Volume I. Roman History
Books 14-19. Index

Ammianus was a Greek from Antioch. He served many years as an officer in the Roman army, in Gaul and in campaigns against the Persians, and then settled in Rome, where he wrote his history of the Roman Empire (Res gestae) in Latin--enlivening his Latin style with a touch of the Greek east. The portion of the history that survives covers in wonderful detail a period of 25 years in the historian's own lifetime: the reigns of Constantius, Julian (whom he greatly admired), Jovian, Valentinian I, and Valens. Ammianus' personal experience supplements the variety of reports and archives on which he draws. His is a dramatic narrative, the scene continually shifting from Gaul to Mesopotamia, from Milan to Constantinople. He gives us skillfully crafted portraits of personalities and vivid descriptions of military operations, with all the immediacy of an eyewitness account.

Series No. 300 / 632 pages / ISBN 0-674-99331-4