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Publius Cornelius Tacitus, [note 1] known simply as Tacitus (/ ˈ t æ s ɪ t ə s / TAS-it-əs, [2] [3] Latin: [ˈtakɪtʊs]; c. AD 56 – c. 120), was a Roman historian and politician. Tacitus is widely regarded as one of the greatest Roman historians by modern scholars.
^ A website discussing the I, Claudius television series, which were based on Graves work, qualifies Tacitus as being of a "somewhat suspect" reliability because of Tacitus's so-called "malice" towards the emperors. The books by Graves, discussed at the same website are free of such reliability suspicions.
The Annals was Tacitus' final work and provides a key source for modern understanding of the history of the Roman Empire from the beginning of the reign of Tiberius in AD 14 to the end of the reign of Nero, in AD 68. [3] Tacitus wrote the Annals in at least 16 books, but books 7–10 and parts of books 5, 6, 11 and 16 are missing. [3]
R. T. France states that the Tacitus passage is at best just Tacitus repeating what he had heard through Christians. [72] However, Paul R. Eddy has stated that as Rome's preeminent historian, Tacitus was generally known for checking his sources and was not in the habit of reporting gossip. [63]
Tacitus suggested that Nero used the Christians as scapegoats. [17] As with almost all ancient Greek and Latin literature, [18] no original manuscripts of the Annals exist. The surviving copies of Tacitus' major works derive from two principal manuscripts, known as the Medicean manuscripts, which are held in the Laurentian Library in Florence ...
Tacitus' reliability as a source can be characterized by his rhetorical tendencies, since one of the purposes of Germania was to present his Roman compatriots with an example of the virtues he believed they lacked. [36] Julius Caesar, Procopius, and other ancient authors also offer some information on Germanic religion. [37] [c]
The historical reliability of the Gospels is evaluated by experts who have not reached complete consensus. While all four canonical gospels contain some sayings and events that may meet at least one of the five criteria for historical reliability used in biblical studies, [note 1] the assessment and evaluation of these elements is a matter of ongoing debate.
Tacitus' account of the invasion may be dramatized and his reliability should be carefully considered, especially because Tacitus was the husband of Agricola's daughter. [1] However, his account is the only written record of the second invasion.