Undergraduate Course: Custodians of Empire: The Praetorian Guard (ANHI10034)
Course Outline
| School | School of History, Classics and Archaeology |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 10 (Year 3 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | This course will examine the praetorian guard from its establishment to its demise in AD 312, considering aspects as diverse as the physical make-up of the unit and the political influence that it had in Rome. |
| Course description |
The praetorian guard was an elite Roman military force, in existence for over three hundred years. Adapted from a republican institution by Augustus, it was in essence the personal army of the emperor, and, within a very short time, was also responsible for specialised military tasks and for various administrative duties in Rome. Topics to be considered include the background to the praetorians; their role as bodyguard; their use in civic duties in the capital (e.g. policing the games); and finally the more nefarious duties to which they were assigned on behalf of the emperor (e.g. spying and executions).
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Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | Visiting students should usually have at least 3 courses in Classics related subject matter(at least 2 of which should be in Ancient History) at grade B or above (or be predicted to obtain this) for entry to this course. We will only consider University/College level courses. |
| High Demand Course? |
Yes |
Course Delivery Information
| Not being delivered |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- demonstrate, by way coursework, an understanding of the military and political character of the praetorian guard throughout the period of the Empire;
- demonstrate, by way coursework, an understanding of the ways in which the guard interacted with various institutions in Rome and beyond;
- demonstrate, by way coursework, an understanding of the interaction of various sources of evidence (literary, epigraphic and archaeological) in the construction of an historical understanding of the guard.
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Reading List
Austin, N.J.E. & N.B. Rankov (1995) Exploratio: Military and Political Intelligence in the Roman World from the Second Punic War to the Battle of Adrianople. London
Berriman, A. et al (2001) 'A very Roman coup: the hidden war of imperial succession, AD 96-8', Historia 50.3: 312-331
Bingham, S.J. (2013) The Praetorian Guard: A History of Rome's Elite Special Forces. London
Bingham, S.J. (2003) 'Life on an island', Studies in Latin Literature and Roman History 11: 376-400
Bingham, S.J. (1999) 'Security at the games in the early imperial period' EMC 18.3: 369-379
Coulston, J. (2000) ' "Armed and belted men": the soldiery in imperial Rome', in J. Coulston and H. Dodge (eds.), Ancient Rome: the Archaeology of the Eternal City. Oxford: 76-118
Durry, M. (1938) Les Cohortes Prétoriennes. Paris
Le Bohec, Y. (1994) The Imperial Roman Army. Batsford
Passerini, A.(1939) Le Coorti Pretorie. Rome
Speidel, M.P. (1994) Riding for Caesar. London
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Not entered |
| Special Arrangements |
In order for a student from outwith Classics to be enrolled, contact must be made with a Classics Secretary on 50 3580 for approval to be obtained. |
| Keywords | Praetorian Guard |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Sandra Bingham
Tel: (0131 6)50 6689
Email: |
Course secretary | Ms Jenni Vento
Tel: (0131 6)50 3781
Email: |
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