Tibullus
Life Albius Tibullus entered the Roman literary scene under the patronage of Marcus Valerius Messalla Corvinus. He, like Horace and Vergil, had his lands confiscated by Augustus, though he did…
Propertius
Life Sextus Propertius was one of the four great Roman elegists in the Augustan age, the other three including Gallus, Tibullus, and Ovid. He was born around the middle of…
Ovid
Life Publius Ovidius Naso, known in English as Ovid, was an eminent Latin poet, especially regarded by both ancient and modern critics alike for his many elegies on love and…
Ennius
Life Quintus Ennius was born in 239 BCE at Rudiae (now Rugge) in Calabria (now Apulia). Growing up in a region heavily mixed with both Greek and Italian cultures, Ennius…
Gallus
Life Gaius Cornelius Gallus, son of Gnaeus Cornelius Gallus, was a Roman equestrian born in 69 BCE at the Forum Iulii (modern Fréjus) in Gallia Narbonensis. Marcus Cicero refers to…
Cato the Elder
Life Marcus Porcius Cato, born in 234 BCE, was a prominent Roman politician during the Punic Wars, and is often referred to as Censorinus (the Censor) or Maior (the elder),…
Velleius Paterculus
Life Unlike most other minor authors of the period, Velleius Paterculus relates a bit about his own life. He does not say much about his early life, but he came…
Curtius Rufus
Life There is some question about the identity of Quintus Curtius Rufus. The manuscripts of the Historiae Alexandri Magni ("The History of Alexander the Great") name him as their author. Most…
Lucan
Life Marcus Annaeus Lucanus was born in Corduba (Cordova), Hispania into the very prominent Annaei family, which included his uncle, Seneca the Younger, and grandfather, Seneca the Elder. His birth was recorded as being Nov.…
Julius Caesar
As the conqueror of Gaul, the dictator of Rome, and arguably the last ruler of the Republic, Gaius Iulius Caesar, often in English simply called Julius Caesar, was one of Rome's…