War on the Terraces: The Nika Riots
First the stewards and then the riot squad had been unable to deal with the supporters when trouble flared on the stands, and eventually, after…
Ancient Piracy and Teuta: The Illyrian Pirate Queen
Throughout world history, piracy has had a constant presence throughout certain parts of the world. Ancient piracy isn’t often discussed, but one could say that it…
The Reasons Why Rome fell – Lead poisoning is often dismissed as a major cause for the decline of Rome, but the theory does have some merit
The Fall of Rome is a heavily debated topic with an extraordinary range of theories as to how such a great power ultimately fell, and…
The Siege of Numantia: Scipio Shows Young Marius How to Run a Legion
The Roman conquest of Spain was a long and arduous process. Several tribal groups occupied the Iberian Peninsula and each was a fierce and warlike…
Caesar Vs. Attila: Who Was the Better General
Caesar and Attila; two men, born centuries apart and from vastly different cultures. For all their differences, the two were alike in that they dealt…
The Viking Mercenaries of the Byzantine Empire – The Varangian Guard
The Byzantines Hired Viking Mercenaries as Guards The relationship between the Byzantine Emperors and their Varangian Guard was a complex affair. The Byzantines were first…
The End of an Era – The Sack of Rome
Rome, the city that had ruled the world, was in chaos. To the north-west, a great pillar of dirty smoke rose skywards from the Gardens…
The Roman Army – The Development Of One Of The Most Powerful Military Forces In The Ancient World
The Roman army is often remembered as a highly professional force, with legionaries in segmented armor organized into centuries for close order combat. In reality, the…
Roman Legions Of Renown… And How They Earned Their Names
Roman legions could become famous for their endurance or victories in war. Though all were numbered, many also had names that recorded their history, origins or…
Battle of Bibracte: Sending the Swiss to Switzerland
Caesar is perhaps most famous for his rise to power in Rome through the lengthy civil wars. Roman armies fighting each other made for interesting…
The Samnite Wars, Paving the Way for the Might of the Roman Empire
The Roman Republic was a magnificent entity. It had its problems, as all governments do, but the men served it proudly and it took many…
Roman Legionaries Did More Than Just Fight – Many Civilian Jobs Were Also Done By The Soldiers
Though it originally began purely as a war machine, the Roman army evolved to fill other roles. This was an inevitable outcome of the growth…