Peter Brown, author of the celebrated 'Augustine of Hippo', has here gathered together his seminal articles and papers on the rapidly changing world of Saint Augustine. The collection is wide-ranging, dealing with political theory, social history, church history, historiography, theology, history of religions, and social anthropology.Saint Augustine is, of course, the central figure; and in an important introduction Peter Brown explains how the preoccupations of these essays led him to write the prize-winning biography. Brown then goes on to explore the heart of Augustine's political theory, not only showing how it factors in Augustine's thought, but also pointing to what is different from and similar to twentieth-century political thought.

Peter Brown, born in Dublin, Ireland, has taught in history departments at Oxford, the University of London, the University of California (Berkeley), and Princeton University. His principal concern is the rise of Christianity and the transition from the ancient to the early medieval world. His other books include 'Augustine of Hippo', 'The World of Late Antiquity', 'The Body and Society', and 'Poverty and Leadership in the Later Roman Empire'.