The Partial Historians

Special Episode – Monty Python’s Life of Brian (1979)

Once we got started, it was hard for us to stop talking about the Life of Brian. British comedy was a staple of our childhoods and Monty Python was one of our favourites. It was a treat to follow the development of this movie from Jesus Christ: Lust for Glory to a Sliding Doors-style story of Brian Cohen, born in the manger over from Christ.

A still from Life of Brian showing Brian’s followers admiring his sandal, one of the sacred objects he unwittingly bestows upon them. Courtesy of FM Cinema.

Whilst Monty Python were probably trying to make a parody of 1970s Britain rather than a historically accurate portrait of first century CE Judea, we still found this film intriguing. From wolf’s nipples to imperialism, we take you through all the best Roman scenes... and perhaps a few non-Roman scenes as well. Who can resist talking about the Virgin Mandy?

Part of the appeal of Life of Brian is the fact that it is not afraid to make fun of the Romans (or anyone) and shows a much less glamorous side of the empire. Quite the contrast to the epics of the 1950s and 1960s.

Things to Look Out For:

• Far too many ‘reenactments’ of our favourite moments
• The Biggus Dickus scene
• What Have the Romans Ever Done For Us? Not as much as this scene claims!
• The People’s Front of Judea in action!
• The famous BBC2 interview with John Cleese and Michael Palin
• The hilarious parody of the BBC2 interview on Not the Nine O’Clock News
• Dr G’s excitement upon spotting the frescoes from the Villa of the Mysteries

Comedies don’t always stand the test of time. We can spot some awkward moments in the film, but overall, we think Life of Brian stands the test of time. Forty-five years after it’s release, we would love to know whether you agree!

Our Sources

• Blanshard, A. J. L., Shahabudin, K. 2011. ‘Satirising Cine-Antiquity – Monty Python’s Life of Brian 1979’ in Classics on Screen: Ancient Greece and Rome on Film (Bristol Classical Press), 172-193.
• James G. Crossley (2011) ‘Life of Brian or Life of Jesus? Uses of Critical Biblical Scholarship and Non-Orthodox Views of Jesus in Monty Python’s Life of Brian.’ Relegere: Studies in Religion and Reception 1 (1): 93-114.
• Cyrino, M. S. 2005. ‘Monty Python’s Life of Brian’ in Big Screen Rome (Blackwell), 176-193.
• Ehrman, B. (2015). Brian and the Apocalyptic Jesus: Parody as a Historical Method. In Jesus and Brian (pp. 141–150). Bloomsbury Publishing Plc. https://doi.org/10.5040/9780567665362.ch-011
• Horsley, Richard A. 2014. Jesus and the Politics of Roman Palestine (University of South Carolina Press)
• Keddie, A. 2019. Class and Power in Roman Palestine: The Socioeconomic Setting of Judaism and Christian Origins (Cambridge University Press)
• Levine, A.-J. (2015). Beards for Sale: The Uncut Version of Brian, Gender and Sexuality. In Jesus and Brian (pp. 167–184). Bloomsbury Publishing Plc. https://doi.org/10.5040/9780567665362.ch-013
• Stiebel, G. D. 2015. ‘‘Romani Ite Domum’ – Expressions of Identity and Resistance in Judaea’ in Taylor, Joan E. (ed). Jesus and Brian: Exploring the Historical Jesus and his Times via Monty Python’s Life of Brian (Bloomsbury), 107-112.
• Taylor, J. E. (Ed.). (2015). Jesus and Brian exploring the historical Jesus and his times via Monty Python’s Life of Brian. Bloomsbury T&T Clark.
• Telford, W. (2015). Muggeridge/Stockwood interviewMonty Python’s Life of Brian and the Jesus Film. In Jesus and Brian (pp. 3–18). Bloomsbury Publishing Plc. https://doi.org/10.5040/9780567665362.ch-001

Sound Credits

Our music is by Bettina Joy de Guzman.

Automated Transcript

Dr Rad 0:15
Music. Welcome to the partial historians.

Dr G 0:18
We explore all the details of ancient Rome,

Dr Ra...

The Partial Recap 420s BCE

If you are keen to for some more detail, you can jump into our narrative episodes at 134 – A Dry Period.

A view to the East over the Roman Forum with the Temple of Saturn on the left and the Palatine Hill on the right, showing the Temple of Castor and Pollux, the Arch of Titus, Santa Francesca Romana, and the Colosseum. Detail from the photograph by Nicholas Hartmann, June 1976. Image Source: Wikimedia Commons. Used under license.

Sound Credits

Our music was composed by the fabulous Bettina Joy de Guzman.

Automated Transcript

Dr Rad:

Welcome to the Partial Recap for the 420s BCE!

Dr G: I’m Dr G

Dr Rad: and I’m Dr Rad

Dr G: and this is our highlights edition of the 420s in Rome. We’ll take you through from 429 to 420 in an epitome of our normal episodes.

Dr Rad: Perfect for those mornings when you don’t want some lengthy rhetoric with your coffee – but please be warned – the Roman world is a violent one.

Dr G: Get ready for a recappuccino.

429 BCE

• In 429 BCE, the consuls were Hostius Lucretius Tricipitinus and Lucius Sergius Fidenas
• Who could forget this year? Well, apparently a lot of people could – nothing was recorded in some of our sources
• For others, it might be an issue of confused dates and actually LOTS of things happened that sound very similar to the events of 428

428 BCE

• In 428 BCE, the consuls were Aulus Cornelius Cossus and Titus Quinctius Poenus Cincinnatus
• Or maybe Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus and Aulus Sempronius Atratinus
• Come on Romans, get your consuls straight!
• Veii started muscling in on Roman turf, perhaps with some help from the Fidenates
• The Romans assembled an elite task force to look into their involvement and some men from FIdenae found themselves banished to Ostia for being decidedly shifty
• For a bit of extra security, more settlers were sent to the colony of Fidenae
• Rome was then hit by a severe drought, which led to the spread of disease amongst cattle and the citizens
• In desperation, some superstitions started to spread amongst the populace and had to be reined in

427 BCE

• In 427 BCE, the consuls were Caius Servilius Structus Ahala and Lucius Papirius Mugillanus
• Putting the tough times behind them, the ROmans felt well enough to seek revenge against Veii
• But there’s a procedure to this people! Someone call the fetiales so they can call on Jupiter and get this ball rolling

426 BCE

• In 426 BCE, the military tribunes with consular power were Titus Quinctius Poenus Cincinnatus, Caius Furius Pacilus Fusus, Marcus Postumius Albinus, and Aulus Cornelius Cossus – whew!
• The military tribunes with consular power set about this war with Veii – but they didn’t play well together, leading to some humiliating results on the battlefield
• Crushed and angry, the Romans turned to their favourite solution – a dictator!
• Mamercus Aemilius was chosen by Cossus, and he chose Cossus to be his Master of the Horse – making them the cutest couple in Rome
• Meanwhile, Veii was bragging about their recent success to anyone who would listen, and Fidenae agreed to join forces with them once again.
• Lucky the Romans had Mamercus to whip them all into shape. He and his band of trusty helpers worked together like a well-oiled machine to grind their enemies into the dust!
• Once more, Cossus was a standout in the battle and Mamercus received a triumph
• If this all seems very familiar, it is. Suspiciously so!
• Compare the events yourself by revisiting our episode on 437 BCE

425 BCE

• In 425 BCE, the military tribunes with consular power were Aulus Sempronius Atratinus, L. Quinctius Cincinnatus, Lucius Furius Medullinus and Lucius Horatius Barbatus.
• Nothing much happened!
• The Veientes and the Aequians were each granted truces

424 BCE

• In 424 BCE, the military tribunes with consular power were Appius Claudius Crassus, Spurius Nautius Rutilus, Lucius Sergius Fidenas, and Sextus Iulius Iullus.
• Games were held and the Romans were exceedingly polite hosts.
• The tribunes of the plebs found the whole scene in the city far too peaceful and started haranguing the pop...

Episode 144 – Where in the World is Carventum?

411 BCE – A Year Better Forgotten?

Sadly there’s not much to report about 411 BCE and what there is to know if the kind of thing the Romans would probably rather forget. Turns out that there’s a pestilence on the loose! To compound problems, sick people can’t farm and this has compromised the harvest. Rome faces challenges to its grain supply and they turn to their neighbours for aid.

Keen to catch up on the action from the years leading up to this situation? Check out Episode 143 – Special Victims Unit.

Where in the world is Carventum?

410 BCE gets off to a bad start when the Volsicans and Aequians decide to try to squeeze Rome’s allies the Hernicians... how will Rome respond? First they’ll have to find the citadel of Carventum (location unknown). And that’s only after they resolve the challenge of pulling together a fighting force.

Whenever there’s a tribune of the plebs, we can assume there’s going to be something going on between the elite families of Rome. The tribunes come into their own when there’s a military affair in the off-ing because they can push for rights and recognition for the plebeians in potential exchange for military service. Will the patricians negotiate land rights in order to field a force against the Volscians and the Aequians?

Map of central Italy including Rome and Praeneste, one of the theorised locations of Carventum to the east of Rome.

An ovatio with the a side of verbal abuse...

The Roman populace may be under the pump of the patricians much of the time, so perhaps a protest action at the scene of an ovatio is a very legitimate form of criticism! While Valerius attempts to process through the city to celebrate a military win, things don’t feel so much like a celebration as the people hurl abuse. Who will the crowd turn their support towards in the aftermath?

Things to Listen Out For:

• Disagreements about Livy
• What’s happening in the Mediterranean?
• Who is Cassiodorus?
• Samnites and Sicilians
• A tribunician veto? In this economy?
• What is the tribune of the plebs and how did this position really work in the early Republic?
• Mercenaries????
• What are the quaestors up to?

Our Players 411 BCE

Consuls

• Marcus Papirius L. f. – n. Mugillanus (or Atratinus?) (Pat.)
• Spurius (or Gaius) Nautius Sp. f. Sp. n. Rutilus (Pat.)

Our Players 410 BCE

Consuls

• Manius Aemilius Mam. f. M. n. Mamercinus (Pat.)
• Gaius Valerius (L. f. Vol. n.) Potitus Volusus (Pat.)

Tribune of the Plebs

• Marcus Menenius

Our Sources

• Dr Rad reads Livy 4.52.2-4.53
• Dr G reads Diodorus 13.68.1, 13.76.1; Cassiodorus Chronica
• Broughton, T. R. S., Patterson, M. L. 1951. The Magistrates of the Roman Republic Volume 1: 509 B.C. – 100 B.C. (The American Philological Association)
• Cornell, T. J. 1995. The Beginnings of Rome: Italy and Rome from the Bronze Age to the Punic Wars (c. 1000-264 BC) (Taylor & Francis)
• Ogilvie, R. M. 1965. A Commentary on Livy: Books 1-5 (Clarendon Press).

Sound Credits

Our music was composed by Bettina Joy de Guzman. Sound effects courtesy of BBC Beta and Freesounds.

Crop from “A new map of Latium, Etruria, and as much of ancient Italy, as lay between Gallia Cisalpina and Græcia Magna, shewing their principal divisions, cities, towns, rivers, mountains &c.”
Sheldonian Theatre (Publisher); Wells, Edward, 1667-1727 (Cartographer).
Source: New York Public Library Digital Collections.

Automated Transcript

Edited for Latin terminology and to support our wonderful Australian accents!

Dr Rad 0:12
Welcome to The Partial Historians.

Dr G 0:15
We explore all the details of ancient Rome.

Dr Rad 0:20
Everything from political scandals to love affairs, the battles waged and when citizens turn against each other. I’m Dr. Rad.

Dr G 0:30
And I’m Dr. G. We consider Rome as the Romans saw it by reading different ancient authors an...

After an unfortunate amount of disease and destruction in our last episode, we return to Rome for some classic political and military action.

The Romans are ready to put a year of horrible drought behind them and seek revenge on Veii and the ongoing thorn in their side. Fidenae. It also turns out that war is the perfect backdrop for some male bonding.

Episode 135 – Building the Bromance

Jupiter as my Witness!

Before the Romans can get involved in any conflicts with Veii, there are rules of warfare that need to be observed. It is time for the fetiales! With Jupiter as their witness, they will make sure that Rome only goes to war in the right circumstances.

Fresco of Jupiter, National Archaeological Museum of Naples (inv. nr.9551).
From Pompeii, House of the Dioscuri, dating to the 1st century CE, so much later than the 420s BCE! Jupiter was invoked by thefetiales during their rituals.
Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

Building the Bromance

The Romans elect military tribunes with consular power as they embark on their war with Veii. Unfortunately, the tribunes don’t have a talent for teamwork. It’s time for a dictator!

Our old friend Cossus nominates Mamercus Aemilius as dictator. In return, Aemilius makes Cossus his Master of the Horse. The bromance between these two is so strong that Veii doesn’t stand a chance. They are the Roman equivalent of Batman and Robin.

Watch out Etruscans! The caped crusaders are out to get you.

The classic duo: is that Mamercus and Cossus or Batman and Robin? When we squint, we can’t even tell, that’s how strong the bromance is here.

Things to Look Out For:

• More confusion over consuls
• Murder most foul
• Birds in the sky (they might be trying to tell you something)
• Smugness from Mamercus
• Fiery combat
• Did we write a book? Oh boy, yes we did! If you enjoy the podcast, this might be just the ticket. You can purchase our popular history Rex: The Seven Kings of Rome HERE
• Interested in the first instalment of the bromance between Cossus and Mamercus? We’ve got you covered – that’d be Episode 129 – Lars Tolumnius and the Fate of Fidenae

Our Players 427 BCE

Consuls

• C. Servilius – f. – n. Structus Ahala (Pat) Mil. Tr. c. p. 419, 418, 417
• L. Papirius (L. f. – n.) Mugillanus (Pat) Mil. Tr. c. p. 422

Our Players 426 BCE

Military Tribunes with Consular Power

• T. Quinctius L. f. L. n. Poenus Cincinnatus (Pat) Cos 431, 428a, Mil. Tr. c. p. 420?
• C. Furius – f. – n. Pacilus Fusus (Pat) Cos. 441
• M. Postumius A. ? f. A.? n. Albinus Regillensis? (Pat) Mil. Tr. c. p. 403?
• A. Cornelius M. f. L. n. Cossus (Pat) Cos. 428

Dictator

• Mam. Aemilius M. f. – n. Mamercinus (Pat)

Master of the Horse

• A. Cornelius M. f. L. n. Cossus (Pat) Cos. 428a, Mil. Tr. c. p. 426

Legates

• T. Quinctius Poenus Cincinattus (Pat) Cos. 431, Mil. tr. c. p. 426, 420?

Our Sources

• Dr G reads Diodorus Siculus 12.78.1, 12.80.1; Dionysius of Halicarnassus Roman Antiquities 12.6; Valerius Maximus 3.2.4; Frontinus Stratagems 2.4.18-19, 2.8.9; Florus 1.6.7; Aurelius Victor De Viris Illustribus urbis Romae 25; Orosius 2.13.8-11
• Dr Rad reads Livy ab Urbe Condita 4.31-34.
• Broughton, T. R. S., Patterson, M. L. 1951. The Magistrates of the Roman Republic Volume 1: 509 B.C. – 100 B.C. (The American Philological Association)
• Cornell, T. J. 1995. The Beginnings of Rome: Italy and Rome from the Bronze Age to the Punic Wars (c. 1000-264 BC) (Taylor & Francis)
• Forsythe, G. 2006. A Critical History of Early Rome: From Prehistory to the First Punic War(University of California Press)
• Ogilvie, R. M. 1965. A Commentary on Livy: Books 1-5 (Clarendon Press).
• Santangelo, F. 2008. ‘The Fetials and Their Ius’. Bulletin: Institute of Classical Studies 51:1, 63-93.

Sound Effects

Fesliyan Studios, Orange Free Sounds and Pixabay.

Thanks to the fabulous Bettina Joy de Guzman...

Episode 151 – Factional Foibles

Watch your back!

Rome’s siege of Veii continues so there’s good reason to see six military tribunes with consular power in the role this year. But it may be the case that Rome’s military preoccupation with Veii is about to become costly. Just ask the Rome’s new garrison at Anxur in Volscian territory...

Siege Developments

Now you’d be forgiven for thinking a siege is not the most exciting form of warfare. And if it was just Rome versus Veii, it may indeed have remained a boring affair. But sometime in this year, it seems that Veil’s northern neighbours have realised that Veii falling to Rome might be terrible for them. Enter the Capenantes and Falscians and cue siege chaos! How will the situation be resolved? Tune in to find out.

Map of Veii including cities to the north Capena (Capenantes) and Falerii (Falsicans).

Things to Listen Out For

• The joys of Cornettos
• Skipping through the daisies
• A hideous sandwich situation
• Consideration of the extent of the powers of the tribunes of the plebs
• A potted introduction to the 3rd century CE writer Dio Cassius
• Some details about the archaeological record between Veii and Rome during this period
• A new record with the Partial Pick!
• A very late background contribution from one of our star podcats 🙂

Our Players for 402 BCE

Military Tribunes with Consular Power

• Gaius Servilius P. f. Q. n. Ahala (Pat)
• Quintus Servilius Q. f. P. n. Fidenas (Pat)
• Lucius Verginius L. f. Opetr. N. Tricostus Esquilinus (Pat)
• Quintus Sulpicius Ser. f. Ser. n. Camerinus Cornutus (Pat)
• Aulus Manlius A. f. Cn. n. Vulso Capitolinus (Pat)
• Maelius Sergius L. f. L. n. Fidenas (Pat)

Our Sources

• Dr Rad reads Livy 5.8.1
• Dr G reads Diodorus Siculus 14.38.1; Fragmentvm de Praenominibus; Fasti Capitolini; Dio Cassius Book 6.23ish
• Arizza, M., Rossi, D. 2022. ‘The territory between Veii and Rome in the Archaic period: Rural structures as territorial markers of cultural frontiers’ Frontière.s, Revue d’archèologie, histoire et histoire de l’art Volume 6: 49-62. https://journals.openedition.org/frontieres/1297
• Bradley, G. 2020. Early Rome to 290 BC (Edinburgh University Press). Broughton, T. R. S., Patterson, M. L. 1951. The Magistrates of the Roman Republic Volume 1: 509 B.C. – 100 B.C. (The American Philological Association)
• Cornell, T. J. 1995. The Beginnings of Rome: Italy and Rome from the Bronze Age to the Punic Wars (c. 1000-264 BC) (Taylor & Francis) Forsythe, G. 2006. A Critical History of Early Rome: From Prehistory to the First Punic War(University of California Press)
• Lomas, Kathryn (2018). The rise of Rome. History of the Ancient World. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. doi:10.4159/9780674919938. ISBN978-0-674-65965-0. S2CID239349186.
• Ogilvie, R. M. 1965. A Commentary on Livy: Books 1-5 (Clarendon Press).

Sound Credits

Our theme music was composed by the amazing Bettina Joy de Guzman

Map of Veii from The Cities and Cemeteries of Etruria by George Dennis 1848

Automated Transcript

Lightly edited for Latin terminology and to support our wonderful Australian accents!

Dr Rad 0:15
Welcome to The Partial Historians.

Dr G 0:19
We explore all the details of ancient Rome.

Dr Rad 0:23
Everything from political scandals, the love affairs, the battled wage and when citizens turn against each other. I’m Dr Rad.

Dr G 0:33
And I’m Dr G, we consider Rome as the Romans saw it, by reading different authors from the ancient past and comp...