The Histories Of Polybius (1889)
"This is the first English translation of the complete works of Polybius as far as they are now known. In attempting such a task I feel that I ought to state distinctly the limits which I have proposed to myself in carrying it out. I have desired to present to English readers a faithful copy of what Polybius wrote, which should at the same time be a readable English book. I have not been careful to follow the Greek idiom; and have not hesitated to break up and curtail or enlarge his sentences, when I thought that, by doing so, I could present his meaning in more idiomatic English. Polybius is not an author likely to be studied for the sake of his Greek, except by a few technical scholars; and the modern complexion of much of his thought makes such a plan of translation both possible and desirable. How far I have succeeded I must leave my readers to decide. Again, I have not undertaken to write a commentary on Polybius, nor to discuss at length the many questions of interest which arise from his text. Such an undertaking would have required much more space than I was able to give: and happily, while my translation was passing through the press, two books have appeared, which will supply English students with much that I might have felt bound to endeavour to give—the Achaean leagueviii by Mr. Capes, and the sumptuous Oxford edition of extracts by Mr. Strachan-Davidson.I have not, I repeat, undertaken to write a commentary. I propose rather to give the materials for commentary to those who, for various reasons, do not care to use the Greek of Polybius. I have therefore in the first five complete books left him to speak for himself, with the minimum of notes which seemed necessary for the understanding of his text. The case of the fragments was different. In giving a translation of them I have tried, when possible, to indicate the part of the history to which they belong, and to connect them by brief sketches of intermediate events, with full references to those authors who supply the missing links." (Preface)
Volume 1
http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/44125
Volume 2
http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/44126
A History Of Rome: To The Battle Of Actium (1894)
"To write the history of a great people during a course of more than seven hundred years in about as many pages is a task of which the difficulty, best appreciated by those who have attempted it, may not unfairly plead for leniency of construction. No one can be more conscious than the author of such a book that there are many things that had better have been otherwise than they are ; that expansion would have been advisable here and compression there ; that much is to be said against some views that he has adopted as true, and much in favour of others that he has passed by or rejected. Such a writer can only plead that he has used his judgment honestly, and studied his authorities with such diligence and intelligence as he possessed ; and that neither space nor the purpose of his book admitted of frequent or lengthy discussions on disputed points.As it was my object to present in as vivid a manner as possible the wonderful story of the gradual extension of the power of a single city over so large a part of the known world, I have dwelt perhaps sometimes at too great length on the state of the countries conquered and the details of their conquest. But Vergil saw that the keynote of Roman history was parcere subiectis et debellare superbos and it is impossible, I think, that a history of Rome and her mission in the world can be other than a warlike one. The Republic won what the Empire organised ; and as each province was added some new principle of management was evolved which has had to be noticed at the time. I have, however, treated in separate chapters the internal development of the State up to the time of the Gracchi. The constitutional changes after that time are so closely entangled with foreign affairs that it is hardly possible to treat them so entirely by themselves. Yet I have attempted to set them forth clearly in the course of my narrative, along with some indication of the development of literature and the change of social habits. By the mechanical means of printing at the head of the chapters the names and dates of Italian colonies, provinces, and numbers of the census, I have tried to draw attention to the gradual expansion of the people and their Empire." (Preface)
https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.81052/page/n5/mode/2up
https://archive.org/details/ahistoryrometob00shucgoog/page/n5/mode/2up
https://archive.org/details/historyofrometob00shucuoft/page/n9/mode/2up
A History Of Rome For Beginners: From The Foundation Of The City To The Death Of Augustus (1897)
"THIS book is not a mere abbreviation of my larger history. It has been written for the most part entirely afresh, and is intended to put the main events of Roman history, both in regard to political development and imperial extension, as simply and briefly as seemed possible. Military events, as such, are given with a minimum of detail, and the effects of campaigns have been dwelt upon rather than their nature and circumstances. Whether I have succeeded in hitting the mean between a Primer and an advanced History I must leave to the judgment of my readers : but that has been my aim." (Preface)https://archive.org/details/historyofromefor00shucrich
The Letters Of Cicero: The Whole Extant Correspondence In Chronological Order (1899–1900)
"The object of this book is to give the English-speaking public, in a convenient form, as faithful and readable a copy as the translator was capable of making of a document unique in the literature of antiquity. Whether we regard the correspondence of Cicero from the point of view of the biographer and observer of character, the historian, or the lover of belles lettres, it is equally worthy of study. It seems needless to dwell on the immense historical importance of letters written by prominent actors in one of the decisive periods of the world's history, when the great Republic, that had spread its victorious arms, and its law and discipline, over the greater part of the known world, was in the throes of its change from the old order to the new. If we would understand—as who would not?—the motives and aims of the men who acted in that great drama, there is nowhere that we can go with better hope of doing so than to these letters. To the student of character also the personality of Cicero must always have a great fascination. Statesman, orator, man of letters, father, husband, brother, and friend—in all these capacities he comes before us with singular vividness. In every one of them he will doubtless rouse different feelings in different minds. But though he will still, as he did in his lifetime, excite vehement disapproval as well as strong admiration, he will never, I think, appear to anyone dull or uninteresting. In the greater part of his letters he is not posing or assuming a character; he lets us only too frankly into his weaknesses and his vanities, as well as his generous admirations and warm affections. Whether he is weeping, or angry, or exulting, or eager for compliments, or vain of his abilities and achievements, he is not a phantasm or a farceur, but a human being with fiercely-beating pulse and hot blood.The difficulty of the task which I have been bold enough to undertake is well known to scholars, and may explain, though perhaps not excuse, the defects of my work. One who undertakes to express the thoughts of antiquity in modern idiom goes to his task with his eyes open, and has no right at every stumbling-block or pitfall to bemoan his unhappy fate. So also with the particular difficulties presented by the great founder of Latin style—his constant use of superlatives, his doubling and trebling of nearly synonymous terms, the endless shades of meaning in such common words as officium, fides, studium, humanitas, dignitas, and the like—all these the translator has to take in the day's work. Finally, there are the hard nuts to crack—often very hard—presented by corruption of the text. Such problems, though, relatively with other ancient works, not perhaps excessively numerous, are yet sufficiently numerous and sufficiently difficult. But besides these, which are the natural incidents of such work, there is the special difficulty that the letters are frequently answers to others which we do not possess, and which alone can fully explain the meaning of sentences which must remain enigmatical to us; or they refer to matters by a word or phrase of almost telegraphic abruptness, with which the recipient was well acquainted, but as to which we are reduced to guessing. When, however, all such insoluble difficulties are allowed for, which after all in absolute bulk are very small, there should (if the present version is at all worthy) be enough that is perfectly plain to everyone, and generally of the highest interest.
I had no intention of writing a commentary on the language of Cicero or his correspondents, and my translation must, as a rule, be taken for the only expression of my judgment formed after reading and weighing the arguments of commentators. I meant only to add notes on persons and things enabling the reader to use the letters for biographical, social, and historical study. I should have liked to dedicate it by the words Boswellianus Boswellianis. But I found that the difficulties of the text compelled me to add a word here and there as to the solution of them which I preferred, or had myself to suggest. Such notes are very rare, and rather meant as danger signals than critical discussions. I have followed in the main the chronological arrangement of the letters adopted by Messrs. Tyrrell and Purser, to whose great work my obligations are extremely numerous. If, as is the case, I have not always been able to accept their conclusions, it is none the less true that their brilliant labours have infinitely lightened my task, and perhaps made it even possible.
I ought to mention that I have adopted the English mode of dating, writing, for instance, July and August, though Cicero repudiated the former and, of course, never heard of the latter. I have also refrained generally from attempting to represent his Greek by French, partly because I fear I should have done it ill, and partly because it is not in him as in an English writer who lards his sentences with French. It is almost confined to the letters to Atticus, to whom Greek was a second mother-tongue, and often, I think, is a quotation from him. It does not really represent Cicero's ordinary style." (Preface)
Volume 1
http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/21200
https://archive.org/details/cu31924012541433/page/n5/mode/2up
Volume 2
https://archive.org/details/cu31924012541441
Volume 3
https://archive.org/details/cu31924012541458
Volume 4
https://archive.org/details/cu31924012541466
A Short History Of The Greeks: From The Earliest Times To B.C. 146 (1901)
"Originally published in 1901, this book by Polybius scholar E. S. Shuckburgh was intended not only as a history of the Greeks from the time of the Homeric poems until the Roman conquest in 146 BC, but also as an outline of the continuing influence of ancient Greek culture in the modern world. The text is illustrated with maps and photographs of important statues, coins and ancient ruins. This book will be of value for anyone seeking a simple introduction to ancient Greece and its culture." (2013 Reprint)https://archive.org/details/cu31924028262644/page/n5/mode/2up
https://archive.org/details/shorthistoryofgr00shucuoft/page/n5/mode/2up
Two Biographies Of William Bedell, Bishop Of Kilmore: With A Selection Of His Letters And An Unpublished Treatise (1902)
"ON whichever side we elect to stand in regard to the controversies of the seventeenth century, we must feel, I think, that the men who took part in them were sincere. Theological definitions and dogmatic refinements which have now for most only an academic interest, were to them matters of life and death. Questions of Church Government, long ago settled, or at any rate indefinitely postponed, loomed so large in the eyes of the men of that time, that they Became a chief element in the storm which was soon to overwhelm for a while both throne and Church; and the stem reality of the struggle does something to excuse the violent tone of much of the controversial writing of the day. The subject of these memoirs lived to see the storm begin in Scotland though not its final outburst in England : he was a witness of the evils in their acutest form which caused Ireland to be the scene of an outbreak that did much to precipitate the upheaval in England. Through all his life he had been busily engaged in trying to find a means of reconciling contending views in Theology. His standpoint was that of the Student and Scholar, always hoping against hope that some solution might be found which would satisfy all reasonable men. But there comes a period in controversy when reason and compromise cease to be of avail. Thus it happened that before he had been many months in his grave all the laborious arguments and suggestions of Bedell were out of date. Inter arma silet ratio. Still they have an historical interest : nor can it ever be too late to admire learning and devotion to truth, particularly when, as in Bedell's case, they are joined with courage and charity. He exercised a singular fascination over those with whom he came in contact. 'This is the man'—says Sir H. Wotton—'whom Padre Paulo took, I may say, into his very soul, with whom he did communicate the inwardest thoughts of his heart, from whom he professed to have received more knowledge in all Divinity, both scholastical and positive, than from any that he had ever practised in his days.' And though till within a few months of his death he was not brought into any circumstances of striking difficulty to test his character, yet he was for many years in positions which gave him the opportunity of shewing his sterling qualities, and of sufficient importance to make it worth our while to learn what manner of man he was." (1902)https://archive.org/details/cu31924029449281/page/n7/mode/2up
https://archive.org/details/twobiographiesof00shuc/page/n7/mode/2up
Augustus: The Life And Times Of The Founder Of The Roman Empire [B.C. 63–A.D. 14] (1903)
"Augustus has been much less attractive to biographers than lulius ; perhaps because the soldier is more interesting than the statesman ; perhaps because the note of genius conspicuous in the Uncle was wanting in the Nephew. Yet Augustus was the most successful ruler known to us. He found his world, as it seemed, on the verge of complete collapse. He evoked order out of chaos ; got rid one after the other of every element of opposition ; established what was practically a new form of government without too violent a breach with the past ; breathed fresh meaning into old names and institutions, and could stand forth as a reformer rather than an innovator, while even those who lost most by the change were soothed into submission without glaring loss of self-respect. He worked ceaselessly to maintain the order thus established, and nearly every part of his great empire had reason to be grateful for increased security, expanding prosperity, and added amenity of life. Nor can it be said that he reaped the credit due in truth to ministers. He had excellent ministers and agents, with abilities in this or that direction superior to his own ; but none who could take his place as a whole. He was the centre from which their activities radiated : he was the inspirer, the careful organiser, the unwearied manipulator of details, to whom all looked, and seldom in vain, for support and guidance. We may add this to a dignity never forgotten. enhanced by a physical beauty and grace which helped to secure reverence for his person and office, and established a sentiment which the unworthiness of some of his successors could not wholly destroy. He and not lulius was the founder of the Empire, and it was to him that succeeding emperors looked back as the origin of their power.It has been my object to illustrate the policy of Augustus by constant reference to the Court view as represented by the poets. But in his later years Ovid is a poor substitute for Horace in this point of view* The Emperor's own catalogue of his achievements, preserved on the walls of the temple at Ancyra, is the best possible summary ; but a summary it is after all, and requires to be made to live by careful study and comparison.
The constitutional history of the reign is that which has generally engaged most attention. I have striven to state the facts clearly. Of their exact significance opinions will differ. I have given my own for what it is worth, and can only say that it has been formed independently by study of our authorities.
I have not tried to represent my hero as faultless or to make black white. Nothing can clear Augustus of the charge of cruelty up to B.C. 31. But in judging him regard must be had to his age and circumstances. We must not, at any rate, allow our judgment of his later statesmanship to be controlled by the memory of his conduct in a time of civil war and confusion. He succeeded in re-constituting a society shaken to its centre. We must acknowledge that and accept the bad with the good. But it is false criticism to deny or blink the one from admiration of the other." (Preface)
https://archive.org/details/dli.granth.88197/page/ii/mode/2up
https://archive.org/details/augustuslifetime00shuc/page/n7/mode/2up
Emmanuel College (1904)
"The name of Emmanuel College is in itself an indication of the origin and purpose of the foundation. In a discussion as to the use of the word in Notes and Queries (8th Series, vii. 268, 351, 396), it is shown that it had long been the custom in the seventeenth century, and perhaps earlier, especially among men of a Puritan cast, to use the word as the heading of letters or books and records. One correspondent quotes 2 Henry VI. (IV. ii), when the clerk of Chatham is brought before Jack Cade :Cade. Come hither, sirrah, I must examine thee : What is thy name ?
Clerk. Emmanuel.
Dick. They use to write it on the top of letters : 'twill go hard with you.
The use of the word as a kind of badge is in accordance with the Scripture phraseology so common among the Puritans at all times, and has survived in the name of many Nonconformist chapels and some churches to this day. At the time of the foundation of the College it had not become vulgarized, and was regarded with serious reverence as indicating a profound sense of the Divine presence. The 'Memorial for a Son' drawn up by Sir Walter Mildmay, and lately published by the Rev. Arundell St. John Mildmay,* begins and ends with the exhortation to 'fear God and love Him', to 'read the Scriptures daily and hear sermons diligently'. The whole of these admonitions, with their worldly prudence and religious earnestness, give the clue to the purpose of Sir Walter in his foundation, as I have endeavoured to show in this book. Details of College management, of changing methods and ideals, of pecuniary difficulties or increasing wealth, may have their charm; but the real interest of the history of Emmanuel is that it coincides with, and reflects, a great national movement. The College rose with the rising tide of Puritanism, declined with its decline; contributed even more than its just proportion to the seed-plot of the New England in the West ; shared to the full in the dawn of a more liberal theology; and through the days of decadence and deadness, though it did not escape their numbing influence, never wholly lost the love of learning or the sense of duty to its trust. Throughout the eighteenth century, with decreasing numbers, and for the greater part of the time with straitened means, the College never ceased to produce men who gained distinction in letters' or science or politics. In these later days it has always kept up with, and sometimes led, the movements in favour of larger and more liberal views of education, of raising the standard and multiplying the subjects of learning and research. Still, it is the earlier chapters in its history that must always have the more vivid interest, because it was then that it most obviously reflects the spirit of the time. For the first fifty years of its existence it was marked by extreme Puritanism, though perhaps with a diminishing vehemence ; but the beginning of the Civil War found it with a strongly Royalist Master (Holdsworth), who committed the College by paying £100 in its name at the King's demand. And when the Restoration came it was clear that the extraordinary change which had come over the nation at large had had its full effect in the College. With hardly any exception the Society were ready to acquiesce in the change and all it involved. The Master (Dillingham) refused, indeed, to conform in 1662, but his objection was neither to Royalty nor to Church authority, properly speaking, and his example found few followers. The movement had spent itself in the College, as it had in the country. It may, I fear, be thought that the interest of this subject has led to a disproportionate space being assigned in this book to the earlier period, to the neglect of later stages in the development of the College. I can only plead that as we get nearer our own time what has to be said seems more fitted for a hand-book than a history, and that what is needed to supplement this book is not so much a larger history of changes of statutes and expansions of estates, but a biographical catalogue of men educated within the College walls. They, after all, represent the success or failure of the foundation, the merits of which are best ascertained by its fruits. But this is an undertaking for which I have neither the capability nor the time. I hope that some younger man may be found to do for Emmanuel what has been done for Caius, and is being done for King's and Christ's." (Preface)
https://archive.org/details/emmanuelcollege03shucgoog/page/n8/mode/2up
https://archive.org/details/emmanuelcollege02shucgoog/page/n7/mode/2up
https://archive.org/details/emmanuelcollege00shucrich/page/n7/mode/2up
Greece: From The Coming Of The Hellenes To A.D. 14 (1906)
"The "Stories of the Nations" could not be complete without that of Greece. This is one excuse for adding to the number of short Greek Histories. Another is that it was a necessary preface to a second volume designed to sketch the fortunes of Greece after its period of greatness, the interest of which could hardly be intelligible without some account of the life and genius of its people when at their best. I have tried throughout to lay stress upon the political, intellectual, and artistic achievements of the Greeks, rather than on the history of military operations. The latter of course could not be ignored or neglected, but they have not been made the chief feature in the book. My plan was to notice the literary movement in each period as it arose ; it was thought better however that a chapter containing a more continuous account of extant Greek literature should be added. It therefore necessarily contains some repetition of what had been said in previous chapters. The amount however of such repetition is not very serious, and may perhaps be compensated by the convenience to students of having the information together. For the specimens of the various poets which are there given the writer is, except in one instance, himself responsible." (Preface)https://archive.org/details/greecefromcomin01shucgoog/page/n8/mode/2up
https://archive.org/details/greecefromcoming00shuciala/page/n5/mode/2up
https://archive.org/details/greecefromcoming00shuc/page/n9/mode/2up