Stratagems: A New Annotated Translation - Hardcover

Frontinus, Sextus Julius

Hardcover

ISBN 13: 9798218773816

Publisher: Quintus Curtius, 2025

Synopsis

Sextus Julius Frontinus (c. A.D. 35-c. 103) was one of the most capable administrators in the Roman Empire's long history. During his distinguished career, he served at least six emperors in a variety of prestigious offices, including general, consul, governor, proconsul of Asia, and supervisor of aqueducts. He may have been the longest-serving Roman governor of Britain, a position he held for five years.

Frontinus's treatise, Stratagems, is a unique work in the history of military theory. It was likely composed towards the end of the first century A.D. Intended as a practical manual for military leaders, and drawing from the rich history of Greece and Rome, Stratagems offers a wealth of tactical ruses, ploys, and maneuvers that have been used to gain victory. His focus is entirely practical: what must a leader do to win? Because Frontinus grasps the psychological and moral factors of conflict, his work retains a timeless importance that modern readers will find applicable to nearly every field of endeavor.

This new, annotated translation by Quintus Curtius returns to the original Latin text to present Frontinus in a contemporary idiom to a modern audience. Containing a detailed introduction, a sketch of Frontinus's life, a discussion of ancient military writing and the realities of warfare in the classical world, an analysis of the text, hundreds of explanatory footnotes, a bibliography, and an extensive index, this translation aims to assist a new generation of readers in rediscovering an essential classic of strategic thought.

About this title

About the Author

          Quintus Curtius is the pen name of writer, attorney, and translator George J. Thomas.  Upon graduating from MIT in 1990, he served as an active duty officer in the U.S. Marine Corps for a number of years.  After leaving active service, he attended law school and began practicing law in 1998.  He lives in Overland Park, Kansas. 
          Thomas has translated Cicero's Tusculan Disputations, On the Nature of the Gods, On Moral Ends, and On Duties, as well as the works of the historian Sallust, the biographer Cornelius Nepos, and the military strategist Frontinus.  His essay collections include Centuries, Digest, Thirty-Seven, and Pantheon.

From the Back Cover

Sextus Julius Frontinus (c. A.D. 35—103) was one of the most capable administrators in the Roman Empire's long history. During his distinguished career, he served at least six emperors in a variety of prestigious offices, including general, consul, governor, proconsul of Asia, and supervisor of aqueducts. He may have been the longest-serving Roman governor of Britain, a position he held for five years.
Frontinus's military handbook, Stratagems, was likely composed towards the end of the first century A.D. Intended as a practical manual for military leaders, and drawing from the rich history of Greece and Rome, Stratagems offers a wealth of tactical ruses, ploys, and maneuvers that have been used to gain victory. His focus is entirely practical: what must a leader do to win? Because Frontinus grasps the psychological and moral factors of conflict, his work retains a timeless importance that modern readers will find applicable to nearly every field of endeavor.
This new, annotated translation by Quintus Curtius returns to the original Latin text to present Frontinus in a contemporary idiom to a modern audience. Containing an explanatory introduction, a discussion of the text, hundreds of footnotes, a bibliography, and an extensive index, this translation aims to assist a new generation of readers in rediscovering an essential classic of strategic thought.

From the Inside Flap

Sextus Julius Frontinus (c. 40—c. 103 A.D.) remains one of the most versatile and brilliant figures in the history of the Roman Empire. His Stratagems is a unique work of military theory that embraces warfare as a unified whole, and seeks to describe war's general principles through the use of historical examples. Frontinus's work has timeless applicability. His Stratagems is invaluable not only for the military professional, but for anyone seeking to prevail in an adversarial situation.
This new translation by Quintus Curtius is extensively annotated, and offers a modern, informative, and accessible rendition of Frontinus's Stratagems. The detailed introduction contains essential background material on the life of Frontinus, military writing in the classical world, the conduct of warfare in antiquity, and a discussion of the text of Stratagems. With this new translation, Frontinus enters the twenty-first century, and is restored to his proper place in the history of military thought.

Edition details

• Publisher: Quintus Curtius
• Publication date: 2025
• Language: English
• ISBN 13: 9798218773816
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 206