Argues that Roman expansion in Italy was accomplished more by means of negotiation among local elites than through military conquest.

The book opens with a description of the peoples of Italy at around the end of the fourth century B.C. It describes the early success of Roman diplomacy and force in creating client populations among the Etruscans, the Latins and the Hellenized populations of the south. At the beginning of the period the Italian peoples sought to preserve their independence and ethnic traditions. By its end those who had not achieved Roman citizenship were demanding it.

The first of the Roman Conquests series, this volume will look at how Rome went from just another Latin town under Etruscan rule, to a free republic that gradually conquered or dominated all her Italian neighbours. With hindsight we know that Rome, which won its independence from the Etruscan kings around 510 BC, went on to conquer the greatest empire yet seen, yet it took three hundred years just to become master of all the peninsula. This involved desperate struggles for survival against their Italian neighbours - Etruscans, Latins, Samnites, Umbrians, Lucanians, the Greek colonies in the south and the ferocious Celts of northern Italy - plus invading armies from further abroad - those of Pyrrhus of Epirus and then the Carthaginian genius, Hannibal. Rome's survival, let alone her eventual greatness, was never a foregone conclusion while such formidable enemies were to be found so close to home. Other Books in the series: - Spain (Paul McDonnell Staff); Greece and Macedon (Philip Matyszak); North Africa (Nic Fields); Asia Minor and Syria (Richard Evans) Gaul; Germany; Britain; The Danube Provinces; The Eastern Frontier AUTHOR: Ross Cowan studied classics at the University of Glasgow, where he also wrote his doctoral thesis on elite units of the Roman Imperial Army. He is the author of books about the Imperial legions and Roman battle tactics, and most recently of For the Glory of Rome, a study of the warrior spirit and ethos of the Roman soldier. SELLING POINTS: * First in an exciting new series detailing Rome's march to imperial glory * Details the series of vicious wars in which the young Roman republic fought first for survival, and then for domination of the whole of Italy. * Shows how the Roman way of warfare adapted to new enemies and overcame them all. * Detailed descriptions of battles against fearsome foes such as the Celts, Samnites, Pyrrhus of Epirus and Hannibal. ILLUSTRATIONS 8 pages of b/w photos

"A remarkable book,in which Forsythe uses his thorough knowledge of the ancient evidence to reconstruct a coherent and eminently plausible picture which in turn illuminates early Roman society more immediately than any other category of evidence is able to do. Forsythe displays his impressive ability to demonstrate to what extent and why the tradition that dominates the extant historical narratives is not credible."—Kurt Raaflaub, author of The Discovery of Freedom in Ancient Greece "An excellent synthetic treatment of early Roman history found in both modern literary and archaeological materials."—Richard Mitchell, author of Patricians and Plebeians

Using the results of archaeological techniques, and examining methodological debates, Tim Cornell provides a lucid and authoritative account of the rise of Rome. The Beginnings of Rome offers insight on major issues such as: Rome’s relations with the Etruscans the conflict between patricians and plebeians the causes of Roman imperialism the growth of slave-based economy. Answering the need for raising acute questions and providing an analysis of the many different kinds of archaeological evidence with literary sources, this is the most comprehensive study of the subject available, and is essential reading for students of Roman history.

Books VI-X of Livy's monumental work trace Rome's fortunes from its near collapse after defeat by the Gauls in 386 bc to its emergence, in a matter of decades, as the premier power in Italy, having conquered the city-state of Samnium in 293 bc. In this fascinating history, events are described not simply in terms of partisan politics, but through colourful portraits that bring the strengths, weaknesses and motives of leading figures such as the noble statesman Camillus and the corrupt Manlius vividly to life. While Rome's greatest chronicler intended his history to be a memorial to former glory, he also had more didactic aims - hoping that readers of his account could learn from the past ills and virtues of the city.

By the third century BC, the once-modest settlement of Rome had conquered most of Italy and was poised to build an empire throughout the Mediterranean basin. What transformed a humble city into the preeminent power of the region? In The Rise of Rome, the historian and archaeologist Kathryn Lomas reconstructs the diplomatic ploys, political stratagems, and cultural exchanges whereby Rome established itself as a dominant player in a region already brimming with competitors. The Latin world, she argues, was not so much subjugated by Rome as unified by it. This new type of society that emerged from Rome’s conquest and unification of Italy would serve as a political model for centuries to come. Archaic Italy was home to a vast range of ethnic communities, each with its own language and customs. Some such as the Etruscans, and later the Samnites, were major rivals of Rome. From the late Iron Age onward, these groups interacted in increasingly dynamic ways within Italy and beyond, expanding trade and influencing religion, dress, architecture, weaponry, and government throughout the region. Rome manipulated preexisting social and political structures in the conquered territories with great care, extending strategic invitations to citizenship and thereby allowing a degree of local independence while also fostering a sense of imperial belonging. In the story of Rome’s rise, Lomas identifies nascent political structures that unified the empire’s diverse populations, and finds the beginnings of Italian peoplehood.

A major new history of the spectacular rise and fall of the ancient world's greatest empire

"Using a wide range of epigraphic, archaeological, numismatic, and literary evidence, Northern Italy in the Roman World traces the evolution of Northern Italy from the Bronze Age to Late Antiquity and examines how the Roman state dramatically changed the region. This study on a much-neglected part of the Roman world uses northern Italy as a case study for examining the impact of the Roman empire on areas that it controlled. The book finds that while levels of Roman intervention varied considerably over time, the Roman state greatly influenced both local and transregional developments. This influence is shown to be pervasive and reflected in material ranging from loom weights to social networks and from ritual horse burials to the careers of writers"--

Older than both ceramics and metallurgy, textile production is a technology which reveals much about prehistoric social and economic development. This book examines the archaeological evidence for textile production in Italy from the transition between the Bronze Age and Early Iron Ages until the Roman expansion (1000-400 BCE), and sheds light on both the process of technological development and the emergence of large urban centres with specialised crafts. Margarita Gleba begins with an overview of the prehistoric Appennine peninsula, which featured cultures such as the Villanovans and the Etruscans, and was connected through colonisation and trade with the other parts of the Mediterranean. She then focuses on the textiles themselves: their appearance in written and iconographic sources, the fibres and dyes employed, how they were produced and what they were used for: we learn, for instance, of the linen used in sails and rigging on Etruscan ships, and of the complex looms needed to produce twill. Featuring a comprehensive analysis of textiles remains and textile tools from the period, the book recovers information about funerary ritual, the sexual differentiation of labour (the spinners and weavers were usually women) and the important role the exchange of luxury textiles played in the emergence of an elite. Textile production played a part in ancient Italian society's change from an egalitarian to an aristocratic social structure, and in the emergence of complex urban communities.