Baron Macaulay was a leading figure in Victorian literature. His essays were quite popular. Macaulay first visited Italy in 1938 after which he reconstructed the lost ballad-poetry of Rome in English form. Lays of Ancient Rome begins with a lengthily preface in which Macaulay discusses the earliest histories of Rome. There follows a section on Horatius. The second topic covered is the Battle of Lake Regillus. The final two sections cover Virginia and the Prophecy of Capys. This is an excellent reference work for the study of ancient Rome.