Who is Your Favourite Ancient Roman?

[Damocles]

To be honest, I don't really have time for the Romans they were quite apt at committing genocide and rewriting history to suit themselves (sound familiar?)

Take this country for example, one would think that before they took over, it was an island full of savage barbarians waiting to be civilised when there is mounting evidence that it was a thriving cultured and peaceful island, the German Tribes and the Persians had the right idea about them

Er. It wasn't peaceful. Caratacus' tribe the Catuvellauni had their capital at Colchester because they'd invaded the Trinovantes territory, slaughtered them and taken over. The tribes were constantly at war with each other, and it could be argued that was the principal reason for the success of the Roman invasion - some of them openly backed Rome to do down their neighbours.

As for Rome itself, if it hadn't been Rome it would have been someone else. It was the nature of the times, and Rome was relatively enlightened for the time. If it had gone differently we would have been talking about the Carthaginians in the same way. Love and peace as a motto wouldn't have got you very far back then. It doesn't work that well now.

Genuine question, in that timeframe who could have realistically conquered the British Isles outside of the Romans? They seemed to be the only power to me that could have conquered an island nation of numerous tribes. Is this incorrect?

 

[Henkeman]

That's if you beleive the narrative that the Romans wrote, there is increasing evidence that most of it was not true, it was just propaganda to justify their wanton slaughter, history written by the victor

I don't get where you're coming from. No one of any note has ever seriously claimed that the Britons were cave dwelling idiots, not even the Romans themselves for whom British jewellery became a major fashion. What are you trying to do, say everything the Romans ever said was a lie and can be dismissed? What kind of approach to history is that? Of course it's written by the victors, it always has been.

Not everything can be dismissed that would be foolish, however much of what they wrote was just out and out propaganda dressed up as historical fact

Quite often there's no countervailing evidence, so we simply don't know. We are limited to our sources, and they're 2,000 year old sources, I'm not sure why that particularly means you just dismiss it as propaganda. Some writers were critical, some were not. Coming from the perspective that it's just propaganda is not terribly helpful in terms of trying to understand the times. Scepticism is valuable. Cynicism is not. Caesar's Gallic Wars was regarded as propaganda by the Romans, I'm not sure it helps to imply the Romans were fundamentally stupid instead and didn't know when they were being played.

 

[Rammyblues]

The Romans were like locusts and wanted the countries raw materials so it could carry on in the lifestyle it possessed. They wanted, tin, iron, gold, slaves, and anything we could grow and rather than pay they conquered, simple as really.

 

[GazC]

You're all messing about: it has to be the man they called Optimus Princeps, the one and only Trajan.

Perhaps the greatest of the imperial commanders, instigator of many domestic improvements, and ruled with great popularity over a peaceful (excluding the Dacians etc) and prosperous empire. His feats as a part-time stone mason also continue to impress to this day.

This and only this, Trajans campaign against the Dacians is often regarded as the best thought out and best executed campaign of any Roman army anywhere

It was one of the first recorded cases of genocide!

It doesn't even come close to Rome's first act of genocide; Imperial Rome's too, nevermind the Republic and Kingdom's treatment of the vanquished before that. Every ancient state of outward influence has been guilty of that crime against humanity, just look at Athens and Melos, the Assyrians and pretty much all of their neighbours, the Macedonian invasion of Persia, Baktria and the Scythian tribes, the Punic invasion of Iberia, Egypt & Judea, - the list is endless.

 

[Biased and Blue]

Nero, for his great house-boat parties on his personal lake (that he destroyed and flooded hundreds of homes to make)

And Caligula, for possibly making the most literal example of politicians being as useful as a horse in Senate.

 

[Henkeman]

Nero, for his great house-boat parties on his personal lake (that he destroyed and flooded hundreds of homes to make)

That lake is what Vespasian filled in and built the Flavian Amphitheatre on by the way. It was his way of apologising to the people.

 

[aguero93:20]

The Romans were like locusts and wanted the countries raw materials so it could carry on in the lifestyle it possessed. They wanted, tin, iron, gold, slaves, and anything we could grow and rather than pay they conquered, simple as really.

Hmmm, sounds familiar, were they human by any chance?
;)
Romulus Augustulus for me, for bringing the whole lot down, Romans were far too bloodthirsty.

 

[Mr Ed (The Stables)]

The Romans were like locusts and wanted the countries raw materials so it could carry on in the lifestyle it possessed. They wanted, tin, iron, gold, slaves, and anything we could grow and rather than pay they conquered, simple as really.

There's a Roman Road up Holcolme moor near "Hartles Hill" you must have been up there Rammy at some time or other!!

 

[solley attwell]

Achillies ,warrior and creator of the slice pan

 

[solley attwell]

Before anyone points out , Achillies was Greek just posted on the wrong thread