Ancient Biography

Apart from Jesus, there is no character more vividly presented in the gospels than Peter. To talk of Saint Peter is to talk about a man of action. There is a good reason why he is the apostle with the most mentions in the Gospels, and the most referred to in the New Testament (a total of 195 times). In comparison, John, the next most popular disciple, barely reaches 29 references. It is at decisive moments which require a categorical reaction where the leader of the Twelve shines.

Our conventional image of Sokrates comes from dry scholarly accounts that present a wise, if ironic, old philosopher shuffling and lounging in the streets of Athens, asking questions that never lead to answers, and finally resigning himself in questionable fashion to a scapegoat death on philosophical principle. But who knows the stunning heroic stories of Sokrates from the battlefield, like how he alone stared down the entire Delium army? Or drinking everyone under the table 'til dawn, then beginning his day as usual, confronting as many people as he could to live a better life?

Jack the Ripper. Jeffrey Dahmer. John Wayne Gacy. Locusta of Gaul. If that last name doesn’t seem to fit with the others, it’s likely because our modern society largely believes that serial killers are a recent phenomenon. Not so, argues Debbie Feltonin fact, there’s ample evidence to show that serial killers stalked the ancient world just as they do the modern one.

Few images in history have managed to capture and hold the popular imagination quite like that of Hannibal, the fearless North African, perched on a monstrous elephant, leading his mercenaries over the Alps and then, against all odds, descending the ice-covered peaks to challenge Rome in her own backyard for mastery of the ancient world. It was a bold move, and it established Hannibal as one of history's greatest commanders. But this same brilliant tactician is also one of history's most tragic figures; fate condemned him to win his battles but not his war.

In this literary detective story, Robert Kanigel gives us a long overdue portrait of an Oakland druggist's son who became known as the "Darwin of Homeric studies." So thoroughly did Milman Parry change our thinking about the origins of Homer's Iliad and Odyssey that scholars today refer to a "before" Parry and an "after." Kanigel describes the "before", when centuries of readers, all the way up until Parry's trailblazing work in the 1930s, assumed that the Homeric epics were "written" texts, the way we think of most literature.

The story of the worlds best-remembered celebrity couple, set against the political backdrop of their time. Oceans of mythology have grown up around them, all of which Diana Preston explores in her stirring history of the lives and times of a couple whose names more than two millennia later still invoke passion, curiosity, and intrigue.

The Babylonians were one of the earliest of history's great ancient civilizations, and the most famous Babylonian of them all was Hammurabi, who came to the throne as the first king of the Babylonian empire around the beginning of the 18th century B.C. Hammurabi had a long and fruitful reign that saw him consolidate most of Mesopotamia under his control, but he's best known today for Hammurabi's Code, one of the earliest known code of laws in human history.

Although revered in history for their civilization and culture, the Greeks were always in a constant state of warfare amongst themselves. With the likes of Athens, Sparta, and Thebes asserting dominance over the Ionian Peninsula, none of the other city-states could amass an army strong enough to challenge their superiority in the area, much less take on all challengers and invade Persia. However, none of these other city-states had a ruler named Alexander.

Una biografía completa del padre del imperio romano que resalta además los aspectos menos tratados de Julio César como su importancia como literato o su labor en Hispania. La vida de Julio César es una de las más apasionantes de todas las grandes personalidades de Roma: su ascenso social, sus conquistas, su capacidad como administrador, el complot que acabó con su asesinato y en el que participó su hijo, la sucesión, ya como emperador, de su hijo adoptivo Octavio Augusto, han dado lugar a numerosos manuales y ensayos, pero también a obras dramáticas.

Este audiolibro relata la historia de Alejandro Magno, rey de Macedonia, que soñó y luchó por conseguir un gran imperio que uniera Oriente y Occidente y fusionara la cultura helénica con la asiática. En ese sentido, Charles Mercer se detiene, primero, en narrar la forma en que Alejandro configuró su personalidad gracias a su sólida formación atlética y militar y, sobre todo, a su gran desarrollo intelectual debido, especialmente, a que estuvo bajo la tutela de Aristóteles.

In this comprehensive and stimulating biography, Kathryn Tempest delves into contemporary sources to bring to light the personal and political struggles Brutus faced. As the details are revealed - from his own correspondence with Cicero, from the perceptions of his peers, and from the Roman aristocratic values and concepts that held sway in his time - Brutus emerges from legend, revealed to us more surely than ever before.

Charlemagne, while subjugating the people he conquered, modernized education, currency, art, music, and leadership to bring stability back to Europe, setting it on the path to thrive for years to come. Europe had been in upheaval, with threats from every direction, when Charlemagne came to power in the eighth century. The barbarian king worked to unite Germanic people into one kingdom and to spread Catholicism.

Acclaimed as "the first citizen of Athens", Pericles was one of the greatest statesmen ancient Greece ever produced. During the Golden Age of Athens, in the much admired 5th century B.C., Pericles epitomized the influential politician. But he was also a brilliant orator and military leader brought up in the competitive environment of Greek democracy.

During World War II, Princess Ileana of Romania (who later became Mother Alexandra of the Orthodox Monastery of the Transfiguration in Pennsylvania) built a hospital in memory of her mother, Queen Marie, at the foot of her castle of Bran, Romania. She called it the Hospital of the Queen's Heart. As both nurse and hospital administrator, Ileana devoted herself to the care of the war-wounded and lovingly served the surrounding population.

An introduction to the Gods the Greeks worshiped, and the Heroes the Greeks adored.Western Civilization draws heavily from the Classical Greek period. Listen to these brief stories of the awesome Greek Gods, the mighty mythological Heroes, and the powerful men and events that influenced Classical Greek history.

From an acclaimed classicist comes a witty, unusual, and fascinating "biography" of Homer's fictional Bronze Age hero, Odysseus. In this entertaining book, Charles Beye fills out the story of this extraordinary figure while at the same time portraying Odysseus' evolution through the course of a strange and adventuresome life, at times so remote, at times so immediate in the contemporary perspective.

You know a lot about Ancient Greece because of the writings of philosophers. But did you know that military personnel also helped to make Ancient Greece one of the most successful early civilizations in history? One of the most popular in this aspect is Alexander the Great. Who was he and what did he do to deserve a place in history books? Find out today!

An informative introduction to the life of Cleopatra. For more than 2,000 years, plays, poetry, movies, and television have portrayed Cleopatra as an ambitious woman who used her beauty to seduce powerful men like Julius Caesar and Mark Antony in a ruthless attempt to increase her own power and wealth. But is this the real Cleopatra, or one invented by male historians anxious to discredit an intelligent, competent woman who was the last great pharaoh of Egypt?

When we think of ancient Egypt we think of the great pyramids, the Sphinx, Egyptian gods, and the great myths. But what influenced this great civilization to create and live as they did? This book provides a unique insight into how ancient Egypt's fascination with death and the afterlife shaped Egypt's great architecture, beliefs, and ultimate influence on world civilization.

Una originale biografia della regina egizia Cleopatra che riuscì a diventare un personaggio storico e letterario grazie alla sua intelligenza e alle sue doti personali di donna dal grande fascino e astuzia.