Imperatores Victi: Military Defeat and Aristocractic Competition in the Middle and Late Republic
ISBN-13:
9780520069398
ISBN-10:
0520069390
Edition:
First Edition
Author:
Nathan S. Rosenstein
Publication date:
1990
Publisher:
University of California Press
Format:
Hardcover
208 pages
FREE US shipping
on ALL non-marketplace orders
Marketplace
from $60.00
USD
Marketplace offers
Seller
Condition
Note
Seller
Condition
Used - Very Good
Edition: First Edition; Signed and inscribed by Author; Very Good/Very Good; Copyright 1990 with full number line. Signed not just once but twice, and inscribed to two previous owners by the author, "Nate", on front endpaper. Very good hardcover with dust jacket. Binding is tight, sturdy, and square; light edgewear and light fading to red cloth boards. Gold gilt titling on spine is lightly dulled but remains clearly readable. Text is very good throughout. Unclipped dust jacket is very good with a few light creases. Ships from Dinkytown in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Book details
ISBN-13:
9780520069398
ISBN-10:
0520069390
Edition:
First Edition
Author:
Nathan S. Rosenstein
Publication date:
1990
Publisher:
University of California Press
Format:
Hardcover
208 pages
Summary
Imperatores Victi: Military Defeat and Aristocractic Competition in the Middle and Late Republic (ISBN-13: 9780520069398 and ISBN-10: 0520069390), written by authors
Nathan S. Rosenstein, was published by University of California Press in 1990.
With an overall rating of 4.5 stars, it's a notable title among other
books. You can easily purchase or rent Imperatores Victi: Military Defeat and Aristocractic Competition in the Middle and Late Republic (Hardcover) from BooksRun,
along with many other new and used
books
and textbooks.
And, if you're looking to sell your copy, our current buyback offer is $0.3.
Description
Given the intense competition among aristocrats seeking public office in the middle and late Roman Republic, one would expect that their persistent struggles for honor, glory, and power could have seriously undermined the state or damaged the cohesiveness of the ruling class. Rome in fact depended on aristocratic competition, since no professional bureaucracy directed public affairs and no salary was attached to any public office. But as Rosenstein adeptly shows, competition appears to have been surprisingly limited, in ways that curtailed the possible destructive effects of all-out contests between individuals.Imperatores Victi examines one particularly striking case of such checks on competition. Military success at all times represented an abundant source of prestige and political strength at Rome. Generals who led armies to victory enjoyed a better-than-average chance of securing higher office upon their return from the field. Yet this study demonstrates that defeated generals were not barred from public office and in fact went on to win the Republic's most highly coveted and hotly contested offices in numbers virtually identical with those of their undefeated peers.Rosenstein explores how this unexpected limit to competition functions, reviewing beliefs about the religious origins of defeat, assumptions about common soldiers' duties in battle, and definitions of honorable behavior of an aristocrat during a crisis. These perspectives were instrumental in shifting the onus of failure away from a general's person and in offering positive strategies a general might use to win glory and respect even in defeat and to silence potential critics among a failed general's peers. Such limits to competition had an impact on the larger problems of stability and coherence in the Republic and its political elite; these larger problems are discussed in the concluding chapter.
We would LOVE it if you could help us and other readers by reviewing the book
Book review
Congratulations! We have received your book review.
{user}
{createdAt}
by {truncated_author}