Editing Livy (section)

==Life==
Livy was born in [[Patavium]] in northern [[Italy (Roman Empire)|Italy]], now modern [[Padua]], probably in 59 BC.{{efn-lr|[[Jerome]] says Livy was born in 59 BC and died in AD 17. First proposed by [[G. M. Hirst]], [[Ronald Syme]] and others have suggested bringing his birth and death dates back five years (64 BC – AD 12), but this idea has not gained consensus.<ref name="William M. Calder III 1962 pp. 149-152">William M. Calder III, ‘’Gertrude Hirst (1869-1962),” The Classical World Vol. 90, No. 2/3, Six Women Classicists (November 1996 - February 1997), pp. 149-152</ref><ref>[[Stephen Oakley|S.P. Oakley]], "Livy and Clodius Licinus", ''The Classical Quarterly'', vol. 42, no. 2 (1992), p. 548</ref><ref>T.D. Barnes, "''Roman Papers'' by Ronald Syme, E. Badian", ''The American Journal of Philology'', vol. 102, no. 4 (1981), p. 464</ref><ref>''A Companion to Livy'', Wiley-Blackwell (2014), p. 25</ref>}} At the time of his birth, his home city of Patavium was the second wealthiest on the Italian peninsula, and the largest in the province of [[Cisalpine Gaul]] (northern Italy). Cisalpine Gaul was merged into [[Roman Italy|Italy proper]] during his lifetime and its inhabitants were given Roman citizenship by [[Julius Caesar]]. In his works, Livy often expressed his deep affection and pride for Patavium, and the city was well known for its conservative values in [[morality]] and politics.{{Sfn|Livy|1998|loc=ix}}

Livy's teenage years were during the 40s BC, a period of [[Roman civil wars|civil wars throughout the Roman world]]. The governor of Cisalpine Gaul at the time, [[Gaius Asinius Pollio (consul 40 BC)|Asinius Pollio]], tried to sway Patavium into supporting [[Mark Antony|Marcus Antonius (Mark Antony)]], the leader of one of the warring factions during [[Caesar's Civil War]] (49-45 BC). The wealthy citizens of Patavium refused to contribute money and arms to Asinius Pollio, and went into hiding. Pollio then attempted to bribe the slaves of those wealthy citizens to expose the whereabouts of their masters; his bribery did not work, and the citizens instead pledged their allegiance to the [[Roman Senate|Senate]].<ref>Cicero ''[[Philippicae|Philippics]]'' xii. 4.10 [https://www.loebclassics.com/view/marcus%20tullius%20cicero-philippic%2012/2010/pb%20LCL507.197.xml (at Loeb Classical Library)]{{Dead link|date=August 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> It is therefore likely that the Roman civil wars prevented Livy from pursuing a higher education in Rome or going on a tour of [[Greece]], which was common for adolescent males of the nobility at the time.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Livy | title=Livy &#124; Roman Historian & Author of Ab Urbe Condita &#124; Britannica | date=January 2024 }}</ref> Many years later, Asinius Pollio derisively commented on Livy's "patavinity", saying that Livy's Latin showed certain "provincialisms" frowned on at Rome. Pollio's dig may have been the result of bad feelings he harboured toward the city of Patavium from his experiences there during the civil wars.{{Sfn | Livy | 1998 | loc = ix–x}}

Livy probably went to Rome in the 30s BC,<ref>{{cite book|last=Hazel|first=John|url=https://archive.org/details/whoswhoinromanwo00john|title=Who's Who in the Roman World|publisher=Routledge|year=2001|series=Who's Who Series|url-access=registration|via=EBSCOhost}}</ref> and it is likely that he spent a large amount of time in the city after this, although it may not have been his primary home. During his time in Rome, he was never a senator nor held a government position. His writings contain elementary mistakes on military matters, indicating that he probably never served in the [[Roman army]]. However, he was educated in philosophy and rhetoric. It seems that Livy had the financial resources and means to live an independent life, though the origin of that wealth is unknown. He devoted a large part of his life to his writings, which he was able to do because of his financial freedom.{{Sfn | Livy | 1998 | loc = x}}

Livy was known to give recitations to small audiences, but he was not heard of to engage in [[declamation]], then a common pastime. He was familiar with the emperor [[Augustus]] and the imperial family. Augustus was considered by later Romans to have been the greatest Roman emperor, benefiting Livy's reputation long after his death. [[Suetonius]] described how Livy encouraged the future emperor [[Claudius]], who was born in 10 BC,<ref>{{cite book|last=Payne|first=Robert|title=The Roman Triumph|publisher=Robert Hale|year=1962|place=London|page=38}}</ref> to write historiographical works during his childhood.<ref>{{cite book|author=Suetonius|title=Claudius|series=[[The Twelve Caesars]]|at=41.1|quote=''Historiam in adulescentia hortante T. Livio, Sulpicio vero Flavo etiam adiuvante, scribere adgressus est''. ('In his youth he began to write a history under the encouragement of Titus Livius and with the help of Sulpicius Flavus.')|author-link=Suetonius|title-link=The Twelve Caesars#Claudius}}.</ref>

Livy's most famous work was his history of [[Rome]]. In it he narrates a complete history of the city of Rome, from its foundation to the death of Augustus. Because he was writing under the reign of Augustus, Livy's history emphasizes the great triumphs of Rome. He wrote his history with embellished accounts of Roman heroism in order to promote the new type of government implemented by Augustus when he became emperor.<ref>{{cite book|last=Dudley|first=Donald R|title=The Romans: 850 BC – AD 337|publisher=Alfred A. Knopf|year=1970|place=New York|page=19}}</ref> In the preface to his history Livy wrote that he did not care whether his personal fame remained in darkness, as long as his work helped to "preserve the memory of the deeds of the world’s preeminent nation."<ref>{{cite book|last=Feldherr|first=Andrew|title=Spectacle and Society in Livy's History|publisher=University of California Press|year=1998|place=London|page=ix}}</ref> Because Livy was mostly writing about events that had occurred hundreds of years earlier, the historical value of his work was questionable, although many Romans came to believe his account to be true.<ref>{{cite book|last=Heichelheim|first=Fritz Moritz|title=A History of the Roman People|publisher=Prentice-Hall|year=1962|place=Upper Saddle River, NJ|page=47|author-link=Fritz Heichelheim}}</ref>

Livy was married and had at least one daughter and one son.{{Sfn | Livy | 1998 | loc = x}} He also produced other works, including an essay in the form of a letter to his son, and numerous dialogues, most likely modelled on similar works by [[Cicero]].{{Sfn|Livy|1998|loc=xi}} One of his sons wrote a book on geography and a daughter married Lucius Magius, a rhetorician.<ref name=":0">Mineo, ''Companion to Livy'', p. xxxiii.</ref>

Titus Livius died at his home city of Patavium in AD 17. The tombstone of Livy and his wife might have been found in Padua.<ref name=":0" />