Frederik Vervaet

Frederik Vervaet is Professor in Ancient History in the School of Historical and Philosophical Studies, Faculty of Arts, at the University of Melbourne. He earned his PhD in History from Ghent University in 2002 as a Research Fellow of the Research Foundation - Flanders. After completing his doctorate, Vervaet held lecturing positions in the Departments of Classics in Fall 2003 and History in Spring 2004 at the University of California, Berkeley. He subsequently undertook a three-year Postdoctoral Research Fellowship at Ghent University. Vervaet joined the University of Melbourne as a Lecturer in Ancient History, advancing through the ranks to Senior Lecturer, Associate Professor, and Professor. He serves as Coordinator for Classical Studies and Archaeology and Ancient World Studies programs. In 2018, he was a Member in Residence at the School of Historical Studies, Institute for Advanced Study.

Vervaet's research focuses on Roman sociopolitical and institutional history, particularly the high command structures of the Roman Republic, the Late Republic, and the establishment of the Augustan Principate. His major monographs include The Quaestorship in the Roman Republic, Reform Aversion and the Death of the Roman Republic, and Reform, Revolution, Reaction: A Short History of Rome from the Origins of the Social War to the Dictatorship of Sulla. Other key works encompass The Secret History: The Official Position of Imperator Caesar Divi Filius from 31 to 27 BCE, Honour and Shame in the Roman Republic (editor), Liberti and the Sulpician Laws of 88 BCE: A New Light on Freedmen Suffrage in the Roman Republic, and Crassus' Command in the War against Spartacus (73–71 BCE): His Official Position, Forces and Political Spoils. He co-edited The Roman Republican Triumph: Beyond the Spectacle (2014) and Eurasian Empires in Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages: Contact and Exchange between the Graeco-Roman World, Inner Asia and China (2017). In recognition of his contributions to ancient and Roman history, Vervaet was elected a Fellow of the Australian Academy of the Humanities in 2021. He has delivered public lectures such as 'Polybius and the Roman Polity: a Perfect Balance?' and 'Perdita Res Publica: The Failed Reforms of M. Livius Drusus (91 BCE)' and contributed articles to Pursuit on topics including volcanic winter and pandemic pandemonium in antiquity and the allure of Augustus as a strongman.

Professional Email: fvervaet@unimelb.edu.au