The Aeneid was written in a time that would feel familiar to all of us: political strife, civil unrest and decades long military campaigns that never quite seem to end. Towards the end of the 1st century BCE, after at least 50 years of continuous conflict within and beyond the Roman borders, Augustus, Julius Caesar’s heir, emerged victorious from the Battle of Actium, defeating Mark Antony and marking a turning point in history. Augustus declares himself the princeps civitatis of Rome, a term that literally means “first citizen” but actually means “emperor”, and so falls the Roman Republic to the dawn of the Roman Empire. Continue reading