Description

Pp. xiii, (4), 366, b/w photographs, sketch illustrations and maps. “In Rome, historian Greg Woolf expertly recounts how this mammoth empire was created, how it was sustained in crisis, and how it shaped the world of its rulers and subjects–a story spanning a millennium and a half of history. The personalities and events of Roman history have become part of the West’s cultural lexicon, and Woolf provides brilliant re-tellings of each of these, from the war with Carthage to Octavian’s victory over Cleopatra, from the height of territorial expansion under the emperors Trajan and Hadrian to the founding of Constantinople and the barbarian invasions which resulted in Rome’s ultimate collapse. Throughout, Woolf carefully considers the conditions that made Rome’s success possible and so durable, covering topics as diverse as ecology, slavery, and religion. Woolf also compares Rome to other ancient empires and to its many later imitators, bringing into vivid relief the Empire’s most distinctive and enduring features.”