Roman Empire News
12 Byzantine Rulers: Part 8 - Justinian - Part 2
With the return of relative calm after the reign's turbulent beginnings, Justinian could turn to his most ambitious project, the reconquest of the Western Empire. For this, his most cherished goal, he looked to one man, the young, promising general, Belisarius. Justinian was rewarded with unswerving loyalty and unquestioned brilliance, and yet the road to reconquest was to be a difficult and tragic one for both men. Join Lars Brownworth as the story of Justinian's reconquest of Africa and Italy unfolds.
Propertius
A love-struck Roman male was once construed an oxymoron. The Latin mos maiorum placed duty to the state above all other considerations, including romance. Had not Aeneas sacrificed his love for Dido in siring the Roman race? And yet it was Rome that developed the love elegy, the poet's exaltation ...
12 Byzantine Rulers: Part 9 - Justinian - Part 3
With the reconquest of Italy seemingly complete and the Persian threat momentarily neutralized by the plague, Justinian could at last afford to rest. But the empire's enemies were everywhere- the plague abated and a charismatic new Gothic king arose in Italy. The empire could ill afford to keep its greatest general in disgrace, and Justinian would once again turn to the man he could never quite bring himself to trust. The final decade of his life would see the fruition of his epic dreams of reconquest, as well as the restoration of the building that still stands as the greatest testament to his reign. It would be the final act of a cast of characters the likes of whom the empire would never see again. Join Lars Brownworth for the conclusion of the reign of Justinian, the last of the Roman Emperors.
12 Byzantine Rulers: Part 10 - Heraclius
In the years following Justinian's death, the empire was rocked from within and without. Barbarians pushed in on every border and the empire's ancient enemy Persia ravaged the East unchecked. The empire met this challenge with a series of weak and foolish rulers who squandered what resources they had, and crumbled before the Persian onslaught. By the start of the 7th Century, the emperor was a virtual prisoner in his own palace, the Persians were beneath the walls of Constantinople, and the rest of the empire was in the hands of rebels. It looked as if the end had come at last, and yet, against all odds, an Armenian general was to defeat the Persians, sweep away the old Latin traditions and reform the empire on a Greek model. Join Lars Brownworth as he looks at Heraclius, whose reign saw this glittering triumph yet ended in such tragedy.
Roman Thoughts About Old Age
Cicero, one of the greatest men of letters in the Roman Empire had this to say about old age, and death:
Indeed I do not see why I should not venture to tell you what I myself think concerning death, because I fancy I see it so much more clearly, in proportion as I am less distant from it. I am persuaded that your fathers ..., men of the greatest eminence and very dear friends of mine, are living; and that life, too, which alone deserves the name of life. For whilst we are shut up in in this prison of the body we are fulfilling as it were the function and painful task of destiny, for the heaven-born soul has been degraded from its dwelling place abovem and it were buried in the earth, a situation uncongenial to its divine and immortal nature. |
