Review: (A Brief History of) The Roman Empire, by Stephen P. Kershaw

I acquired this from a local little library and thought it worth a look. And so look I did.

The Roman state (in the west) began as a kingdom before becoming a republic, with the imperial period only covering the last five centuries or so. It’s important to be aware of that because if you’re looking for
a Western Roman history from start to finish this is not it (nor does it purport to be but sometimes people assume Roman Empire = Roman Kingdom + Republic + Empire).

Necessarily the scope of the time frame means there can’t be an in-depth analysis, but the author’s relaxed style does make this very easy to read as he charts the achievements, calamities, and peculiar episodes of Roman imperial history.

This works as a good refresher for people who haven’t read much recently, or as an introduction for people new to classical history. It’s unreasonable to criticise the lack of detail in certain areas as a single volume covering five hundred years necessarily has to be concise. However, if you do want a more in-depth look at a particular period or emperor then this is not the book for you.

For further reading there’s a smorgasbord. The most obvious is almost the most difficult: Gibbon’s The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire (go for a Penguin or Everyman edition so you can enjoy the many notes).

Early Imperial Rome is covered by Suetonius and Tacitus, for later stuff I’d suggest Ammianus Marcellinus.

Thaddeus