About The Tacitus Lecture

The World Traders’ Tacitus Lecture was inaugurated in 1988 and is now believed to be the largest event of its type in the City of London. It is held annually and provides the Company with an opportunity to demonstrate to a wider audience its concern with issues affecting world trade.

It takes its name from the Roman senator Publius Cornelius Tacitus who was born in about AD 56 and may have survived the emperor Trajan who died in AD 117. His Roman education, with its elaborate series of exercises in different kinds of public speaking, turned him into an impressive and famous orator, and one of the extant works attributed to him, the “Dialogue on Orators”, is a discussion of oratorial style. It was Tacitus who, in his Life of Agricola, described ‘Londinium’ as “a town of highest repute and a busy emporium for trade and traders”. Agricola, who was the Governor of Roman Britain, was also the father-in-law of Tacitus.

This notable event has attracted important speakers of prestige and distinction in diverse fields concerned with world trade.

The 39th Annual Tacitus Lecture will be held on Thursday 26 February 2026 with speaker Dr Fiona Hill CMG. Find out more about this year’s lecture and watch the livestream here.

This year’s Tacitus Lecture is sponsored by Sphere Legal which has been a sponsor of the lecture since 2023. Sphere Legal is a dynamic virtual law firm supporting fast-growing businesses with comprehensive UK legal advice. The firm specialises in commercial, corporate, and employment law, with a strong focus on technology. Sphere’s team is committed to building lasting relationships and prioritising their clients’ success over maximising legal spend.

Past Lectures

Notes, and in many cases videos and transcripts of past lectures, can be viewed here.