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History of Rome: A Captivating Guide to Roman History, Starting from the Legend of Romulus and Remus through the Roman Republic, Byzantium, Medieval ... to Modern History

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If you want to discover the captivating history of Rome, then keep reading...

Rome started as a kingdom, thrived as a republic, conquered vast territories when it was an empire, and became the Holy City during the Middle Ages. Even today, Rome continues to intrigue us with its rich history, architecture, art, literature, religion, laws, and language. The abundant archaeological findings of Rome and its surrounding are but a fragment of what the city once was. Nevertheless, it is enough to engage us, tickle our imagination, and satisfy our thirst for knowledge.

The importance of Rome cannot be argued. Its history is not the history of Italy or its people. Rome is a part of the foundation of Europe, just as Athens is. Without it, the world as we know it today wouldn’t exist.

In History of A Captivating Guide to Roman History, Starting from the Legend of Romulus and Remus through the Roman Republic, Byzantium, Medieval Period, and Renaissance to Modern History , you will discover topics such as So if you want to learn more about the history of Rome, scroll up and click the "add to cart" button!

204 pages, Paperback

Published October 20, 2020

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Captivating History

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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
4,052 reviews22 followers
October 23, 2020
Captivating History starts the story of Rome with the mythological story (and variations) of the tale of Romulus and Remus.  Then the author explains a different myth according to the famous Roman Virgil.  Looking for archaeological evidence, they found a pastoral settlement as early as the 14th century BCE.  

Small villages merged into city-states and an elite class emerged in the 7th century BCE.  At this point, Rome was a monarchy with a king and was ruled by them for the first two-and-a-half-centuries.    One fascinating fact is that early religion wasn't related to morality but to having a good relationship with gods and the city-state.  Rituals and animal sacrifices were important.

The Roman monarchy fell about 509 BCE and was replaced with a republic.  With this change, the city was the property of all its people, not just the king.  In fact, anything having to do with 'kingship' was hated and scorned by the people of Rome.  Consuls replaced the king; there were two and they could veto each other.  They also kept each other in check and only led for a year.

Today's civil law of the Western world is based on Roman's Twelve Tables Laws and the improvements they added over the centuries.  They introduced, equality, justice, and punishment for all citizens.  After the Punic Wars, Rome was opened to Greek influence.  The Roman aristocracy enjoyed the softness and leisure that the Greeks introduced.

The following pages outline the amazing collection of Roman leaders.  One shocking statistic about Julius Caesar was that in 46 BCE, his conquest of Gaul (France) cost one million Gallic lives, plus the enslavement of another million.  I was stunned to see there were that many people in Gaul at that time.

The story of the various Roman consuls who eventually merged into Octavius becoming emperor sounds like a soap opera.  Captivating History should be commended for encapsulating so much history in just a few pages.  Part of the history of Rome is the story of the Holy Roman Empire and the Byzantine Empire (centered in Constantinople).  After the Western Roman Empire fell, the Byzantine Empire with Justinian I entered a significant phase.

However, 200 years of the Justinian Plague ravaged Europe and Asia Minor.  After the formation of the Papal States, the two factions of the Catholic Church began long arguments that lead to the Great Schism (which has never been resolved).  The pages explaining the wars between the pope and kings shows why our forefathers were so smart to keep religion and government separate.

The Renaissance, which influenced all aspects of life, inspired people to rediscover their history and study the idea of humanism.  Renewed learning (and the printing press) allowed commoners to read the Bible themselves and interpret God's word on their own.  Before long, people like Martin Luther were calling the Church out for abuses.  Once the hole started in the dike, religion exploded and the Catholic Church lost its authority.

Finally, this book rounds out Rome's history with a quick summary of the  Italians part in WWI and WWII.  This is an amazing accomplishment to tell so much history is under 200 pages. 
Profile Image for Sharon.
Author 38 books400 followers
December 5, 2020
The Capivating Guide series is a new collection of works by historian Matt Clayton. What he's done in these books is provide an overview of one specific region, group of people, or event. It must be said, he's prolific ... and he clearly does his homework, as each guidebook has an excellent bibliography at the end.

This book covers a lot of ground in 190 pages. As the title clearly states, we go back into mythological history and come right up into modern times. That's a lot of history to cover, which means that it's kind of "a mile wide and an inch deep." Still, it serves as an excellent introduction to Roman history and will likely be an excellent starting place for some scholars.

The one down side to this book was its pedantic tone. Yes, it's non-fiction, but sometimes it crawled a bit. All the same, I would recommend the book to someone curious about Roman history and unsure where to begin.
Profile Image for Dale Switzer.
5 reviews4 followers
January 26, 2021
Even the authors must be bored

Reads like Cliffs notes. This is supposed to be a detailed history of Rome but it just summarizes the founding myths. Doesn't even give the original brutus his full name or explain about him. Tells us only the names of the 7 kings without telling us anything about them. Even though it slips all details it also fails to tell an interesting narrative. I feel like the authors must be as bored of their subject as they are making me. No wonder high school students hate history.
Profile Image for Michael Wells.
1,157 reviews10 followers
November 14, 2020
History of Rome

Rome is one of the fabulous cities in the world. It’s history goes back thousands of years and involves many different people. This book covers from the beginning myth of Rome to present day Rome. It is a very insightful and knowledgeable book. I highly recommend it
Profile Image for Bob Short.
1 review
April 25, 2024
Basic History of Rome (the city)

This is a very rudimentary history of Rome that focuses on the city itself rather than the
empire while also discussing aspects of both. The straight up list of emperors and popes gets tedious at times leaving one wanting more details, but the book is what it is at 200 pages. The writing style is very simple and appropriate for a young audience.
Profile Image for Harold Harkin.
50 reviews
May 29, 2021
Great book by Captivating History

📖 📚 Well written book by Captivating History, will buy from again love these history books by Captivating History looking forward Reading other history Books. 📖 📚
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews