On Saturday 9th March, Birmingham and Midlands Classical Association held a conference attended by our Sixth Form Latin students. They first read a challenging Latin text by Suetonius about the many wives and murderous acts of the Emperor Nero, followed by a section of Virgil’s Georgics about bees as an allegory for society. The students then had a choice between an Ancient History lecture on ruling roman Britain, or an exploration of the context of the Aeneid, Book 11. Finally, links were drawn between Cicero’s scandalous and insulting invective against Mark Anthony in the Philippics, and the dangerous ‘ad hominem’ verbal attacks increasingly present in modern day politics.

An exploration of Ancient Greece
From the very first day to the last, we found ourselves entirely submerged in both modern and ancient Greek culture, from participating in a couple of chaotic dances to being taught (and quizzed) on different objects we hunted for in the museums.