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Faculty of Classics

 

Research

Christopher Kelly is a classicist and historian with a wide range of interests in the ancient world: these include government and power, its use and abuse, the society, religion and culture of the Roman Empire from Augustus to Justinian, the rise of Christianity, and Edward Gibbon and the Grand Tour. He was an editor of the Cambridge Classical Journal from 2000 to 2006; is currently editor of the Journal of Roman Studies; and immediate past President of the Cambridge Philological Society.

Publications

Key publications: 

Professor Kelly's books include Ruling the Later Roman Empire (Harvard UP, 2004), The Roman Empire: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford UP, 2006), The End of Empire: Attila the Hun and the Fall of Rome (Norton, New York, 2009) and four edited volumes: Unclassical Traditions I: Alternatives to the Classical Past in late Antiquity; Unclassical Traditions II: Perspectives from East and West in late Antiquity; Theodosius II: Rethinking the Roman Empire in late Antiquity; and Keith Hopkins: Sociological Studies in Roman History (Cambridge, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2017). Current projects include a monograph, Confronting the Classical: The Making of the Past in late Antiquity.

Professor of Classics and Ancient History
Master of Corpus Christi College
Professor Christopher  Kelly

Contact Details

Corpus Christi College
Cambridge
CB2 1RH
01223 766709 (College)
Not available for consultancy

Affiliations

Latest news

AHRC CDP studentship - Acquiring the Mediterranean: exploring local agencies in the acquisition of antiquities from Greece and the Ottoman Empire by Charles Newton at the British Museum, 1861–1886.

9 May 2024

AHRC Collaborative Doctoral Partnership (CDP) studentship Acquiring the Mediterranean: exploring local agencies in the acquisition of antiquities from Greece and the Ottoman Empire by Charles Newton at the British Museum, 1861–1886. The Faculty of Classics and the British Museum are excited to announce a fully funded...

Celebrating ECR successes

1 May 2024

The Faculty of Classics would like to congratulate our Early Career Researchers who have secured new positions elsewhere in the UK and abroad. We thank Il-Kweon, Michael, Tom and Ludo for all their contributions to our Classics community and wish them the very best for the next steps in their careers. Dr Il-Kweon Sir has...

Professor Caroline Vout's Olympic Exhibition in the News

18 April 2024

This summer Professor Caroline Vout is co-curating an Olympic Exhibition at the Fitzwilliam Museum, 'Paris 1924: Sport, Art and the Body' which looks back on the pivotal moment, 100 years ago, when traditions and trailblazers collided, fusing the Olympics’ classical legacy with the European avant-garde spirit. It was a...

Mary Beard to give The Sir Robert Rede’s Lecture 2024

18 April 2024

This year Professor Dame Mary Beard is due to give The Sir Robert Rede's Lecture on Friday 3 May 2024. She will speak on the topic 'The boy who breathed on the glass at the British Museum': what, or whom, is the past for?' If you would like to attend the event, you are most welcome but booking is essential: register for...