The Last Emperor of Rome, a tale of love, betrayal, and turmoil, takes place during the final thirty-five years of the Western Roman Empire. It was a time of palace intrigue, assassinations, barbarian invasions, declining institutions, struggling political alliances, and a general breakdown of the imperial system of government which had ruled much of Europe and North Africa for the previous five hundred years. Before his entry onto the national stage, little is known about Emperor Julius Valerius Majorian, the major historical character of this novel. Therefore, the author invented much of the storyline, including the Emperor's early life, his family, and his career in the Imperial Legions. The story begins in 461 AD as Emperor Majorian is confined to a cell in a Roman prison and reflects upon his life. His thoughts take him from his childhood in Gaul to his career in the Roman Legions, his marriages and family, his dealings with men such as Count Flavius Ricimer, Master General Flavius Aetius and Senator Gaius Gallipolis, and ultimately onto his rise to political prominence in the waning Roman world. As Majorian sinks deeper into despair, he tries to make sense of the consequences of his actions. Come ride along with the Imperial Legions of Aetius and Ricimer as they battle the armies of the Huns, the Visigoths, and the Vandals. Attend a Roman wedding. Take part in conversations about immigration, slavery, Roman law, and the rise of Christianity. And witness the coronation of a Roman emperor. A well-conceived and imaginative novel of the late antiquity period, The Last Emperor of Rome delves into the political, religious, and military turmoil of this frantic time. Although it was the end of a way of life, the events portrayed in this novel opened the door to something new and powerful. The reverberations are still felt today.

The first biography of the last Byzantine Emperor.

Justinian (482-565 A.D.), who ruled the Roman Empire from his capital in Constantinople, was, along with his wife Empress Theodora, one of the most scandalous monarchs in history. During his reign, Justinian oversaw the construction of the Hagia Sophia, one of the wonders of the ancient world, and he strove to maintain Rome's territories. Yet despite the heights reached under his rule, the time was one of revolts, intrigues, and brutality to his subjects. Baker's biography takes a redemptive view of Justinian and his wife, both of whom were vilified by the chronicler Procopius, he for his despotism and she for her endless sexual escapades. Baker points out that Justinian also codified Roman law and brought other modern solutions to the problems that had plagued his empire for years. Baker also describes the battles of Justinian's famous general Belisarius, who waged successful wars against the Vandals, Goths, and Persians on behalf of his emperor.

The acclaimed historian and author of Caesar presents “a first-rate popular biography” of Rome’s first emperor, written “with a storyteller’s brio” (Washington Post). The story of Augustus’ life 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 grand-nephew and heir of the murdered Julius Caesar. Mark Antony dubbed him “a boy who owes everything to a name,” but he soon outmaneuvered a host of more experienced politicians to become the last man standing in 30 BC. Over the next half century, Augustus created a new system of government—the Principate or rule of an emperor—which brought peace and stability to the vast Roman Empire. In this highly anticipated biography, Goldsworthy puts his deep knowledge of ancient sources to full use, recounting the events of Augustus’ long life in greater detail than ever before. Goldsworthy pins down the man behind the myths: a consummate manipulator, propagandist, and showman, both generous and ruthless. Under Augustus’ rule the empire prospered, yet his success was constantly under threat and his life was intensely unpredictable.

Domitian, Emperor of Rome AD 81-96, has traditionally been portrayed as a tyrant, and his later years on the throne as a `reign of terror'. Brian Jones' biography of the emperor, the first ever in English, offers a more balanced interpretation of the life of Domitian, arguing that his foreign policy was realistic, his economic programme rigorously efficient and his supposed persecution of the early Christians non-existent. Central to an understanding of the emperor's policies, Brian Jones proposes, is his relationship with his court, rather than with the senate. Roamn historians will have to take account of this new biography which in part represents a rehabilitation of Domitian.

Recounts the sixth-century events and circumstances that led to the fall of the Roman Empire.

The final, thrilling instalment in the epic Vespasian series from the bestselling author, Robert Fabbri. Rome, AD 68. Vespasian is tasked with the impossible. Should he quell the revolt in Judaea, as Nero the emperor has instructed, or resort to the unthinkable and sabotage his own campaign? If his conquest succeeds, he risks facing the mad emperor's jealousy. If he fails, his punishment will be severe. But then Nero commits suicide, catapulting Rome into turmoil. With a contested throne and an army at his disposal, now may finally be Vespasian's time - to ascend, to conquer, to achieve what countless prophecies have foretold and take control of Rome itself. Will Vespasian, at long last, be the one to wear the purple? ______________________________________________ Don't miss Robert Fabbri's epic new series Alexander's Legacy

A military history of the campaigns of Flavius Belisarius, the greatest general of the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Emperor Justinian. Back in the 6th century, Belisarius twice defeated the Persians and reconquered North Africa from the Vandals in a single year at the age of 29, before going on to regain Spain and Italy, including Rome (briefly), from the barbarians. This book discusses the evolution from classical Roman to Byzantine armies and systems of warfare, as well as those of their chief enemies: the Persians, Goths, and Vandals. Belisarius: The Last Roman General reassesses Belisarius’s generalship and compares him with the likes of Caesar, Alexander, and Hannibal. It is also illustrated with line drawings and battle plans as well as photographs.

'Buy the book; it's very entertaining.' David Aaronovitch, The Times A Financial Times, BBC History and Spectator Book of the Year On 8 June 218 AD, a fourteen-year-old Syrian boy, egged on by his grandmother, led an army to battle in a Roman civil war. Against all expectations, he was victorious. Varius Avitus Bassianus, known to the modern world as Heliogabalus, was proclaimed emperor. The next four years were to be the strangest in the history of the empire. Heliogabalus humiliated the prestigious Senators and threw extravagant dinner parties for lower-class friends. He ousted Jupiter from his summit among the gods and replaced him with Elagabal. He married a Vestal Virgin – twice. Rumours abounded that he was a prostitute. In the first biography of Heliogabalus in over half a century, Harry Sidebottom unveils the high drama of sex, religion, power and culture in Ancient Rome as we’ve never seen it before.