Citizenship and Military Service in the Ancient and Modern Worlds
Join the Antiquities Museum for a panel discussion on the topic of Citizens, Mercenaries and the Army in the Ancient and Modern Worlds featuring Professor Alastair Blanshard (School of Historical and Philosophical Inquiry), in conversation with Associate Professor Sarah Percy and Associate Professor Andrew Phillips (School of Political Science and International Relations), chaired by Dr Janette McWilliam (RD Milns Antiquities Museum).
Professor Alastair Blanshard is the Paul Eliadis Chair of Classics and Ancient History at the University of Queensland. Alastair is an internationally-recognised leader in the field of classical tradition and also has research interests in the social and cultural history of ancient Athens, and Greek gender and sexuality.
Dr Janette McWilliam is the Director of the Antiquities Museum and Lecturer in Classics and Ancient History. Her research interests include Greek and Roman social history, Roman children, Latin epigraphy, and pedagogical approaches to teaching Classical Latin and Greek.
Associate Professor Sarah Percy has a long-standing interest in unconventional combatants, and has published widely on mercenaries, private military companies, and pirates. Sarah is interested in issues of maritime security generally, including piracy and counter-piracy, maritime crime, and the role of navies as security actors.
Associate Professor Andrew Phillips' research focuses on Great Power rivalry (especially in East and South Asia), religiously motivated terrorism, and the transformation of international orders from 1500CE-present. He is most recently the author of From Hollywood to Bollywood? Recasting Australia’s Indo/Pacific Strategic Geography (Australian Strategic Policy Institute, 2016).
About Why Citizenship? Stories from Athens and Rome
June 2017 to May 2018
While it might appear that citizenship in the ancient world was a simple and straightforward concept, not everyone thought about citizenship in the same way. In Classical Athens entry into the citizen body was closely controlled, determined by gender, birth and ancestry, while in Rome, people of both free and freed status came to enjoy at least basic citizen rights over time.
Why Citizenship? explores the stories of ancient people from a wide variety of backgrounds and asks why citizenship mattered to them. It also invites visitors to consider concepts of citizenship, and to reflect upon issues of gender, sexuality, politics, race and social status in the modern day.
Curated by Dr Janette McWilliam and Mr James Donaldson