The History of Ancient Rome

By: Garrett G. Fagan, The Great Courses

Narrated by: Garrett G. Fagan

Length: 22 hrs and 40 mins

Publisher's summary

Even today, the influence of Ancient Rome is indelible, with Europe and the world owing this extraordinary empire a huge cultural debt in almost every important category of human endeavor, including art, architecture, engineering, language, literature, law, and religion. At the peak of its power, Rome's span was vast. In the regional, restless, and shifting history of continental Europe, the Roman Empire stands as a towering monument to scale and stability, unified in politics and law, stretching from the sands of Syria to the moors of Scotland. And it stood for almost 700 years.

In this series of 48 spirited lectures, you'll see how a small village of shepherds and farmers rose to tower over the civilized world of its day and left a permanent mark on history. In telling Rome's riveting story, Professor Fagan draws on a wealth of primary and secondary sources, including recent historical and archaeological scholarship, to introduce the fascinating tale of Rome's rise and decline, including the famous events and personalities that have become so familiar:

• Horatius at the bridge
• Hannibal crossing the Alps during Rome's life-or-death war with Carthage
• Caesar being assassinated before a statue of his archrival Pompey
• The doomed lovers Antony and Cleopatra
• The mad and venal emperors Nero and Caligula
• The conversion of Constantine.

The course also addresses one of history's greatest questions: Why did the Roman Empire fall? And you'll learn why most modern scholars believe that the empire did not "fall" at all, but, rather, changed into something very different - the less urbanized, more rural, early medieval world.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.

©1999 The Teaching Company, LLC (P)1999 The Great Courses

Good information but scholarly

Do be aware that this lecture series is more scholarly and historical. So it is a bit dry. But with that in mind it is a good course and does a good job telling the remarkable story of roman civilization

My children asked me to please stop talking about Rome

This amazingly thorough but accessible trip through the history of Rome was a joy. Great details filling in overarching themes. I appreciate knowing when we are more or less certain about historical facts versus various theories. I view the world differently after listening to these lectures and highly recommend them.

History lovers delight!

I am a history buff so I am very familiar with the Roman Empire. It’s one of my favorite historical eras.
I learned a great deal more in this lecture series than I had hoped. The way the series was organized was logical and easy to follow. There were just enough details to educate me but not enough to make it overwhelming. The lecturer had a pleasant oration and pace. I will undoubtedly listen to certain chapters again.

Incredibly good course to learn about the Romans

GREAT course. Packed with information - amazing to see the impact the Romans had on us today as well as the different world they lived in.

Excellent Survey

Focus mainly on political and military history, but extremely well done and thorough. I would have like more information on architecture, road and aqueduct building, and contemporary influence.

Wonderful

Great information and cogent presentation. I completely enjoyed the coursr. I highly recommend it to anyone.

Rome and what you need to know!!!!!!!!!!!!

Would you consider the audio edition of The History of Ancient Rome to be better than the print version?

this is an excellent lecture series on the history of Rome by a very knowledgeable professor
it help me as I was taking a similar college class and the mix of both gave me a great understanding of the history and also the culture of the time

Who was your favorite character and why?

Augustus , he was such an wise ruler

What about Professor Garrett G. Fagan’s performance did you like?

ever thing his preparation and knowledge of the subject he also made it very interesting

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

all of it im a history and classics major

Great course but could have been a bit longer

I feel like the great courses format, 48 episodes 30 min each, partly ruins the course. The narrator multiple times mentions not being able to go into detail due to time limitations which I feel it's a shame.
I also with they'd remove the stupid trumpets.

Even with those issues I can definitely recommend this course! The narrator is great and obviously well informed. the focus on the rise and fall of the Republic but he goes through the entire history of the empire. The short focused episodes are also interesting.

Well read, and just so interesting

I’m a fan of Roman history, and have listened to quite a few.
This one I a gem, and something to listen to.
Lot’s of interesting facts in a serious way!
Highly recommended!

Clear Speaker

I really enjoyed this and I could tell that the lecturer enjoyed the subject through his anecdotes. It makes it a fun listen. However, if you are primarily interested in the Roman Empire rather than the republic, I would choose something else. Much less in depth about the later years of the empire.