Augustus and Peripheral historiography

A study concerning the figure of Augustus in Catalan historiography

Abstract

This paper studies the figure of Augustus in Catalan historiography, from the monastic chronicles of the 12th century to the 20th century nationalistic claims. The survey of this long period allows us to see how Augustus goes from being part of a system of dating, relating to the birth of Christ, to becoming a symbol of identity, due to the (fortuitous) circumstance of having stayed briefly in Tarraco, ruling his empire from Catalonia. During this process, Augustus experienced both moments of absolute historiographical silence and of complete disdain. However, he finally reached a timeless and uncritical consideration typical of the classics. The key element is to establish whether this treatment of his character is performed in parallel to the official Spanish historiography or opposed to it.