The War That Made the Roman Empire

Antony, Cleopatra, and Octavian at Actium

Barry Strauss

• Publisher: Simon & Schuster
• Year: 2022
• Print ISBN:
  9781982116682
• eBook ISBN:
  9781982116699
• Topic: History
• Subtopic: Historical Biographies
• Index: History

A “splendid” (The Wall Street Journal) account of one of ancient history’s most important and yet little-known wars, the campaign culminating in the Battle of Actium in 31 BC, whose outcome determined the future of the Roman Empire.

Following Caesar’s assassination and Mark Antony’s defeat of the conspirators who killed Caesar, two powerful men remained in Rome—Antony and Caesar’s chosen heir, young Octavian, the future Augustus. When Antony fell in love with the most powerful woman in the world, Egypt’s ruler Cleopatra, and thwarted Octavian’s ambition to rule the empire, another Roman civil war broke out. In 31 BC one of the largest naval battles in the ancient world took place—more than 600 ships, almost 200,000 men, and one woman—the Battle of Actium. Octavian prevailed over Antony and Cleopatra, who subsequently killed themselves.

The Battle of Actium had great consequences for the empire. Had Antony and Cleopatra won, the empire’s capital might have moved from Rome to Alexandria, Cleopatra’s capital, and Latin might have become the empire’s second language after Greek, which was spoken throughout the eastern Mediterranean, including Egypt.

In this “superbly recounted” (The National Review) history, Barry Strauss, an authority on ancient military history, describes this consequential battle with the drama and expertise that it deserves. The War That Made the Roman Empire is essential history that features three of the greatest figures of the ancient world.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Dedication
• Maps
• Author’s Note
• Chronology
• Prologue: A Forgotten Monument—Nicopolis, Greece
• Part 1: The Seeds of War: 44 to 32 BC
• Part 2: A Plan and an Attack: Autumn 32 to April 31 BC
• Part 3: The Battle: August to September 2, 31 BC
• Part 4: The End Game: September 31 to January 27 BC
• A Note on Sources
• Photographs
• Acknowledgments
• About the Author
• Notes
• Index
• Illustration Credits
• Copyright