Victoria Leonard is a Research Fellow at the Centre for Arts, Memory and Communities at Coventry University, and at the Institute of Classical Studies, School of Advanced Study, University of London. Her research focuses on the late antique and early medieval western Mediterranean. She has published on religious conflict, gender and violence, and ancient historiography. Most recently, she co-edited the volume Bodily Fluids in Antiquity with Mark Bradley and Laurence Totelin, which was published by Routledge in 2021.

'Victoria Leonard has written a spirited defense of Orosius’ originality and impact. Deftly combining contemporary theories with close-reading of the Latin text, the book ranges widely, covering topics such as temporality and imperialism. Demonstrating the intellectual efforts needed to come to terms with the disaster of the sack of Rome in 410, it also nicely illustrates the perennial importance of historical narratives to help us make sense of the present' - Peter Van Nuffelen, Ghent University'Victoria Leonard's volume is a wise and balanced book, filled with intellectual depth and intensive discussion. Every sentence is well-thought out and clearly formulated. Her analysis of Orosius’ ‘proto-postcolonial’ discourse and its subsequent deconstruction is thought-provoking and inspiring' - Maijastina Kahlos, University of Helsinki / Clare Hall, University of Cambridge, The Classical Review'In Defiance of History is a nicely produced, well-written and welcome addition to the scholarship. Leonard fully succeeds in her aim of demonstrating why the Spanish priest should no longer be dismissed as an inferior writer ... With In Defiance of History, Leonard has thrown down the gauntlet for an ambitiously systematic and wide-ranging exploration of the Histories. We must all now wait patiently, and eagerly, for this gauntlet to be picked up' - Michael Wuk, University of Lincoln, Al-Masāq'This is an excellent book that rescues an innovative and influential historian from the unfair critiques of past generations, enabling us to recognize [Orosius] as an author who skillfully crafted an account of Christian universal history that would have a formative effect on much early medieval historiography' - Jamie Wood, University of Lincoln, Journal of Early Christian Studies‘… this monograph is a fruitful, innovative, and accessible contribution to Orosian studies that will prove invaluable to anyone seeking an introduction to the field’ - Studies in Late Antiquity, Autumn 2025.

• Introduction / Chapter 1. Orosius as a Writer of History / Chapter 2. The Making of Time / Chapter 3. The Emperor and the Divine / Chapter 4. Apologetics and the Providence of War / Chapter 5. The Sack of Rome: Christianizing Disaster

Victoria Leonard is a Research Fellow at the Centre for Arts, Memory and Communities at Coventry University, and at the Institute of Classical Studies, School of Advanced Study, University of London. Her research focuses on the late antique and early medieval western Mediterranean. She has published on religious conflict, gender and violence, and ancient historiography. Most recently, she co-edited the volume Bodily Fluids in Antiquity with Mark Bradley and Laurence Totelin, which was published by Routledge in 2021.

'Victoria Leonard has written a spirited defense of Orosius’ originality and impact. Deftly combining contemporary theories with close-reading of the Latin text, the book ranges widely, covering topics such as temporality and imperialism. Demonstrating the intellectual efforts needed to come to terms with the disaster of the sack of Rome in 410, it also nicely illustrates the perennial importance of historical narratives to help us make sense of the present' - Peter Van Nuffelen, Ghent University'Victoria Leonard's volume is a wise and balanced book, filled with intellectual depth and intensive discussion. Every sentence is well-thought out and clearly formulated. Her analysis of Orosius’ ‘proto-postcolonial’ discourse and its subsequent deconstruction is thought-provoking and inspiring' - Maijastina Kahlos, University of Helsinki / Clare Hall, University of Cambridge, The Classical Review'In Defiance of History is a nicely produced, well-written and welcome addition to the scholarship. Leonard fully succeeds in her aim of demonstrating why the Spanish priest should no longer be dismissed as an inferior writer ... With In Defiance of History, Leonard has thrown down the gauntlet for an ambitiously systematic and wide-ranging exploration of the Histories. We must all now wait patiently, and eagerly, for this gauntlet to be picked up' - Michael Wuk, University of Lincoln, Al-Masāq'This is an excellent book that rescues an innovative and influential historian from the unfair critiques of past generations, enabling us to recognize [Orosius] as an author who skillfully crafted an account of Christian universal history that would have a formative effect on much early medieval historiography' - Jamie Wood, University of Lincoln, Journal of Early Christian Studies‘… this monograph is a fruitful, innovative, and accessible contribution to Orosian studies that will prove invaluable to anyone seeking an introduction to the field’ - Studies in Late Antiquity, Autumn 2025.

• Introduction / Chapter 1. Orosius as a Writer of History / Chapter 2. The Making of Time / Chapter 3. The Emperor and the Divine / Chapter 4. Apologetics and the Providence of War / Chapter 5. The Sack of Rome: Christianizing Disaster

Victoria Leonard is a Research Fellow at the Centre for Arts, Memory and Communities at Coventry University, and at the Institute of Classical Studies, School of Advanced Study, University of London. Her research focuses on the late antique and early medieval western Mediterranean. She has published on religious conflict, gender and violence, and ancient historiography. Most recently, she co-edited the volume Bodily Fluids in Antiquity with Mark Bradley and Laurence Totelin, which was published by Routledge in 2021.

'Victoria Leonard has written a spirited defense of Orosius’ originality and impact. Deftly combining contemporary theories with close-reading of the Latin text, the book ranges widely, covering topics such as temporality and imperialism. Demonstrating the intellectual efforts needed to come to terms with the disaster of the sack of Rome in 410, it also nicely illustrates the perennial importance of historical narratives to help us make sense of the present' - Peter Van Nuffelen, Ghent University'Victoria Leonard's volume is a wise and balanced book, filled with intellectual depth and intensive discussion. Every sentence is well-thought out and clearly formulated. Her analysis of Orosius’ ‘proto-postcolonial’ discourse and its subsequent deconstruction is thought-provoking and inspiring' - Maijastina Kahlos, University of Helsinki / Clare Hall, University of Cambridge, The Classical Review'In Defiance of History is a nicely produced, well-written and welcome addition to the scholarship. Leonard fully succeeds in her aim of demonstrating why the Spanish priest should no longer be dismissed as an inferior writer ... With In Defiance of History, Leonard has thrown down the gauntlet for an ambitiously systematic and wide-ranging exploration of the Histories. We must all now wait patiently, and eagerly, for this gauntlet to be picked up' - Michael Wuk, University of Lincoln, Al-Masāq'This is an excellent book that rescues an innovative and influential historian from the unfair critiques of past generations, enabling us to recognize [Orosius] as an author who skillfully crafted an account of Christian universal history that would have a formative effect on much early medieval historiography' - Jamie Wood, University of Lincoln, Journal of Early Christian Studies‘… this monograph is a fruitful, innovative, and accessible contribution to Orosian studies that will prove invaluable to anyone seeking an introduction to the field’ - Studies in Late Antiquity, Autumn 2025.

• Introduction / Chapter 1. Orosius as a Writer of History / Chapter 2. The Making of Time / Chapter 3. The Emperor and the Divine / Chapter 4. Apologetics and the Providence of War / Chapter 5. The Sack of Rome: Christianizing Disaster