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    Most people`s knowledge of Constantine`s rise to power amounts to little more than that "he was the first Christian emperor". Anybody who has delved a little deeper knows that the reality is far more complex and that the conversion from a Pagan to a Christian Empire was a long and often brutal transformation. David J Winter has set his first novel in the complex period surrounding the rise of Constantine to power and of the simultaneous rise of Christianity from being a persecuted sect to the religion approved by the emperor. The story details the profound impact that Constantine`s assumption of total control had on "ordinary" people...

     

    ...read the full review of The Fall and Rise by David J Winter

     

     

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    Am I justified in feeling that everyone connected with the making of this film should be summarily executed for crimes against humanity? The "Clash of the Titans" remake is Hollywood at its worst. It derives from a cinematic dark age where producers and writers are simply bereft of an original thought and must cannibalize their own work through remakes and reboots. If this weren't enough, the spirit of Greek mythology so essential to the charm of the original is here subverted to unholy ends, and what is left is an empty shell of a movie existing for the sake of special effects....
     
    ...read the full review of Clash of the Titans - DVD
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    Paganism came to an end in Rome during the early fifth century AD. The question is whether Rome's last pagans went out with a bang or a whimper. This book, by one of the foremost scholars of late antiquity, is a closely argued thesis in favour of the 'out with a whimper' school of thought. As a thesis, this book takes little time to accommodate the newcomer to late antiquity. It is assumed that, even if not fully up to speed with the latest research on the late fourth and early fifth century, the reader is reasonably clear about the major events and personalities of the period. Those who are uncertain about the participants or chronology of battles such as Adrianople or the Frigidus are advised to revise this and much else before approaching this book....
     
    ...read the full review of The Last Pagans of Rome by Alan Cameron
     
     
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    This volume is edited by Erdkamp and forms part of the Blackwell Companion to the Ancient World series. In his introduction Erdkamp states the underlying principals of this book that; the Roman army as well as being affected by changes in Roman society was itself the instrument of change in the politics, government, economy and society of the Empire. This book at some 574 numbered pages plus several more general introductory notes is not intended for the complete novice as it contains a lot of detailed academic discussion, or at least references to original sources and other academic works but despite this it is a work which is worth consideration by the novice to the period....
     
    ...read the full review of A Companion to the Roman Army by Paul Erdkamp
     
     
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    Aspects of Roman History: 82 BC - AD 14 is an excellent primer to the study of the late Roman Republic. It offers a traditional political and military narrative of key Roman statesmen from the rise of Marius to the ascension of Tiberius. A brief summary of Roman society and culture rounds out the historical narrative. The authors view Roman history from the plethora of primary authors who covered this fascinating period, and quotes are used to good effect...
     
    ...read the full review of Aspects of Roman History: 82 BC - AD 14 by M. Davies and H. Swain
     
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    In "Hellenistic and Roman Naval Wars 336BC-31BC" author J.D. Grainger attempts to draw an overall view of naval warfare in a period going from Alexander`s campaigns to Actium. Of course such huge undertaking could be done in many ways and the size of the book, some two hundred pages, meant that some events could not be covered in this book. The nature of the sources is also an issue for who wants to look at such questions, with many of the wars of the period being badly or incompletely described, not to mention of the usual bias which will, for example, see the Achean league politician Polybius heap insults on the Aetolian league`s "pirates", which contributes to our difficulties in understanding the topic...
     
    ...read the full review of Hellenistic and Roman Naval Warfare 336BC - 31BC by J. D. Grainger
     
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    Book Review by Russel Whitfield
    Philip Matyszak is best known for his meticulously researched and scholarly works such as Roman conquests: Macedonia and Greece and Mithridates the Great. However, Matyszak has the rare talent of making the academic easily digestible for a mass-market (take Rome on Five Denarii a Day). In his latest work he tackles that most enduring of Roman icons – the gladiator....
     
    ...read the full review of Gladiator: The Roman Fighters (Unofficial) Manual by Philip Matyszak
     
     
     
     
     
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    Adrian Goldsworthy is a British historian and military writer. Goldsworthy went to college in Westbourne School, Penarth. Later, after studying ancient and modern history at St John's College, Oxford, he completed a D.Phil in ancient military history from Oxford University. Goldsworthy is the author of such works as The Complete Roman Army, In The Name of Rome and recently Antony and Cleopatra.
     
    Philip Matyszak aka "Maty": Thank you for taking the time to do this interview with us. Antony and Cleopatra is a very substantial book, and perhaps the first question to ask is why you decided to tell the story in the first place. So, why Antony and Cleopatra?
    Adrian Goldsworthy, aka "Adrian": Firstly because the history of Antony and Cleopatra continues the story which....
     
    ....read the full interview with Adrian Goldsworthy
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    This book is published as part of the Classical World Series by Bloomsbury Classic which is, as mentioned on the back cover, designed specifically for students and teachers of Classical Civilisation at late school and early university level. Hazel Dodge is a lecturer at Trinity College in Dublin and has already written several articles dealing with the subject of spectacles in Ancient Rome. I personally saw her lecture on “Amphitheatres in the Roman East” at the Amphitheatres & Spectacula Conference in Chester in Feb. 2007...
     
    ...read the full review of Spectacle in the Roman World by Hazel Dodge
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    The World of the Celts by Simon James is a wonderful introduction to Celtic history and culture. The work is well written and richly illustrated. Perhaps best of all, it provides a balanced view point and avoids any grandiose exaggeration of the Celts and their place in history. Simon lets the evidence speak for itself; the Celts were not complete savages. It was their increasingly developed culture that made them worthy of Romanization in the first place....
     
    ...read the full review of The World of the Celts by Simon James
     
     
     
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