step back and analyze the personalities and policies of the Julio-Claudians outside the biases of the primary sources. What emerges is a tale not quite as dire as either Tacitus or Suetonius would have you believe.

The Sons of Caesar is a brilliant book which offers a moderate revision of a much maligned family. Carried along with clear prose, elucidating charts, some great photographs, and plenty of juicy quotes from the primary sources, this is a book that anyone interested in imperial politics will want on their shelves.

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Interesting book profiling Julius Caesar, Augustus, Caligula, Claudius and Nero.

While not the best book written on the subject, it encapsulates the Julio-Claudian dynasty excellently.

It provides a fairly detailed account of what each Caesar accomplished. Written in a conversational manner, it is easy to read and gives a good account of this families reign.

It deserves a place among your Roman history books.

The overall impression one takes from this book, other than the fact that it is an interesting and fairly quick read, is that the author is seemingly apologetic for the heinous crimes and misdemeanors of the Julio-Claudian rulers of Rome.

He still addresses the rumors and innuendos of such authors as Suetonius, though seems to place these actions in the perspective of their times and questions the likelihood that they even occurred.

Granted, there is little if any way to confirm the entertaining gossip of Suetonius though trying to put a shine on the perceived rotten apple of Caligula after nearly two millenia of bad press is admirable but certainly a minority opinion.

The text appears to be a positive rendering of the Caesars and their contributions to the creation of and the century of stability that was the Roman Empire prior to the death of Nero.

Though for all the positives, the creative accounting utilized by the author does not do much towards altering the balance sheets of history. Despite all the positives, the negatives weigh heavily against these figures as they will against our present day best and worst in the centuries to come.

Overall, the book should be read as a compliment along with Tacitus, Suetonius and Dio et al.