Download or read book The Roman Imperial Succession written by John D. Grainger and published by Pen and Sword History. This book was released on 2020-06-30 with total page 494 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An investigation of how a man could become a Roman emperor, and the failure to create an enduring, consistent system for selecting the next emperor. John D. Grainger analyses the Roman imperial succession, demonstrating that the empire organized by Augustus was fundamentally flawed in the method it used to find emperors. Augustus’s system was a mixture of heredity, senatorial, and military influences, and these were generally antagonistic. Consequently, the Empire went through a series of crises, in which the succession to a previous, usually dead, emperor was the main issue. The infamous “Year of the Four Emperors,” AD 69, is only the most famous of these crises, which often involved bouts of bloody and destructive civil war, assassinations and purges. These were followed by a period, usually relatively short, in which the victor in the “crisis” established a new system, juggling the three basic elements identified by Augustus, but which was as fragile and short lived as its predecessor; these “consequences” of each crisis are discussed. The lucid and erudite text is supported by over 22 genealogical tables and 100 images illustrating the Emperors. Praise of The Roman Imperial Succession “For a general introduction to the question of how one becomes a Roman emperor, Grainger has provided a sound guide.” —Bryn Mawr Classical Review
Download or read book Nerva and the Roman Succession Crisis of AD 96 99 written by John D. Grainger and published by Psychology Press. This book was released on 2004 with total page 198 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: John Grainger's detailed study examines a period of intrigue and conspiracy, studies how, why and by whom Domitian was killed and investigates the effects of this dynastic uncertainty and why civil war didn't occur in this time of political upheaval.
Download or read book Encyclopaedia Britannica written by Hugh Chisholm and published by . This book was released on 1910 with total page 1090 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This eleventh edition was developed during the encyclopaedia's transition from a British to an American publication. Some of its articles were written by the best-known scholars of the time and it is considered to be a landmark encyclopaedia for scholarship and literary style.
Download or read book The Roman Imperial Succession Under the Julio Claudians 23 BC AD 69 written by Garrett G. Fagan and published by . This book was released on 1988 with total page 245 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "The purpose of this thesis is to investigate the methods of succession that operated in the Julio-Claudian period, from Augustus' illness in 23 BC to the accession of Vespasian in AD 69. Attention will be paid to the succession schemes, if any, of each Emperor; methods of designation employed to mark out potential successors; the growth of military influence on the succession as seen in the interventions of the Praetorian Guard and the provincial armies; and major conspiracies and their impact on the succession. Chapter I will show that Augustus, the first Emperor, whose actions in regard to the succession set the pattern for subsequent principes to follow, did not adhere to any single rigid scheme of succession as some scholars would have us believe. By means of adoption, marriage and conferral of privileges and powers, Augustus maintained a pool of imperial princes from which possible successors could be drawn. His motivation was two-fold: a concern for the continued stability of the State, and a desire to see his family, the Julian, remain in power. Tiberius (chapter II) remained loyal to his predecessor's intentions but these were thwarted by the intervention of the Praetorian Prefect, L. Aelius Sejanus. Conspiring to establish himself as Tiberius' successor, Sejanus effectively destroyed the house of Germanicus before being himself discovered and executed. Tiberius, old and virtually paranoid, did little in his last years to indicate a successor and Gaius Caligula rose to prominence with the help of Sejanus' replacement, Macro, and with minimal support from Tiberius. The assassination of Gaius and the accession of Claudius (chapter III) was the first direct intervention in the succession by the military, in this case the Praetorian Guard. The Principate was shown to be a military autocracy, Claudius coming to power only by virtue of his military support and in the face of senatorial opposition. Once established, the Emperor returned to an Augustan-style succession scheme, elevating two men as possible replacements for his natural son, Britannicus. His marriage to Agrippina resulted in the eclipse of Britannicus in favour of her natural son whom Claudius was persuaded to adopt and elevate. This was the Emperor Nero who succeeded Claudius peacefully. Chapter IV will show how Nero, feeling insecure on the throne, annihilated all his rivals from within the dynasty and so weakened its position, for those rivals were also the very people who could have provided the childless Emperor with a possible successor. Finally, a movement in the provinces led to Nero's downfall and death, and the collapse of the Julio-Claudian dynasty. With the succession thrown wide open, the army commanders struggled for power in a year of civil war which concluded when Vespasian emerged victorious to found the Flavian dynasty. We will conclude that the question of the succession was not effectively solved by the Julio-Claudians who developed ad hoc methods to indicate successors. The military, always the true basis for the Emperor's power, gradually began to realise their potential and when the dynasty collapsed army commanders fought it out to determine the next Emperor. The succession remained a source of intrigue and violence throughout our period and beyond.
Download or read book The Augustan Succession written by Peter Michael Swan and published by Oxford : Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2004 with total page 449 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "This commentary pays close critical attention to Dio's historical sources, methods, and assumptions as it also strives to present him as a figure in his own right. During a long life (ca. 164-after 229), Dio served as a Roman senator under seven emperors from Commodus to Severus Alexander, governed three Roman provinces, and was twice consul."--BOOK JACKET.
Download or read book Galerius and the Will of Diocletian written by William Lewis Leadbetter and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2009-12-04 with total page 368 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Drawing from a variety of sources - literary, visual, archaeological; papyri, inscriptions and coins – the author studies the nature of Diocletian’s imperial strategy, his wars, his religious views and his abdication. The author also examines Galerius’ endeavour to take control of Diocletian’s empire, his failures and successes, against the backdrop of Constantine’s remorseless drive to power. The first comprehensive study of the Emperor Galerius, this book offers an innovative analysis of his reign as both Caesar and Augustus, using his changing relationship with Diocletian as the principal key to unlock the complex imperial politics of the period.
Download or read book Ten Caesars written by Barry Strauss and published by Simon & Schuster. This book was released on 2020-03-03 with total page 432 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Bestselling classical historian Barry Strauss delivers “an exceptionally accessible history of the Roman Empire…much of Ten Caesars reads like a script for Game of Thrones” (The Wall Street Journal)—a summation of three and a half centuries of the Roman Empire as seen through the lives of ten of the most important emperors, from Augustus to Constantine. In this essential and “enlightening” (The New York Times Book Review) work, Barry Strauss tells the story of the Roman Empire from rise to reinvention, from Augustus, who founded the empire, to Constantine, who made it Christian and moved the capital east to Constantinople. During these centuries Rome gained in splendor and territory, then lost both. By the fourth century, the time of Constantine, the Roman Empire had changed so dramatically in geography, ethnicity, religion, and culture that it would have been virtually unrecognizable to Augustus. Rome’s legacy remains today in so many ways, from language, law, and architecture to the seat of the Roman Catholic Church. Strauss examines this enduring heritage through the lives of the men who shaped it: Augustus, Tiberius, Nero, Vespasian, Trajan, Hadrian, Marcus Aurelius, Septimius Severus, Diocletian, and Constantine. Over the ages, they learned to maintain the family business—the government of an empire—by adapting when necessary and always persevering no matter the cost. Ten Caesars is a “captivating narrative that breathes new life into a host of transformative figures” (Publishers Weekly). This “superb summation of four centuries of Roman history, a masterpiece of compression, confirms Barry Strauss as the foremost academic classicist writing for the general reader today” (The Wall Street Journal).
Download or read book Diocletian and the Roman Recovery written by Stephen Williams and published by Psychology Press. This book was released on 1997 with total page 382 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This collection of essays and reviews represents the most significant and comprehensive writing on Shakespeare's A Comedy of Errors. Miola's edited work also features a comprehensive critical history, coupled with a full bibliography and photographs of major productions of the play from around the world. In the collection, there are five previously unpublished essays. The topics covered in these new essays are women in the play, the play's debt to contemporary theater, its critical and performance histories in Germany and Japan, the metrical variety of the play, and the distinctly modern perspective on the play as containing dark and disturbing elements. To compliment these new essays, the collection features significant scholarship and commentary on The Comedy of Errors that is published in obscure and difficulty accessible journals, newspapers, and other sources. This collection brings together these essays for the first time.
Download or read book Emperors of Rome written by David Potter and published by Quercus. This book was released on 2014-04-24 with total page 282 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Emperors of Rome charts the rise and fall of the Roman Empire through profiles of the greatest and most notorious of the emperors, from the autocratic Augustus to the feeble Claudius, the vicious Nero to the beneficent Marcus Aurelius, through to the maniac Commodus and beyond. Interwoven with these are vivid descriptions of sports and art, political intrigues and historic events. In this entertaining and erudite work, acclaimed classical scholar David Potter brings Imperial Rome, and the lives of the men who ruled it, to vivid life.
Download or read book Contested Monarchy written by Johannes Wienand and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2014-11-04 with total page 553 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is an open access title available under the terms of a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 license. It is free to read at Oxford Scholarship Online and offered as a free PDF download from OUP and selected open access locations. Contested Monarchy reappraises the wide-ranging and lasting transformation of the Roman monarchy between the Principate and Late Antiquity. The book takes as its focus the century from Diocletian to Theodosius I (284-395), a period during which the stability of monarchical rule depended heavily on the emperor's mobility, on collegial or dynastic rule, and on the military resolution of internal political crises. At the same time, profound religious changes modified the premises of political interaction and symbolic communication between the emperor and his subjects, and administrative and military readjustments changed the institutional foundations of the Roman monarchy. This volume concentrates on the measures taken by emperors of this period to cope with the changing framework of their rule. The collection examines monarchy along three distinct yet intertwined fields: Administering the Empire, Performing the Monarchy, and Balancing Religious Change. Each field possesses its own historiography and methodology, and accordingly has usually been treated separately. This volume's multifaceted approach builds on recent scholarship and trends to examine imperial rule in a more integrated fashion. With new work from a wide range of international scholars, Contested Monarchy offers a fresh survey of the role of the Roman monarchy in a period of significant and enduring change.
Download or read book The Fall of the Roman Empire written by Michael Grant and published by Scribner Paper Fiction. This book was released on 1990 with total page 258 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Rise of Imperial Rome AD 14 193 written by Duncan B Campbell and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2014-06-06 with total page 127 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this book Duncan Campbell explores the course of the wars that ensued as successive emperors sought to extend the empire, from Claudius' conquest of Britannia, Domitian's campaigns on the Rhine and the Danube, through Trajan's Dacian Wars and Parthian War, to Marcus Aurelius' Marcomannic Wars, as well as the Jewish Wars. The period covered in this book ends with the consolidation of the Roman frontiers along the Rhine and Danube. This book provides a summary of the strengths, limitations and evolving character of the Roman army during the first two centuries AD, as well as those of the forces of Rome's enemies across the Rhine and Danube in Germany and Romania, and in the East, in the form of the Parthian empire of Iraq/Iran. Fully illustrated with photographs depicting the emperors, their armies and enemies, and the remains of Roman fortifications and public buildings, plus informative full-colour maps, this is the epic story of the wars waged by a succession of emperors during the period in which Imperial Rome reached its zenith.
Download or read book The Year of the Four Emperors written by Charles River Charles River Editors and published by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform. This book was released on 2017-11-10 with total page 82 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: *Includes pictures *Highlights the reigns of each emperor and how Nero's reign set the chain of events in motion *Includes online resources and a bibliography for further reading *Includes a table of contents The 12 months known in history as the Year of the Four Emperors was a pivotal chapter in the long epoch of the Roman Empire. It marked the tumultuous end of the Julio-Claudian Dynasty and the advent of a year of civil war, renewal and realignment, the result of which was the establishment of a new era and the founding of a new (and arguably more rational and responsible) imperial dynasty. The controversial year began with the decline of the Julio-Claudian dynasty under the rule of Emperor Nero. Nero was the last ruler of a dynasty founded by Julius Caesar, who was perhaps the most famous Roman emperor that never was. The Julio-Claudian succession included such names as Augustus, Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius, and of course Nero, names that resonate with great power throughout the chronicles of Roman history, in many cases thanks to the violence, madness, misrule and decadence that seemed to take root at the center of imperial Rome at the dawn of the common era. In 54 CE, at the age of 16, Nero ascended to the imperial throne, and for the most part his arrival was well received. Among his early achievements was the granting of certain basic rights to slaves, the strengthening of the senate, a reduction in taxes and the general encouragement of modesty and restraint. He was initially attentive to the military, the central pillar of imperial power, and indeed, it was during his reign that the British resistance was broken in the aftermath of the rebellion of the Iceni Queen Boadicea, which in 61 CE resulted in a signature Roman victory. However, with the passage of time, the darker side of Nero's nature gradually began to manifest, and his cruelty and instability began to erode his early popularity. On July 18, 64 CE, Rome burned, with 3 of its 14 precincts destroyed and 7 others critically damaged. Although Nero responded to the disaster responsibly, by providing what assistance he could to those affected, rumors nonetheless circulated that he had been responsible for the fire, or at the very least had stood by and allowed it to consume those parts of Rome that he desired for the grandiose public works and building projects with which he was credited. In response to this, he blamed Christians for the fire, beginning the signature persecution of Roman Christians that has been so widely recorded in Roman history. Nero was eventually declared a public enemy, and finding himself without support, he committed suicide on June 9, 68 CE, the first Roman emperor to do so. Having left no heir, Nero's death plunged the empire into confusion and chaos, bringing to an end the Julio-Claudian lineage while at the same time offering no clear rule of succession. This presented the opportunity for influential individuals in the empire, and in particular provincial governors who also commanded large military garrisons, to express and further their own ambitions to power. The result was a period of instability and civil war as several pretenders to the throne, among them the emperors Galba, Otho and Vitellius, gained and lost power, until finally the emperor Vespasian seized and retained the imperial principate. Vespasian imposed order and discipline on a chaotic empire and founded the Flavian Dynasty, which survived until CE 96, encompassing the reigns of Vespasian himself (69-79), and his two sons Titus (79-81) and Domitian (81-96). The Year of the Four Emperors: The History of the Civil War to Succeed Nero as Emperor of Rome chronicles one of the most important years in the history of the Roman Empire. Along with pictures of important people, places, and events, you will learn about the Year of the Four Emperors like never before.
Download or read book The Roman Empire at Bay AD 180 395 written by David Stone Potter and published by Psychology Press. This book was released on 2004 with total page 788 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: At the outset of the period covered by this book, Rome was the greatest power in the world. By its end, it had fallen conclusively from this dominant position. David Potter's comprehensive survey of two critical and eventful centuries traces the course of imperial decline.
Download or read book The Flavian Dynasty written by Charles River Editors and published by . This book was released on 2019-07-16 with total page 112 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: *Includes pictures *Includes ancient accounts *Includes a bibliography for further reading The 12 months known in history as the Year of the Four Emperors was a pivotal chapter in the long epoch of the Roman Empire. It marked the tumultuous end of the Julio-Claudian Dynasty and the advent of a year of civil war, renewal and realignment, the result of which was the establishment of a new era and the founding of a new (and arguably more rational and responsible) imperial dynasty. The controversial year began with the decline of the Julio-Claudian dynasty under the rule of Emperor Nero, the last ruler of a dynasty founded by Julius Caesar, who was perhaps the most famous Roman emperor that never was. The Julio-Claudian succession included such names as Augustus, Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius, and of course Nero, names that resonate with great power throughout the chronicles of Roman history, in many cases thanks to the violence, madness, misrule and decadence that seemed to take root at the center of imperial Rome at the dawn of the common era. Having left no heir, Nero's death plunged the empire into confusion and chaos, bringing to an end the Julio-Claudian lineage while at the same time offering no clear rule of succession. This presented the opportunity for influential individuals in the empire, and in particular provincial governors who also commanded large military garrisons, to express and further their own ambitions to power. The result was a period of instability and civil war as several pretenders to the throne, among them the emperors Galba, Otho and Vitellius, gained and lost power, until finally the emperor Vespasian seized and retained the imperial principate. Vespasian imposed order and discipline on a chaotic empire and founded the Flavian Dynasty, which survived until 96, encompassing the reigns of Vespasian and his two sons, Titus (79-81) and Domitian (81-96). Vespasian's reign began in brutality on December 20, 69, when his troops captured Vitellius as he was trying to flee Rome. The troops dragged him to the Forum, where he was tortured before being murdered and thrown into the Tiber. The Flavian Dynasty also ended in brutality, with Domitian being hacked to death by his own secretarial staff in 96. In between, however, Vespasian, Titus, and even the reviled Domitian were responsible for many innovations that served the empire well in the years that followed, and they prepared the way for empire's zenith from 96-192. The Flavian emperors were very different in temperament from each other, but all three contributed in their own ways to the consolidation and expansion of the imperial system individually. All three men, to a greater or lesser extent, added to the imperial city, and the Flavian Amphitheater, known in modern times as the Colosseum, remains one of the most iconic and enduring physical reminders of the glory of Rome. The Flavian Dynasty: The History of the Roman Empire during the Reigns of Vespasian, Titus, and Domitian examines the end of the Julio-Claudians and the rise of the Flavians. Along with pictures depicting important people, places, and events, you will learn about the Flavian Dynasty like never before.
Download or read book The Roman Imperial Succession Under the Julio Claudians 23BC AD69 written by Garrett G. Fagan and published by . This book was released on 1988 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Domina written by Guy De la Bédoyère and published by Yale University Press. This book was released on 2018-01-01 with total page 421 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A captivating popular history that shines a light on the notorious Julio-Claudian women who forged an empire Augustus, Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius, and Nero--these are the names history associates with the early Roman Empire. Yet, not a single one of these emperors was the blood son of his predecessor. In this captivating history, a prominent scholar of the era documents the Julio-Claudian women whose bloodline, ambition, and ruthlessness made it possible for the emperors' line to continue. Eminent scholar Guy de la Bédoyère, author of Praetorian, asserts that the women behind the scenes--including Livia, Octavia, and the elder and younger Agrippina--were the true backbone of the dynasty. De la Bédoyère draws on the accounts of ancient Roman historians to revisit a familiar time from a completely fresh vantage point. Anyone who enjoys I, Claudius will be fascinated by this study of dynastic power and gender interplay in ancient Rome.
