Ancient Rome Archives - Aspects of History

Historical Lincolnshire: Roman Soldiers, Pilgrims and Radical Religious Ideas

Inspired by a trip to the county, the author sketches out Lincolnshire’s rich Roman, medieval and religious history, tracing the county’s independent Puritan tradition from the Reformation to the Pilgrims who founded Boston, Massachusetts.

Karen Haden

Since learning about Thanksgiving in the United States, I was intrigued to know why the Mayflower Pilgrims were revered on one side of the Atlantic but rarely mentioned on the other. Why did they flee Lincolnshire in 1608? What subsequently caused Puritans from...

AoH Book Club: Barney White-Spunner on Nations in Arms

In conversation with the Editor, the historian reflects on the lessons of his book a year on, from historical military reform and the relationship between armies and society to the impact of Ukraine on modern warfare, and his fascination with Constantine the Great.

Barney White-Spunner

Great to have you back in the Book Club hotseat, Barney. A year on from the publication of Nations in Arms, what first drew you to the idea of comparing these five armies, separated by such vast swathes of time, and what did you hope a comparative study would reveal...

The Decision that Saved the Early Roman Empire

A pivotal decision by Publius Scipio in 218 BC to send his brother Gnaeus to establish a Roman foothold in Iberia may have denied Hannibal the reinforcements he needed to defeat Rome and ultimately changed the course of Mediterranean history.

Alistair Tosh

If you have ever looked at a map of the Roman Empire at its height in the early 2nd century AD, you will note that it surrounded the entire Mediterranean Sea, while stretching north and west into modern-day Germany, France, Belgium and Britain. To the east, it...

The Mystery of Lindow Man: Druids, Sacrifice and the Golden Twist

The novelist discusses the theory that the Lindow Man was a high-born druid sacrificed during the Roman conquest of Britain, and considers a connection to Boudica, the Iceni and the ‘Golden Twist’.

Stephen D. Owen

Nearly 2,000 years ago, during the early years of Roman Britain, Boudica, victim of Roman injustice, raised the Iceni in rebellion against Rome. During August 1984, a mysterious link with the Iceni Revolt may have been uncovered. The remnants of a male peat body were...

Conquest: A History of Roman Britain, by Ferdinand Addis

A reappraisal of a much-researched topic reveals how diplomacy, trade and cultural exchange were and still are as fundamental to Rome’s conquest of these islands, our landscape and British identity today as military force.

Zeb Baker-Smith

There is a lot that has been said, written and mulled over when it comes to Roman Britain, and, consequently, a reader glimpsing Ferdinand Addis’ Conquest on the shelves might be forgiven for thinking it another interpretation of those well-trodden stories and a...

Introducing the New Aspects of History Substack – We’re Revamping!

Pairing a free midweek editorial newsletter with exclusive subscriber-only magazine features, author interviews and other benefits on a Saturday, we are offering history lovers a richer and more rewarding reading experience while supporting independent historical writing.

Aspects of History

Over the last six years, Aspects of History has brought you the best historical writing from established and new authors alike, whether non-fiction or fiction. So we are now excited to outline a new chapter for the Aspects of History Substack. Our website has grown...

Episode 275

How England Began

How Britain broke away from the Roman world is as essential to understanding the rise of the English language and a national identity as Germanic migration, subsequent conflict with native Britons and conversion to Christianity.

Nicholas Higham

The western Roman Empire collapsed so long ago that we might well ask ‘why should that matter to us now?’. Yet, in multiple ways, our lives are conditioned, still, by those events. Take language, for example. Mostly, the western Empire spoke Latin. Despite substantial...

Caesar’s Gaulish King: The Double Lives of Commius the Atrebatan

The stirring career of a one-time trusted ally, sometimes determined enemy, of Caesar reveals the complexities of loyalty and political manoeuvring in operation behind Rome’s invasions of Britain and Gaul.

Ferdinand Addis

55BC, as Sellar and Yeatman knew, is “the first date in English history”. Caesar led his legions across the sea and gave the Britons a thrashing. This, of course, was “a Good Thing, since the Britons were only natives at that time.” Caesar could hardly have put it any...

2026 Summer Reads from Aspects of History

Our authors and contributors recommend books to take on your summer holidays.

Aspects of History

Summer Reads from Aspects of HistoryZeb Baker-Smith Editor at Aspects of HistoryPaul Knox’s Lost London offers a captivating itinerary of 25 buildings which are no longer, but whose lifespan shaped the capital’s architectural story, revealing how the perennial cycle...