Ancient Italy

When Livy began his epic The History of Rome, he had no idea of the fame and fortune he would eventually attain. He would go on to become the most widely read writer in the Roman Empire and was eagerly sought out and feted like a modern celebrity. And his fame continued to grow after his death. His bombastic style, his intricate and complex sentence structure, and his flair for powerfully recreating the searing drama of historical incidents made him a favorite of teachers and pupils alike.

Tacitus, who condemns the depravity of these rulers, which he saw as proof of the corrupting force of absolute power, writes caustically of the brutal and lecherous Tiberius, the weak and cuckolded Claudius, and "the artist" Nero. In particular, his account of the bloody reigns of Tiberius and Nero brims with plots, murder, poisoning, suicide, uprisings, death, and destruction. The Annals also provides a vivid account of the violent suppression of the revolt led by Boudicca in Britain, the great fire of Rome under Nero, and the subsequent bloody persecution of the Christians.

Sicily has always acted as a gateway between Europe and the rest of the world. Fought over by the Phoenicians and Greeks, the Romans, Goths and Byzantines, Arabs and Normans, Germans, and the Spanish and the French for thousands of years, Sicily became a unique melting pot where diverse traditions merged, producing a unique heritage and singular culture. In this fascinating account of the island from the earliest times to the present day, author and journalist Jamie Mackay leads us through this most elusive of places.

Discover the prodigious global influence of il bel paese in this star-studded retelling of Italy's past-from a foremost author of historic Italy. The Shortest History books deliver thousands of years of history in one riveting, fast-paced book.

On August 24 and 25 in the year 79 A.D., a Volcanic eruption from Mt. Vesuvius spewed fire, lava, smoke, and ash upon the city of Pompeii, burying it and many of its inhabitants. Before this catastrophe, the streets of Pompeii had been bustling with the activity of its people, busy with commerce supported by its shipping trade and its role as a link between interior Italy and the outside world. In Pompeii, based on the Time Life Books series Lost Civilizations, you'll visit this ancient, lost city as it was in its heyday and how it exists today, its ruins lying in the shadow of Mt. Vesuvius.

Nessun personaggio storico, se si esclude, forse, Adolf Hitler, ha mai goduto di così cattiva stampa come Nerone. Alcuni autori cristiani ritennero che fosse addirittura l’Anticristo. In realtà, Nerone fu un grandissimo uomo di Stato. Durante i quattordici anni del suo regno l’Impero conobbe un periodo di pace, di prosperità, di dinamismo economico e culturale quale non ebbe mai né prima né dopo di lui.

From the national best-selling author of The Serpent and the Pearl comes the continuing saga of the ruthless family that holds all of Rome in its grasp, and the three outsiders thrust into their twisted web of blood and deceit.…

As the cherished concubine of the Borgia Pope Alexander VI, Giulia Farnese has Rome at her feet. But after narrowly escaping a sinister captor, she realizes that the danger she faces is far from over - and now, it threatens from within. The Holy City of Rome is still under Alexander's thrall, but enemies of the Borgias are starting to circle.

Book two of Theodore Mommsen's history begins in 509 BC, when the last Roman king was expelled and a republican form of government was formed. Starting here, we trace Rome's political and cultural development under an aristocracy whose puritan fanaticism is legendary. But security from surrounding hostile tribes was of uppermost concern, and the city was constantly at war with one tribe or another. During the fifth century BC, the Republic's energies were directed toward uniting or subduing her neighbors.

In the year 493, the leader of a vast confederation of Gothic warriors, their wives, and children personally cut down Odoacer, the man famous for deposing the last Roman emperor in 476. That leader became Theoderic the Great (454-526). This engaging history of his life and reign immerses listeners in the world of the warrior-king who ushered in decades of peace and stability in Italy as king of Goths and Romans.

Nel sesto volume: La Monarchia militare. Elenco dei capitoli: Regime della restaurazione di Silla; Caduta dell'oligarchia e predominio di Pompeo; Pompeo e l'Oriente; Lotta dei partiti durante l'assenza di Pompeo; Ritorno di Pompeo e coalizione dei pretendenti; Assoggettamento dell'Occidente; Pompeo e Cesare; Morte di Crasso: rottura tra gli autocrati; Brindisi-Lerida-Farsalo-Tapso; La vecchia Repubblica e la nuova monarchia; Religione, cultura, letteratura ed arte.

In this engrossing account, Judith Herrin explains how scholars, lawyers, doctors, craftsmen, cosmologists and religious luminaries were drawn to Ravenna where they created a cultural and political capital that dominated northern Italy and the Adriatic. As she traces the lives of Ravenna's rulers, chroniclers and inhabitants, Herrin shows how the city became the meeting place of Greek, Latin, Christian and barbarian cultures and the pivot between East and West.

Immerse yourself in the history of ancient Rome - from its origins as a small settlement on the Palatine Hill to its peak as an empire reigning over 90 million people, and its tumultuous decline. Covering more than 1,000 years of history, and an empire that stretched from Scotland to Syria, Ancient Rome reveals in vivid detail all of the key political, cultural, and military events that shaped the Roman Empire and explores what it was like to live in a society that laid the foundations for many aspects of the modern world.

No city on earth has preserved its past as has Rome. Visitors stand on bridges that were crossed by Julius Caesar and Cicero, walk around temples visited by Roman emperors, and step into churches that have hardly changed since popes celebrated mass in them 16 centuries ago. These architectural survivals are all the more remarkable considering the violent disasters that have struck the city. Afflicted by earthquakes, floods, fires and plagues, it has most of all been repeatedly ravaged by roving armies.

Il terzo audiolibro tratta del periodo delle guerre puniche, della figura di Annibale, e della guerra contro la Macedonia. Elenco dei capitoli: Cartagine; Guerra tra Roma e Cartagine per il possesso della Sicilia; Estensione dell'Italia fino ai suoi confini naturali; Amilcare ed Annibale; Guerra annibalica sino alla battaglia di Canne; Guerra Annibalica, da Canne a Zama.

Il secondo libro tratta dell'epoca d'oro della republica romana, fino al mostrarsi dei primi segni di decadenza. Elenco dei capitoli: Cambiamento della costituzione. Limitazione dei poteri alla magistratura suprema; Il tribunato del popolo e i decemviri; La perequazione dei ceti e la nuova aristocrazia; Caduta della potenza Etrusca. I Celti; Sottomissione dei Latini e dei Campani alla signoria di Roma; Gli Italici contro Roma; Re Pirro contro Roma.

Il quarto audiolibro tratta del periodo dalla sottomissione di Cartagine a quella della Grecia; tratta inoltre del cambiamento della cultura romana nell'economia, nella letteratura e nella cultura in genere dovuto all'ellenizzazione.

Una síntesis magistral de la totalidad de la vida romana, desde su fundación hasta su ocaso a manos de los bárbaros. En esta obra, Miguel Ángel Novillo López, emprende la necesaria labor de resumir los quince siglos de la existencia de la cultura romana con fin de crear una obra altamente didáctica, amena y rigurosa. Una ventana limpia a la civilización que sentó las bases de nuestro modo de vida actual.

A History of Rome is the story of a tiny market town on the Tiber, its rise to world domination, and then its slow, terrible plunge to utter ruin. It is the single greatest event in all human history.

Meditations is former US President Bill Clinton's favorite book. This audio consists of a series of personal writings by Marcus Aurelius, Roman Emperor AD 161-180, setting forth his ideas on Stoic philosophy.

Imperial Tragedy tells the story of Rome's gradual collapse. Full of palace intrigue, religious conflicts and military history, as well as details of the shifts in social, religious and political structures, Imperial Tragedy contests the idea that Rome fell due to external invasions.