Claudian is known as a poet of Late Antiquity who wrote his works primarily between 395 and 404 as the Western Roman Empire was experiencing great stress. Although he wrote many private poems, today he is best known for his panegyrics and invectives. He delivered public poems in Rome to a senate which included many adherents of a traditional paganism. His public poems before the court of Honorius, who became Emperor after the death of Theodosius in 395, were mostly delivered in the Christian Capital of Milan. All these public poems were command performances, beginning in January 395, after Theodosius had defeated the forces of the Western Emperor Eugenius, at the Frigidus. From 396 through 404 Claudian was supporting Honorius while giving special praise to Stilicho, a military leader…

2874 words

Citation: Christiansen, Pete. "Claudius Claudian". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 10 November 2009 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=911, accessed 28 March 2024.]

911 Claudius Claudian 1 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

Save this article

If you need to create a new bookshelf to save this article in, please make sure that you are logged in, then go to your 'Account' here

Leave Feedback

The Literary Encyclopedia is a living community of scholars. We welcome comments which will help us improve.