Classical Civilisation

Course summary

The Classics department is proud to offer a 6th form environment in which pupils are encouraged to be scholarly and intellectually curious learners. Our approach is supportive and encouraging, our pupils know that we are always on hand to guide and offer extra help where needed. We follow the OCR A level courses in Latin and Greek. Both subjects comprise four papers, all of which are taken at the end of the two-year course. Two papers focus on translation and comprehension skills; two papers concern prose and verse texts. In Latin A level, texts are read in the original languages, alongside a wider selection of reading in translation, allowing for a greater and broader understanding of the historical and literary context in which such important texts were composed. For examination in 2025-2026, the Latin texts may include part of Cicero’s Pro Caelio, the great orator’s defence of a man who is accused of the attempted murder of the notorious socialite Clodia. You will also read extracts from Tacitus’ Annals XIV in which the dastardly emperor Nero plots to murder his own mother. Some poetry will sit alongside this rhetoric and history. You will read extracts from Juvenal’s Satires, including his diatribe against the women of Rome. If you are interested in finding out more about these authors then listen to Natalie Haynes’ podcasts on Cicero, Juvenal and Agrippina. Classical Civilisation focuses on the civilisations of Greece and Rome, and is a wide ranging subject involving the study of ancient literature, art history, politics, philosophy and history. You don’t need to know any languages, all the literature is in translation. Most importantly it doesn’t matter if you haven’t studied the Greeks and Romans before, all you need is an interest in the ancient world and its cultures. UCL recognises Classical Civilisation as a facilitating subject and Cambridge recommends it for those interested in studying the arts and social sciences.