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Calgacus on Roman peace, as Tacitus wrote it

set in c. 83 CE, Caledonia. As Tacitus writes it; Calgacus' speech is Tacitus' own composition, as ancient historians' speeches often were.

Where and when

set in c. 83 CECaledonia

about 1,943 years ago

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Calgacus

, CaledoniaAs Tacitus writes it; Calgacus' speech is Tacitus' own composition, as ancient historians' speeches often were

In plain words, ours

They rob the whole world. Rich or poor, nothing satisfies them. They call theft and killing an empire; they make a wasteland and call it peace.

Robbers of the world, having by their universal plunder exhausted the land, they rifle the deep. If the enemy be rich, they are rapacious; if he be poor, they lust for dominion; neither the east nor the west has been able to satisfy them. Alone among men they covet with equal eagerness poverty and riches. To robbery, slaughter, plunder, they give the lying name of empire; they make a solitude and call it peace.

Tacitus, Agricola 30Translated by A. J. Church and W. J. Brodribb (1877)Read the full passage (Tacitus, Agricola 30, opens scaife.perseus.org)

What was going on, our summary

Caledonia, about 83 CE, before the battle of Mons Graupius against the governor Agricola's army. Tacitus, Agricola's son-in-law, gives Calgacus this speech to his side; the words are Tacitus' own, as ancient historians' speeches often were.

Checked claim by claim against: Agricola defeats the Caledonians at Mons Graupius, the passage around the quote.

Why it matters

Calgacus' speech is often quoted as: they make a desert and call it peace.

Based on Wikipedia: Calgacus

His speech is often quoted as "they make a desert and call it peace".

Wikipedia, Calgacus (opens en.wikipedia.org), as of 2026-09-08. Text CC BY-SA 4.0. Our line is checked against these sentences only.

Related moments

In time order, with this one in its place. Each says why it is here.

  1. set in c. 73–74 CEabout 9.5 years earlier Eleazar's speech at Masada, per Josephus Also about war and empire
  2. 80 CEabout 3 years earlier Titus opens the Colosseum with games Same years
  3. c. 83–84 CEBegins this year Agricola defeats the Caledonians at Mons Graupius The event behind itAlso in CaledoniaAlso about war and empire
  4. set in c. 83 CEThis momentCalgacus on Roman peace, as Tacitus wrote it
  5. set in c. 83 CEAbout the same year Calgacus on freedom, as Tacitus wrote it Same passageMore from Calgacus
  6. set in c. 83 CEAbout the same year Calgacus on slavery, as Tacitus wrote it Same passageMore from Calgacus
  7. set in c. 83 CEAbout the same year Calgacus on fear and hate, as Tacitus wrote it More from Calgacus

Just before and after

The text around the quote, word for word from the same translation.

Show the passageHide the passage

And thus in war and battle, in which the brave find glory, even the coward will find safety. Former contests, in which, with varying fortune, the Romans were resisted, still left in us a last hope of succour, inasmuch as being the most renowned nation of Britain, dwelling in the very heart of the country, and out of sight of the shores of the conquered, we could keep even our eyes unpolluted by the contagion of slavery. To us who dwell on the uttermost confines of the earth and of freedom, this remote sanctuary of Britain's glory has up to this time been a defence. Now, however, the furthest limits of Britain are thrown open, and the unknown always passes for the marvellous. But there are no tribes beyond us, nothing indeed but waves and rocks, and the yet more terrible Romans, from whose oppression escape is vainly sought by obedience and submission.

The quote: Robbers of the world, having by their universal plunder exhausted the land, they rifle the deep. If the enemy be rich, they are rapacious; if he be poor, they lust for dominion; neither the east nor the west has been able to satisfy them. Alone among men they covet with equal eagerness poverty and riches. To robbery, slaughter, plunder, they give the lying name of empire; they make a solitude and call it peace.

"Nature has willed that every man's children and kindred should be his dearest objects. Yet these are torn from us by conscriptions to be slaves elsewhere. Our wives and our sisters, even though they may escape violation from the enemy, are dishonoured under the names of friendship and hospitality. Our goods and fortunes they collect for their tribute, our harvests for their granaries. Our very hands and bodies, under the lash and in the midst of insult, are worn down by the toil of clearing forests and morasses.

Tacitus, Agricola 30–31Translated by A. J. Church and W. J. Brodribb (1877)Read the full passage (opens scaife.perseus.org)

When, and whose words

Date
set in c. 83 CE. Set before the battle of Mons Graupius, c. 83 CE. Tacitus wrote it c. 98 CE.
Whose words
As Tacitus writes it; Calgacus' speech is Tacitus' own composition, as ancient historians' speeches often were.
How this post was checked
  • The plain-words line was read against the quote alone by a second, independent pass, which found it adds no claim the quote does not make (2026-10-03).
  • Each claim in the summary was checked by an independent pass against only the material it cites.
  • The quote itself is checked by the build: word for word, once, at the cited section of the stored translation.

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