2 Euro Proof

Titus Livius was born in 59 BC in Patavium, present-day Padua. He lived in a time of profound political change: the Roman Republic disintegrated as a result of civil wars, while a monarchically shaped system of government emerged under Augustus. Unlike many Roman historians, Livius, as far as is known, held neither a senatorial office nor a military command. He devoted most of his activity to presenting Rome’s past.

His principal work bears the title “Ab urbe condita”, meaning “From the Founding of the City”. It comprised 142 books and recounted the history of Rome from its mythical beginnings to the time of Augustus. Only 35 books have survived in full; summaries and individual fragments are known from further sections. The surviving sections include accounts of the early Republic as well as the Second Punic War (Zweiter Punischer Krieg) against Carthage and Hannibal.

Livius drew on earlier Roman historical works and arranged the material predominantly by year. His account was not intended merely to record events. Through its portrayal of individuals and conflicts, it presented forms of behaviour such as the fulfilment of duty, ambition, loyalty and abuse of power. Speeches by historical actors were given literary form and served to explain political decisions and moral conflicts. Modern scholarship therefore distinguishes between the source value of his information and the narrative form of his work.

Livius has been read intensively since the Renaissance. Niccolò Machiavelli took the first ten books as the starting point for his “Discorsi” on republican order, political institutions and the preservation of state freedom. In this way, Livius influenced European political thought far beyond ancient historiography.

For Italy, the remembrance of him connects Roman heritage with a specific regional origin in Padua. The round anniversary therefore provided a comprehensible occasion to honour an ancient author whose portrayal permanently helped shape the later image of Roman history.