What do you think?
Rate this book
Horrible Histories #6
The Ruthless Romans
'Ruthless Romans' reveals the grim truth behind the greatest empire of all time - from the terrible twins who founded Rome to the evil emperors who made murder into a sport. Read on for the gory details about the cruel Colosseum and the people and animals who were massacred there.
128 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2007
About the author
Terry Deary
770 books879 followersA former actor, theatre-director and drama teacher, Deary says he began writing when he was 29. Most famously, he is one of the authors of the Horrible Histories series of books popular among children for their disgusting details, gory information and humorous pictures and among adults for getting children interested in history. Books in the series have been widely translated into other languages and imitated.
A cartoon series has been made of the series of books and was shown on CiTV for a period in 2002.
The first series of a live-action comedy sketch show of the same name was shown on CBBC in 2009 and a second series is due.
Terry is also known widely throughout children and adult reading groups alike for his True Stories series (see below for series list).
He received an Honorary Doctorate of Education from the University of Sunderland in 2000. His numerous accolades also include the Blue Peter "Best Nonfiction Author of the Century" Award in the U.K.
-Wikipedia
A cartoon series has been made of the series of books and was shown on CiTV for a period in 2002.
The first series of a live-action comedy sketch show of the same name was shown on CBBC in 2009 and a second series is due.
Terry is also known widely throughout children and adult reading groups alike for his True Stories series (see below for series list).
He received an Honorary Doctorate of Education from the University of Sunderland in 2000. His numerous accolades also include the Blue Peter "Best Nonfiction Author of the Century" Award in the U.K.
-Wikipedia
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 64 reviews
July 2, 2016
کتاب بسیار پرباری بود . من از تری دیری کتاب آتش دزد رو هم خوندم و واقعا از قلمشون خوشم اومده . همینطور من یه کتاب که قطر کم ولی صفحه بزرگی داشت ، به اسم گلادیاتورها ، رو خوندم و اطلاعات زیادی در رابطه با گلادیاتور ها و رومی ها بدست آوردم . ولی این یه ذره کتاب ، علاوه بر کل اون کتاب ،(با لحن طنزگونه ای) با جزئیات خیلی بیشتری ، به طور کامل رومی ها و گلادیاتور ها رو تعریف کرده . واقعا پربار بود
در ضمن خوشحالم که بالاخره چلنجم تموم شد :دی
در ضمن خوشحالم که بالاخره چلنجم تموم شد :دی
June 21, 2024
I love my work - it means I can read children’s books and call it research
January 9, 2024
I really liked this book because it was fun learning stuff about Rome. I still think it is very brutal and violent to read. I would recommend that if you don’t like violence DON’T READ IT.
September 27, 2026
No, Rotten Romans and Ruthless Romans are not the same book, although they are both part of Terry Deary's Horrible Histories series. Rotten Romans (1994) is the original book, focusing heavily on Roman Britain and the Celts, while Ruthless Romans (2003) is a sequel that focuses more on the city of Rome, its emperors, and its gladiators.
Unfortunately I do not get over to England nearly as often as I like and while I love to imagine moving there I’m fairly certain the comparison between the weather there and the weather in Los Angeles would dissuade it happening.
So last time I was there I loaded up on these beloved books. You can find some in America, but it’s pretty hit and miss.
I’m not really sure how to review these books though. They are either interesting to you or not. I’ll try to highlight things I find especially interesting.
Many Romans believed the Christians were cannibals.
A truly gruesome stuff-filled book. For this series, that’s average.
3***
March 24, 2023
خواندن مجموعه تاریخ ترسناک تجربه جذابی ست،کتاب هایی که در حقیقت برای نوجوانان نوشته شده اما نگرشی جالب و نگاهی منطقی و آمیخته به طنز دارد که راه برای تفکر در حقیقت تاریخ هموار می کند.
March 16, 2019
After finishing the Rotten Romans, I was still in the mood to read about those gruesome Romans, so I picked up the Ruthless Romans, also written by Terry Deary. This book comprises of an introduction, a timeline of early Rome, one of the republic and a third one of the Roman Empire, interesting facts about their superstitions and traditions, the gladiators, the Roman army, their enemies, evil emperors, animal cruelty, horrible punishments and so on and so forth.
“The posh people in Rome were the ‘patricians’; the workers were the ‘plebeians’ (or plebs for short). The patricians may have ruled the country, but they needed to keep the plebs happy. So the patricians gave the plebs the bloody arena games, they gave them food and they gave them gifts.” Ruthless Romans, Loc. 307
I wrote in my previous review of how we are taught at school that the Romans civilised the people they conquered, yet, teachers and history books usually omit the darker side of the Roman culture. Luckily, Terry Deary doesn’t sugar-coat history because he leaves the shocking facts in for a better understanding of the Romans.
“Yet the Romans did something the heart-ripping Aztecs and the Spanish burners didn’t do … they killed people for fun! The Romans made murder into a sport. They built wonderful buildings like the Colosseum, filled them with happy Romans and then massacred thousands of people and animals for entertainment.” Ruthless Romans, Loc 38
Despite the similarities between both Rotten Romans and Ruthless Romans, here, the author focusses more on Rome, its history, its people, insane punishments and bloody entertainment. Though I recommend this book as a whole, the chapters that stood out to me were those about the gladiators, animals cruelty and the account about the Christian who were oppressed and killed by the Romans in the arena. Those stories about the Christian martyrs left a bitter taste in my mouth and made me think how cruel humans are to those who don’t share their beliefs.
“(...) the Christians suffered another 250 years of torture and death as emperor after emperor sent them to the arena to be torn apart by animals. There were many Christians who died bravely and their stories make grim and gripping reading…” Ruthless Romans, Loc. 1060
To wrap it up, if you like history and want to grab a quick read, Ruthless Romans or any other volume from the Horrible Histories series may be a good pick for you because it contains curiosities, fun quizzes, jokes, puns, stories and games which make an engaging read for kids and adult alike.
“The posh people in Rome were the ‘patricians’; the workers were the ‘plebeians’ (or plebs for short). The patricians may have ruled the country, but they needed to keep the plebs happy. So the patricians gave the plebs the bloody arena games, they gave them food and they gave them gifts.” Ruthless Romans, Loc. 307
I wrote in my previous review of how we are taught at school that the Romans civilised the people they conquered, yet, teachers and history books usually omit the darker side of the Roman culture. Luckily, Terry Deary doesn’t sugar-coat history because he leaves the shocking facts in for a better understanding of the Romans.
“Yet the Romans did something the heart-ripping Aztecs and the Spanish burners didn’t do … they killed people for fun! The Romans made murder into a sport. They built wonderful buildings like the Colosseum, filled them with happy Romans and then massacred thousands of people and animals for entertainment.” Ruthless Romans, Loc 38
Despite the similarities between both Rotten Romans and Ruthless Romans, here, the author focusses more on Rome, its history, its people, insane punishments and bloody entertainment. Though I recommend this book as a whole, the chapters that stood out to me were those about the gladiators, animals cruelty and the account about the Christian who were oppressed and killed by the Romans in the arena. Those stories about the Christian martyrs left a bitter taste in my mouth and made me think how cruel humans are to those who don’t share their beliefs.
“(...) the Christians suffered another 250 years of torture and death as emperor after emperor sent them to the arena to be torn apart by animals. There were many Christians who died bravely and their stories make grim and gripping reading…” Ruthless Romans, Loc. 1060
To wrap it up, if you like history and want to grab a quick read, Ruthless Romans or any other volume from the Horrible Histories series may be a good pick for you because it contains curiosities, fun quizzes, jokes, puns, stories and games which make an engaging read for kids and adult alike.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 3, 2022
Jeetje wat een wrede mensen waren die Romeinen. Dit is geen boek voor tere zieltjes
October 30, 2022
Ruthless indeed....fit tho
June 16, 2024
Hilarious!
May 13, 2026
It alright 👍
September 2, 2015
Horrible Histories, Ruthless Romans by Terry Deary
This series of books describes itself as ‘History with the nasty bits left in’ and in many way that’s exactly what they are. This book in particular looks at the Roman Empire; it covers a very broad spectrum of what it was like to live as part of the Roman Empire from Roman theatre, to the deeds of some of Rome’s most infamous Emperors. Yes this book does have a tendency to focus on some of the more gory aspects of history (which may account for the series ‘s popularity with children) but it is also brimming with really useful and interesting knowledge about the Roman Empire (which probably explains the series’ popularity with parents and teachers). Who wouldn’t want to know the name of the Roman goddess of door hinges? (it’s Cordea if you were wondering.)
This is an excellent and very engaging book. Once I started it, I kept finding myself going back to read more. It’s broken up into bite size chapters so it’s quite easy to look up something that might be useful, plus it is full of amusing Illustrations by Martin Brown that help certain important and interesting facts. This book has a very clever way of dealing with some of the more disgusting parts of history, it makes them funny. I would recommend this book for pupils working at Key stage 2, as the level of humour is aimed at children around the age of seven to eleven (although there is a certain amount of toilet humour that could bring a smile to any adults face) . The illustrations also add to the humour of the book. This is a series of books that simultaneously manages to show both the serious and funny side of History. Obviously this book will be really good when teaching about Romans in History lessons. Sections of it can be used to help teach about specific areas of Roman life. Of course the one drawback is that there is a lot of Roman history which probably explains why Horrible Histories has two books on the subject (Rotten Romans), so a teacher may have to reference to get all the information they need.
This series of books describes itself as ‘History with the nasty bits left in’ and in many way that’s exactly what they are. This book in particular looks at the Roman Empire; it covers a very broad spectrum of what it was like to live as part of the Roman Empire from Roman theatre, to the deeds of some of Rome’s most infamous Emperors. Yes this book does have a tendency to focus on some of the more gory aspects of history (which may account for the series ‘s popularity with children) but it is also brimming with really useful and interesting knowledge about the Roman Empire (which probably explains the series’ popularity with parents and teachers). Who wouldn’t want to know the name of the Roman goddess of door hinges? (it’s Cordea if you were wondering.)
This is an excellent and very engaging book. Once I started it, I kept finding myself going back to read more. It’s broken up into bite size chapters so it’s quite easy to look up something that might be useful, plus it is full of amusing Illustrations by Martin Brown that help certain important and interesting facts. This book has a very clever way of dealing with some of the more disgusting parts of history, it makes them funny. I would recommend this book for pupils working at Key stage 2, as the level of humour is aimed at children around the age of seven to eleven (although there is a certain amount of toilet humour that could bring a smile to any adults face) . The illustrations also add to the humour of the book. This is a series of books that simultaneously manages to show both the serious and funny side of History. Obviously this book will be really good when teaching about Romans in History lessons. Sections of it can be used to help teach about specific areas of Roman life. Of course the one drawback is that there is a lot of Roman history which probably explains why Horrible Histories has two books on the subject (Rotten Romans), so a teacher may have to reference to get all the information they need.
January 20, 2012
As the title of the book suggests it is all about the Romans. The author of the book presents us with useful information on the founders of Rome, the medicine cures that they concocted, the evil emperors who ruled over Rome and the killings they inflicted on their people.
Personally have never really enjoyed the topic of History, however I found this book extremely easy to read and follow and even though it was very informative it did not ‘overload’ me with lots of information which could be deemed as irrelevant.
Terry Deary uses a lot of interactive activities – quizzes for example for children, which not only tests their knowledge but also makes it fun and gives them a break from reading. A lot of comical pictures are also included on every page which include captions of what has been written on the page, giving children a visual stimulus of what might have been said.
The book itself is 124 pages and is full of useful information and facts which children can easily understand interpret and remember. This book introduces children to the topic of Romans, allowing them to have a sound basis which they can then develop further knowledge on the subject.
I think this book would benefit upper KS2 children who are learning about the Romans, it presents them with the key facts in an easy to read manner and is written to make the learning fun and humorous.
Personally have never really enjoyed the topic of History, however I found this book extremely easy to read and follow and even though it was very informative it did not ‘overload’ me with lots of information which could be deemed as irrelevant.
Terry Deary uses a lot of interactive activities – quizzes for example for children, which not only tests their knowledge but also makes it fun and gives them a break from reading. A lot of comical pictures are also included on every page which include captions of what has been written on the page, giving children a visual stimulus of what might have been said.
The book itself is 124 pages and is full of useful information and facts which children can easily understand interpret and remember. This book introduces children to the topic of Romans, allowing them to have a sound basis which they can then develop further knowledge on the subject.
I think this book would benefit upper KS2 children who are learning about the Romans, it presents them with the key facts in an easy to read manner and is written to make the learning fun and humorous.
December 20, 2012
Bursting with interesting facts in a very child friendly style, the ‘Horrible Histories’ series is an unsurprising favourite with pupils.
This particular book, ‘Ruthless Romans’, entertainingly covers the commonly taught topic of Roman history, with the typically gruesome spin the series is known for. The authors in fact present the Romans as THE most ruthless group out of history compared to all others - which may be an interesting talk point to introduce the topic with.
The book contains a good overview of Roman history - from the period of Kings, to the Republic and finally the Empire, alongside chapters covering various topics; Roman beliefs, entertainment, the army and Rome’s enemies and medicine.
The book, like the rest of the series, contains fun quizzes which can encourage independent learning outside of the classroom, comic-book style illustrations, and many ‘special facts’ teacher’s don’t tend to teach!
This book would be best for KS2 pupils due to the reading level required and content. Small extracts could be read or put on the board by the teacher to introduce parts of the topic/ spark discussion during starter exercises. It is also an excellent resource for pupils undertaking any independent research for the purposes of a project or generally for the love of learning.
This particular book, ‘Ruthless Romans’, entertainingly covers the commonly taught topic of Roman history, with the typically gruesome spin the series is known for. The authors in fact present the Romans as THE most ruthless group out of history compared to all others - which may be an interesting talk point to introduce the topic with.
The book contains a good overview of Roman history - from the period of Kings, to the Republic and finally the Empire, alongside chapters covering various topics; Roman beliefs, entertainment, the army and Rome’s enemies and medicine.
The book, like the rest of the series, contains fun quizzes which can encourage independent learning outside of the classroom, comic-book style illustrations, and many ‘special facts’ teacher’s don’t tend to teach!
This book would be best for KS2 pupils due to the reading level required and content. Small extracts could be read or put on the board by the teacher to introduce parts of the topic/ spark discussion during starter exercises. It is also an excellent resource for pupils undertaking any independent research for the purposes of a project or generally for the love of learning.
April 3, 2020
3.5⭐️
September 1, 2017
Reading Ruthless Romans, ingesting information about ruckus raising varmints, I find that anger and killing seem to appear throughout history. Has there ever been a time when man was not violent asses and power hungry and murderous, and chose something decent instead? Anyhow, Romans, Caesar, conquering, et tu Brute. These little middle grade Scholastic Books authored by Terry Deary seem to have a common thread that runs through them all. Are we really that violent? Ew.
April 10, 2012
Interesting thesis: The Romans were the most horrible people of all time because (unlike the Aztecs and the Spanish Inquisition) they killed people for entertainment rather than for religious reasons or to stay alive themselves. So don't go on and on about how great they were just because they built nice straight roads.
June 19, 2015
Pretty gorry filled with interesting stories and facts.
January 4, 2020
Adorei, este livro mostra mais curiosidade do que os livros de História.
May 16, 2023
The very essence of the Romans
You know that saying by Albert Einstein “if you can’t explain it to a six-year-old, then you don’t understand it yourself”? Well this book is kinda like that.
It is one of the clearest explanations about all things Roman Empire that I have come across, delivered with short and concise wordings, accompanied with cool illustrations and a British sense of humour (with sarcasm, puns, and some dad jokes every now and then). What’s not to like? And, oh, it is indeed intended to educate young readers.
At the very beginning, the book shows a glimpse of what to come with this neat summary of the Roman timeline:
“First there were Roman “kings” - war leaders who went around smashing other people. Then the seventh king started smashing his own Roman people so…
Kings were thrown out and the people ruled themselves - that’s called a ‘republic.’ But the Romans decided one strong leader was better for smashing other people so…
They created ‘emperors’ with an ‘empire’ which smashed everyone in sight… and many who were out of sight too. It all started back in the distant mists of time in Italy…”
The book then proceeded to cover everything you can imagined about the day-to-day Roman life, from festivals and wedding ceremonies, to the different types of gladiators and how the gladiator matches were organised, the “hooligans” supporters fighting between people from Pompeii and Nuceria (like in football culture today), to the class warfare between the posh Patricians and the working class Plebeians.
It also covers the more superstitious side such as how to get into a Roman heaven, the story of the first ghost buster, the deal with the God of cupboard, how to spell a curse on your enemy, fortune telling (and how to do it ourselves at home), some of the local beliefs such as lighting strike is caused by angry gods, the story of one particular Emperor who banned sausages, or why it is unlucky to have a cow stuck on the roof of your house.
Moreover, the book addresses the misconceptions about the Romans, such as the ability of the Roman soldiers. Sure, they’re good at swords and war battles, but the one thing that became their winning edge was their ruthlessness, with unbelievable cruelty as their war tactics as well as towards their own deserters. You know what they did to Jesus with the whipping and the nailing on the cross? Yeah that looks mild now in comparison with the stories in the book. But nothing compares with what the evil emperors did to their enemies, which are described pretty vividly in this supposedly children’s book.
Another example of misconception is about the gladiators. Contrary to popular belief gladiators don’t usually fight to the death, but it was criminals and prisoners of war who do. Also, not all gladiators are slaves as there were some freemen who became gladiators, did well, and retire rich. In fact, gladiators from many different walks of life train and fight like boxers today, complete with the bettings happening on the fight day.
Meanwhile, every once in a while the book tells amusing stories that portrays the human day to day lives. Such as one story where there was once an old senator Aponius that fell asleep in an auction with his head kept nodding (a custom that indicate you’re bidding), and when he woke up he found out that he had just bought 13 gladiators (that cost him 90,000 gold pieces!).
And of course, there’s the amusing long list of many things during Roman times, including the shocking [and sometimes hilarious] remedies for diseases.
In the end, I cannot believe that all of these rich information are covered in just under 136 pages, and even that already includes all the fun quizzes. Needless to say I am thoroughly entertained while learning a lot, and will definitely show this book to my kids.
You know that saying by Albert Einstein “if you can’t explain it to a six-year-old, then you don’t understand it yourself”? Well this book is kinda like that.
It is one of the clearest explanations about all things Roman Empire that I have come across, delivered with short and concise wordings, accompanied with cool illustrations and a British sense of humour (with sarcasm, puns, and some dad jokes every now and then). What’s not to like? And, oh, it is indeed intended to educate young readers.
At the very beginning, the book shows a glimpse of what to come with this neat summary of the Roman timeline:
“First there were Roman “kings” - war leaders who went around smashing other people. Then the seventh king started smashing his own Roman people so…
Kings were thrown out and the people ruled themselves - that’s called a ‘republic.’ But the Romans decided one strong leader was better for smashing other people so…
They created ‘emperors’ with an ‘empire’ which smashed everyone in sight… and many who were out of sight too. It all started back in the distant mists of time in Italy…”
The book then proceeded to cover everything you can imagined about the day-to-day Roman life, from festivals and wedding ceremonies, to the different types of gladiators and how the gladiator matches were organised, the “hooligans” supporters fighting between people from Pompeii and Nuceria (like in football culture today), to the class warfare between the posh Patricians and the working class Plebeians.
It also covers the more superstitious side such as how to get into a Roman heaven, the story of the first ghost buster, the deal with the God of cupboard, how to spell a curse on your enemy, fortune telling (and how to do it ourselves at home), some of the local beliefs such as lighting strike is caused by angry gods, the story of one particular Emperor who banned sausages, or why it is unlucky to have a cow stuck on the roof of your house.
Moreover, the book addresses the misconceptions about the Romans, such as the ability of the Roman soldiers. Sure, they’re good at swords and war battles, but the one thing that became their winning edge was their ruthlessness, with unbelievable cruelty as their war tactics as well as towards their own deserters. You know what they did to Jesus with the whipping and the nailing on the cross? Yeah that looks mild now in comparison with the stories in the book. But nothing compares with what the evil emperors did to their enemies, which are described pretty vividly in this supposedly children’s book.
Another example of misconception is about the gladiators. Contrary to popular belief gladiators don’t usually fight to the death, but it was criminals and prisoners of war who do. Also, not all gladiators are slaves as there were some freemen who became gladiators, did well, and retire rich. In fact, gladiators from many different walks of life train and fight like boxers today, complete with the bettings happening on the fight day.
Meanwhile, every once in a while the book tells amusing stories that portrays the human day to day lives. Such as one story where there was once an old senator Aponius that fell asleep in an auction with his head kept nodding (a custom that indicate you’re bidding), and when he woke up he found out that he had just bought 13 gladiators (that cost him 90,000 gold pieces!).
And of course, there’s the amusing long list of many things during Roman times, including the shocking [and sometimes hilarious] remedies for diseases.
In the end, I cannot believe that all of these rich information are covered in just under 136 pages, and even that already includes all the fun quizzes. Needless to say I am thoroughly entertained while learning a lot, and will definitely show this book to my kids.
August 3, 2024
FANTASTIC! ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC HISTORY BOOKS FOR "TWEENS" AND UP!
I am a history buff and Latin language student (and so you learn a bit about ancient Rome during your studies). Also a Roman Catholic (so ancient Rome also factors into a lot of Catholic church history). This book taught me so much even I had never learned, all while being very enjoyable and entertaining to read (and horrifying). Even better, it did a pretty good job of being respectful to the dead while still maintaining a lighthearted tone as it related horrible facts -- a tightrope walk, indeed!
Spot on! I can't wait to read more of these books!
I am a history buff and Latin language student (and so you learn a bit about ancient Rome during your studies). Also a Roman Catholic (so ancient Rome also factors into a lot of Catholic church history). This book taught me so much even I had never learned, all while being very enjoyable and entertaining to read (and horrifying). Even better, it did a pretty good job of being respectful to the dead while still maintaining a lighthearted tone as it related horrible facts -- a tightrope walk, indeed!
Spot on! I can't wait to read more of these books!
Read
February 10, 2020Brilliant
Horrible histories should be read by everyone. Too often are the true facts and stories hidden and not told because only the romantic stuff is thought to be important.
There's a reason these books have been successful for so long. They contain the information everyone really want us to know!
Horrible histories should be read by everyone. Too often are the true facts and stories hidden and not told because only the romantic stuff is thought to be important.
There's a reason these books have been successful for so long. They contain the information everyone really want us to know!
March 14, 2020
It’s an awesome book you help me with my faces of history it’s way better than any other book that gladiators has so much information I thought it was going to be for younger kids but it’s for all ages I hope everyone gets this book.seriously it’s awesome!!!
I like the whole book has so much information what I don’t like about it is... I don’t know if I don’t like anything
I like the whole book has so much information what I don’t like about it is... I don’t know if I don’t like anything
October 27, 2019
Truly ghastly- especially passages about how ancient Romans used and abused animals.
I liked the myth busting parts. Thanks to popular culture there have been a lot of misconceptions made about this period of Italian history - especially about gladiators.
I liked the myth busting parts. Thanks to popular culture there have been a lot of misconceptions made about this period of Italian history - especially about gladiators.
August 10, 2022
Excellent book. I was a history major, and there were items in here that weren't covered in my semester long course on Rome. I wish these books had been around when I was a kid, would have made social studies so much more interesting.
November 30, 2023
Even as an adult I learn so much from these books. Another brilliant Horrible Histories that picks all of the interesting and gruesome bits from history and accompanied by great cartoons, brings history to life.
August 2, 2026
These are good books, quite informative. I just think behind all the fun and activities and all, or maybe due to them, the writer still manages to shock us by how brutal people were. Or maybe its not for my age group but i find this very upsetting and sad.
September 17, 2026
The first book I read while on exchange; a professor gave it to me because he knew I read. I have a certain fondness for it because of that. It tells the story in a fun and explicit way. It's a relatively quick read. I recommend it if you like history and don't mind violence.
December 14, 2020
Yes I bought the cover with Ben Willbond on it.
January 1, 2023
Wydaje mi się, że znajdowało się tutaj zdecydowanie zbyt wiele treści, która z czasem zaczęła przytłaczać.
February 15, 2023
A short overview of Romans
Displaying 1 - 30 of 64 reviews