Tag Archives: Roman empire
By Ed Whelan, Contributing Writer, Classical Wisdom The Battle of Adrianople (378 AD) was one of the most important battles in ancient history. It was one of Rome’s greatest defeats and left an Emperor missing, presumed dead… it was the beginning of the end of an empire. Background to the Battle of Adrianople The Roman
Horace – Poet of the Golden Age
by Ed Whelan, Contributing Writer, Classical Wisdom “Mediocrity in poets has never been tolerated by either men, or gods, or booksellers.” So wrote Horace, one of the most celebrated of all the Roman poets. He lived during the Golden Age of Latin literature which occurred in the last decades of the Roman Republic, and continued
The Decline of the Eastern Empire
by Andrew Rattray It’s hard to pin the ultimate ending of the Roman Empire to a single cause. Of course there is no single date we can point to but rather a gradual collapse over hundreds of years. In the 3rd century the Empire was split into East and West, and by the 6th century
Ten Caesars
by Sean Kelly, Managing Editor, Classical Wisdom You know the names… …but do you know the men behind them? There are few, if any, names more consequential in the ancient world than Caesar. Centuries after the fall of the Roman Empire, the name Caesar still means one thing: leader. As late as the twentieth century,
Becoming Boudica: How Celtic Female Warrior Culture Challenged Rome
Written by Tom G. Hamilton, Contributing Writer, Classical Wisdom The Roman historian Tacitus tells us that the Celts made no distinction of sex when appointing their commanders and in western Iberia. According to the Greek historian Strabo, women fought alongside men. For the Celts, a woman could not only wage war—she was also a warrior
What Newly-Found 2,000-Year-Old Celtic Coins Tell Us About Boudica
Written by Tom G. Hamilton, Contributing Writer, Classical Wisdom As of this writing, news of the largest hoard of early Roman-era Celtic gold coins ever found— unearthed by a bird-watcher in Britain—are making headlines. The coins are reported to be Boudica-era gold “stater” Iceni coins. There is an understandable excitement all across the land, the