Reise Lionel Henry Watson

REISE LIONEL HENRY WATSON
[email protected]

Reise Watson is a PhD candidate in Ancient History at the University of St Andrews. He attained an MA (Joint Honours) in Ancient History and Medieval History from the University of St Andrews (2018-2022) before completing an MLitt in Classics from the University of St Andrew (2023). Under the supervision of Professor Myles Lavan and Professor Carlos Machado, Reise’s MLitt dissertation Roman Imperial Peace and Althusserian Ideology: A Study of Elite Cultural Production in Augustan Rome, examined how a Marxist theoretical framework impacts the way we understand the role of peace in cultural production in the Augustan period. 

His current thesis, Peace and Roman Imperial Coinage: A Study of the concept of Peace in Roman Imperial Ideology and Cultural Production (31BC-96AD), explores the Roman conception of peace in imperial ideology, mainly through examining how it is expressed through coinage, and the evolution of its meaning from Augustus to Domitian. The research for this thesis concerns peace, Pax, numismatics, imperial ideology, ideological critique: reproduction/repression/subjectification, propaganda, imperialism, visual culture, and cultural production (text, architecture, material culture, political practices). This thesis is supervised by Professor Myles Lavan.

EDUCATION

University of St Andrews PhD Ancient History (2023-2027)

• Peace and Roman Imperial Coinage: A Study of the concept of Peace in Roman Imperial Ideology and Cultural Production (31BC-96AD). Supervised by Prof. Myles Lavan; funded by Professor Ian Kidd Bequest Scholarship & Ronald M Smith Trust.  

University of St Andrews MLitt Classics (2022-2023)

• Dissertation title: Roman Imperial Peace and Althusserian Ideology: A Study of Elite Cultural Production in Augustan Rome.

• Dissertation research question: “How would a Marxist theoretical framework change the way we understand the role of peace in cultural production in the Augustan period?”
• Scholarly interests: Ancient History, Ideology, Imperialism, Material Culture, Propaganda.

University of St Andrews MA (Joint Honours) Ancient History and Medieval History (2018-2022)

• School of History President, 2021-22
• 3rd Year School of History Class Representative and Social Officer 
• 2nd Year School of History Class Representative and Social Officer 
• 2nd Year Evening Language Classes in German, Beginner and Elementary
• 1st Year School of History Class Representative and Social Officer 

TEACHING

University of St Andrews, School of Classics 

• AN1003 Ancient Empires: 18 preparation hours + 13 training hours + 12 teaching hours + 6 office hours (49hrs total). [20 students - as tutor, Sem.1 2024-25].
• CL1005 Images of Augustan Rome: 18 preparation hours + 6 teaching hours + 6 office hours (30hrs total). [12 students - as tutor, Sem.2 2024-25].
• AN1003 Ancient Empires: 18 preparation hours + 12 teaching hours + 6 office hours (36hrs total), [29 students - as tutor, Sem.1 2025-26].
• AN1004 Cities and Communities in the Ancient Mediterranean: 18 preparation hours + 12 teaching hours + 6 office hours (36hrs total), [30 students - as tutor, Sem.2 2025-26].
• Outreach Session at St David’s RC High School: Material Culture Workshop: 9 hours [c.75 students - as teacher, 28th May 2026].

ACADEMIC ACTIVITIES

Conferences

• Classical Association Conference 2025, St Andrews.
  Delivered paper: Class and Classics in Scotland.
  Organised and Chaired three panels on:
  1. Class and Classics in Scotland [Contributors: Reise Watson “Class and Classics in Scotland”; Dr Henry Stead (University of St Andrews) “Scottish Classics Transformed”; Dr Lilah Grace Canevaro (University of Edinburgh) “Fairer Scotland Data: Pushing for Policy Change”; Dr Alex Imrie (University of Edinburgh) “Quo Vadis? The Relationship between schools and universities in the campaign to revive Classics teaching in Scotland” .
  2. International Class and Classics [Contributors: Prof Mirko Canevaro (University of Edinburgh) “Working-Class Foreigners: Class Composition and Experience among International Classicists in the UK”; Dr Esther Meijer (University of St Andrews) “Working Class and Classics: To Which Ends?”; Euan Bowman (Institute of Classical Studies, University of London) “The ‘Internal Other’: Scottish Identity and Classical Academia”; Riley Gombis (University of St Andrews) “Classics for Me, Not for Thee: Class Barriers to Classics in the US and UK”.
  3. Class and Classics Teaching and Policy Making [Contributors: Prof Arlene Holmes-Henderson (Durham University) “What is needed to get Classics into more Scottish local authority schools?”; Dr Phoebe Graham (University of Reading) “Carpe linguam: Exploring the Impact of Latin and French Learning on Metalinguistic Gains Across Socio-Economic Groups”; George Connor (Working Classicists) “We must find a way, or make one: threats to state provision of Classical subjects in Scotland”.  
• Celtic Conference in Classics 2026, Maynooth
  Delivering paper: Antonio Gramsci and Louis Althusser: An Ideological Reconciliation. [Panel: Gramsci, Marx, and the Pre-Capitalist World: Histories, Forms, Afterlives].

Events

• Institute of Classical Studies: UK Class in Classics Report - One Year On [Speaker] (5th Feb 2025).
• Ancient Peace Studies Network Workshop [Participant] (20-22nd Jan 2026).
• Inclusive Practice in Education Symposium [Participant] (1st May 2026).
• Peace, War and Conflict in the Ancient World Workshop [Participant] (18th May 2026)

Founder, Network for Working Class Classicists, St Andrews (2023-)

• Organising open-forums, presentations, socials, outreach
• Survey for intersections of socio-economic inequality
• Working with EDI Committee 
• Conference panels 

Blogposts and Media Articles

• “NWCC - St Andrews” (9th Aug 2024) https://standrewsclassics.wordpress.com/2024/08/09/nwcc-st-andrews/ 

Memberships

• Network for Working Class Classicists [NWCC St Andrews Founder] (2023-)
• Classical Association of Scotland (2025-)
• Ancient Peace Studies Network (2026-)

ADDITIONAL EXPERIENCE

School of History President, University of St Andrews (2021 - 2022)

• Sending weekly emails, broadcasting relevant information to history students concerning careers opportunities, academic skill workshops, lectures and events
• Organised a committee of class representatives, appointing individuals to different school roles, seeking to achieve more accessible resources, as well as conducting library, disability, and online learning reports 
• Chaired the SSCC, the bi-annual Staff Student Consultative Committee, where class representatives have the opportunity to present student feedback collected from forms and questionnaires 
• Worked in conjunction with the History Society President to bolster membership for the society, as well as working on opportunities, such as the St Andrews Historical Journal