The Complete Idiot's Guide to the Roman Empire

You’re no idiot, of course. The battle scenes in Gladiator had you on the edge of your seat and wondering where you could find more information on the rise and fall of ancient Rome. But so far, your search has left you feeling like a blundering barbarian.

Pick yourself up off the coliseum floor! Consult The Complete Idiot’s to the Roman Empire—a fun-to-read introduction to the fascinating history, people, and culture of ancient Rome. In this Complete Idiot’s , you get:

—The history of the Roman Empire’s rise and fall.

—An idiot-proof introduction to the great epic literature of the Roman Republic.

—A survey of the Romans in arts and popular culture.

—Fascinating details of some of history’s most nefarious emperors, including Nero, Caligula, and Commodus.

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It's easy to romanticize or demonize ancient cultures, but the more you know, the more complicated things become. While the Romans were insightful, ambitious, pragmatic, and influential people, they could also be cruel, rigid, bloodthirsty, stifling, overly garish and yet a bit drab. But no other civilization has left such an imprint on the laws, lives, borders, religion, literature, politics, art, architecture, and popular imagination of the West. The Complete Idiot's Guide(r) to the Roman Empire discusses the framework of ideals, infrastructure, politics, military tactics, economics, communications, and education that girded together the West.

For more than 22 years, Eric Nelson has been studying, teaching and writing about the ancient world. He holds a BA in Classics from Pacific Lutheran University, and an MA and Ph.D. in Classics from the University of Washington. In addition to having taught classic languages (Greek and Latin), literature, and history at the university honors level, He frequently lectures on Rome to adult education classes.