Thomas Smith and the Advancement of Humanism in Cambridge

As a humanist scholar, civil lawyer and politician, Thomas Smith was greatly inspired by the history and achievements of ancient Rome. In this work the Greek historian Halicarnassus writes, from a conspicuously Greek point of view, about the origins of Rome, including the mythical story of its foundation. He also refers to the establishment of Roman law, which became the basis of civil law as studied and taught by Smith. Although Smith did not annotate this copy extensively there are certain sections that appear to have been of particular interest to him. One such deals with the division of Roman society into six classes by Servius Tullius, the sixth king of Rome. In the margins, Smith has outlined the organisation of the classes by status, age, and wealth, each class being subdivided into groups called ‘centuria’ which were further divided into ‘juniores’ and ‘seniores’.

Author: Dionysius of Halicarnassus
Title: Antiquitatum sive Originum Romanarum [The antiquities or Origins of Rome] (Basel, 1532)
Shelfmark: F.1.7 (catalogue record)

F.1.7