Title
Introduction
About This Book
Foolish Assumptions
How This Book Is Organised
Icons Used in This Book
Where to Go from Here
Part I : Romans – The Big Boys of the Ancient World
Chapter 1: The Romans: Shaping Their World and Ours
Being Roman
Discovering the Romans
What the Romans Did for Us
A Long Time Ago but Not That Far Away
Chapter 2: It’s the Cash That Counts: Roman Social Classes
First Things First: The Roman Family
Being on Top – Upper-crust Romans
Ordinary Citizens
Are You Being Served?
Women and Children Last!
Chapter 3: Stairway to the Stars: The Greasy Path to Power
Roman Assemblies
The Emperors
Climbing to the Top
Chapter 4: Rural Bliss – Roman Dreamland
The Roman Fantasy Self-image: We’re Farmers at Heart
Life in the City; Dreams in the Country
Villas: Bedrock of Roman Agriculture
A Quick Rural Reality Check
Chapter 5: When We Were Soldiers
Mastering the Universe: The Fighting Men
Having the Right Equipment
Holding the Fort
The Late Army
Part II : Living the Good Life
Chapter 6: The Urban Jungle
The Idea of City
Two Brilliant Ideas
All Roads Lead to Rome
Chapter 7: Making the Roman Machine Work
Trade Around the Empire
Goodies from Around the World
Money, Money, Money
Turning on the Taps
Keeping Well: Medicine
Chapter 8: Entertainments: Epic and Domestic
Introducing the Games
The Playing Fields: Arenas and Stadiums
Fighting Men: Gladiators
Fighting Animals
Epic Shows and Mock Battles
A Day at the Races – Chariot-racing
Pantos and Plays: Roman Theatre
A Night In: Entertaining at Home
Chapter 9: Divine Intervention
Cutting a Deal: Roman Religion
Roman Temples and Shrines
The Divine Mission: Roman Gods
Integrating Gods from Elsewhere
The Religion that Refused to Be Assimilated: Christianity
Burning and Burying: The Roman Way of Death
Part III : The Rise of Rome
Chapter 10: Kings? No, Maybe Not – Republicans
The Founding of Rome
The Magnificent Eight: The Kings (753–535 BC)
The Birth of the Roman Republic
Chapter 11: This Town Isn’t Big Enough for All of Us – Seizing Italy
Winning Over the Latin League (493 BC)
Having the Gaul to Invade – 390 BC
Knocking out the Samnites
Now for the Rest of Italy
Chapter 12: Carthage and the First Two Punic Wars
The Sicilian Story – the First Punic War (264–241 BC)
The Second Punic War (218–202 BC)
Trouble in the East: The Macedonian Wars
The Secret of Success: The Comeback
Chapter 13: While We’re at It – Let’s Conquer Everywhere Else, Too
How the West Was Won
The Reign in Spain, 197–179 BC
The Third Punic War (151–146 BC)
Mopping Up the East
Part IV : When Romans Ruled the World
Chapter 14: Reform and Civil War
Crisis in Rome
Enter the Gracchi
Marius the New Man – and More Unrest
Fighting Your Friends: The Social War (90–88 BC)
Think the Unthinkable: A Roman Captures Rome – Sulla (88 BC)
Well, They Started Out As Mates: The Age of the Generals
The Gang of Three: The First Triumvirate (60 BC)
Chapter 15: Daggers Drawn – The Fall of the Republic
Civil War
Caesar: Leader of the Roman World
Octavian and the End of the Republic (44–43 BC)
Antony and Cleopatra
Chapter 16: Augustus and the Caesars – Plots, Perverts, and Paranoia
Augustus (aka Octavian) and His Powers
Augustus’s Dynasty: Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius, and Nero (AD 14–68)
The Year of the Four Emperors (AD 68–69)
Starting Well and Finishing Badly – the Flavians (AD 69–96)
Chapter 17: The Five Good Emperors
Nerva: A Good Stopgap (AD 96–98)
Trajan: Right Man for the Job (AD 98–117)
Hadrian, Artist and Aesthete (AD 117–138)
Antoninus Pius: Nice and Vice-free (AD 138–161)
Smelling the Storm Brewing: Marcus Aurelius (AD 161–180)
The End of the Good Old Days
Part V : Throwing the Empire Away
Chapter 18: More Civil War, Auctioning the Empire, and Paranoid Lunatics
I Think I’m Hercules: Commodus (AD 180–192)
Pertinax: The 87-Day Wonder
Didius Julianus and Civil War
Septimius Severus (AD 193–211)
Not Living Up to Dad’s Expectations – Caracalla (AD 211–217)
Chapter 19: The Age of the Thug – The Third Century’s Soldier Emperors
The First Thug on the Throne: Marcus Opelius Macrinus
Elagabalus (AD 218–222)
Severus Alexander (AD 222–235)
Valerian I (AD 253–260) and Gallienus (253–268)
Aurelian (AD 270–275)
Probus (AD 276–282)
The End of the Principate
Chapter 20: East Is East and West Is West: Diocletian and Constantine
On the Case: Diocletian (AD 284–305)
Constantine I, the Great (AD 307–337)
Constantius II (AD 337–361)
Bringing Back Pagans: Julian II ‘the Apostate’ (AD 360–363)
Chapter 21: The Barbarians Are Coming! The End of Rome
A Rundown of Barbarians
Going Downhill – Barbarians at the Door
At Last! Someone Who Knows What He’s Doing: Theodosius I the Great (AD 379–395)
Sacking Rome
Staggering On
What Became of Rome’s Western Provinces
In the East: The Byzantine Empire
Part VI : The Part of Tens
Chapter 22: Ten Turning Points in Roman History
Kicking out the Kings (509 BC)
Creating the Twelve Tables (450 BC)
Winning the Second Punic War (218–202 BC)
The year 146 BC
Augustus’s settlements with the Senate in 27 and 19 BC
Breaking the link between the emperor and Rome (AD 68–69)
Ending the tradition of conquest (AD 117–138)
Dividing the Roman world (AD 284–305)
The Edict of Milan (AD 313)
The fall of Rome (AD 410)
Chapter 23: Ten Interesting and Occasionally Good Romans
Cincinnatus (519–438 BC)
Scipio Africanus the Elder (236–185 BC)
Marcus Sergius (late third century BC)
Marcus Porcius Cato (234–149 BC)
Gaius Gracchus (d. 121 BC)
Julius Caesar (102–44 BC)
Augustus (63 BC–AD 14)
Pliny the Elder (AD 23–79)
Carausius (reigned AD 286–293)
Sextus Valerius Genialis (late first century AD)
Chapter 24: Ten (Mostly) Bad Romans
Tarquinius Superbus (535–509 BC)
Coriolanus (527–490 BC)
Sulla (138–78 BC)
Sergius Catilinus (d. 63 BC)
Gaius Verres (c. 109–c. 43 BC)
Caligula (reigned AD 37–41)
Nero (reigned AD 54–68)
Commodus (reigned AD 180–192)
Didius Julianus (reigned AD 193)
Caracalla (reigned AD 211–217)
Elagabalus (reigned AD 218–222)
Chapter 25: Ten of Rome’s Greatest Enemies
Hannibal (247–182 BC)
Antiochus III (242–187 BC)
Mithridates VI, King of Pontus (120–63 BC)
Spartacus (fl. 73–71 BC)
Cleopatra VII of Egypt (69–31 BC)
Vercingetorix (fl. 52 BC, d. 46 BC)
Caratacus (d. AD 43–51)
Boudica (d. AD 61)
Simon Bar Cochba (fl. AD 132–135)
The German tribes
Chapter 26: Ten (or So) Great Roman Places to Visit
Rome and Ostia
Pompeii and Herculaneum
Ravenna
Ephesus
Aphrodisias
Sbeitla
Piazza Armerina
Hadrian’s Wall
Petra
Dendara
Bath
: Further Reading