DecimusCaesar

Strange stuff. I can't even begin to imagine what it must have been like to be held captive for that long a time, not to mention losing out on childhood/teenage years almost in its entirety.

I think it probably varied from city state to city state and from era to era. I personally believe that failing to serve the city-state would have brought massive shame and perhaps exile to an individual. I will to look more into this matter, it's an interesting topic.

I agree, according to what I read the further north you got the more primative and poor quality the weapons became for instance I have read that the Celtic tribes of North Wales were armed with bronze weapons and that they themselves had very little connection with the more sophistacated tribes in Southern England. Many were also armed with primative slings and sharpened sticks as spears. A bit-off topic but This discussion reminds me of a sketch by a comedian (Eddie Izzard i think) in whcih he says the Romans conquered the world thanks to sandals (unlike the flip-flops of their enemies that kept falling off) and also because the Romans had 'pointy sword' as he called it which meant they could stab their enemies while they were swinging their swords around. At least he got that sort of right...

I haven't played the game in years but I remember that you did have some natural disasters like plagues and fires, plus you also had thieves stealing denarii from your treasury. You also had rioters pillaging your buildings if things got really bad. I think I remember leading my legions to invade and battle against the greeks, but this was in Caesar II which is even longer ago.

According to what I'v read the number of auxillary forts are misleading. Throughout long stretches of time these forts would have remained unoccupied and after 200 AD many of them, especially in the North (except for the fort of Segontium) would have remained unoccupied like Kanovium (in the Snowdonia mountains). Later on with the increasing threat of Irish pirates the forts are occupied closer to the sea, such as the fort and watchtower at Holyhead on Anglesey (built during the later period) by 394 AD the last remaining traces of Roman military occupancy had come to an end, with the Limitanei heading for Gaul, which explains why there is no mention of soldiers stationed in wales in the Notitia Dignitatum. according to Welsh myth the Roman forces abandoned wales to fight with Magnus Maximus (although now we know they left the area later).

I had always known that the senate had survived the traditional fall of Rome (476 AD) to survive as a city council but I had no idea that the entire senatorial families were killed, I was always under the impression that they had withered away (after reading the Oxford Guide to Medieval Europe). This is fascinating stuff, is there any more info on the internet about it?

That's rather funny and rather disturbing. I thought that the kid would fall out (according to the synopsis before the clip was played.)

I agree, great review! Like Ursus said it is the best depiction of ancient Rome out there in terms of culture and religious practices even if the history and the costumes are not entirely accurate.

I've read about this battle before and i've seen it listed numerous times in books about battles that shaped history. I even saw it listed as the tenth most importnat battle in World History once (with Yorktown at number one).

Much of the later Roman armour and weapons were based on stuff that the Romans had copied and adapted from their enemies such as helmets based on those worn by Sarmatians, Heavily armoured cavalry like those used by the Sassanids etc.

I will probably get Adrian Goldsworthy's Caesar when it is published in paperback.

It's a city building sim, similar to Simcity I think (although I've never played Simcity before). You are given a job to build and govern a city and complete a set of tasks within a limited amount of time (eg. send 20 Amphorae of wine to Rome in 6 months) . You also have job of defnding that city if you live in a dangerous province that's infested with Barbarians. You eventually build up your skill to become the next emperor.

Is there any photographs of Roman monuments in Ravenna? Is there many? seeing as it was once the Capital of the Western Empire.

Hopefully it will be some use to you to make your tattoo.

I used to play Caesar III many years ago. My main memory of it was Caesar throwing a wine cup across the room in anger while screaming "YOU AGAIN!!!" as I failed to deliver another shipment to Rome for the fourth year runinng.

Cool! I remember Simon Quinlank from Big Train (?) but I remember him best on This Morning with Richard Not Judy with his hobbies such as 'Not trainspotting' and as well as making shadings of a priest's bum. I think the tassles are called Pteruges, all though I am saying this from memory with no military book to consult.

It's sad news. I remember watching his shows year's ago when I was still in school and talking about them next day with friends. It seems really strange and slightly ironic that he was killed in the end by a an animal that is not considered to be very dangerous after spending a lifetime handling some of the most dangerous animals on Earth.

there has been a attack at a Roman Site in Amman and a British tourist has been killed. It was at a site of a Roman Amphitheatre. Info is still coming in... Anyone know how much people have been hurt and at which site this took place?

I read once that the last Emperor of Constantinople, Constantine XI made a speech to the defenders of the city, telling them not to be afraid of the Ottoman turks, for he reminded them that their ancestors- the Romans, had not been afraid when they had faced Hannibal and his elephants.

What type of auxillary forces would be stationed in Britain? especially during the Later Empire? I knew something about a Vexillation of Sarmatian Auxilia being stationed in Britain during one time, and I remember hearing about infantry troops from eastern Europe being stationed in southern or middle England at one time (although this was years ago and it might be a misunderstanding). I have also read of vexillations of cavalry auxillia being stationed in numerous places around north Wales such as at Segontium in Caernarfon , what would be the composition of these troops and from which provinces of the Empire would they have come from originally?

Here is a much larger picture of Pertinax's bust on this site... [www.bstorage.com/photo/Italy/Rome/bust/index4.htm] If you click on their portraits you get a larger, more detailed image. it also contains images of other Emperors with a Medusa image on their cuirass.

I, Claudius" is engaging and dramatic and should be part of any Roman buff's collection I watched the entire I, Claudius series about a week before I recieved 'Rome', It really is quite good (even though the sets look a little wonky these days) and I think a lot of it is to do with the well written script. Humour goes a long way as well as I am rather tired of watching historical epics with characters who never seem to have laughed or told a joke in their entire lives. You'd think their faces might crack if they did. QUOTE -I agree with the comment about "battles" - we don't really need to spend a whole lot of money on battles, since this is bound to be incredibly expensive and could derail the entire production as a single battle scene of a few minutes (without CGI) involves weeks, if not months of planning, pre-production, construction of sets, scouting of locations, etc. etc. - Spend the money instead on getting the best actors you can (for your budget) and hire a team of experienced historians / writers who can bring this era to life in a way that can modern audiences can relate to. I think "Rome" did an excellent job in that regard and the overall production was very modern, with crisp dialogue and scenes that were filled with dramatic intensity, as the tension was quite palpable between the characters. I agree in part, as I would love to see a depiction of the battle of Actium at the end of the series, but I do realise that this would cost a HUGE amount of money and would be extremly difficult and dangerous to film, so it would be best left out of the series. Damn! I can never quite figure out how to do the quotes! I always end up getting the bubble around my own words not that of someone else,i'll figure it out ....evevntually.

Perhaps so... Maybe in the next series of Rome, they can replace the opening sequence with the wall paintings to shots of the characters running along a beach with a scutum in their hands instead of a surfboard to the tune of 'I'll be Ready'. Octavian would be spinning in Elysium.

Yes it's the archaic Medusa on the Hoplite shields dating to around the 5th Century BC, How did the image develop from this to the one that existed in Roman times? I always believed that Medusa had snakes on her head instead of hair and its only know that I realise that the bangles on the Hoplite shields were not snakes. Does anyone know if the Romans made depictions of mythological creatures on their scutum during the early republican era? ( I have seen various paintings of Triarii and Hastatii with wolves and other animals on their shields.)

Yes that's the one! I've also realised that Medusa was a popular motif among Greek Hoplites seeing as most illustrations of Hoplites seem to show at least one Hoplite with a variation on the Gorgon's head. A tatoo of her would be great.