The History of Rome: The Republic

by Mike Duncan

THE ROMAN EMPIRE STANDS as the greatest political achievement in the history of Western civilization. From its humble beginnings as a tiny kingdom in central Italy, Rome grew to envelope the entire Mediterranean until it ruled an empire that stretched from the Atlantic to Syria and from the Sahara to Scotland. Its enduring legacy continues to define the modern world.
Mike Duncan chronicled the rise, triumph, and fall of the Roman Empire in his popular podcast series "The History of Rome". Transcripts of the show have been edited and collected here for the first time. Covering episodes 1-46, The History of Rome Volume I opens with the founding of the Roman Kingdom and ends with the breakdown of the Roman Republic. Along the way Rome will steadily grow from local power to regional power to global power. The Romans will triumph over their greatest foreign rivals and then nearly destroy themselves in a series of destructive civil wars. This is the story of the rise of Rome.

Mike Duncan is one of the foremost history podcasters in the world. His award winning series "The History of Rome" chronologically narrated the entire history of the Roman Empire over 189 weekly episodes. Running from 2007-2012, "The History of Rome" has generated more than 65 million downloads and remains one of the most popular history podcasts on the internet. The enduring popularity of "The History of Rome" earned it aniTunes Best of 2015 award and forms the basis for his forthcoming book “The Storm Before The Storm: The Beginning of the End of the Roman Republic” (Public Affairs Press). Duncan has continued this success with his ongoing series "Revolutions" — which so far has explored the English, American, French, and Haitian Revolutions. Since debuting in September 2013, "Revolutions" has generated more than 18 million downloads. Thanks to the worldwide popularity of his podcasts, Duncan has led fans on a number of sold-out guided tours of Italy, England and France to visit historic sites from Ancient Rome to the French Revolution. Duncan also collaborates with illustrator Jason Novak on informative cartoons that humorously explain the historical context for current events. Their work has been featured in The New Yorker, The Paris Review, The Awl, and The Morning News. He lives in Madison, Wisconsin.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Roman History, Ancient History, Audiobook, Historical, Politics

371 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 4, 2016

About the author

Mike Duncan is one of the most popular history podcasters in the world. His award-winning series, The History of Rome, narrated the rise and fall of the Roman Empire, and remains a beloved landmark in the history of podcasting. His ongoing series, Revolutions, explores the great political revolutions driving the course of modern history.

Duncan is author of Hero of Two Worlds: The Marquis de Lafayette in the Age of Revolution, forthcoming Aug 24, 2021. He is also the author of the New York Times bestselling book, The Storm Before the Storm: The Beginning of the End of the Roman Republic.

Reviews

[Adam · Rating 5 out of 5]

So glad I found this book and subsequently the podcast that preceded it. I listened to this on the way to work and read the book in the evening and thoroughly enjoyed every moment of the journey. Mike Duncan has revitalized my love for all things history (and especially antiquity) related.

[Joanna S · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this. It is soooo much juicier and more scandalous than Game of Thrones. It is filled with great factoids thrown in and a fantastic narrative. I am constantly amazed by how many little things from the Roman Empire persist today (the name Virginia or Cincinnati, the timing of Christmas, etc). My favourite thing so far in this book, and it was hard to choose, has been the chicken prophecies.

It is well told- Duncan points out where he got the information he presents, inaccuracies (probable or definite) in the histories he studied to write this, and the most probably versions of events where there are contradicting accounts.

I like the podcast more and cannot wait to listen to the podcast episodes that go past this point and find out more!

[Frank · Rating 3 out of 5]

MD's clear, well-delivered narrative brings history to life.

[Casey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Didn’t slap quite as hard as the podcast but still good

[Trace Watkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Leaving this review for the podcast; the scripts of which were compiled to write this book.

Holy shit this is probably the most entertaining, comprehensive, and well written documentation of anything the human race has ever produced. Mike Duncan is probably one of the best historians who ever lived, and he does such a good job of weaving together a massively complex history into a digestible and addicting narrative that gives you a complete and full understanding of the Rome from the foundation to the fall of the west.

10/10 if you think history or Rome are at all interesting you should definitely listen to this podcast.

[Daniel Zadravec · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just like his podcast, Mike Duncan does a fantastic job of breaking down a complex topic, such as 400 years of Roman history, into an easy to read book. Taking us from the founding of Rome, to the establishment of the Republic from the tyrannical kings of old, and finally to the degradation of the Republic itself, Duncan breaks it in down in an easy to read style. For anyone interested in learning Roman history, or even those already versed, I would highly recommend this book

[Toros Yesja · Rating 5 out of 5]

A terribly good podcast that I am going to add here because I am somewhat behind on my challenge. It is an expedient I can live with because it is at least as good as any book (according to my limited knowledge, to be sure).

[Luce Van der Whaal · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh, less a history of Rome than of military campaigns. Detailed parade of Roman leaders and military campaigns delivered amid numerous glaring mispronunciations, grammatical blunders and dubious observations. I was particularly put off by the author's snarky comments on the "vindictiveness of teenaged girls with unlimited text messaging." Seriously??

Mike Duncan, you really need to look up the difference between 'uninterested' and 'disinterested'. #RaiseTheBar.

There are certainly better options currently available which are thorough, informative, engaging and delivered in a more intelligent style. Try Tom Holland for a better experience. Fernand Braudel's 'Memory and the Mediterranean' is superlative and should be on every history lover's bookshelf.

[Liam · Rating 2 out of 5]

I attempted this great slog of a podcast, but ultimately it was just too boring for me. Also the material was presented so quickly that I could barely get a sense of what was being described before the next topic was being ushered in. It was almost like a series of one paragraph summaries of each 100 year time period. - Too quick to follow anything, yet also presented in a sterile monotone way.

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[David Lott · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The History of Rome" podcast by Mike Duncan was one of my favorite parts of college and law school. It felt like a part of me died in 2012 when the podcast ended. Fortunately Mike Duncan is preserving the content of his awesome podcast in book form.

Volume I: The Republic tells the story of the founding of Rome through the adventures of Julius Caesar.

This book (or the podcast) should be reviewed if anyone wants to hear the stories of Roman in a fun, easy to understand way.

[Thomas Ahle · Rating 5 out of 5]

The History of Rome podcast are the best narrated and most exciting piece of history I have ever read/listened to.

[Trey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I just listened to the podcast...all 74 hours of it!

[J.T. · Rating 5 out of 5]

(disclaimer: I listened to the podcast, have not read the written book)
A FANTASTIC summary of the history of Rome from its legendary and historical beginnings. The conversational tone of this project was the hook for me - it's like listening to a friend tell you an epic story. As a student of Latin, I always felt overwhelmed at the scope of Roman history - it felt like to understand Augustus, you had to understand Caesar; to understand Caesar, you had to understand the Republic; to understand the Republic, you had to understand the class struggles, the Punic wars, etc. This incredible resource connects all the dots from the very beginning. Having listened to this show, I finally feel like I'm ready to now jump into any period of Roman history and be ready to appreciate the stories in the political situation of their time.

The content spanning from the beginning of the Roman Republic through its end is particularly dramatic and engaging. Major figures such as the Gracchi brothers, Marius, Sulla, Clodius, and Crassus, whose stories are often outshone by those of Caesar and Augustus in the modern popular imagination, are placed in the context of their time. In fact, the stories of this age are so dramatic and so dense with twists, I plan to read them again. Altogether, the stories of these figures put the large changes in Roman social history into human form.

Duncan also attempts to highlight the women of their time whom history has glossed over or unfairly accused of crimes. His portraits of Livia/Augusta and Agrippina, and (later) Boutica and Zenobia are particularly compelling.

While I found the later episodes of the podcast (evidently not included in this book) to be slower going due to the constant churning of emperors, and general lack of characters whose (positive) contributions to history are as extensive or compelling as those celebrated in the heroic age, even still, the format allowed me to appreciate when the figures of greatest ability were able to take on the difficult socioeconomic forces of their time and reshape the empire to better stagger along for the next few decades. Figures like Aurelian, who reunited a Roman empire that had split into 3 countries (!); Diocletian, who introduced consequential reforms that would help the Empire for a time, before festering into causes of its demise (the tetrarchy, the bureaucracy, the monetary reforms); and Aetius, a backstabbing general who yet was so capable that he united disparate forces to turn back the tide on Atilla the Hun.

[Stephen Phillips · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very informative series -- technically I listened to the podcast but it is long enough that I feel treating this as a book is justified. It is a long history. The tone was fairly lighthearted with a good joke cracked here in there in Mike Duncan's distinctive style. I read this at the time of the election so I couldn't help but draw some parallels between current American politics and that of ages past. I guess I should remain skeptical as this is a shallow but wide dive into Roman history. Still, I took a few random points away from this, other than learning the general outline of Roman history:
* Romans had a surprising respect for the rule of law at first, though they still had many embittered civil rivalries (plebs vs patricians)
* Julius Caesar was absolutely brilliant, and did a lot of good administrative work. But also was kind of selfish and started a civil war because he didn't want to end his political career (applies to Augustus/Octavian as well, and many of the other competent emperors)
* Once the rule of law is weakened, it is hard to go back. That was how the Gracchi brothers gained power and eventually led to Julius Caesar gaining power
* After the Imperium started, it seems pretty clear to me that monarchies/dictatorships are an unstable form of government since ambitious men are willing to go very far to gain that kind of power. To have a successful run of emperors you need legitimacy (so you don't just get stabbed and usurped), competency (so those you screw beneath you don't just kill you before you collapse the empire), and a clear line of succession (so civil war doesn't break out immediately after your death). And these were often violated when civil war or succession crises broke out. It is just a pet theory but it's one I like.
* I didn't realize how tied in Christianity Constantine's reign was, and the crazy circumstances involved in some of his invasions.

Overall very good stuff.

[Robert P · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can read and write Latin and I have studied ancient Rome for over 50 years. I am working on a novel about the Second Punic War in my spare time. Generally I thought that you podcast was great through the first 40 episodes that I have listened to. Until we got into the Second Punic War about which I know a great deal I didn't really find any errors although I might have put the emphasis differently. Plus Duncan has a voice did you like to listen to it which is important. I think he's doing a great service 2 people so I gave him a 5. But he is incorrect about the start of the Second Punic War. He made it sound as though Hannibal did not violate the treaty ending the first Punic War by attacking Sagundum because Saguntum was on Carthage's side of the line it should not cross. But there was another stipulation that neither side should attack the allies of another and Saguntum was an ally of Rome. You can argue it was not an ally at the time of the treaty but if the stipulation was limited to allies at the time of the treaty those allies would have been enumerated. There is a Canon of legal and treaty interpretation that covers this but I digress. So I think Duncan is dead wrong about this and it is a very important point because he has switch the history entirely around and made it the fault of Rome in starting the Second Punic War rather than the fault of Carthage which it clearly and unequivocally was. This to me makes me wonder about his scholarship and his intentions and his intelligence

[Gandhi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked up this book to fill in my gaps of Roman History apart from the major events. I was fairly well-versed with the time of Julius Caesar until the time of his funeral. And with the Punic Wars. But everything before the Punic Wars, about the founding of Rome, to the seven kings, and the structuring of the senate and society, was all unknown. I also didn't know about the Macedonian Wars that were taking place around the time of the Punic Wars, and how Rome had provinces in Gaul, Spain, and the East (Illyria and Greece). The era of Marius and Sulla, the threat of Mithradates, the last of the strong personalities like Cato the Younger, Pompey, Cicero, Clodius, Mark Antony.

I listened to this along with Mike Duncan's other book, The Storm Before the Storm and now I have most of my questions answered. I think I will pick up with Augustus, move all the way to Nero, and stop there, because that's much more than I am interested in at the moment. There are way too many names for me to go on until the fall of the Western Roman Empire.

[Stone · Rating 5 out of 5]

I listened to the entire series of the original podcast -- indisputably one of the best podcast series ever created and the single most comprehensive podcast on Roman history to date. The book is a compiled version of Duncan's podcast transcript regarding the history of the Roman Republic, though with more succinct language and more organized structure. I find the series/book a perfect balance between fast-pacing historical overviews and generalizations and lengthy pedantic lectures -- a balance quite hard to achieve on such a broad and overarching topic. On that, Duncan certainly deserves the title of one the greatest history podcasters.

I highly recommend listening to the podcast as well as reading the book. The experience will certainly be a lot different depending on personal preferences, but the incredible quality of both works will be enough to keep you captivated.

[Zachary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Probably a bit more shallow on the details than I'd like, but otherwise very clear and accessible. Duncan rarely includes specifics like troop movements in battles, for example, nor does he draw on more in-depth scholarship about the intricacies of Roman culture or religion. Instead, he sticks to the basics of explaining the major events of the Roman Republic, their importance, and then frames it all in the larger narrative in an approachable and digestible way, so that even those with a very basic understanding of Roman history can follow along, all with a little humor sprinkled here and there to keep things feeling relatable.

[Steve · Rating 3 out of 5]

History is full of drama and stuff, ya'know?

The founding of Rome to the end of the Republic/Beginning of the Empire, the material goes through major points of Roman history while at the same time trying to put things into perspective of what may have been embellished... and what not.

I would highly recommend this for a easily digestible but comprehensive source of Roman history.

[Bitza · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great depiction of a great story - the history of Roman Republic. Concise, clear and very well written: not too shallow, not overly detailed. Some analogies to contemporary facts, intended for laughs, not really appealing to me. But all things considered, maximum credits from me.

[Luke Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid introduction to the late hellenistic period of world history and the origins of early Roman civilization. It is also helpful the book was edited from episodes free to anyone on most major podcast platforms.

[Shalief Arnold · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a huge fan of his podcasts and the book delivers on that experience. Wish Oct 24th was here so I could get The Storm Before the Storm.

[Mohamad Fazeli · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very good account of how a nation rises and what happens when they grow too much.
The fall of Rome repulic is the most studied part of history, and it is for a good reason .

[Trajan R. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great writer and even better podcaster.

[Samcwright · Rating 5 out of 5]

I listen to this podcast every year. It’s like 180 episodes or something at 15-30 mins a piece. So buckle up for a long ride. But it’s a great overview of the history of Rome from 753 BC to 476 AD.

[Edward Weiner · Rating 5 out of 5]

I listened to the entire podcast over a period of several years. It was fantastic.

[Michael Stokes · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's the antiaudiobook of the podcast. Just as good. Mike Duncan makes everything in the narrative utterly compelling.

[Dan Norris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mike's podcasts have been a mainstay throughout quarantine. Very excited for his book on Marquise de Lafayette.

[James King · Rating 5 out of 5]

Can't recommend the podcast and this more highly as an introduction to the history of Rome

[Murat Ulutin · Rating 5 out of 5]

A most easily accessible study of the roman republic. (And in the subsequent series, the empire)