Episode 66. Germanicus: The Prince Who Was Not Allowed to Win

Works CitedPrimary SourcesCassius Dio. Roman History, Books 56 to 57. The continuous Greek-language narrative from 9 CE through 19 CE.Senatus Consultum de Cn. Pisone Patre. Already covered in Episodes 63 and 65. Referenced here for the political consequences of Germanicus's death but not re-analyzed.Suetonius. Life of Caligula, chapters 1 to 7. The opening chapters of the Caligula biography are essentially a biography of Germanicus. Cover his career, character, family life, death, and the public mourning. Less analytically structured than Tacitus, but contains material Tacitus did not.Tabula Hebana and Tabula Siarensis. Bronze copies of the senatorial decrees voted in honour of Germanicus after his death in 19 CE. The Tabula Siarensis was found near Seville in 1982 and gives us the most detailed surviving Senate decree from the imperial period. The official framing of the loss.Tacitus. Annals, Books 1 to 3. Germanicus is the central figure of Books 1 to 2 and the opening chapters of Book 3. The German campaigns are at Annals 1.55 to 71 and 2.5 to 26. The eastern journey is at 2.53 to 68. The death scene is at 2.69 to 83—one of Tacitus's most sustained dramatic passages. The return of the ashes is at 3.1 to 7.Secondary SourcesBarrett, Anthony A. Agrippina: Sex, Power, and Politics in the Early Empire. Yale University Press, 1996. The standard modern treatment of Agrippina the Elder and Agrippina the Younger. Essential for Parts Six and Seven.Eck, Werner, Antonio Caballos, and Fernando Fernández. Das Senatus Consultum de Cn. Pisone Patre. C. H. Beck, 1996. The foundational publication of the Piso decree, relevant for the political aftermath.Levick, Barbara. Tiberius the Politician. Revised edition, Routledge, 1999. The Germanicus material from Tiberius's perspective.Powell, Lindsay. Germanicus: The Magnificent Life and Mysterious Death of Rome's Most Popular General. Pen and Sword Military, 2013. Recent military-focused biography. Most thorough modern treatment of the campaigns.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/real-roman-history/donations