Ancient Rome: The Rise and Fall of An Empire

by Simon Baker

Book Overview

This is the story of the greatest empire the world has ever known. Simon Baker charts the rise and fall of the world's first superpower, focusing on six momentous turning points that shaped Roman... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1846072840
• Release Date: July 2007
• Publisher: BBC Physical Audio
• Length: 448 Pages
• Weight: 0.82 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.0" x 1.2" x 5.0"

Customer Reviews

Rome (Not) so Ancient

Reading Ancient Rome is like reading a modern novel. The characters happen to exist two thousand years ago and yet (other than a name change ) it is like reading about powerful folks of to days generation. Would highly recommend to anyone that has seen movies about Rome or watched the TV series " Rome " and need a little more detail on life as it was. I am sure there are books on Rome that cover the main characters of Rome ...whats nice about this particular version is the modern treatment of those characters. 5 STARS Stephen End

Ancient Rome

My wife is reading this book first and seems to enjoy it. It's certainly an easier and livelier read than the condensed version of Gibbons which, while abridged, is a weighty tome that she was previously reading (at least in part).

A very good overview of Ancient Rome

Given the length of the Roman Empire (and as advertised this book covers the origins of the empire from a small city-state), its breadth, its complexity, and its historical importance it is impossible to go in depth in a book of this length. Roman specialists should find a lengthier, more detailed book but for those who are new to Rome (like me), or seeking to acquire just a general understanding of one of the most important--and arguably the most important--civilization in world history this book passes with flying colors.

An endless bloodbath

This book, based on the splendid BBC TV-series (DVD not to be missed) is the story of a city `founded on murder'. Its history is an orgy of bloodshed, an endless slaughtering in order to grab naked power (not prestige!) and to have legally the right to decide over `life or death' of ALL citizens and to steal ALL the riches of the empire (slaves, silver, gold, land, corn, real estate, cattle, the spoils of wars). A ruler could easily `condemn and put to death' any citizen to lay his hands on his wealth. The murderous, barbaric struggle was principally fought personally within the super rich ruling class (the aristocracy). It was not less than a cynical butchery of fathers, sons, cousins, clans and `friends'. Other factors were the voting block of plebs, the voting block of the rural provinces and the most important factor of all, the army. Ultimately, military power hanged on the strategic and tactical strength of a general, as well as his capability to exploit the fighting spirit of his soldiers, who were only interested in the booty of war or a State pension. Roman military might was also the decisive factor in the creation and ultimately the fall of the empire. This book focuses on a few pivotal events in the history of the empire: The battle for control of the main commercial routes (Mare nostrum) with Carthago (the Punic wars). The fight of Tiberius Gracchus against the aristocracy for land reform in order to fill the enormous gap between the haves and have-nots. Julius Caesar, a most capable general, exploiting the voting block of the plebs to grab dictatorial power. Augustus, the clement autocrat. Nero, the emperor as a madman. Constantine, the opportunistic general fighting under a Christian banner and murdering a hundred thousand human being at Chrysopolis. The Goth Alaric sacking the Holy City. Rome is in many ways a perfect mirror of our modern world: the deep chasm between the rich and the poor, the all importance of military strength, cynical wars for power, commercial pipelines and wealth all over the place, a tiny oligarchic ruling class with long arms in the `provinces' and finally, the innate fear of the powerful for real democracy (the veto possibility of the tribunes). This book is a must read for all those interested in the history of Rome and of mankind.

Well Worth Reading

For anyone interested in the history and events that took place in the Roman Empire this book is like manna from heaven. The author relates Roman history in such a way that the book almost reads like a novel, being both exciting and educational. But if truth be told this is far more interesting than any novel. Rome was after all one of the greatest, if not the greatest empire ever known. There are figures from its past that stick out like beacons. Probably the greatest of them all Julius Caesar and of course his main adversary Pompey. Others out of the many notables include Mark Antony, Nero, Claudius and many more. There were also Rome's great buildings. The Forum, the circus maximus and the Flavian amphitheatre, now more commonly known as the Colosseum, all built to show potential enemies the might that was Rome. Then on to the true might of Rome, its Legions. An army that comprised the greatest fighting force the world had ever seen. Because of their discipline and rigid training they were at that period in history, virtually unbeatable. The author pulls all these facts together beautifully to make a book that is not only informative and educational but also high readable as well.