CAIUS CORNELIUS, a celebrated Roman historian, and one of the greatest men of his time, appears to have been born about the fifty-seventh year of the Christian era. He early applied himself to the labours of the bar, in which he gained very considerable reputation. He was a man of equestrian rank, and was promoted to various offices. Having married the daughter of Agricola, the road to public honours was opened to him in the reign of Vespasian; but during the sanguinary and capricious tyranny of Domitian, he, as well as his friend Pliny, appears to have retired from the theatre of public affairs. The reign of Nerva restored these luminaries of Roman literature to the metropolis; and, in the year 97, we find Tacitus engaged to pronounce the funeral oration of the venerable Virginius Rufus, the colleague of the emperor in the consulship, and afterwards succeeding him as consul for the remainder of the year. In the year of the city 853, Pliny and Tacitus were appointed by the senate to plead the cause of the oppressed Africans against Marius Priscus, a corrupt proconsul, who was convicted before the fathers; and the patriot orators were honoured with a declaration that they had executed their trust to the entire satisfaction of the house. The time of the historian's death is not mentioned by any ancient author, but it is probable that he died in the reign of Trajan.

His works which still remain are, 1. The Life of Agricola; his father-in-law; 2. On the Manners of the Germans; 3. Five books of his History; 4. His Annals. There is also attributed to him a dialogue "De Causis corruptae Eloquentiae," which others have ascribed to Quintilian. The treatise on the manners of the Germans was published in 851. The exact time when Tacitus published his history is uncertain, but it was in some period of Trajan's reign, who died suddenly, A.D. c. 870, A.D. 117. The history comprises a period of twenty-seven years, from the accession of Galba, 822, to the death of Domitian, 849. The history being finished, he did not think he had completed the tablature of slavery: he reverted to the time of Tiberius; and the second work, which, however, comes first in the order of chronology, includes a period of fifty-four years, from the accession of Tiberius, 767, to the death of Nero, 821: this work is his Annals.

No author has obtained a more splendid reputation than Tacitus. It is impossible not to admire and recommend his intimate knowledge of the human heart, the spirit of liberty which he breathes, and the force and vivacity with which he perpetually expresses himself. He has been censured as obscure; and indeed nothing can be more certain than that he did not write for the common mass of men. But to those who are judges of his compositions, it is no matter of regret that his manner is his own, and peculiar. Never were description and sentiment so wonderfully and so beautifully blended; and never were the actions and characters of men delineated with so much strength and precision.

Of the works of Tacitus, the first edition was printed by V. Spira at Venice in 1468 or 1469. It is in folio, and without a date. After some intervening impressions, a more complete edition was superintended by Beroaldus, Rome, 1515, fol. Here the earlier books of the Annals were printed for the first time. The subsequent editions are so numerous, that we can only specify a very small proportion. Tacitus was greatly indebted to the learned labours of Lipsius, who published several editions. His first was printed at Antwerp, 1574, 8vo. His annotations were gradually augmented, and underwent different revivals and modifications. The last edition which he himself superintended was that of Ant. 1600, fol. Passing over the editions "cum notis variarum," 1672 and 1685, we arrive at that of Ryckius, Lugd. Bat. 1687, 2 tom. 12mo. The second volume contains the editor's annotations. J. Gronovius had undertaken to prepare an edition with the notes of various critics; and after his death it was completed by his son Abraham, Traj. ad Rhen. 1721, 2 tom. 4to. Two editions by Ernesti were printed at Leipzig in 1752 and 1772, each in two vols. 8vo. An elegant edition was published by Brotier, Paris, 1771, 4 tom. 4to, 1776, 7 tom. 12mo. We now descend to the edition of Oberlin, Lipsia, 1801, 2 tom. 8vo; and to that of Ruperti, Gotting. 1804, 2 tom. 8vo.

The works of Tacitus have been translated into various languages. The earliest English version was executed by Sir Henry Savile and Richard Greenway. Dryden lent his ready aid to "The Annals and History of Cornelius Tacitus, by several hands." Lond. 1698, 3 vols. 8vo. Some of these hands are suspected to have been chiefly indebted to a French translation. Their version was followed by that of Thomas Gordon, Lond. 1728-31, 2 vols. fol. Gordon's phraseology is remarkable for its affectation; and by labouring to imitate the style of the original author, he has in some instances rendered his own scarcely intelligible. A more readable translation of Tacitus was produced by Arthur Murphy, Lond. 1793, 4 vols. 4to. The dialogue on eloquence has been well translated by Mr Melmoth; the life of Agricola, and the description of Germany, by Dr Aikin.