James Aglio (Boston University)
One of the great classicists of the twentieth century, Sir Ronald Syme (1903-1989) was among the earliest
to compare the consolidation of power by the Emperor Augustus with the rise of authoritarian regimes in
contemporary Europe. In light of his famed ability to process and present documentary evidence, it is all to
easy to overlook the fact that Syme was also a philologist of the highest order, with an exacting knowledge
of Latin and of Roman literature. In fact, his best works are marked by the intricate weaving of traditional
literary knowledge with epigraphic and prosopographic material.
Syme’s most extensive discussion of the relationship of Vergil’s poetry to the Augustan regime is found
in the chapters ‘The National Programme’ and ‘The Organization of Opinion’ of The Roman Revolution. Reference
to the poet is not limited to those sections of that book, however. Along with Horace, Vergil’s poetry
informs many of Syme’s observations about the development of Augustus’ rule throughout the latter half of
The Roman Revolution. Syme continued to discuss Vergil’s poetry as evidence for Augustus’ rule over the rest
of his career, not only in works dealing directly with that time period. His longstanding interest in elites and
provincials repeatedly brought him back to the Mantuan poet, however briefly. Accordingly the Augustan
poet appears frequently in diverse works such as Tacitus, Sallust, and Ammianus and the Historia Augusta, and
even has a cameo in the work of comparative imperial studies, Colonial Élites.
Coincidentally, Syme’s career corresponds almost exactly to the rise of authoritarianism as a subject of
study in political science and philosophy. All of his discussions of Vergil, Augustus, and authority except for
The Roman Revolution postdate the intellectual conversation around authoritarianism that blossomed after
the Second World War. By studying how Syme views the relationship between Vergil and Augustus, how
his view of that relationship changes or endures across his career, and how it relates to the larger academic
conversation about authoritarianism throughout the second half of the 20th century, we are able to observe
a brilliant mind at work on a brilliant poet within a broader intellectual environment.