How Did the Roman Republic Differ from the Roman Empire?

The Roman Republic was a plutocratic oligarchy. As is generally true of republics, it was a mixed constitution with a monarchic component, the Consuls, and aristocratic component, the Senate, and a democratic component, the Assemblies of the Plebes. The plebes had their representatives, the Tribunes of the Plebes who could veto proposals of the Senate. […]

Book Review: SPQR, A History of Ancient Rome, by Mary Beard.

Mary Beard writes in a breezy, often anecdotal, style which makes her book both informative and entertaining. SPQR covers the history of ancient Rome from its founding by Romulus to the reign of Emperor Caracalla, who, in the year 202 A.D. granted Roman citizenship to the entire free male population of the empire. This is […]

Book Review: Marching With Caesar-Civil War

In the first novel of R.W. Peake’s Marching With Caesar series readers were treated to a detailed account of what life was like as a Roman legionary involved in foreign conquests. Peake’s latest historical novel, Marching with Caesar-Civil War is in some ways even more fascinating than the first because the central character, Titus Pullus […]

Book Review: Marching With Caesar by R.W. Peake

If you ever wondered exactly what it was like to be a Roman legionary in the first century B.C., this is your book! The author, R.W. Peake, has a strong military background and a firm grasp of the psychology of both the common soldier and his higher ranking leaders. He also has extensive knowledge of […]