Swords Against the Senate: The Rise of the Roman Army and the Fall of the Republic - Hardcover

Hildinger, Erik

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0306811685 ISBN 13: 9780306811685

Publisher: Da Capo Press Inc, 2002

Synopsis

In the first century B. C. , Rome was master of the world but could not control its own citizens and its own army. After Rome defeated its age-old enemy, Carthage, it was the undisputed ruler of a vast empire. Yet, at the heart of the Roman Republic was a peculiar flaw: an uneradicable tension between the aristocracy and the plebians, and each regarded themselves as the foundation of Rome's military power. Swords Against the Senate relates how the republic began to come apart amid military and political turmoil-the smoldering anger of the common people, a petty war against a treacherous North African prince, an invasion by Germans and an Italian political uprising. In the crisis Gaius Marius, the "people's general," rises to despotic power but is eventually replaced by the brutal dictator Sulla, who in turn spawns the man who would transform turmoil into imperial triumph, Julius Caesar. In this fast-paced, fact-filled work, personal intrigue, treachery, and occasional moral virtue vie for the reins of power. The Roman army, once invincible against foreign antagonists, becomes a tool for the powerful and government its foe. Erik Hildinger has written a fascinating, insightful work of history.

About this title

About the Author

Erik Hildinger's first book was a tr anslation, from the Latin, of The Story of the Mon gols Whom We Call the Tartars. His following work was the widely acclaimed Warriors of the Steppe: A Military History of Central Asia from 500 B.C. to 1700 A.D. He currently lives in Ann Arbor, Michig an.

Edition details

• Publisher: Da Capo Press Inc
• Publication date: 2002
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0306811685
• ISBN 13: 9780306811685
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 256