Shortlisted for the Cundill Prize in Historical Literatureįinalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize (History)Ī San Francisco Chronicle Holiday Gift Guide SelectionĪ New York Times Book Review Editors’ Choice SelectionĪ sweeping, "magisterial" history of the Roman Empire from one of our foremost classicists shows why Rome remains "relevant to people many centuries later" ( Atlantic). SPQR is the Romans' own abbreviation for their state: Senatus Populusque Romanus, 'the Senate and People of Rome'.Named one of the Best Books of the Year by the Wall Street Journal, the Economist, Foreign Affairs, and Kirkus Reviewsįinalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award (Nonfiction) It explores not only how Rome grew from an insignificant village in central Italy to a power that controlled territory from Spain to Syria, but also how the Romans thought about themselves and their achievements, and why they are still important to us.Ĭovering 1,000 years of history, and casting fresh light on the basics of Roman culture from slavery to running water, as well as exploring democracy, migration, religious controversy, social mobility and exploitation in the larger context of the empire, this is a definitive history of ancient Rome.
SPQR is a new look at Roman history from one of the world's foremost classicists. And its debates about citizenship, security and the rights of the individual still influence our own debates on civil liberty today. Its myths and stories - from Romulus and Remus to the Rape of Lucretia - still strike a chord with us.
Its history of empire, conquest, cruelty and excess is something against which we still judge ourselves.
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