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Apollo
March 31, 2005
Another community contribution by Forum member Ursus.
Apollo
"Apollo rejects whatever is too near - entanglement in things, the melting gaze, and equally, soulful merging, mystical inebriation and its ecstatic vision. He desires not soul but spirit. And this means freedom from the heaviness, coarseness, and constriction of what is near, stately objectivity, a ranging glance....
Claudius
March 29, 2005
Claudius
Tiberius Claudius Nero Germanicus (10 BC – AD 54) became the unlikely 4th emperor of the Julio-Claudian line after the violent murder of his nephew Gaius (Caligula). The reign of Claudius is important for several reasons. He stabilized the political environment by including provincials in the Senate rolls (even though he was vilified for it), and proved an effective re-establishment of the imperial line after the debacle of Caligula....
The Celts: A History
March 24, 2005
The Celts: A History
Book Review by forum member Ursus
I have always been woefully ignorant of the Celts. In a desperate attempt to remedy that malady, I bought Ellis' book. There is also a certain overlap between Celtic and Roman histories, and I felt as a Romanophile I needed to know something about the other side.
Ellis first tackles the subject of the Celt's alleged illiteracy. He then outlines several sectors of Celtic society. He then offers some examples of Celtic high cultural achievements. Finally, he gives us a sketch of Celtic history from distant origins to Christian conversion....
Assassination of an Emperor
March 22, 2005
Assassination of an Emperor
Towards the end of Caligula’s reign, he seemingly set his sites on military glory. Having never been involved in military achievement of any kind, such a step was another grandiose way to show his godliness to the people of Rome. Following in the steps of his father, Germanicus, Caligula launched a strange campaign into Germania. However, this campaign seems to have been interrupted by a conspiracy against him....
Caligula the Mad
March 18, 2005
Caligula the Mad
Though the reign of Gaius ‘Caligula’ Caesar began with much promise, some early actions foretold of more uncommon behavior to come. Soon after his ascension Caligula showed signs of future ‘madness’ and Suetonius gives evidence even through a certainly embellished story...
Roman Empire Population
March 16, 2005
Roman Empire Population
The census figures for the ancient world are estimates at best. Thanks to the concept of the Roman Census, there are some figures specifically related to the Roman Empire, but these are often deemed unreliable as the people who were included in each periodic census could change. (ie for counting actual population vs. citizen males vs. provincial citizens for tax purposes etc.). Prior to the mid 4th century BC, all surviving figures are generally disregarded as completely fictitious, but after that, a pattern of reasonable population figures begins to emerge....
Caligula
March 14, 2005
Caligula
Gaius Caesar, son of the popular general and dynastic heir, Germanicus, and great grand-son of Augustus through his mother, was born AD 12 shortly before the death of Augustus. Evidence for the life of the 3rd Roman emperor is sparse, as the work of Tacitus for this period is lost. What does exist, primarily Suetonius, Seneca, Cassius Dio, Josephus and Philo, is completely negative and openly hostile for a variety of reasons....
Tiberius: The Final Years
March 11, 2005
Tiberius: The Final Years
The fall of Sejanus and the subsequent treason trials marred the end of Tiberius’ reign as much as allowing his Praetoian Prefect to take power in the first place. While, on the surface, Tiberius’ later reign was described as a bloodbath and a reign of terror by Tacitus, relatively few lost there lives in comparison to the repeated disorders of the late Republic. Still, the Roman aristocracy hated him, perhaps in part due to his lack of decisiveness. Tiberius seemed always to be a Republican at heart and only wanted the Senate, or someone, to prove competent enough to govern...
Sarmatia
March 08, 2005
Sarmatia
The territory of Sarmatia was an expansive stretch of land reaching from the Caspian Sea in the East to the Vistula River in the West, and as far south as the Danube. Essentially, Sarmatia was a collection of independent tribes, much like ancient Germania, that encompassed parts of modern Russia, Ukraine, the Baltic States, Central Asian nations and into central European countries such as Romania and Poland....
Pontius Pilate and Jesus
March 05, 2005
Pontius Pilate and Jesus
A major socio-political development during the reign of Tiberius and Sejanus was the Judean governorship of Pontius Pilate, and the emergence of Jesus Christ and the Christian religion that followed. Not only would the story grow into the most overwhelming religious force in the western world, but it also provides an important indication of the independent power of Sejanus and the contrasting imperial policy of Tiberius’ tenure...
ABC 'Empire' Series
March 02, 2005
“Empire” is a sweeping new limited drama series from the executive producers of the Academy Award-winning “Chicago.” The period drama focuses on Julius Caesar’s nephew, Octavius, who is forced into exile after Caesar’s murder, and a fictional disgraced gladiator, Tyrannus, who has sworn to protect him....
ABC Empire Series
ABC Empire Cast
Empire Production Notes
Empire Executive Producers
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