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- Title
Center and Periphery in Tacitus's "Histories."
- Authors
Pomeroy, Arthur J.
- Abstract
This article reports that geography often turns out to be a state of mind rather than a collection of empirically verifiable facts. Indeed, creative geography can have profound effects in human history, as, for instance, when the Romans imagined that Hannibal had crossed the river Ebro in attacking Saguntum and thus provided themselves with a casus belli that was to leave them masters of the Mediterranean world. Numerous possibilities for further research are suggested by such nuanced considerations of the ancient views of geography. If Romanness is to be simply defined by loyalty to a commander, be it Vitellius or Vespasian, then it will be a concept that is highly flexible, dependent on the whims of the troops. This is most clearly portrayed in the behavior of Rome's allies the Batavi, the inhabitants of the Rhine island between Roman Gaul and Germany. For instance, the introductory second chapter of the Histories contrasts the prosperity of the East with the tribulations of the West in this period.
- Subjects
EBRO River (Spain); SPAIN; GEOGRAPHY; WORLD history; HISTORY; FACTS (Philosophy)
- Publication
Arethusa, 2003, Vol 36, Issue 3, p361
- ISSN
0004-0975
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1353/are.2003.0026