Greece Against Rome
The Fall of the Hellenistic Kingdoms 250-31 BC
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Greece Against Rome
Buy Now for £12.99
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Narrated by:
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Gareth Richards
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By:
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Philip Matyszak
About this listen
The acclaimed ancient world historian examines the centuries-long decline of Greek powers in the face of the growing Roman threat.
Towards the middle of the third century BC, the Hellenistic kingdoms were near their peak. In terms of population, economy, and military power, each was vastly superior to Rome, not to mention in fields such as medicine, architecture, science, philosophy, and literature. But over the next two and a half centuries, Rome would eventually conquer these kingdoms while adopting so much of Hellenistic culture that the resultant hybrid is known as "Graeco-Roman."
In Greece Against Rome, Philip Matyszak relates this epic tale from the Hellenistic perspective. At first, the Romans appear to be little more than another small state in the barbarian west as the Hellenistic powers are consumed by war amongst themselves. It is a time of assassinations, double crosses, dynastic incest, and warfare. By the time they turn their attention to Rome, it is already too late.
©2020 Philip Matyszak (P)2022 TantorListeners also enjoyed...
Ancient Greece? I’m no expert, but have a grasp - have read Thucydides, Herodotus, a bunch of the classic philosophical texts. But the period post-Alexander had been a bit of a blank spot. One moment Athens is the birthplace of the Western intellectual tradition and Hellenic armies are conquering the known world, then… Oh, the Roman Empire’s taken over everything, somehow…
Ancient Rome? Similar story. I’ve read chunks of Livy, several more recent books on Rome, and am even still halfway through Gibbon (I must go back to that) - but it’s mostly been from Caesar onwards. The Republic and the rise of the empire before the emperors - bar a bit of knowledge about the Punic Wars? I couldn’t previously have told you.
Given almost everyone involved has the same name - Seleucus, Ptolemy, Cleopatra, Antiochus, Antigonus, Phillip - it can be tricky to keep track of who’s who, but it does at least make it easy to keep track of which part of the world is being discussed. “Reading” this as an audiobook while walking the dog also meant I didn’t have the ability to check maps and chronologies and dynastic tables, which would have been handy.
But this was still a remarkably clear introduction to a pretty confusing period. Liked it.
Great introduction
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Interesting material, wonderfully read!
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But as some have remarked “history spoiled fiction for me”. And so it is here.
How the Greeks with their endless internal squabbles gave away their power to the new coming Romans is a story we can still learn from today.
Truly a story for the ages.
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Totally recommended.
Read with relish and occasional laugh out loud twists of fate!
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