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Between the Sack of Rome by the Gauls in 390 BC and the middle of the second century BC, a part-time army of Roman peasants, under the leadership of the ruling oligarchy, conquered first Italy and then the whole of the Mediterranean. The loyalty of these marrauding heroes, and of the Roman population as a whole, to their leaders was assured by a share in the rewards of victory, rewards which became steadily less accessible as the empire expanded - promoting a decline in loyalty of cataclysmic proportions. Wars, rural impoverishments, civil discord and slavery are a few of the subjects covered in this study.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Michael Crawford is an exceptional historian who has never shied away from the difficult parts of history, nor from difficult methodology. His work on Roman Coins still sets the standard, and his management of epigraphical (inscriptions) evidence is excellent. I bring this up because it is important to understand that Crawford writes a style of history that tries to really assess the evidence for a period, this may make the work less palatable to non-academics as he focuses less on the personalities of the period (Caesar, Crassus, Pompey et al.) and more on the structural factors affecting the period and giving the reader access to some longer term themes of Roman History. Equally he does unbalance his history by only examining the fall of the republic, he allows an insight into earlier less well discussed periods.
The Fontana series made a real effort to create good entry points to the themes of ancient history rather than the narrative of Ancient History and Crawford makes good use of this premise.
Ideologically the book may be less comfortable to modern readers as Crawford does lean toward some Marxist ideas and Socialism in general. Though he does not try to let this influence the work too much, ultimately he does look at the system from a perspective of exploitation by a military elite against an agrarian proletariat, equally and appropriately he is keen to remove the veneer of respectability that has been attached to the likes of Caesar, Pompey, Crassus etc, by viewing them as Warlords with selfish motivations whose actions hurt their fellow citizens. Ultimately there is not too much wrong with trying to make historians aware that history of elites should not ignore the plight of ancient history's silent majority. Equally academics must be prepared to accept ideological stances other than their own if they are to develop their own ideas.
This work is a great introduction to the themes of Roman Republican history, though a reader may also wish to support it with works that provide a more narrative history of the period.
The Fontana series made a real effort to create good entry points to the themes of ancient history rather than the narrative of Ancient History and Crawford makes good use of this premise.
Ideologically the book may be less comfortable to modern readers as Crawford does lean toward some Marxist ideas and Socialism in general. Though he does not try to let this influence the work too much, ultimately he does look at the system from a perspective of exploitation by a military elite against an agrarian proletariat, equally and appropriately he is keen to remove the veneer of respectability that has been attached to the likes of Caesar, Pompey, Crassus etc, by viewing them as Warlords with selfish motivations whose actions hurt their fellow citizens. Ultimately there is not too much wrong with trying to make historians aware that history of elites should not ignore the plight of ancient history's silent majority. Equally academics must be prepared to accept ideological stances other than their own if they are to develop their own ideas.
This work is a great introduction to the themes of Roman Republican history, though a reader may also wish to support it with works that provide a more narrative history of the period.
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
generally very good but occasionally hard to follow. good range of material for beginners through to academic (if looking for a general starting point)
Format:Paperback
This is not a book for beginners, as it assumes some knowledge of the events of the Republic, but it is a thoughtful and incisive analysis of the Republic and the tensions which brought it down. It has consistently strong themes in the analysis, not least the crucially destructive role of imperial expansion to the ideals and practices of the Republic.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Almost deliberately unhelpful
The book lacks any attempt at coherent narrative and assumes a pre-existing knowledge of the history of the Roman Republic (which is what I hoped it was going to impart). Read more
Published on 1 May 2009 by Richard Porson
Annoying use of Abbreviations - not really for the lay reader
This book jumps about a lot and uses abbreviations for first names (eg Ti for Tiberius) which while standard are not explained anywhere and unless you are familiar with them is... Read more
Published on 5 Dec 2008 by D. Coplowe
Important issues, but not very accessible to the lay reader
Extremely rigorous, but perhaps more detailed than the lay reader would want. Perhaps the already well-stocked appendix area could have expanded still further. Read more
Published on 18 Jun 2008 by Cole Davis
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