Nero
April 22, 2005
Nero
The last member of the Julio-Claudian line to rule the Roman principate was Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus. He was the great grandson of Augustus through his daughter Julia and great great nephew through Augustus’ sister Octavia. The son of Agrippina the younger (sister of Caligula) grew up in exile and poverty in the harsh circumstances of imperial intrigue; and his return to the forefront of the Roman imperial house was unlikely at best....
The Assassination of Julius Caesar by Michael Parenti
April 20, 2005
Assassination of Julius Caesar by Michael Parenti
Reviewed by community forum member 'Germanicus'
The book titled "The Assasination of Julius Caesar" by Michael Parenti, makes for compelling reading. It provides a detailed account of the events leading up to, and including, the fatefull Ides of March.
Written from what I can only term a modern day "plebian" perspective, Parenti separates the book into chapters which compliment each other. They range in subject from discussions about Caesar the Popularis, to Cicero.....the conservative but brilliant orator who's position at the time was certainly anti Caesar, and whose same position has been adopted time and time again by historians ever since those fatefull days of the late republic....
Messalina, Agrippina and the Death of Claudius
April 13, 2005
Messalina, Agrippina and the Death of Claudius
By AD 38, and prior to his rise to Emperor, Claudius was married (for the third time) to the 15 year old Valeria Messalina. The young ‘empress’ was portrayed historically as not much more than a court nymphomaniac who used her sexual prowess to influence the influential. She did however give Claudius two children: Octavia (AD 39) and Britannicus (AD 41). Though stories of wild parties, intrigue and murder follow Messalina from the ancient sources, some modern scholars have painted her as an astute player in the political world of the time....
Claudian Invasion of Britain
April 07, 2005
Claudian Invasion of Britain
In the near century that followed Caesar’s invasions of Britain (55 and 54 BC), the political climate of the Celtic tribes that maintained loyal relationships with Rome slowly deteriorated. While some call Caesars invasions a failure, the fact that they resulted in a century of tribute, profitable trade, and subservient political attitudes from the tribes to Rome must account for something. However, the more removed Caesar was from the memory of the Celtic tribes, the less stable the relationship between Rome and Britain remained....
Claudian Policy
April 03, 2005
Claudian Policy
Among the first acts of Claudius was to stabilize his position and that of the dynasty that had suffered so terribly under Sejanus, Tiberius and Caligula. First he adopted the name of the imperial house, changing from Tiberius Claudius Nero Germanicus simply to Claudius Caesar Augustus....