Associate Professor Caillan Davenport
Areas of expertise
- Classical Greek And Roman History 430305
- Latin And Classical Greek Literature 470513
- European History (Excl. British, Classical Greek And Roman) 430308
- Global And World History 430310
- History Of Empires, Imperialism And Colonialism 430313
Research interests
- Roman history from the Archaic period to Late Antiquity
- Roman emperors in Antiquity and their reception in later periods
- Roman imperial court society and ceremonial
- Comparative history, especially of monarchy, courts, governments, and empires
- News, rumour, gossip in pre-modern societies
- Documentary evidence for Roman history, especially inscriptions and coins
- Greek and Latin historiography of the Roman empire
- Roman letter writing, especially the correspondence of Marcus Aurelius and Fronto
Biography
Dr Caillan Davenport is Associate Professor of Classics and Head of the Centre for Classical Studies at the Australian National University. He studied Latin, Ancient Greek, and Ancient History at the University of Queensland, receiving the University Medal in Latin. With the support of a John Crampton Travelling Scholarship, he undertook a DPhil in Ancient History at the University of Oxford under the supervision of Professor Alan Bowman. He held positions at the University of Queensland (2011-2017) and Macquarie University (2017-2021) before coming to the ANU in January 2022.
In the course of his career, Dr Davenport has received the Royal Historical Society's Gladstone Prize, a Rome Award from the British School at Rome, an Australian Research Council Discovery Early Career Researcher Award, and an Experienced Researcher Fellowship from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, which he held at the Goethe-Universität in Frankfurt am Main with the sponsorship of Professor Hartmut Leppin. He has been named a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society.
Dr Davenport is committed to public outreach and engagement. He has written for The Conversation, appeared on ABC Radio, given talks at the Queensland Museum and the Australian Museum in Sydney, and delivered numerous lectures and workshops to school groups on topics ranging from Cicero's speeches to women on ancient coins. He is a regular contributor to the Emperors of Rome Podcast, which was named Best Australian History Podcast in 2019 by Apple.
His published research spans Roman politics and history from the Archaic Period to Late Antiquity, including the transformation of Roman government, court politics, and imperial representation. He current projects including books on rumour and gossip about Roman emperors and the Roman imperial monarchy in global context.
Researcher's projects
Dr Caillan Davenport is the author of A History of the Roman Equestrian Order (Cambridge University Press, 2019), which won the Royal Historical Society's Gladstone Prize. The judges' citation described the book as 'a most impressive work of profound scholarship...of great ambition, erudition, and sophistication'. The book has been praised as 'a major work of scholarship and a very readable book' (Classics for All), 'an impressively scholarly but readable study' (Choice), 'an impressive work of scholarship...it is sure to become the new standard work of reference' (Ancient History Bulletin), 'a remarkable success' (Classical Review), 'learned and wide-ranging...an important advance' (Journal of Roman Studies), 'compelling reading' (Classical World) and 'magnificent...Davenport's magnum opus sets the whole subject on a new footing' (American Historical Review).
Dr Davenport is also the co-translator and editor of Fronto: Selected Letters (Bloomsbury, 2014, with J. Manley), the co-editor of Emperors and Political Culture in Cassius Dio's Roman History (Cambridge University Press, 2021, with C. Mallan), the co-editor of The Roman Imperial Court in the Principate and Late Antiquity (Oxford University Press, 2023, with M. McEvoy), and the co-editor of Representing Rome's Emperors. Historical and Cultural Perspectives through Time (Oxford University Press, 2024, with S. Malik). He has published widely on the history and historiography of ancient Rome in journals such as Classical Quarterly, Journal of Late Antiquity, Journal of Roman Studies, Journal of Roman Archaeology, and Papers of the British School at Rome.
His next book, Talking about the Caesars: How Romans Imagined their Emperors, is forthcoming with Yale University Press. The book examines Rome's rulers from the perspective of their subjects. Drawing upon letters, graffiti, fables, plays, sermons, poems, and papyri, he analyses how people discussed the emperors' powers, bodies, sex lives, deaths, and successions across almost seven hundred years of Roman history from Julius Caesar to Heraclius.
Dr Davenport is also working on a collection of essays, entitled The Politics and Political Culture of The Roman Imperial Monarchy. The book explores the interactions between the 'republican' and 'monarchical' elements in the imperial state, examining issues such as imperial dynasties, communication, behaviour, and representation.
RECENT PUBLICATIONS (NOT YET LISTED BELOW)
EDITED BOOKS
2024 Davenport, C. and Malik, S. (eds) Representing Rome’s Emperors. Historical and Cultural Perspectives Through Time (Oxford University Press, Oxford). 352 pp.
2023 Davenport, C. and McEvoy, E. (eds) The Roman Imperial Court in the Principate and Late Antiquity (Oxford University Press, Oxford). 432 pp.
BOOK CHAPTERS
Forthcoming Davenport, C. 'Marcus Aurelius: The Man and the Meditations', in J. Sellars (ed.) The Cambridge Companion to Marcus' Aurelius Meditations (Cambridge University Press, Cambridge).
2024 Davenport, C. and McEvoy, M. 'The Circulation of News and Rumour from the Imperial Courts at Rome and Constantinople in the Fifth Century CE', in N. Lenski, R. Rees, and O. van Nijf (eds) East and West in Late Antiquity: Studies in Honor of Jan Willem Drijvers (Edipuglia, Bari), 211-230.
2024 Davenport, C. and Malik, S. ‘Introduction’, in Davenport, C. and Malik, S. (eds) Representing Rome’s Emperors: Historical and Cultural Perspectives Through Time (Oxford University Press, Oxford), 1-39.
2024 Davenport, C. and Malik, S. ‘Epilogue: Towards a Methodology of Representation’, in Davenport, C. and Malik, S. (eds) Representing Rome’s Emperors: Historical and Cultural Perspectives Through Time (Oxford University Press, Oxford), 320-330.
2023 Davenport, C. and McEvoy, M. ‘Introduction: Connecting Courts’, in Davenport, C. and McEvoy, M. (eds) The Roman Imperial Court in the Principate and Late Antiquity (Oxford University Press, Oxford), 1-38.
2023 Jaeschke, V. and Davenport, C. ‘Cities, Palaces, and the Tetrarchic Imperial Courts’, in Davenport, C. and McEvoy, M. (eds) The Roman Imperial Court in the Principate and Late Antiquity (Oxford University Press, Oxford), 75-104.
2023 Davenport, C. ‘Envisioning Audiences at the Roman Imperial Court’, in Davenport, C. and McEvoy, M. (eds) The Roman Imperial Court in the Principate and Late Antiquity (Oxford University Press, Oxford), 278-306.
2023 Davenport, C. and McEvoy, M. ‘The Evolution of the Roman Imperial Court in Historical Context’, in Davenport, C. and McEvoy, M. (eds) The Roman Imperial Court in the Principate and Late Antiquity (Oxford University Press, Oxford), 309-358.
Available student projects
I welcome enquries from students wishing to undertake Honours, MPhil or PhD theses in my areas of research interest (see above).
Publications
- Davenport, C 2023, 'The Senator's Story', in Jesper Majbom Madsen and Andrew G. Scott (ed.), Brill's Companion to Cassius Dio, Brill, Leiden, pp. 88-106.
- Davenport, C & Kelly, B. 2022, 'Administration, Finances, and the Court', in Benjamin Kelly, Angela Hug (ed.), The Roman Emperor and his Court c. 30 BC-c. AD 300 (Volume 2), Cambridge University Press, United Kingdom, pp. 115-145.
- Davenport, C 2022, 'The Court and Ceremonial', in Benjamin Kelly, Angela Hug (ed.), The Roman Emperor and his Court c. 30 BC-c. AD 300 (Volume 1), Cambridge University Press, United Kingdom, pp. 288-317.
- Davenport, C, Roller, M & Dolansky, F 2022, 'Rituals and Ceremonial', in Benjamin Kelly, Angela Hug (ed.), The Roman Emperor and his Court c. 30 BC-c. AD 300 (Volume 2), Cambridge University Press, United Kingdom, pp. 132-183.
- Davenport, C & Mallan, C, eds, 2021, Emperors and Political Culture in Cassius Dio's Roman History, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
- Davenport, C 2021, 'War and Peace: Imperial Leadership in Dio's Second-Century Narrative', in Caillan Davenport & Christopher Mallan (ed.), Emperors and Political Culture in Cassius Dio's Roman History, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, pp. 177 - 196.
- Davenport, C 2021, 'News, Rumour, and the Political Culture of the Roman Imperial Monarchy in the Roman History', in Caillan Davenport & Christopher Mallan (ed.), Emperors and Political Culture in Cassius Dio's Roman History, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, pp. 52 - 73.
- Davenport, C & Mallan, C 2021, 'Introduction. Cassius Dio: The Senator and his Caesars', in Caillan Davenport & Christopher Mallan (ed.), Emperors and Political Culture in Cassius Dio's Roman History, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, pp. 1 - 30.
- Davenport, C 2021, 'Giving Voice to the Late Roman Emperor: Eumenius' For the Restoration of the Schools (Pan. Lat. 9[4]) in Context', Journal of Late Antiquity, vol. 14, no. 1, pp. 9-28.
- Davenport, C 2020, 'The Dynamics of Imperial Government: Collegiality and Regionalism', in Nicholas Baker-Brian and Shaun Tougher (ed.), The Sons of Constantine, AD 337-361, Palgrave Macmillan, London, UK, pp. 223-254.
- Davenport, C 2020, 'Roman Emperors, Conquest, and Violence: Images from the Eastern Provinces', in A. Russell and M. Hellström (ed.), The Social Dynamics of Roman Imperial Imagery, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, pp. 100-127.
- Davenport, C 2020, 'Dying for Justice: Narratives of Roman Judicial Authority in the High Empire', in A. König, R. Langlands, and J. Uden (ed.), Literature and Culture in the Roman Empire, 96-235, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, pp. 269-288.
- Davenport, C & Mallan, C 2020, 'Herodian and the Crisis of Emperorship, 235-238 AD', Mnemosyne, vol. 73, no. 3, pp. 419-440.
- Davenport, C 2019, A History of the Roman Equestrian Order, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
- Davenport, C 2019, 'Carausius and his Brothers: The Construction and Deconstruction of an Imperial Image in the Late Third Century A.D.', Antichthon, vol. 53, pp. 108-133.
- Davenport, C 2018, 'Marcus Cornelius Fronto', in Luanna H Meyer (ed.), Oxford Bibliographies Online, Oxford University Press, Oxford.
- Davenport, C 2017, 'The Sexual Habits of Caracalla: Rumour, Gossip, and Historiography', Histos (On-line journal of ancient historiography), vol. 11, pp. 75-100.
- Davenport, C 2017, 'Rome and the Rhythms of Imperial Life from the Antonines to Constantine', Antiquite Tardive, vol. 25, pp. 23-39.
- Davenport, C 2016, 'Fashioning a Soldier Emperor: Maximian, Pannonia, and the Panegyrics of 289 and 291', Phoenix, vol. 70, no. 3-4, pp. 381-400.
- Davenport, C 2015, 'The Prefecture of Caecilius Consultius', Bulletin of the American Society of Papyrologists, vol. 52, pp. 275-281.
- Davenport, C 2015, 'Inscribing Senatorial Status and Identity, A.D. 200-350', in Kuhn, A (ed.), Social Status and Prestige in the Graeco-Roman World, Franz Steiner Verlag, Stuttgart, Germany, pp. 269-289.
- Mallan, C & Davenport, C 2015, 'Dexippus and the Gothic Invasions: Interpreting the New Vienna Fragment (Codex Vindobonensis Hist. gr. 73, ff. 192v-193r)', Journal of Roman Studies, vol. 105, pp. 203-226.
- Davenport, C & Mallan, C 2014, 'Hadrian's Adoption Speech in Cassius Dio's Roman History and the Problems of Imperial Succession', American Journal of Philology, vol. 135, no. 4, pp. 637-668.
- Davenport, C 2014, 'M. Claudius Tacitus: Senator or Soldier?', Latomus, vol. 73, pp. 174-187.
- Davenport, C 2014, 'Imperial ideology and commemorative culture in the Eastern Roman Empire, 284-450 CE', in Dzino, D, Parry, K (ed.), Byzantium, Its Neighbours, and Its Cultures, Australian Association for Byzantine Studies, Leiden, pp. 45-70.
- Davenport, C & Manley, J 2014, Fronto: Selected Letters, Bloomsbury, London.
- Davenport, C 2014, 'The Conduct of Vitellius in Cassius Dio's Roman History', Historia, vol. 63, no. 1, pp. 96-116.
- Davenport, C & Mallan, C 2013, 'Dexippus' Letter of Decius: Context and Interpretation', Museum Helveticum, vol. 70, no. 1, pp. 57-73.
- Davenport, C 2012, 'Soldiers and Equestrian Rank in the Third Century AD', Papers of the British School at Rome, vol. 80, pp. 89-123.
- Davenport, C 2012, 'Cassius Dio and Caracalla', The Classical Quarterly, vol. 62, no. 2, pp. 796-815.
- Davenport, C 2012, 'The Provincial Appointments of the Emperor Macrinus', Antichthon, vol. 46, pp. 184-203.
- Davenport, C 2011, 'Iterated Consulships and the Government of Severus Alexander', Zeitschrift fur Papyrologie und Epigraphik, vol. 177, pp. 281-288.
- Davenport, C 2010, 'The building inscription from the fort at Udruh and Aelius Flavianus, tetrarchic praeses of Palaestina', Journal of Roman Archaeology, vol. 23, pp. 349-357.