The Romans in 100 Facts

Jem Duducu

• Publisher: Amberley Publishing
• Year: 2015
• eBook ISBN: 9781445649719
• Edition: 0
• Topic: History
• Subtopic: Roman Ancient History
• Index: History

The Roman Empire is one of the most famous civilisations in history, and with good cause. Over a period spanning nearly 1,000 years, the Romans came, saw and conquered land after land. This book looks at Roman history from the foundation to collapse of the empire, covering famous Romans, famous events and some of the more bizarre moments of ancient history. Among the historic figures featured are Julius Caesar, Spartacus and Nero. The great tales of these giants of history are told through facts about battles, uncontrolled decadence and the power-plays between emperors. However, there are also some more unexpected stories. The Romans, for example, couldn't decide on the foundation story of Rome. The tale of Romulus and Remus was used for centuries, but a completely contradictory story appeared in the first century AD claiming the Romans were actually refugees from Troy. Jem Duducu condenses the colossal story of the Romans into 100 accessible facts in this fun introduction to the Roman Empire.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Introduction
• 1. The Romans Couldn’t Decide on Their Origins
• 2. Rome Started in a Small Way
• 3. Early Rome Had Kings
• 4. Rome Was a Bad Neighbour
• 5. The First Sacking of Rome Nearly Finished the City
• 6. The Early Roman Army Was Nothing Special
• 7. A Plea for Help Started a War
• 8. Hannibal Was Rome’s Most Feared Enemy
• 9. Elephants Aren’t Scared of Mice
• 10. The Roman Republic Was Based on Democracy
• 11. The Romans Won a Battle but Killed a Genius
• 12. Gladiatorial Combat Started at Funerals
• 13. The Romans Were Mad about Chariot Racing
• 14. The Punic Wars Ended with an Epic Siege
• 15. The Romans Copied the Greeks … a Lot
• 16. The Romans Reformed Their Army
• 17. Roman Roads Weren’t That Good
• 18. Sulla Was the First ‘Modern’ Dictator
• 19. Persia Was Rome’s Longest-Running Enemy
• 20. The Romans Sort of Invented Concrete
• 21. The Third Servile War Was Led by Spartacus
• 22. Decimation Was a Severe Form of Punishment
• 23. Julius Caesar Didn’t Have a Great Start
• 24. Most Romans Never Had a Hypocaust
• 25. The Romans Had Complex Laws
• 26. Julius Caesar Wrote Himself into History
• 27. The Romans Were Very Religious
• 28. Julius Caesar Nearly Lost the Battle of Alesia
• 29. Slavery Was Integral to Roman Life
• 30. 55 BC Is the First Date in British History
• 31. The Romans Knew How to Celebrate a Triumph
• 32. Crossing the Rubicon Was a Really Big Deal
• 33. Cicero Was a Show-Off
• 34. Brutus Kept Changing His Name
• 35. Julius Caesar Won the Civil War
• 36. The Late Pharaohs Were More Greek than Egyptian
• 37. Julius Caesar Invented the Calendar
• 38. There Are Conflicting Accounts of Julius Caesar’s Death
• 39. Caesar’s Assassination Led to More Civil War
• 40. Some Roman History Was Written by a Poet
• 41. Cleopatra Played a Political Game and Lost
• 42. Mark Antony Was a Teenage Delinquent
• 43. The Bible Was Wrong about a Roman Census in Palestine
• 44. Shoes Were a Big Deal in Roman Society
• 45. Octavian Became Augustus
• 46. Rome Never Had Any ‘Emperors’
• 47. General Varus Lost Three Legions
• 48. The Romans Liked Exotic Food
• 49. The Romans Were Masters of Siege Warfare
• 50. The Emperor Caligula Was Never Formally Called Caligula
• 51. Claudius Ordered the Successful Invasion of Britain
• 52. Boudicca Hated Colchester
• 53. Nero: the Christians Had the Last Word
• 54. Mount Vesuvius Blew Its Top in AD 79
• 55. Christianity Threatened the Pagan Romans
• 56. The Romans Had Power over Water
• 57. The Praetorian Guard Wasn’t the Best Bodyguard
• 58. Roman Philosophers Were Literally Very Stoic
• 59. There Were Four Emperors in One Year
• 60. Titus Accidentally Burned Down the Jewish Temple
• 61. The Romans Were Headhunters
• 62. Only Wealthy Roman Children Went to School
• 63. Trajan Preferred Columns to Arches
• 64. The Romans Destroyed Jerusalem and Renamed It Aelia Capitolina
• 65. The Romans Didn’t Have Castles, but They Did Have Castra
• 66. Latrines Were Places for Public Discussions
• 67. The Romans Invented Welfare
• 68. Hadrian Liked to Travel … a Lot!
• 69. Hadrian’s Wall Wasn’t the Only Defensive Frontier in Britain
• 70. Hadrian’s Wall Had a Hidden Treasure
• 71. Marcus Aurelius Was a Philosopher, General and Emperor
• 72. Roman Coins Showed Power as Well as Wealth
• 73. The Reign of Commodus Started Well but Ended Badly
• 74. There Was a Year of the Five Emperors
• 75. The Truth about Roman Orgies and the Vomitorium
• 76. The Worst Roman Emperor Was Called Elagabalus
• 77. The Romans Invented the Book
• 78. Zenobia Seized Egypt from the Romans
• 79. Diocletian Tried to Invent Economics
• 80. The Romans Liked to Decorate with Mosaics
• 81. The Temple of Artemis Was an Important Centre for Pagans
• 82. Diocletian Split the Roman Empire
• 83. Constantine Was One of the Most Important People in History
• 84. Constantinople Was a City Built to Rival Rome
• 85. Christianity Was Roman by the Fourth Century
• 86. The Publishing Editor of the Bible Was Pagan
• 87. Argentoratum: The Most Important Roman Victory You’ve Never Heard of
• 88. The Romans Didn’t Use Soap but Loved Baths
• 89. The Battle of Adrianople Was the Beginning of the End
• 90. The Legions Abandoned Britain
• 91. The Capital of the Late Roman Empire Wasn’t Rome
• 92. The Fifth-Century Empire Wasn’t Always Run by Romans
• 93. The Roman Empire Fought Attila the Hun
• 94. The Fifth-Century Western Roman Empire Faced a Lot of Enemies
• 95. Rome Fell a Number of Times
• 96. The Last Western Emperor Shared a Name with the Founder of Rome
• 97. Justinian Tried to Recreate the Roman Empire
• 98. Belisarius Is the Forgotten Great Roman General
• 99. Heraclius Was the Bridge Between the Ancient and the Medieval Worlds
• 100. When the Roman Empire Ended Is Up for Debate