Tacitus
Tacitus
PubliusCornelius Tacituswas a senator and a historian of the Roman Empire. The surviving portions of his two major works—the Annals and the Histories—examine the reigns of the Roman emperors Tiberius, Claudius, Nero, and those who reigned in the Year of the Four Emperors. These two works span the history of the Roman Empire from the death of Augustus in AD 14 to the years of the First Jewish–Roman War in AD 70. There are substantial lacunae in the surviving texts,...
NationalityRoman
ProfessionHistorian
mourning rejoice mourn
None mourn more ostentatiously than those who most rejoice at it [a death].
integrity opposites honor
Even honor and virtue make enemies, condemning, as they do, their opposites by too close a contrast.
giving trying faults
More faults are often committed while we are trying to oblige than while we are giving offense.
wise men lust
The lust of fame is the last that a wise man shakes off.
war party conquest
War will of itself discover and lay open the hidden and rankling wounds of the victorious party.
men history giving
Posterity gives every man his true value.
fear men feelings
Even the bravest men are frightened by sudden terrors.
family hatred society
The hatred of relatives is the most violent.
doubt facts obscurity
So true is it that all transactions of preeminent importance are wrapt in doubt and obscurity; while some hold for certain facts the most precarious hearsays, others turn facts into falsehood; and both are exaggerated by posterity.
passion justice lust
Lust of power is the most flagrant of all the passions
army pay arms
The repose of nations cannot be secure without arms, armies cannot be maintained without pay, nor can the pay be produced without taxes
gratitude thinking long
Benefits received are a delight to us as long as we think we can requite them; when that possibility is far exceeded, they are repaid with hatred instead of gratitude.
beautiful style body
Style, like the human body, is specially beautiful when the veins are not prominent and the bones cannot be counted.
marvellous
The unknown always passes for the marvellous.