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Augustus: First Emperor of Rome
Written by Adrian Goldsworthy
Narrated by Derek Perkins
Book Actions
Start ListeningRatings:
Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars4.5/5 (13 ratings)
Length: 18 hours
- Publisher:
- Tantor Audio
- Released:
- Aug 26, 2014
- ISBN:
- 9781494574161
- Format:
- Audiobook
Description
Caesar Augustus's story, one of the most riveting in western history, is filled with drama and contradiction, risky gambles and unexpected success. He began as a teenage warlord, whose only claim to power was as the heir of the murdered Julius Caesar. Mark Antony dubbed him "a boy who owes everything to a name," but in the years to come the youth outmaneuvered all the older and more experienced politicians and was the last man standing in 30 BC. Over the next half century, he reinvented himself as a servant of the state who gave Rome peace and stability, and created a new system of government-the Principate, or rule of an emperor.
Adrian Goldsworthy pins down the man behind the myths: a consummate manipulator, propagandist, and showman, both generous and ruthless. Under Augustus's rule, the empire prospered, yet his success was never assured, and the events of his life unfolded with exciting unpredictability.
Adrian Goldsworthy pins down the man behind the myths: a consummate manipulator, propagandist, and showman, both generous and ruthless. Under Augustus's rule, the empire prospered, yet his success was never assured, and the events of his life unfolded with exciting unpredictability.
Book Actions
Start ListeningBook Information
Augustus: First Emperor of Rome
Written by Adrian Goldsworthy
Narrated by Derek Perkins
Ratings:
Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars4.5/5 (13 ratings)
Length: 18 hours
Description
Caesar Augustus's story, one of the most riveting in western history, is filled with drama and contradiction, risky gambles and unexpected success. He began as a teenage warlord, whose only claim to power was as the heir of the murdered Julius Caesar. Mark Antony dubbed him "a boy who owes everything to a name," but in the years to come the youth outmaneuvered all the older and more experienced politicians and was the last man standing in 30 BC. Over the next half century, he reinvented himself as a servant of the state who gave Rome peace and stability, and created a new system of government-the Principate, or rule of an emperor.
Adrian Goldsworthy pins down the man behind the myths: a consummate manipulator, propagandist, and showman, both generous and ruthless. Under Augustus's rule, the empire prospered, yet his success was never assured, and the events of his life unfolded with exciting unpredictability.
Adrian Goldsworthy pins down the man behind the myths: a consummate manipulator, propagandist, and showman, both generous and ruthless. Under Augustus's rule, the empire prospered, yet his success was never assured, and the events of his life unfolded with exciting unpredictability.
- Publisher:
- Tantor Audio
- Released:
- Aug 26, 2014
- ISBN:
- 9781494574161
- Format:
- Audiobook
About the author
Adrian Goldsworthy is a respected historian of the ancient world. He studied at Oxford, where his doctoral thesis examined the Roman army, and he went on to write acclaimed works of non-fiction including Caesar, Hadrian's Wall, and Philip and Alexander. His fiction includes the authentic and action-packed Vindolanda Trilogy, set in Roman Britain.
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4.5Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
13 ratings / 1 reviews
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robeik_1
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars(5/5)
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I decided to read this book after reading the author biography of Julius Caesar. At the moment I am also listening to a rather boisterous (not sure how else to describe it) podcast on Augustus. Not being a scholar on this topic, I can only say that I appreciate the work that authors like Adrian Goldsworthy do in researching for and writing books such as these. Augustus is probably the first Roman person I knew by name (from Luke 2), but beyond that I knew virtually nothing about him other than in the context of the lives of Julius Caesar and Mark Anthony. It is interesting to note that the author states the first part of Augustus public life gets most attention, and that this book intended to cover the latter part as well. However, it seems that Augustus great amount of activity in his early life gave the Republic/Empire peace and rest, so that there are fewer momentous events to record and report.Most helpful are a number of family trees at the back of the book. The book also has a few maps, but it's a pity that they do not record the names of many of the places mentioned in the text.The author seems to have been taken to task for paying some attention to the birth of Christ in an effort to appease some lobby. This is odd thing to say seeing that some many of the records of the life of Augustus (and many others in that period) are fragmentary, and second or third hand. Yet we dearly hold them as facts. Goldsworthy's appendix 2 is a fair treatment of this topic. I have heard said, that Roman historians look on in jealousy at the strength of evidence for the life of Christ compared to what they have on.
robeik_1
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars(5/5)
I decided to read this book after reading the author biography of Julius Caesar. At the moment I am also listening to a rather boisterous (not sure how else to describe it) podcast on Augustus. Not being a scholar on this topic, I can only say that I appreciate the work that authors like Adrian Goldsworthy do in researching for and writing books such as these. Augustus is probably the first Roman person I knew by name (from Luke 2), but beyond that I knew virtually nothing about him other than in the context of the lives of Julius Caesar and Mark Anthony. It is interesting to note that the author states the first part of Augustus public life gets most attention, and that this book intended to cover the latter part as well. However, it seems that Augustus great amount of activity in his early life gave the Republic/Empire peace and rest, so that there are fewer momentous events to record and report.Most helpful are a number of family trees at the back of the book. The book also has a few maps, but it's a pity that they do not record the names of many of the places mentioned in the text.The author seems to have been taken to task for paying some attention to the birth of Christ in an effort to appease some lobby. This is odd thing to say seeing that some many of the records of the life of Augustus (and many others in that period) are fragmentary, and second or third hand. Yet we dearly hold them as facts. Goldsworthy's appendix 2 is a fair treatment of this topic. I have heard said, that Roman historians look on in jealousy at the strength of evidence for the life of Christ compared to what they have on.
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