“But though I am almost heart-broken at the orphanhood and desolation of our house, the good fortune and courage of our race forbid me to despair of the State…In the midst of this utter collapse one thing stood unshaken and unimpaired, the courage of the Roman people; it and it alone raised up and sustained all that lay prostrate in the dust.”- Scipio [...]
The city of Tyre has a rich mythological background. Legends say the city was the birthplace of both Europa, who was abducted by Zeus while he was in the shape of a bull, and the fabled Queen Dido of Carthage. Phoenicians founded the original city, called Ushu, around 2750 B.C. at the base of a bay. Its inhabitants built a smaller trade centre [...]
“It was the confidence with which he had in this way inspired his fellow-citizens that led them to entrust to him, young as he was, a task of enormous difficulty, and a command which involved the gravest responsibilities.” - Livy, History of Rome A deep despair hung over the city of Rome following the death of the Scipio brothers. The Roman Senate planned [...]
The city of Pergamon holds a rich history. Legends claim that Telephos, son of Hercules, established the city after the Trojan War. Many cities make a claim to ancestors connected with the Trojan War, but Pergamon’s may hold some truth. It was around 1200 B.C. that the first people settled its acropolis. Pergamon sat near a river, and had its own port city, [...]
A fascinating ancient people lived in the northern regions of Africa, to the west of Carthage. The Romans initially met them during The First Punic War, employed as mercenaries of Carthage. They called them the Numidians, possibly derived from the word nomad. During the Punic Wars, there were actually two main tribes, the Massylii and the Masaesyli. When the 2nd Punic War broke [...]
In 1776, Edward Gibbon published his massive, six book, History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. In it he popularized Niccolò Machiavelli’s classification of the “Five Good Emperors.” Though a subjective opinion, the five emperors who took power via adoption stand out as wise and just rulers. Their reigns marked the Golden Age of Rome. This post offers a short history [...]
“Though my mind shrinks from remembering, I will begin.” Pliny the Younger quoting Virgil’s Aeneid Pliny the Younger and his mother, Plinia Marcella, watched with trepidation as the Roman navy sailed away from Misenum. Plinia was a widower. Her brother had taken her in and adopted his seventeen-year-old nephew as his son and heir. Now, the man of the household was heading into unknown [...]
Falling rock and blocked shallows had forced Pliny the Elder and his navy from the shore at Herculaneum. Skirting the edge of the rock fall, they made their way down the coast to Stabiae, which lay south even of Pompeii. An area of numerous ornate villas, both for leisure and farm estates, it lay at the base of the peninsula. The blast from [...]
Despite close proximity to Mount Vesuvius, many of the citizens of Herculaneum seem to have escaped the volcano’s devastation. Being so close may well have saved them. A smaller, seaside resort town, the city lay directly under the shadow of the volcano. Early rumbles and growls convinced most to flee. For years, historians and archeologists believed all the citizens had successfully evacuated, but [...]
Pompeii is an amazing park. It plunges the visitor into a vision of Roman life, and also brings its human tragedy into sharp focus. Yet years of digging, poor early oversight, and improper protection of the site have forced frequent rebuilding. Many buildings are not ancient, but reconstructions meant to return the city to some semblance of its former glory. It doesn’t detract [...]