Showing results by publisher "MuseumAudiobooks.com" in Ancient

How could a man be reviled, even assassinated, during his own life, and yet have people's opinion of him change after his death? Explore the life of Dion, a wealthy Syracusian aristocrat of great learning whose life brutally ended on a feast-day. How could a man of acclaimed courteous temperment be accused of such horrible crimes?

Cimon was forced into prison because of his father's debts, but rescued by his wife. From then, he sought great heights, battling the Persians on land and sea within the same day. His power grew so great he was kicked out of Sparta; would he manage to make a triumphant return?

The Life of Otho tells a story of ambition, betrayal, and power. After Nero’s suicide, Otho expected to assume the role of emperor, but his old ally Galba became Nero’s successor. Rather than give up, Otho murdered Galba and took his place as emperor, though not for long. Suetonius’ account of Otho’s brief rule during the Year of the Four Emperors is an excerpt from his work The Twelve Caesars.

In Dialogue on Orators, Tacitus presents a conversation about the art and philosophy of rhetoric. Four characters discuss the merits and pitfalls of oration and poetry, debating one another’s point of view. With this text, Tacitus follows in the tradition and structure of Cicero, the great orator. It marks a distinct change in style from Tacitus’ longform historical works, Germania and Agricola.

The tumultuous time that followed Nero’s suicide is known as The Year of the Four Emperors. In rapid succession, the Roman empire was ruled briefly by Galba, Otho, and Vitellius. Vespasian was a military commander, and with the help of his loyal soldiers and military allies, he defeated Vitellius and lay claim to his rule. Vespasian’s assumption of the empire, chronicled in this short biography by Suetonius, marked the start of the Flavian dynasty.

Augustus adopted Tiberius as his heir after noting his success in military campaigns across Germany. Tiberius was reluctant to take rule, however, and gained a reputation as “the exile” after he sent himself on an eight-year, self-imposed exile to Rhodes. Eventually he did take control of the empire, but he gained a reputation for cruelty which led Rome to rejoice at his eventual death. In this excerpt from The Twelve Caesars, Roman biographer Suetonius digs deep into both the conquests and character of Tiberius.

“I came, I saw, I conquered,” Julius Caesar famously said. Yet his life of conquest ended with assassination at the hands of his former comrades. Roman biographer Suetonius details the rise and fall of Julius Caesar in this short biography, excerpted from The Twelve Caesars. This compelling account contains cinematic scenes from Caesar’s life, including his capture by pirates and the time he fell weeping before a statue of Alexander the Great.

Agricola, also known as The Life and Character of Julius Agricola, serves as the main historical source for information about this notable Roman general. His son-in-law, the historian Tacitus, authored the text. He writes not just about his father-in-law’s military career and conquest of Britain, but also about cultural and geographic forces at work during this time. The portion of the original text that survives today remains an important reference for historians and history buffs alike.

Galba was the first emperor in the infamous Year of the Four Emperors. After Nero’s suicide, which marked the death of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, Galba took control of the empire. A mere seven months later, he was assassinated. This short biography comes from Suetonius’ The Twelve Caesars and deals largely with Galba’s brief rule amid the first Roman civil war.

Suetonius’ account of the life of Nero does not shy away from the emperor’s alleged barbarism. In this biography from The Twelve Caesars, the Roman historian recounts numerous examples of Nero’s narcissism, perversion, and cruelty. It is from this account that we get the legend that Nero “fiddled as Rome burned.” When the heirless emperor ended his own life, it marked he fall of the Julio-Claudian empire and led to rejoicing in the streets.

Domitian succeeded his older brother Titus as Roman emperor. In “The Life of Domitian,” Suetonius remarks on the emperor’s innovative approach to governing that granted the empire safety and peace. As an individual, he preferred to go it alone and was naturally suspicious of others, a trait which inevitably led to his downfall. The final of three Flavian emperors, Domitian is also the last entry in Suetonius’ The Twelve Caesars.

The Ottoman Empire was one of the longest standing empires in the world. Started in 1299, the Ottomans would conquer much of the Middle East, North Africa, and Southeastern Europe. This classic by William Deans covers 600 years of Ottoman rule.