Publius (or Gaius) Cornelius Tacitus (CE 56 – CE 117) is a senator and a historian of the Roman Empire.

The surviving portions of his two major works—the Annals and the Histories—examine the reigns of the Roman Emperors Tiberius, Claudius, Nero and those who reigned in the Year of the Four Emperors.

These two works span the history of the Roman Empire from the death of Augustus in CE 14 to (presumably) the death of emperor Domitian in CE 96.

There are substantial lacunae in the surviving texts, including one four books long in the Annals.

Other writings by him discuss oratory (in dialogue format: Dialogus de oratoribus), Germania (in De origine et situ Germanorum), and the life of his father-in-law Agricola, mainly focusing on his campaign in Britannia (De vita et moribus Iulii Agricolae).

Tacitus.

considered to be one of the greatest Roman historians, lives in what has been called the Silver Age of Latin literature, and as well as the brevity and compactness of his Latin prose, he is known for his penetrating insights into the psychology of power politics.