The late Elizabeth Rawson (1934-1988) was a distinguished specialist in the history, society, and culture of the later Roman Republic and Augustan period, whose sudden death at the end of a visit to China came when she was at the height of her powers, and had just been elected as a Fellow of the British Academy. Her papers form a closely related group, published over a short period of time between 1971 and 1989. The topics covered include the workings of Roman politics and society, historical and antiquarian thinking at Rome, and literary and cultural history. They are reproduced here in the order in which they were published, and together form an essential contribution to the understanding of the central period of Roman history.

Volume IX of the second edition of The Cambridge Ancient History has for its main theme the process commonly known as the "Fall of the Roman Republic." Chapters 1-12 supply a narrative of the period from 133 B.C. to the death of Cicero in 43 B.C., with a prelude analyzing the situation and problems of the Republic from the turning-point year 146 B.C. Chapters 13-19 offer analysis of aspects of Roman society, institutions and ideas during the period.

Ancient polemics on Sparta (by Plato, Aristotle, Plutarch, and others) have had a remarkable afterlife in the political and educational thought of Renaissance Italy, the France of the Philosophes, Whig England, and Nazi Germany. This book outlines the little we know of ancient Sparta, describes Greek reaction to the ambiguous institutions of the great rival to democratic Athens, makes a first attempt to follow the subsequent fortunes of the debate, and indicates Sparta's role--over twenty-five centuries--in the intellectual history of Europe.

Drawing on a full range of Cicero's speeches, essays and correspondence, as well as on the most recent research, Rawson's highly regarded biography of Cicero - his politics and philosophy - makes fascinating reading for historians, classicists, and anyone interested in Roman history.