Lawless Republic
The Rise of Cicero and the Decline of Rome
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In its final decades, the Roman Republic was engulfed by a crime wave. An epidemic of extortions, murders, and acts of insurrection tested the court system’s capacity to maintain order. As case after case filled the docket, an ambitious young lawyer named Cicero seized every opportunity to litigate, forging a reputation as a master debater with a bright future in politics. In Lawless Republic, historian Josiah Osgood recounts the legendary orator’s ascent and fall, and his pivotal role in the republic’s lurch toward autocracy.
Cicero’s first appearance in the courts came shortly after the end of a brutal civil war. After leveraging his fame as a lawyer to become a consul, he ruthlessly crushed a coup by suppressing the liberties of Roman citizens. The premiere legal mind of Rome came to argue that the pursuit of a higher justice could sometimes justify sweeping the law aside, laying the groundwork for Roman history’s most famous act of political violence—the assassination of Julius Caesar.
Lawless Republic vividly resurrects the spectacle of the courts in the time of Cicero and Caesar, showing how politics trumped the rule of law and sealed the fate of Rome.
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“Richly detailed…the best life of Cicero to have come along in a long while.”Kirkus
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“Josiah Osgood draws us deep into Cicero's methods and psyche as he rose to some of the greatest challenges a lawyer has ever faced. A razor-sharp analysis of the most fraught yet fascinating time in Rome's history.”Daisy Dunn, author of The Missing Thread
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“A wonderful and insightful account of Cicero's career in the courts, which at the same time is highly revealing about the breakdown of Rome's Republican system. Highly recommended.”Adrian Goldsworthy, author of Rome and Persia
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“The last bloody decades of the Roman Republic offer a veritable catalogue of crime. Josiah Osgood examines this rich material with the insight of a skilled historian and the keen scrutiny of a true crime detective. Even Cicero does not emerge unscathed. The result is a fresh look at one of history’s most compelling eras, more relevant to Americans today than ever before.”Steven Saylor, author of Dominus
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“Lawless Republic reads like a novel, but it is written with the learning and skill of a scholar. Rarely have the life and times of Cicero been told with greater verve. Classicist and historian Josiah Osgood is at the height of his powers.”Barry Strauss, author of The War That Made the Roman Empire
- On Sale
- Jan 21, 2025
- Page Count
- 384 pages
- Publisher
- Basic Books
- ISBN-13
- 9781541604254
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