“History, the primary preoccupation of many wise men of the past, has proven to be exceedingly useful for life, as it reveals the lives of those who were virtuous and those who were not, describes illustrious deeds born of flawless planning and effort as well as inglorious actions caused by the faulty planning or negligence of those governing public affairs. Above all, it tells us about those who hold the highest office, how some of them successfully overcame clear and present dangers through their diligent military strategies, while others, even when victory was about to smile upon them, ruined everyone's hopes for a happy outcome by not making prudent use of the opportunities given to them. All these things are stripped bare by history and, as we said, there is much utility in them, for they convey clear instruction and set patterns for the future. They simply lead us to imitate what was discerned well and to avoid ill-advised and shameful deeds in wars, battles, and in all other most necessary offensive ventures and challenges of defense. Hence I too decided, though I am busy with thousands of responsibilities in the army, am continually whirled about by legal disputes, and spend hours working away on the documents that result from them, to add to my labors and set forth a few matters in simple and concise terms, as befits those who compose histories, given that my narrative is not part of a competition and so does not require a specialized rhetorical technique. It is a history, superior to all disingenuousness and untimely rambling, about events that I witnessed myself first hand, not what I learned by hearsay and the unreliable repots of others. My purpose is to prevent noteworthy matters from slipping into the depths of oblivion through the passage of time, and to grand them immortal remembrance.”