The Annals – Tacitus by Tacitus

"To ravage, to slaughter, to usurp under false titles, they call empire; and where they make a desert, they call it peace."

Tacitus provides a scathing history of the Roman Empire from the reign of Tiberius to Nero. He paints a dark portrait of absolute power corruption, detailing the treachery, poisonings, and madness of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, and the servility of a Senate that had lost its freedom.

Tacitus is the greatest Roman historian. His dense, ironic prose style and his psychological insight into the minds of tyrants have made The Annals a timeless study of political corruption and the loss of liberty.