Emperor of Rome: Ruling the Ancient Roman World
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- Author：Mary Beard
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Summary
A sweeping account of the social and political world of the Roman emperors by “the world’s most famous classicist” （ Guardian ）。
In her international bestseller SPQR ， Mary Beard told the thousand-year story of ancient Rome。 Now she shines her spotlight on the emperors who ruled the Roman empire， from Julius Caesar （assassinated 44 BCE） to Alexander Severus （assassinated 235 CE）。 Emperor of Rome is not your usual chronological account of Roman rulers， one after another: the mad Caligula， the monster Nero， the philosopher Marcus Aurelius。 Beard asks bigger questions: What power did emperors actually have？ Was the Roman palace really so bloodstained？ She tracks down the emperor at home， at the races， on his travels， even on his way to heaven。 She introduces his wives and lovers， rivals and slaves， court jesters and soldiers—and the ordinary people who pressed begging letters into his hands。 Emperor of Rome goes directly to the heart of Roman （and our own） fantasies about what it was to be Roman， offering an account of Roman history as it has never been presented before。
In her international bestseller SPQR ， Mary Beard told the thousand-year story of ancient Rome。 Now she shines her spotlight on the emperors who ruled the Roman empire， from Julius Caesar （assassinated 44 BCE） to Alexander Severus （assassinated 235 CE）。 Emperor of Rome is not your usual chronological account of Roman rulers， one after another: the mad Caligula， the monster Nero， the philosopher Marcus Aurelius。 Beard asks bigger questions: What power did emperors actually have？ Was the Roman palace really so bloodstained？ She tracks down the emperor at home， at the races， on his travels， even on his way to heaven。 She introduces his wives and lovers， rivals and slaves， court jesters and soldiers—and the ordinary people who pressed begging letters into his hands。 Emperor of Rome goes directly to the heart of Roman （and our own） fantasies about what it was to be Roman， offering an account of Roman history as it has never been presented before。
Reviews
Cerisaye
，
I listened to the audiobook read by Mary Beard as though she was right there talking to me with her unbounded enthusiasm for Ancient Rome。 I love history but have never studied the period covered by the book。 My knowledge comes almost entirely from fiction ， in particular the BBC'S adaptation of Robert Graves' I Claudius， the more recent series Rome， Frankie Howerd's Up Pompeii etc。 I went to an Evening with Mary Beard recently， part of the launch tour for Emperor of Rome， and listening to her r I listened to the audiobook read by Mary Beard as though she was right there talking to me with her unbounded enthusiasm for Ancient Rome。 I love history but have never studied the period covered by the book。 My knowledge comes almost entirely from fiction ， in particular the BBC'S adaptation of Robert Graves' I Claudius， the more recent series Rome， Frankie Howerd's Up Pompeii etc。 I went to an Evening with Mary Beard recently， part of the launch tour for Emperor of Rome， and listening to her read the book was an extended version of that。 She must have been a brilliant lecturer to young students， such a good communicator with an infectious enthusiasm for her subject。 Learning in her company is fun and easy。 I now have much greater knowledge and understanding of what it was to be a Roman Emperor during the Classical period， from Augustus to the mid 200s CE， and what an Emperor was for。 In many ways a role played as in Theatre by a succession of men and boys known， or not， to posterity as Good， Bad or Indifferent。 Entertaining， learned， insightful and with much relevance to our contemporary politics & government。 。。。more
Italo De Nubila
，
Great book！ Funny to see how absolute power brings out the worst in individuals！
Faith
，
“Emperor of Rome” explores the fact and fiction of these rulers of the ancient Roman world， asking what they did， why they did it， and why their stories have been told in the extravagant， sometimes lurid， ways that they have。 It looks at big questions of power， corruption and conspiracy。 But it also looks at the day-to-day practicalities of their lives。 What， and where， did they eat？ Who did they sleep with？ How did they travel？”“The old-style Emperor of Rome， who has been the focus of this book “Emperor of Rome” explores the fact and fiction of these rulers of the ancient Roman world， asking what they did， why they did it， and why their stories have been told in the extravagant， sometimes lurid， ways that they have。 It looks at big questions of power， corruption and conspiracy。 But it also looks at the day-to-day practicalities of their lives。 What， and where， did they eat？ Who did they sleep with？ How did they travel？”“The old-style Emperor of Rome， who has been the focus of this book has left an enduring mark on the history and culture of the West。 His statues have bequeathed a template for representing power， clad in battle dress or toga。 His titles lie behind the modern language of autocracy， from emperor （imperator） to prince （princeps）， Kaiser to Czar （both from Caesar）。 He is a figure who has given us an image of how to rule， as well as a warning of how not to。”A few years ago I tried to read this author’s “Twelve Caesars: Images of Power from the Ancient World to the Modern”。 I thought that it would be a discussion of the lives of the Emperors as reflected in art。 In turned out to be art history， and it bored me。 Fortunately， this new book is what I had hoped to get from the prior book。 It describes the job of Roman Emperor。 It includes: how they lived， what they ate， how they decorated their homes， the exercise of power， class differences， their paperwork， who served them， cash flow， Emperors at play， how and where they traveled， how they looked and how they died。 The book explores the various ways in which the lives of the Emperors are portrayed in books and art are a reflection of how the Emperor’s’ successors and subjects needed them to be。 I liked that this was not just a chronological slog through the lives of all of the Emperors， and I also liked that there are no battles。 I’ve read plenty of books like that already。 This book is dense， but I found it lively and fascinating。 There are illustrations and an extensive bibliography that includes suggestions for places to visit。 I received a free copy of this book from the publisher。 。。。more
Lisa
，
My favourite book of the year。 As someone who already knew a reasonable amount about the Roman emperors， I was blown away by how much I learnt from this book。 Taking a thematic approach， it delves into what it really meant to be a Roman emperor， what they got up to on a daily basis， what their job description entailed， etc。 The result is an utterly fascinating， entertaining and accessible read that I would recommend to anyone。 Whether you a complete novice when it comes to Ancient Roman history， My favourite book of the year。 As someone who already knew a reasonable amount about the Roman emperors， I was blown away by how much I learnt from this book。 Taking a thematic approach， it delves into what it really meant to be a Roman emperor， what they got up to on a daily basis， what their job description entailed， etc。 The result is an utterly fascinating， entertaining and accessible read that I would recommend to anyone。 Whether you a complete novice when it comes to Ancient Roman history， or a scholar who has made the study of it their life’s work， everyone will gain something positive from this book。 Mary Beard proves once again why she is one of the world’s leading authorities on Ancient Rome。 Read it and enjoy。 。。。more
Mark Porton
，
Emperor of Rome by the wonderful Mary Beard is essential reading for lovers of Roman antiquity， but ALSO for those who are hanging out for an introduction to this incredible period of human history。 This account covers the period from Augustus （27 BCE） to the teenage Elagabalus （reign ended 222 CE）。Usually， any account of the Emperors of Rome is chronological。 You know， Augustus （the great）， Tiberius （the miserable）， Caligula （the nutter）， Claudius （the unexpected）， Nero （the ginga ninja – but a Emperor of Rome by the wonderful Mary Beard is essential reading for lovers of Roman antiquity， but ALSO for those who are hanging out for an introduction to this incredible period of human history。 This account covers the period from Augustus （27 BCE） to the teenage Elagabalus （reign ended 222 CE）。Usually， any account of the Emperors of Rome is chronological。 You know， Augustus （the great）， Tiberius （the miserable）， Caligula （the nutter）， Claudius （the unexpected）， Nero （the ginga ninja – but also a nutter）…。and so on。 Well， Professor Beard here， tackles this lot of Emperors differently。 That is， by Topic。 Food， slaves， succession， administration and so much more。The section on Imperial Dinners was brilliant。 Caligula used to nip off with the wives of male guests， have sex with them， return the poor woman to the table and proceed to demean her and her husband。 Elagabalus used to have colour themed dinners – the black ones were sure to scare the guests， he also introduced “whoopee cushions” to the world at his dinners – this gender fluid emperor was a genius！！ Skin flint， Tiberius， served up yesterday’s leftovers for a ‘feast’ the following day – bahahaha。 The fact is， Imperial dining is a particularly revealing lens into the world of the emperor from Sadism to generosity， luxury to terror。 The imperial dining room was a site of danger as well as pleasure for the unsuspecting guests。 Poisoning had an uncanny close relationship to cookery。 There’s a chapter on the Job Description of an emperor。 They had so much correspondence， it makes one wonder how they go through it。 They probably had their minders reply to much of it。 But one thing that struck me was the ‘light touch of power’ in the empire。 There was only 1 administrator for every 300，000 people – amazing！ Succession was another wonderful chapter – the complexities involved。 Also， the importance of adoption in determining who would be heir。 Many， or most adoptions involved an emperor adopting an adult male as son。 It does seem to me， that adoption （i。e。。 selecting an individual with the right skill set） was far more successful in producing decent heirs than by birth。 For example， the year of the 5 Good Emperors - Nerva （was appointed by the senate after Nero）， Trajan， Hadrian， Antoninus Pius and Marcus Aurelius， all adopted， were considered good， great， emperors。 However， Marcus Aurelius allowed his biological basket-case of a son， Commodus， to take over after his death， and that ended in tears， to put it mildly。The chapter on women was enthralling。 Women of the Imperial House helped to both guarantee succession and simultaneously threaten to disrupt it。 Messalina’s intrigues with one of her aristocratic lovers （for apparently she had many） who were apparently ready to stage a coup - resulted in her being put to death on her husband’s – Claudius – orders with him quipping – “Am I still Emperor， am I still emperor？” Brutal stuff。The equally promiscuous daughter of Augustus， Julia， who was known for having a keen sense of humour only took on a lover when she was pregnant to her husband。 She was quoted as saying “I never take a passenger on board， except when the hold is already full”。 That is brilliant – I hope it’s true！Interestingly， Mary Beard starts this book and ends it with a discussion on Elagabalus。 He’s a little-known emperor。 He reigned 218 CE – 222 CE。 He was only a boy， aged 14 – 18 years during his reign。 He was from Syria and came to be emperor due to some tenuous link with the royal bloodline。 This young boy was responsible for a massive empire。 Imagine that？ I was squeezing pimples at that age and arguing with mum and dad about how long I could stay out with my mates - he was ‘large and in charge’ of an empire！ He was also different， he dressed flamboyantly， much to the horror of the Roman Conservatives， he was a follower of the Sun God （hence the name）， in fact he installed Elegabal as the chief deity， thus causing religious difficulties in Rome， not helped by his marriage to a Vestal Virgin！！ Yes， a Vestal Virgin！！！！ But importantly， Mary Beard paints a picture of a human being， a person， a young boy – probably gender fluid。 Notably， he even asked one of his surgeons to cut him a vagina。 Mary Beard humanises these people。 She brings them into your lounge room， she introduces us them as folks， and I love her for that。 If you have even slightest inkling to know more about this crazy gang – read this。 If you want an extra-sensory experience， listen to Professor Beard’s audiobook as I did – it is quite simply， magic。Elegabalus……poor lad （my opinion） – executed to make way for Severus Alexander。5 Stars 。。。more
Anne Morgan
，
In "Emperor of Rome" Mary Beard takes on Rome's early emperors- not to give us biographies of them as individuals， but to explore what it meant to be an emperor in ancient Rome。 It is a really interesting examination of what the people expected/wanted their emperor to do， the role they wanted him to play， and how he was judged "good" or "bad" according to how he was seen to fit that role。 Instead of going chronologically by person， Beard goes by subject: dining， entertaining， religion， military In "Emperor of Rome" Mary Beard takes on Rome's early emperors- not to give us biographies of them as individuals， but to explore what it meant to be an emperor in ancient Rome。 It is a really interesting examination of what the people expected/wanted their emperor to do， the role they wanted him to play， and how he was judged "good" or "bad" according to how he was seen to fit that role。 Instead of going chronologically by person， Beard goes by subject: dining， entertaining， religion， military life， etc。， and explores what those things meant to the Romans and what the emperor's role was meant to be （as best we can tell）- including some notable successes and failures。 She's good at reminding us of which sources are more reliable than others and why， who was trying to curry favor with the current emperor in their writings， and how that would influence what they said compared to what historians and archaeologists can discover about them。 What was really interesting to me was discovering how much of a role the emperor really was， compared to the individual。 There were specific forms for the emperor in art， in letters， in speeches， and Beard argues that it didn't matter who the person was who filled the role- especially the further you got from Rome itself。 The man was meant to fit the formula and what tends to stand out or be invented later on are stories about things that didn't fit the formula。The book itself was a bit dense at times， and hard going， although other times I found it easy to read and enjoyable。 Not the lightest of books， but very thought-provoking and interesting。I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review 。。。more
Book Club of One
，
Mary Beard's Emperor of Rome: Ruling the Ancient Roman World is a "lives of the rich and famous，" focused specifically on the Roman Emperors from Julius Caesar to Alexander Serverus。 The rational for selecting this time period was that anyone encountering Roman rule would find much the same in governance， structure and daily life。 It is after Severus's rule that the empire began to splinter with rapid change of rulers， and the eventual splitting。 Beard begins the work with the listing of the 'm Mary Beard's Emperor of Rome: Ruling the Ancient Roman World is a "lives of the rich and famous，" focused specifically on the Roman Emperors from Julius Caesar to Alexander Serverus。 The rational for selecting this time period was that anyone encountering Roman rule would find much the same in governance， structure and daily life。 It is after Severus's rule that the empire began to splinter with rapid change of rulers， and the eventual splitting。 Beard begins the work with the listing of the 'main characters' serving as a handy quick reference listing each of the emperors， a brief lineage， their wife/wives and a year span of their rule。 From then the book spends the first two chapters establishing the setting， an overview of Roman history and how it shifted from republic to empire。 With this background in place， Beard then follows an Emperor from dinner table to death， moving through different aspects of Roman life as centered on the emperor in many different aspects of daily life。 A recurrent motif of Emperor of Rome is how little detail there is about some of the aspects， aside from a few surviving writings， much of what we learn is from the perspective of witnesses and historians， we have little from the emperor's themselves。 There is always the constant question of what the writers motivations might be in recording their account， with all the political entanglements and frailty of mortality。 In the chapter about palaces， the archeological record is used to support different documents， of which we know best the lowest floors of a building， with upper floors still something of a mystery。 By choosing to have chapters focused on common topics， Beard is able to compare and contrast the different choices and ruling style of the emperors， instead of merely detailing a chronological discussion of their eras。 And there is a good deal of variation， with some emperor's supposedly focused merely on pleasure or whimsy of wealth （Nero） to the very well traveled Hadrian。 Beard's Emperor of Rome shows a fuller idea of what life was like for over 2oo years of Imperial Rome。 Recommended for those interested in history。I received a free digital version of this EBook via NetGalley thanks to the publisher。 。。。more
Steve
，
Listened to this while I was terribly sick with the flu。
Lesley McLean
，
Mary Beard’s Emperors of Rome covers the period from Julius Caesar to Alexander Severus。 But it’s not a straight chronological account of Roman rulers。 Instead it goes directly to what it was like to be the Roman leader， or to live under his regime。 The chapters carry you through from birth to death （and beyond）， from gaining the ‘crown’， to losing it。 Occasionally it repeats itself， but not to its detriment - there’s a huge amount of ground covered for anyone interested in the era。 Busting myth Mary Beard’s Emperors of Rome covers the period from Julius Caesar to Alexander Severus。 But it’s not a straight chronological account of Roman rulers。 Instead it goes directly to what it was like to be the Roman leader， or to live under his regime。 The chapters carry you through from birth to death （and beyond）， from gaining the ‘crown’， to losing it。 Occasionally it repeats itself， but not to its detriment - there’s a huge amount of ground covered for anyone interested in the era。 Busting myths and adding new facts， it’s an accessible， educational， and entertaining book， which I thoroughly enjoyed。In the words of （the fictional） Maximus Decimus Meridius， “Are you not entertained？！” 。。。more
Mary Mccauley
，
I love this story 。 You nailed it
Katie
，
Mary Beard fascinates me。 She is very concerned with the big picture of Ancient Rome - how the regular people lived and what the idea of the Empire actually meant。 She loves the weird little details but is very careful to add that all of the historical record about the individuals that led Rome was prone to hyperbole， rumor and myth-making。
Popup-ch
，
A lot of anecdotes tied together by Beards erudition。Mary Beard is an acknowledged expert on the ancient world， and here she expounds on the early period of one-man rule， from Augustus to Alexander Severus （died in AD235）。 There's no chronological structure， but the book is constructed thematically， with chapters on e。g。 'eating' and 'dying'。 A lot of anecdotes tied together by Beards erudition。Mary Beard is an acknowledged expert on the ancient world， and here she expounds on the early period of one-man rule， from Augustus to Alexander Severus （died in AD235）。 There's no chronological structure， but the book is constructed thematically， with chapters on e。g。 'eating' and 'dying'。 。。。more
Megan
，
This drew some attention to some interesting ideas of what being emperor meant， both to the person playing the role and the people of the Roman Empire， and how the image of the emperor was carried down through the centuries。 Unfortunately， at this point Beard's books have began to run together in my mind and I find the writing to be quite dry。 This drew some attention to some interesting ideas of what being emperor meant， both to the person playing the role and the people of the Roman Empire， and how the image of the emperor was carried down through the centuries。 Unfortunately， at this point Beard's books have began to run together in my mind and I find the writing to be quite dry。 。。。more
Georgia S。 ♻️
，
Another poignant yet delightfully easy-going read in the history of Rome by Mary Beard， honoured guest and rent-free tenant of the minds of （I have to assume） every classics nerd in existence。Emperor of Rome is intensely interested with the image and function of the emperor rather than with any of the individual men （and they were men） who exercised ultimate power in Imperial Rome; the result is a cutting investigation of how Roman society viewed autocracy， and how the autocrat formed， shifted Another poignant yet delightfully easy-going read in the history of Rome by Mary Beard， honoured guest and rent-free tenant of the minds of （I have to assume） every classics nerd in existence。Emperor of Rome is intensely interested with the image and function of the emperor rather than with any of the individual men （and they were men） who exercised ultimate power in Imperial Rome; the result is a cutting investigation of how Roman society viewed autocracy， and how the autocrat formed， shifted and was viewed in conjunction with it。Prof。 Beard could have dumped us with a series of uncritically presented entertaining anecdotes （fear not， there are entertaining anecdotes aplenty） but instead the focus is on what the whole corpus of evidence itself， warts and all， can tell us。 Tales of sensation and scandal comment on autocratic rule， with its contradictions， farce and nature-upturning dangers。 Framing struts the blurred lines of profligacy and generosity， wit and sadism， victory and inglorious defeat。 In the middle: the Emperor， the one-man master microcosm of the world and puppeteer of shadows， a shadow himself， ready to molt the moment someone clicks a different lamp on。 Unknown and unknowable historical fact might be， but something of Rome - and of all of humanity - might be gleaned here。（If Prof。 Mary Beard does not， in fact， reside in your head at at least semi-occasional basis， we wish to inform you that your nerd privileges have been hereby revoked。 That's right。 No more learning dead languages for fun， you posers， you punks， you preps。 Ha！） 。。。more
John Bosco
，
This book， a sequel to Mary Beard's incredibly popular book SPQR， follows the emperors of Rome， but not in a chronological way。 Rather than tell the full history of one emperor and then the next。 Mary Beard traces the more mundane and ordinary parts of each of their reigns。 She covers spouses， slaves， interests， etc。 of each emperor rather than just focusing on their military abilities and political mechanizations。While this view of the emperors is interesting， the amount of information is a bit This book， a sequel to Mary Beard's incredibly popular book SPQR， follows the emperors of Rome， but not in a chronological way。 Rather than tell the full history of one emperor and then the next。 Mary Beard traces the more mundane and ordinary parts of each of their reigns。 She covers spouses， slaves， interests， etc。 of each emperor rather than just focusing on their military abilities and political mechanizations。While this view of the emperors is interesting， the amount of information is a bit overwhelming， and it left me so inundated with facts that it felt more like Mary Beard has no self-editing and merely edited for grammar。 A thematic approach is absolutely a valid alternative to chronological history， but without an rhyme or reason to how information was presenting， it feels more like stream of consciousness info-dumping。 Because of this， it was a far less enjoyable read compared to SPQR。 。。。more
Luke Illeniram
，
The book is divided into themes rather than a linear history of each emperor。 Despite Beards justification of the structure， I actually found it less interesting then I think I would have if it was just a break down of each one and what they are known for， and what we understand about them。 I found it a bit hard to follow sometimes because of that。 Overall it's pretty good， but I think SPQR is much more enjoyable。 The information is great， but like I said， I just didn't find the structure altoge The book is divided into themes rather than a linear history of each emperor。 Despite Beards justification of the structure， I actually found it less interesting then I think I would have if it was just a break down of each one and what they are known for， and what we understand about them。 I found it a bit hard to follow sometimes because of that。 Overall it's pretty good， but I think SPQR is much more enjoyable。 The information is great， but like I said， I just didn't find the structure altogether that engaging 。。。more
Sue Foster
，
Excellent book by this author。 Instead of dedicating a chapter to each Emperor。 She has taken topics and elements of the role of Emperor then discussed each within that contex。Well worth reading。
Sembray
，
This is another brilliant book from one of our most consistently excellent classicists。 There are literally hundreds of books out there which will provide you with a potted history of the Roman Empire or biographies of the individual emperors， but Beard approaches the subject from a fresh and compelling angle。 She instead uses the evidence from ancient sources and archaeology to illuminate the role of the emperor， focusing on institutions and traditions rather than individuals and dates。 This tr This is another brilliant book from one of our most consistently excellent classicists。 There are literally hundreds of books out there which will provide you with a potted history of the Roman Empire or biographies of the individual emperors， but Beard approaches the subject from a fresh and compelling angle。 She instead uses the evidence from ancient sources and archaeology to illuminate the role of the emperor， focusing on institutions and traditions rather than individuals and dates。 This truly immerses the reader in the Roman world， allowing them to identify with how the emperor saw the world， felt and acted， as well as how those around him （from imperial wives and courtiers to common people and conquered adversaries） saw the emperor）。 While Beard is too wise to make heavy-handed overt parallels with our modern world， the structure of the book makes the emperors， and the Roman Empire more generally， feel tangibly alive。 Much of the iconography and language of power in our time originated in these men， and many of the revelations feel especially timely in the era of populist politics the world is currently experiencing。 This fascinating and unique spin on the subject is allied to Beard's usual mixture of scholarly research， witty writing and subtle references to the modern world to produce an excellent read for anyone， regardless of whether you have the faintest passing interest in the subject or you think about the Roman Empire 5 times a day or more （as I do）。 。。。more
Andrea Wenger
，
This fascinating book unveils the personal lives of Rome's emperors from Julius Caesar to Alexander Severus。 Journey inside the palace walls， into the streets of the capital， to far-flung corners of the empire， and even to the afterlife as Romans understood it。 Witness tense power dynamics with rivals and personal relationships with lovers。 Meet the everyday citizens seeking imperial aid， and the servants tending to daily needs。 This unprecedented perspective challenges assumptions about life in This fascinating book unveils the personal lives of Rome's emperors from Julius Caesar to Alexander Severus。 Journey inside the palace walls， into the streets of the capital， to far-flung corners of the empire， and even to the afterlife as Romans understood it。 Witness tense power dynamics with rivals and personal relationships with lovers。 Meet the everyday citizens seeking imperial aid， and the servants tending to daily needs。 This unprecedented perspective challenges assumptions about life in ancient Rome， inviting you to reimagine these iconic figures through the lens of their humanity。This book is so interesting and fun！ It's smart， informative， and authoritative， but still enjoyable and easy to read。 It's sure to become one of the leading works in the field。 Thanks， NetGalley， for the ARC I received。 This is my honest and voluntary review。 。。。more
Lindsay S
，
Mary Beard structures this book in such a way that if you have a curiosity for a certain period or emperor， you can read the sections you’d like。 Beard has a way of immersing the reader， which is so lovely and inviting。 I highly recommend！
Edward
，
This book is a great primer on all the pressing interpretive issues surrounding the figure of the Roman emperor up to the third century AD。 It is highly accessible and follows a nice readable style （albeit with far too many qualifications hidden within parenthesise）。 It tackles the idea of the emperor and how the many men who held the position chose to present themselves to their subjects， their dining habits， piety， sex life， and the day-to-day bureaucratic practicalities of "running" a contine This book is a great primer on all the pressing interpretive issues surrounding the figure of the Roman emperor up to the third century AD。 It is highly accessible and follows a nice readable style （albeit with far too many qualifications hidden within parenthesise）。 It tackles the idea of the emperor and how the many men who held the position chose to present themselves to their subjects， their dining habits， piety， sex life， and the day-to-day bureaucratic practicalities of "running" a continent-spanning empire。 It achieves this with a good mix of anecdotes from the sources， art history， archaeology， and a brief taster of the kinds of scholarship written on the subject over the last few centuries。 If anything， I wish there was more for me to sink my teeth into！ There are no footnotes or bibliography， but this is made up for partly by a very thorough Further Reading section。 Unlikely to read it again， but pleased I did！ 4/5 。。。more
Ula Tardigrade
，
Ever since I read her brilliant "SPQR，" I have considered Mary Beard to be the best possible guide to ancient Rome。 Her deep knowledge of the subject， combined with her dry wit and eye for surprising detail， make her a great storyteller。 And she confirms that reputation in her latest book。 I think it may attract new readers because this time she focuses on the Roman emperors， but even if you are familiar with the most famous names， be prepared for many unexpected turns。 A fascinating volume！Than Ever since I read her brilliant "SPQR，" I have considered Mary Beard to be the best possible guide to ancient Rome。 Her deep knowledge of the subject， combined with her dry wit and eye for surprising detail， make her a great storyteller。 And she confirms that reputation in her latest book。 I think it may attract new readers because this time she focuses on the Roman emperors， but even if you are familiar with the most famous names， be prepared for many unexpected turns。 A fascinating volume！Thanks to the publisher， W。 W。 Norton & Company， Liveright， and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book。 。。。more
Ben Moyers
，
Emperor of Rome is a triumph and displays the benefits of blending educational content with an accessible， fun， and engaging writing voice for wider audiences。Beard's use of vivid and entertaining stories that coordinate with the arguments presented throughout Emperor of Rome is a very effective presentation。 Whilst providing these engaging stories of emperors and their wacky （and sometimes downright disturbing） antics， Beard frequently reminds us of the importance of questioning and analysing t Emperor of Rome is a triumph and displays the benefits of blending educational content with an accessible， fun， and engaging writing voice for wider audiences。Beard's use of vivid and entertaining stories that coordinate with the arguments presented throughout Emperor of Rome is a very effective presentation。 Whilst providing these engaging stories of emperors and their wacky （and sometimes downright disturbing） antics， Beard frequently reminds us of the importance of questioning and analysing the motives behind the dissemination of these stories， how they came to be in the first place， and whether they are even true or not。 She convincingly highlights how delving deeper into the contextual factors of where sources come from can tell us just as much about Roman emperors， and what that role entailed， as the stories do themselves。 This style of analysis would not be out of place in a classical studies seminar but it is presented in this book in a way that works well for those unfamiliar with the historical content so as to not overwhelm people with information。 It would also seem tempting， or sensible， for a book discussing the key characters of the Roman Empire to take on a chronological or emperor-by-emperor approach。 Instead， Beard tackles the topic through a thematic lens by picking out carefully selected and interconnected components/themes apparent for all Emperors （dining halls， palace complexes， workers etc。）。 In my opinion， this purposeful approach works phenomenally well and is a key success of the book。 Beard thoroughly analyses these themes to present an overall view of what it meant to be imperator， and she convincingly shows how everything surrounding those in this position can be drawn on as evidence and clues。 This approach is welcome because focus on Roman emperors can easily be reduced to the individual characters， military conquests， or dramatic and violent deaths。 It is refreshing to see an approach that highlights some of the more background components of emperorship that are no less important such as the significance of the buildings from which these emperors worked and what the presentation of these can tell us about projections of power and influence， as just one example of many in this book。Books like Emperor of Rome are what initially ignited my own interest in studying classics at university， and I thoroughly enjoyed this book from start to finish。 Books on classical history like this are always a welcome sight， and it is authors like Beard who champion the blend between education and accessibility that are so desperately needed at a time when classical studies are under threat and sadly often removed from school syllabuses and university course lists across the country。 Gratias tibi ago， Mary Beard！ 。。。more
Eavan
，
The Emperor of Rome follows the lifestyle， mythologies， supporting characters that made a Roman Emperor a Roman Emperor。 The book is framed by the peculiar written history of Elagabalus， the infamously evil， infamously lascivious emperor who （we're told） wished to become a woman。 I'm embarrassed to say I'd fallen for the story， and Beard's thesis throughout challenges the idea of basically everything we know about emperors as we know it。The author， through thematic chapters rather than chronolog The Emperor of Rome follows the lifestyle， mythologies， supporting characters that made a Roman Emperor a Roman Emperor。 The book is framed by the peculiar written history of Elagabalus， the infamously evil， infamously lascivious emperor who （we're told） wished to become a woman。 I'm embarrassed to say I'd fallen for the story， and Beard's thesis throughout challenges the idea of basically everything we know about emperors as we know it。The author， through thematic chapters rather than chronological， shows the political machinations underpinning the stories that have been passed down for nearly two millennia。 As the chapters are organized by themes， there are some very interesting ones （and less interesting ones）。 As always， I'm drawn to information on the lower classes and women， but overall it is a solid sampling of the world of what a Roman Emperor was supposed to be。While I am rating this 3。5 stars here， it was a lot less engaging than SPQR。 I often took breaks with it over the month and a half it took to get through， which never happened with the former book。 I rate quite harshly in comparison to other readers， so I have to reiterate that The Emperor of Rome is a solid book worth picking up， but if it drags for you， don't feel bad。 The thematic framing is good for casual reading but makes it very difficult to ground yourself in a period for vigorous learning。 It's not so much a historical text in the traditional way but a social one。 It's a very minute difference in this text， but nevertheless something I noticed。Thank you NetGalley for this ARC！ 。。。more
Elwood
，
I had the absolute joy of attending a talk by Mary Beard in Cambridge regarding this book， so of course I've got to come and write a deservedly glowing review。I actually took this book on holiday to Rome with me and read it in between visiting some of the ancient ruins mentioned within。 It was exciting to see in person the sheer scope of locations like the Colosseum or the Baths of Caracalla， and then read about their significance within the society of Ancient Rome。 This book was written in such I had the absolute joy of attending a talk by Mary Beard in Cambridge regarding this book， so of course I've got to come and write a deservedly glowing review。I actually took this book on holiday to Rome with me and read it in between visiting some of the ancient ruins mentioned within。 It was exciting to see in person the sheer scope of locations like the Colosseum or the Baths of Caracalla， and then read about their significance within the society of Ancient Rome。 This book was written in such a playful， engaging， informative manner。 The decidedly complex subject of what makes an emperor of Rome was broken down into often amusing anecdotes about one of a handful of the emperors themselves （ranging in a historical timeline from Julius Caesar to Alexander Severus）。 These anecdotes were then used to illustrate whatever point the author was expanding upon in the given chapter。 For example， want to know how emperors approached the act of governing the extreme edges of their empire？ How about a funny little tale concerning Emperor Augustus intervening in a murder case in what is now Turkey， where a slave threw a chamber pot onto a man's head， killing him？ Want to know what happened during dinners the emperor hosted with his friends？ How about a morbid account of Elagabalus inadvertently killing his guests by showering them with so many rose petals they suffocated？ Want to know how reliable historical records are about the more murderous emperors？ How about an exploration of whether madman Caligula really did plan to make his favourite racehorse consul， or whether it was a misunderstood jest used to further darken his reputation？There's something in this book for everyone， I think。 If you're completely new to Ancient Rome， everything is approached in such an accessible way。 If you're a bit of a classical history buff， and are already familiar with some/most of the events enclosed within， the author will put a new spin on it and make you wonder whether we can really believe anything at all， especially when it all happened so long ago。As for the subject matter， it really boiled down to one major conclusion: the Emperor of Rome was， at the end of it all， a man as mortal and flawed as the millions he ruled， regardless of what was written about him during his life and after his death。 Thanks to Mary Beard's insightful and impressively broad but detailed exploration， I feel like I almost know a lot of the major players。 At least， I know them well enough now to question whether the 'good' emperors were really good， and the 'bad' bad。 。。。more
Budd Margolis
，
One of the best and realistic analysis of life for Emperors in ancient rome。
Meggie
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Another Mary Beard special 😀 I love her and her writing and this was just as enjoyable as her other books。 Both entertaining and informative！ Big up the Beard！！！
Colin Adams
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At a basic narrative level， not as exciting as SPQR because the period she’s covering is inherently more stable。 As a result， Beard takes a more general approach to life as an emperor and what imperial rule looked like rather than a chronological history。 It is insightful and interesting even if it doesn’t always set the blood racing like the skulduggery of the late republic does （but then again， what can？）
Jon
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An excellent book with many remarkable insights into what being Emperor of Rome actually meant， written in a learned but accessible style。 But far too short！
ancientreader
，
A book like this probably has at least two kinds of reviewers: 1。， experts in the field， who are in a position to evaluate the author's claims against their own knowledge， and who may， academia being what it is， have bones to pick; and 2。， general readers hoping to inform themselves and， maybe， already familiar with the author's reputation and one or more of her other books。 I'm in the second category。 What I know about ancient Rome comes from reading a few histories for general readers， includi A book like this probably has at least two kinds of reviewers: 1。， experts in the field， who are in a position to evaluate the author's claims against their own knowledge， and who may， academia being what it is， have bones to pick; and 2。， general readers hoping to inform themselves and， maybe， already familiar with the author's reputation and one or more of her other books。 I'm in the second category。 What I know about ancient Rome comes from reading a few histories for general readers， including other books by Professor Beard。 Are her theses here original and her insights fresh？ I couldn't say -- but they were new to me， and so I found them illuminating。 Beard's overarching theme here is that "Emperor of Rome" was a persona -- a screen， almost， behind which the real individual remains unknowable。 We have whatever relatively scant evidence survives after a couple of thousand years， and most of that is either indirect （what does Pliny's "Speech of Praise" actually tell us about its subject， Trajan？ or does it chiefly tell us what one prominent Roman thought a good emperor ought to be？） or frankly unreliable （if you had your predecessor assassinated， your narrative about him would depict him as a Wicked Emperor; if he had adopted you and thus provided your claim to rule， your narrative would depict him as a Good Emperor）。 Apart from Marcus Aurelius's "Jottings to Himself" （as Beard calls what most of us know as his "Meditations"） and some letters （which may have been written by aides）， we have no personal writings by any emperor。 I did a great deal of highlighting， between the factual information and the insights that were new to me。 Beard's prose is， as always， lively and engaging， with flashes of humor。 She's not an apologist for the empire -- I'm pretty sure the conservative "greatness of Rome" nonsense makes her gag -- and she's alert to hints of what life under a man with （ostensibly） absolute power might have been like， in particular for people held as slaves but also for the mighty "enjoying" evenings with the likes of Eliogabalus。 She also brought to my notice the surprising precarity of life as an emperor of Rome: since there was no provision for the transfer of power except by the death of the previous incumbent， a great deal of assassination went on。 It's most unfortunate that in the ARC， captions for the illustrations are represented by strings of Latin gibberish -- at least， I assume it's gibberish！ -- so I can say nothing about how useful the figures are or what the captions may add to the information in the text proper。 Thanks to W。W。 Norton / Liveright and NetGalley for the ARC。 。。。more
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