Ancient Biography

On Christmas morning in the year 800, Pope Leo III placed the crown of imperial Rome on the brow of a Germanic king named Karl - a gesture that enabled the man later hailed as Charlemagne to claim his empire and forever shape the destiny of Europe. Becoming Charlemagne tells the story of the international power struggle that led to this world-changing event, illuminating an era that has long been overshadowed by myth.

Cleopatra (69 BC-30 BC), the last Pharaoh of Egypt and the third daughter Ptolemy XII Auletes, is one of the most mysterious people in ancient history, so compelling and mysterious that myths and legends abound about her to this day. Not much is known about her early life but her later conquests became the fodder for countless movies and books. Some portray her as a majestic seductress and others portray her as a bloodthirsty killer; oftentimes both. There is truth to these renditions of her.

In the wake of the Roman Empire’s collapse, Italy found itself fractured. Among the Italians of the Middle Ages, the most famous - and controversial - man who sought to unify Italy was, somewhat fittingly, a Roman. Cola di Rienzo was a man whose life and actions have reverberated down the centuries, as his charismatic, yet unsuccessful dictatorship has spawned legends and comparisons with movements of later ages. His attempt to bring the greatness of Roman antiquity into the reality of the 14th century, the city’s lowest point, is inspiring on its face.

Roman historian Suetonius first introduces Claudius in his biography of Augustus, describing the boy as having various issues with his mental and physical health. Though he grew healthier after becoming emperor, "Life of Claudius" portrays him in a mixed light. While Suetonius tells of how Claudius was the first to invade Britain in a 100 years, he also paints the man as a fool who was easily swayed by others. Though historians today perceive Claudius as a more competent ruler, this dramatic biography held primary sway over public opinion for centuries.

We all know the founder of Rome, but do we know much about the widely-proclaimed second founder of Rome? The monarchy, tyranny, and victorious battles of Marcus Furius Camillus, the second founder, are documented in Plutarch’s Parallel Lives. After the destruction of Veii, Camillus returned to Rome as a pompous victor and dictator, causing quite a stir when he refused to follow the wishes of the senate when it came to dealing with Veii. Sensing banishment was in his future, Camillus’s time in Rome was much less bloody than many of his predecessors.

He was the first emperor of one of the greatest empires ever known to man. He commanded unmatched authority in the ancient world and was always one step ahead of his opponents. He had an intellect and a sharp wit that could cut down his foes just as easily as the steel of his sword. The life of Octavian - later known as Augustus - was rich and full. Although he lived and died over 2,000 years ago, this founder of the Roman Empire is as intriguing as ever.

Questo saggio storico ripercorre l'ascesa al potere di Ottaviano Augusto in seguito alla morte del suo amato zio Giulio Cesare. Siamo nel 44. a.C., in un Impero romano agli apici del suo splendore, ed è proprio qui che ha inizio il viaggio di Augusto per affermarsi come uno dei principali uomini politici dell'Antica Roma. Tra numerose battaglie e avventure in mare, il nuovo Imperatore romano cambierà per sempre il corso della storia. Giancarlo Villa: originario di Roma, classe 1988, è uno scrittore, giornalista e alpinista. Si occupa di temi ambientali e di sostenibilità.

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.

Socrates: A Life Worth Living traces the life and ideas of one of Western civilization’s founding philosophers, whose influence is still felt more than two thousand years later. Socrates is famous for how he died, executed by the Athenian government for corrupting the youth of Athens, but his most important contribution was to challenge the people around him to test their ideas and beliefs in conversation with each other, in the belief that in this way we could become a society that knows the difference between truth and falsehood, and find what makes a life worthwhile.

In May 1972, Liese Greensfelder arrived in the small Norwegian town of Øystese to startling news: Johannes, the farmer who hired her for the summer, had just been hospitalized after a stroke. Could she please watch over his place for a month or so, until he got back on his feet? Twenty years old and with no farming experience, Liese was dropped off the next day at a centuries-old mountain farm at the end of a dirt road high above the magnificent Hardanger Fjord—with 115 sheep, two cows, one calf, a draft horse, and a Norwegian herding dog to care for.

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.

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 classic of social history, the author describes the lives of six obscure men and women of the Middle Ages. She draws on account books, records, letters, diaries, and wills to make the life of those times as concrete and comprehensible as our own.

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.

This remarkable work paints a comprehensive and colorful picture of the world that Jesus knew. From detailed, convincing portraits of John the Baptist, Pontius Pilate, Herod, Jesus himself, and other key figures, to the Jewish and Hellenistic leaders often ignored in scripture, Who's Who in the Age of Jesus is a critical, in-depth look at one of the most tumultuous eras in human history.

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.

Where do human societies come from? The drive to answer this question took on a new urgency in the nineteenth century, when a generation of archaeologists began to look beyond the bible for the origins of different cultures and civilizations. Zelia Nuttall threw herself into the study of Aztec customs and cosmology, eager to use the tools of the emerging science of anthropology to prove that modern Mexico was built over the ruins of ancient civilizations.

From Catholic schoolgirl to punk rocker to emergent church planter, Angela Doll Carlson traveled a spiritual path that in many ways mirrors that of a whole generation. She takes us with her on a deep and revealing exploration of the forces that drove her toward Orthodoxy and the challenges that long kept her from fully entering in.

This deep dive into the word of God addresses kids’ toughest Bible questions with theologically sound answers in a way that is relatable and engaging. It’s filled with fun facts, debunking of common misconceptions, and explanations of biblical and theological concepts. This audiobook will not only answer a kid’s Bible questions big and small, but it will also encourage spiritual conversations and a lifelong love of learning about the glory and wonder of faith, the Bible, and God.