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Ancient Rome
- The Rise and Fall of An Empire
- Narrated by: Chris MacDonnell
- Length: 17 hrs and 36 mins
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Ancient Rome
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Summary
This is the story of the greatest empire the world has ever known. Simon Baker charts the rise and fall of the world's first superpower, focusing on six momentous turning points that shaped Roman history. Welcome to Rome as you've never seen it before - awesome and splendid, gritty and squalid.
From the conquest of the Mediterranean beginning in the third century BC to the destruction of the Roman Empire at the hands of barbarian invaders some seven centuries later, we discover the most critical episodes in Roman history: the spectacular collapse of the "free" republic, the birth of the age of the "Caesars", the violent suppression of the strongest rebellion against Roman power, and the bloody civil war that launched Christianity as a world religion.
At the heart of this account are the dynamic, complex, and flawed characters of some of the most powerful rulers in history: men such as Pompey the Great, Julius Caesar, Augustus, Nero, and Constantine. Putting flesh on the bones of these distant, legendary figures, Baker looks beyond the dusty, toga-clad caricatures and explores their real motivations and ambitions.
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Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Nik Jewell
- 26-04-18
Great Narrative History
A very good history of six key periods in the history of the Roman Republic and Empire. I understand from its preface that it accompanied a BBC TV series but I must have missed it. I am not sure that that I would have picked the same periods but that is a personal choice; the corollary and benefit to this is that I learned something new in some of them.
The six periods are: the agrarian reforms of Tiberius Gracchus; Caesar vs Pompey; the rule of Nero; the Jewish revolt (Tiberius, Josephus); Constantine and Christianity; and the decline and fall (Stilicho, Alaric, Attila).
Whilst not as detailed and, perhaps, less thrilling, as Tom Holland where they overlap (Caesar, Nero) this is good and very readable/listenable narrative history
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4 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Kyle
- 13-11-20
A fantastic history of Rome
If you are interested in this subject then look no further. This book gives you the entire history from start to finish without a dull moment. The story is written in the feel of a novel, instead of it being a boring history lesson. It certainly provides all the information you could need, whilst simultaneously making these people from thousands of years ago feel alive and humanises them.
I would fully recommend this to anyone interested in this.
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3 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- DSellers
- 08-11-17
Worth more than one listen
A concise, yet comprehensive overview of the history of Rome. Does not dwell too long on a particular era and offers balanced views and assessment of the sources available. Well read. I will definitely be listening to it again in full, in the future, having just completed it.
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3 people found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- John
- 30-07-17
Comprehensive yet eminently listenable
A history with a broad sweep, yet with fascinating details and strong connecting themes. Clear reading with some minor irritations over some disruptive metric:imperial conversions, which are a bit clunky - more a function of the text than the narration.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Jessica Ramsay
- 06-08-21
Dull narration
While the content was interesting I found the narration dull and soporific - great if you have trouble falling asleep!
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Luke B
- 19-12-22
Very good overview,
Very good introductory summary of the most important leaders and events from the early Republic to 476AD. The reigns are covered in engaging but concise detail, told in a way that really brings the figures to life, almost like a novelette. Though there are sizeable gaps between each selected emperor with many notables left out, the format fits the breadth well. Excellent for those with only a cursory knowledge and wanting a solid introduction and overview before going into greater depth. Very well narrated.
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