Caius, the rascal from ancient Rome

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Caius, the rascal from ancient Rome is a book series for young people by Henry Winterfeld . The stories take place in ancient Rome and deal with the adventures of the boy Caius and his friends. Henry Winterfeld dedicated the stories to his grandson Dorian.

Parts

The series consists of the following parts:

characters

The main characters of all three parts are:

  • Xanthos : a Greek scholar who moved to Rome. He is a famous mathematician and runs a school for the sons of wealthy patricians, in which he also lives. Xanthos is described as a tall, slender man with gray, tousled hair and a goatee. Since he places high demands on his students in terms of discipline and diligence, they call him "Xantippus", based on Xanthippe , who is said to have made life difficult for her husband, the Greek philosopher Socrates . Nevertheless, he always comes to the aid of his students with his intellect and his life experiences when they unexpectedly find themselves in a new adventure.
  • Caius , son of Senator Vinicius. Although he serves as the title character of the series, Caius is actually only characterized by the fact that he brings himself and his friends into the most insane situations with his irascibility, his intransigence and his not exactly developed perception.
  • Mucius : His full name is Mucius Marius Domitius. He is the son of the Tribune Marius Domitius and, as the oldest and most prudent of the Xanthos students, the head of the clique.
  • Rufus : son of General Marcus Praetonius. Rufus has a great weakness for Caius' sister Claudia, who has not remained hidden from his friends.
  • Antonius : son of a senator. Adventurous and imaginative as he is, he most longs for some exciting encounters with the villains he and his friends encounter in the course of their adventures.
  • Flavius : son of a senator. The most fearful of the group and only there because of his loyalty to his friends in their adventures at every turn.
  • Julius : Julius is the son of a senator and judge and is therefore quite familiar with Roman law. The group's treasurer is also the most economical.
  • Publius : son of a senator. As a perpetual complainer, Publius is often at odds with Caius.
  • Claudia : The younger sister of Caius. Since the death of her mother, she has been responsible for housekeeping in the Vinicius house.
  • Senator Vinicius : Caius' and Claudia's father, a respected official who is occasionally entrusted with secret tasks by the emperor.

Locations

  • The Xanthos School , home and work place of Xanthos and also the advisory headquarters of the boys on their adventures, which is located near the Breite Straße and the Marsfeld . A special feature of the house is a secret chamber behind the kitchen cupboard, where Xanthos usually keeps his valuables.
  • The Assembly cave , a cave in the slope of the Esquiline -Hügels who expanded the boys as a secret headquarters and refuge.
  • The Esquilinus Hill , where the boys live in an upscale residential area. One of the most common houses in the series is Villa Vinicius , home of Senator Vinicius and his family.
  • The subura where the boys occasionally have to go in search of their suspects
  • The Roman Forum

Embedding in the historical environment

While the first volume can only be roughly settled in the early Roman Empire , Caius lets the light go on to the year 20 AD: the action takes place 11 years after the Varus Battle , and the year 773 is also explicitly mentioned. By retroactive calculation, it emerges that the events of Caius is a fool must have been in the year 19 AD.

The ruling emperor not named in the books is therefore Tiberius .

expenditure

  • Henry Winterfeld: Caius the rascal from ancient Rome. All adventures in one volume. Blanvalet-Verlag, Munich 1986, ISBN 3-570-03472-0 .
  • Henry Winterfeld: Caius the rascal from ancient Rome. Anthology. Bassermann, Munich 2007, ISBN 978-3-8094-2087-3 .