Fiction set in the Roman empire
Encyclopedia
The following article Fiction set in the Roman Empire lists some works set in the Middle and Late Roman Republic and in the (Western) Roman Empire
but not those set in the city of Rome
or Byzantium.
The article lists works only from the Middle Republic when the city-state of Rome began to expand over Italy.
No works in English, apart from Saylor's Roma, are known to be set partially or wholly in the Middle Republic before the Punic Wars. Books about Hannibal, such as David Anthony Durham
's Pride of Carthage
(2005) or Ross Leckie’s Scipio (1997), do feature Romans from the Middle Republic.
Books about early Christians or the Christ include:
Books about Claudius or set in his reign include:
Books set in Nero's reign include:
The following alternate history story is set in a fictional universe prior to the present day
The following alternate history novels are set in fictional universes where the Roman Empire never fell, and has endured to the present day:
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
but not those set in the city of Rome
Fiction set in Ancient Rome
There is a large body of modern fiction set in ancient Rome. The following titles listed include only those that are substantially or entirely set in the city of Rome during any period up to the Byzantine empire. It does not include works set partially in Rome, nor does it include all works set...
or Byzantium.
The article lists works only from the Middle Republic when the city-state of Rome began to expand over Italy.
Early and Middle Republic
If you know of works set in the Middle Republic, please expand this section.- Roma, published March 6, 2007, by Steven SaylorSteven SaylorSteven Saylor is an American author of historical novels. He is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin, where he studied history and Classics....
. The book covers Rome's Republican history from before the founding of the city.
No works in English, apart from Saylor's Roma, are known to be set partially or wholly in the Middle Republic before the Punic Wars. Books about Hannibal, such as David Anthony Durham
David Anthony Durham
David Anthony Durham is an American novelist, author of historical fiction and fantasy.Durham's first novel, Gabriel's Story, centered on African American settlers in the American West. Walk Through Darkness followed a runaway slave during the tense times leading up to the American Civil War...
's Pride of Carthage
Pride of Carthage
Pride of Carthage is a 2005 a novel about the Second Punic War by American author David Anthony Durham. It was first published by Doubleday, in the United States, 2005...
(2005) or Ross Leckie’s Scipio (1997), do feature Romans from the Middle Republic.
- Traitors’ Legion (Ace G-532,1963) by Jay Scotland, a swashbucker about a disgraced legion, set in Hannibal’s time.
- Of Merchants & Heroes, published 2008 by Paul Waters. Set at the end of the 3rd century BC, about the life of a fictional Roman called Marcus. In the novel Marcus becomes involved in the war against Philip V of MacedonPhilip V of MacedonPhilip V was King of Macedon from 221 BC to 179 BC. Philip's reign was principally marked by an unsuccessful struggle with the emerging power of Rome. Philip was attractive and charismatic as a young man...
, which was led by Titus Quinctius FlamininusTitus Quinctius FlamininusTitus Quinctius Flamininus was a Roman politician and general instrumental in the Roman conquest of Greece.Member of the gens Quinctia, and brother to Lucius Quinctius Flamininus, he served as a military tribune in the Second Punic war and in 205 BC he was appointed propraetor in Tarentum...
, who later became Consul and is a major character in the story.
Late Republic
- The Last King: Rome's Greatest Enemy (2005) by Michael Curtis FordMichael Curtis FordMichael Curtis Ford is an American historical novelist, writing novels about Ancient Rome and Ancient Greece. He has worked variously as a laborer, a ski patrolman, a musician, a consultant, a banker, a Latin teacher, and a translator. He holds degrees in Economics and Linguistics and lives in...
. The career of Mithridates VI (134-63 BC) - The Masters of RomeMasters of RomeMasters of Rome is a series of historical fiction novels by author Colleen McCullough set in ancient Rome during the last days of the old Roman Republic; it primarily chronicles the lives and careers of Gaius Marius, Lucius Cornelius Sulla, Pompeius Magnus, Gaius Julius Caesar, and the early...
series by Colleen McCulloughColleen McCulloughColleen McCullough-Robinson, , is an internationally acclaimed Australian author.-Life:McCullough was born in Wellington, in outback central west New South Wales, in 1937 to James and Laurie McCullough. Her mother was a New Zealander of part-Māori descent. During her childhood, her family moved...
. Beginning before the birth of Julius CaesarJulius CaesarGaius Julius Caesar was a Roman general and statesman and a distinguished writer of Latin prose. He played a critical role in the gradual transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire....
to after his death, it details the self-immolation of the Roman Republic. - Spartacus by Howard FastHoward FastHoward Melvin Fast was an American novelist and television writer. Fast also wrote under the pen names E. V. Cunningham and Walter Ericson.-Early life:Fast was born in New York City...
- Spartacus by Lewis Grassic GibbonLewis Grassic GibbonLewis Grassic Gibbon was the pseudonym of James Leslie Mitchell , a Scottish writer.-Biography:...
- The Emperor series, by Conn IgguldenConn IgguldenConn Iggulden is a British author who mainly writes historical fiction. He also co-authored The Dangerous Book for Boys.-Background:...
, is more alternate history than fictionalized biography in some respects. - Young Caesar (1958) by Rex WarnerRex WarnerRex Warner was an English classicist, writer and translator. He is now probably best remembered for The Aerodrome , an allegorical novel whose young hero is faced with the disintegration of his certainties about his loved ones and with a choice between the earthy, animalistic life of his home...
- ImperiumImperium (novel)Imperium is a 2006 novel by English author Robert Harris. It is a fictional biography of Cicero, told through the first-person narrator of his secretary Tiro, beginning with the prosecution of Verres....
by Robert HarrisRobert Harris (novelist)Robert Dennis Harris is an English novelist. He is a former journalist and BBC television reporter.-Early life:Born in Nottingham, Harris spent his childhood in a small rented house on a Nottingham council estate. His ambition to become a writer arose at an early age, from visits to the local...
, showing CiceroCiceroMarcus Tullius Cicero , was a Roman philosopher, statesman, lawyer, political theorist, and Roman constitutionalist. He came from a wealthy municipal family of the equestrian order, and is widely considered one of Rome's greatest orators and prose stylists.He introduced the Romans to the chief...
's rise to the consulship in 63 BC; a fictionalized biography told by his slave, later freedman, Tiro - A Pillar of Iron (1965) by Taylor CaldwellTaylor CaldwellJanet Miriam Holland Taylor Caldwell was an Anglo-American novelist and prolific author of popular fiction, also known by the pen names Marcus Holland and Max Reiner, and by her married name of J. Miriam Reback....
, a fictionalized biography of Cicero. - Winter Quarters (1956) by Alfred DugganAlfred DugganAlfred Duggan was an English historian, archeologist and best-selling historical novelist during the 1950s. Although he was raised in England, Duggan was born Alfred Leo Duggan in Buenos Aires, Argentina to a family of wealthy landowners of Irish descent. His family moved to England when he was...
. Two Gauls in the time of Julius Caesar, one of whom is under a curse from the Mother Goddess, whose worship he finds throughout the Roman world. - The Conquered by Naomi MitchisonNaomi MitchisonNaomi May Margaret Mitchison, CBE was a Scottish novelist and poet. She was appointed CBE in 1981; she was also entitled to call herself Lady Mitchison, CBE since 5 October 1964 .- Childhood and family background :Naomi Margaret Haldane was...
(1923). Gaul & the Gallic Wars 1st century BC - Beric the Briton: A Story of the Roman Invasion (1893) by G. A. HentyG. A. HentyGeorge Alfred Henty , was a prolific English novelist and a special correspondent. He is best known for his historical adventure stories that were popular in the late 19th century. His works include Out on the Pampas , The Young Buglers , With Clive in India and Wulf the Saxon .-Biography:G.A...
- Imperial Caesar (1960) also by Rex WarnerRex WarnerRex Warner was an English classicist, writer and translator. He is now probably best remembered for The Aerodrome , an allegorical novel whose young hero is faced with the disintegration of his certainties about his loved ones and with a choice between the earthy, animalistic life of his home...
- The Ides of MarchIdes of March (novel)The Ides of March is an epistolary novel by Thornton Wilder that was published in 1948. It is, in the author's words, 'a fantasia on certain events and persons of the last days of the Roman republic... Historical reconstruction is not among the primary aims of this work'...
by Thornton WilderThornton WilderThornton Niven Wilder was an American playwright and novelist. He received three Pulitzer Prizes, one for his novel The Bridge of San Luis Rey and two for his plays Our Town and The Skin of Our Teeth, and a National Book Award for his novel The Eighth Day.-Early years:Wilder was born in Madison,...
, about the year culminating in Caesar's assassination. - Three's Company (1958) by Alfred DugganAlfred DugganAlfred Duggan was an English historian, archeologist and best-selling historical novelist during the 1950s. Although he was raised in England, Duggan was born Alfred Leo Duggan in Buenos Aires, Argentina to a family of wealthy landowners of Irish descent. His family moved to England when he was...
. The career of Lepidus, triumvir with Octavian and Marcus Antonius after the death of Julius Caesar. - Marius' Mules series (2009) by S.J.A.Turney, a fictionised account of Caesar's campaigns in Gaul, currently covering 59 & 58 BCE.
- The Door in the Wall, The Key, The Lock by Benita Kane Jaro
Early/High Empire (27 BC to 190 AD)
- An Imaginary LifeAn Imaginary LifeAn Imaginary Life is a 1978 novella written by David Malouf.It tells the story of the Roman poet Ovid, during his exile in Tomis.Whilst there, Ovid lives with the natives, although he doesn't understand their language, and forms a bond with a wild boy who is found after having been brought up by...
by David Malouf. A fictional account of the poet Ovid's exile from Rome. - Augustus: A Novel by John Edward Williams
- Legion by William Altimari set during the reign of Augustus Caesar, takes place in 11 BC battle of the Lupia RiverBattle of the Lupia RiverThe Battle of the Lupia River - the Lippe River flows westwards through the Ruhr Valley in North Rhine-Westphalia. The battle was fought in 11 BC between a Roman force led by Nero Claudius Drusus and the Sicambri. Drusus defeated the Sicambri, and some of the defeated were moved to west of the...
- Centurion: A Novel of Ancient Rome by Peter W. Mitsopoulos set during the reign of Augustus Caesar, takes place in 9 AD, Battle of the Teutoburg ForestBattle of the Teutoburg ForestThe Battle of the Teutoburg Forest took place in 9 CE, when an alliance of Germanic tribes led by Arminius of the Cherusci ambushed and decisively destroyed three Roman legions, along with their auxiliaries, led by Publius Quinctilius Varus.Despite numerous successful campaigns and raids by the...
- The Quest For the Lost Roman Legions by Tony ClunnTony ClunnJohn Anthony Spencer "Tony" Clunn MBE, , is a retired major in the British Army, and an amateur archaeologist who discovered the main site of the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest at Kalkriese Hill.-Army career:...
, Battle of the Teutoburg ForestBattle of the Teutoburg ForestThe Battle of the Teutoburg Forest took place in 9 CE, when an alliance of Germanic tribes led by Arminius of the Cherusci ambushed and decisively destroyed three Roman legions, along with their auxiliaries, led by Publius Quinctilius Varus.Despite numerous successful campaigns and raids by the...
, with his account of his discovery of the battlefield - Three Legions series by Rosemary Sutcliffe set in Roman Britain c. 130 AD. The three novels consist of The Eagle of the NinthThe Eagle of the NinthThe Eagle of the Ninth is a historical adventure novel for children written by Rosemary Sutcliff and published in 1954. The story is set in Roman Britain in the 2nd century AD, after the building of Hadrian's Wall....
(1954), The Silver Branch (1957), and The Lantern Bearers (1959). The three were first collected in one volume as Three Legions in 1980. - 68 AD. by D.G. Bellenger
- The Wall by Paul Tilbury (2007) an account of a soldier's life in the garrison manning Hadrians' Wall.
The Julio-Claudian Dynasty
- Let the Emperor Speak: A novel of Caesar Augustus by Allan MassieAllan MassieAllan Massie is a well-known Scottish journalist, sports writer and novelist.-Early life:Born in 1938 in Singapore, where his father was a rubber planter for Sime Darby, Massie spent his childhood in Aberdeenshire...
, Doubleday & Company, Inc, New York, 1987 (First published in Great Britain in 1986 by the Bodley Head as Augustus). Also by this author: Caesar, Anthony, Tiberius, Caligula and Nero's Heirs.
Books about early Christians or the Christ include:
- Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ (1880) by Lew WallaceLew WallaceLewis "Lew" Wallace was an American lawyer, Union general in the American Civil War, territorial governor and statesman, politician and author...
; famously made into a film starring Charlton HestonCharlton HestonCharlton Heston was an American actor of film, theatre and television. Heston is known for heroic roles in films such as The Ten Commandments, Ben-Hur for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor, El Cid, and Planet of the Apes...
; set in the reign of TiberiusTiberiusTiberius , was Roman Emperor from 14 AD to 37 AD. Tiberius was by birth a Claudian, son of Tiberius Claudius Nero and Livia Drusilla. His mother divorced Nero and married Augustus in 39 BC, making him a step-son of Octavian...
in Judaea, the Mediterranean, and Rome. Epilogues carry the story into the reign of NeroNeroNero , was Roman Emperor from 54 to 68, and the last in the Julio-Claudian dynasty. Nero was adopted by his great-uncle Claudius to become his heir and successor, and succeeded to the throne in 54 following Claudius' death.... - The RobeThe RobeThe Robe is a 1942 historical novel about the Crucifixion written by Lloyd C. Douglas. The book was one of the best-selling titles of the 1940s. It entered the New York Times Best Seller list in October 1942, and four weeks later rose to No. 1. It held the position for nearly a year...
(1942), by Lloyd C. DouglasLloyd C. DouglasLloyd Cassel Douglas born Doya C. Douglas, was an American minister and author.He was born in Columbia City, Indiana, spent part of his boyhood in Monroeville, Indiana, Wilmot, Indiana and Florence, Kentucky, where his father, Alexander Jackson Douglas, was pastor of the Hopeful Lutheran Church...
, set in the same period as Ben-Hur; like Ben-Hur, more famous as a film.
- I Am a BarbarianI Am a BarbarianI Am a Barbarian is a historical novel by Edgar Rice Burroughs written in 1941 but was not published until after the author's death, first appearing in hardback on September 1, 1967 as published by Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc.. The book was originally to have been published by Canaveral Press. When...
(1967, written 1941) by Edgar Rice BurroughsEdgar Rice BurroughsEdgar Rice Burroughs was an American author, best known for his creation of the jungle hero Tarzan and the heroic Mars adventurer John Carter, although he produced works in many genres.-Biography:...
; the fictionalized memoirs of CaligulaCaligulaCaligula , also known as Gaius, was Roman Emperor from 37 AD to 41 AD. Caligula was a member of the house of rulers conventionally known as the Julio-Claudian dynasty. Caligula's father Germanicus, the nephew and adopted son of Emperor Tiberius, was a very successful general and one of Rome's most...
's slave.
Books about Claudius or set in his reign include:
- I, ClaudiusI, ClaudiusI, Claudius is a novel by English writer Robert Graves, written in the form of an autobiography of the Roman Emperor Claudius. As such, it includes history of the Julio-Claudian Dynasty and Roman Empire, from Julius Caesar's assassination in 44 BC to Caligula's assassination in AD 41...
(1934) and its sequel, Claudius the God (1935), by Robert GravesRobert GravesRobert von Ranke Graves 24 July 1895 – 7 December 1985 was an English poet, translator and novelist. During his long life he produced more than 140 works...
. The classic and influential dramatised account of the life of the emperor Claudius, made into a popular TV series (see below). - The Eagle series by Nigerian-born British novelist Simon ScarrowSimon ScarrowSimon Scarrow is a UK-based author, born in Nigeria and now based in Norfolk. He completed a master's degree at the University of East Anglia after working at the Inland Revenue, and then went into teaching as a lecturer, firstly at East Norfolk Sixth Form College, then at City College Norwich.He...
. The first book Under the EagleUnder the EagleUnder the Eagle is the first book in the Eagle Series, by Simon Scarrow and is his début novel.It starts on the Rhine Frontier in 42, and centres on Macro, a newly appointed Centurion, and his new second-in-command, Quintus Lucinius Cato.- Germania :...
(part of the Eagle seriesEagle SeriesThe Eagle Series is a military fiction series written by Simon Scarrow. The books describe the lives of two soldiers in the Roman army- Quintus Licinius Cato and Lucius Cornelius Macro. The first 5 books in the series are set in Roman Britain, between the years AD 42 and 44. The Eagle's Prophecy...
) was published 2000 by Simon ScarrowSimon ScarrowSimon Scarrow is a UK-based author, born in Nigeria and now based in Norfolk. He completed a master's degree at the University of East Anglia after working at the Inland Revenue, and then went into teaching as a lecturer, firstly at East Norfolk Sixth Form College, then at City College Norwich.He...
. Story of Roman invasion of Britain, featuring a young VespasianVespasianVespasian , was Roman Emperor from 69 AD to 79 AD. Vespasian was the founder of the Flavian dynasty, which ruled the Empire for a quarter century. Vespasian was descended from a family of equestrians, who rose into the senatorial rank under the Emperors of the Julio-Claudian dynasty...
. Other books in the series include The Eagle's ConquestThe Eagle's ConquestThe Eagle's Conquest is a 2001 novel by Simon Scarrow, about the Roman invasion of Britain in 42 AD. It is the second book in the Eagle Series-Plot summary:...
(2001 set in 42 AD (introducing Boudicca at the end); When the Eagle HuntsWhen the Eagle HuntsWhen the Eagle Hunts is a 2002 novel by Simon Scarrow, set in 44 AD during the Roman invasion of Britain. It is the third book in the Eagle Series.-Plot summary:...
(2002) set in 44 AD. Other books in the series include The Eagle and the Wolves (2003), The Eagle's Prey (2004), The Eagle's Prophecy (2005), The Eagle in the Sand (2006), and the forthcoming Centurion (January - 2008).
Books set in Nero's reign include:
- Quo VadisQuo Vadis (novel)Quo Vadis: A Narrative of the Time of Nero, commonly known as Quo Vadis, is a historical novel written by Henryk Sienkiewicz in Polish. Quo vadis is Latin for "Where are you going?" and alludes to the apocryphal Acts of Peter, in which Peter flees Rome but on his way meets Jesus and asks him why he...
(1895/1896), by Henryk SienkiewiczHenryk SienkiewiczHenryk Adam Aleksander Pius Sienkiewicz was a Polish journalist and Nobel Prize-winning novelist. A Polish szlachcic of the Oszyk coat of arms, he was one of the most popular Polish writers at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, and received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1905 for his...
set in the reign of NeroNeroNero , was Roman Emperor from 54 to 68, and the last in the Julio-Claudian dynasty. Nero was adopted by his great-uncle Claudius to become his heir and successor, and succeeded to the throne in 54 following Claudius' death....
in 64 AD. - A. D. 62: Pompeii by Rebecca East
- A Song for Nero (2003) by Tom HoltTom HoltTom Holt is a British novelist.He was born in London, the son of novelist Hazel Holt, and was educated at Westminster School, Wadham College, Oxford, and The College of Law, London....
, writing as Thomas Holt. - Domina (2002) by Paul Doherty, story of Agrippina, Claudius’wife, mother of Nero.
- Imperial Governor (1968, reprinted 2002), George Shipway, the Icenii revolt under Boudicca.
- The Roman (1964) by Mika WaltariMika WaltariMika Toimi Waltari was a Finnish writer, best known for his best-selling novel The Egyptian .- Early life :...
- Rubies of the Viper (2010) by Martha Marks; interwoven stories of a young Roman woman who inherits a fortune when her brother is murdered and a Greek slave she inherits as part of the estate.
The Flavian Dynasty
- The Last Days of PompeiiThe Last Days of PompeiiThe Last Days of Pompeii is a novel written by the baron Edward Bulwer-Lytton in 1834. Once a very widely read book and now relatively neglected, it culminates in the cataclysmic destruction of the city of Pompeii by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79.The novel uses its characters to contrast...
by E.G.Bulwer-LyttonEdward Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Baron LyttonEdward George Earle Lytton Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Baron Lytton PC , was an English politician, poet, playwright, and novelist. He was immensely popular with the reading public and wrote a stream of bestselling dime-novels which earned him a considerable fortune... - PompeiiPompeii (novel)Pompeii is a novel by author and journalist Robert Harris published by Random House in 2003. It is a blend of fictional characters with the real-life eruption of Mount Vesuvius on August 24, 79 that overwhelmed Pompeii and its surrounding towns. Pompeii is especially notable for the author's...
by Robert HarrisRobert Harris (novelist)Robert Dennis Harris is an English novelist. He is a former journalist and BBC television reporter.-Early life:Born in Nottingham, Harris spent his childhood in a small rented house on a Nottingham council estate. His ambition to become a writer arose at an early age, from visits to the local...
, set in the reign of TitusTitusTitus , was Roman Emperor from 79 to 81. A member of the Flavian dynasty, Titus succeeded his father Vespasian upon his death, thus becoming the first Roman Emperor to come to the throne after his own father....
.
The Antonine Dynasty
- Mémoires d'Hadrien (Memoirs of Hadrian) by Marguerite YourcenarMarguerite YourcenarMarguerite Yourcenar was a Belgian-born French novelist and essayist. Winner of the Prix Femina and the Erasmus Prize, she was the first woman elected to the Académie française, in 1980, and the seventeenth person to occupy Seat 3.-Biography:Yourcenar was born Marguerite Antoinette Jeanne Marie...
- Following Hadrian: A Second-Century Journey through the Roman Empire by Elizabeth Speller
Middle Empire (191 AD to 305 AD), when Diocletian splits the Empire
- Family Favourites (1960), by Alfred DugganAlfred DugganAlfred Duggan was an English historian, archeologist and best-selling historical novelist during the 1950s. Although he was raised in England, Duggan was born Alfred Leo Duggan in Buenos Aires, Argentina to a family of wealthy landowners of Irish descent. His family moved to England when he was...
; a tale of court life under the teenage emperor Elegabalus, as recounted by his personal bodyguard - The Water Thief (2007) by Ben Pastor; in 304 AD the historian to DiocletianDiocletianDiocletian |latinized]] upon his accession to Diocletian . c. 22 December 244 – 3 December 311), was a Roman Emperor from 284 to 305....
investigates the death of AntinousAntinousAntinoüs or Antinoös was a beautiful Bithynian youth and the favourite of the Roman emperor Hadrian...
, HadrianHadrianHadrian , was Roman Emperor from 117 to 138. He is best known for building Hadrian's Wall, which marked the northern limit of Roman Britain. In Rome, he re-built the Pantheon and constructed the Temple of Venus and Roma. In addition to being emperor, Hadrian was a humanist and was philhellene in...
's favored male consort.
Late Empire: West (to 476 AD)
- HelenaHelena (1950 novel)Helena, published in 1950, is the sole historical novel of Evelyn Waugh.It follows the quest of Helena to find the relics of the cross on which Christ was crucified. Helena, a Christian, was the mother of the Roman emperor Constantine I....
by Evelyn WaughEvelyn WaughArthur Evelyn St. John Waugh , known as Evelyn Waugh, was an English writer of novels, travel books and biographies. He was also a prolific journalist and reviewer...
; follows the quest of the Empress Helena, a Christian and the mother of Emperor Constantine to uncover the remains of the cross upon which Christ was crucified. - Murder Imperial, (2003) and The Song of the Gladiator (2004) by Paul Doherty, Helena, mother of Constantine, employs a meek spy named Claudia.
- * Frontier Wolf by Rosemary Suttcliff (1980). Set in 343 AD. As a punishment, a detachment of Roman legionaries are ordered on a hopeless mission beyond Hadrian's Wall.
- The Young Julian by Thomas J. Hairston, Ph.D.
- JulianJulian (historical novel)Julian by Gore Vidal is a work of historical fiction written primarily in the first person dealing with the life of the Roman emperor Flavius Claudius Julianus, , who reigned 360-363 CE.-Novel:...
(1964) by Gore VidalGore VidalGore Vidal is an American author, playwright, essayist, screenwriter, and political activist. His third novel, The City and the Pillar , outraged mainstream critics as one of the first major American novels to feature unambiguous homosexuality...
, fictionalized biography of the emperor Julian the ApostateJulian the ApostateJulian "the Apostate" , commonly known as Julian, or also Julian the Philosopher, was Roman Emperor from 361 to 363 and a noted philosopher and Greek writer....
, who tried to revive PaganismPaganismPaganism is a blanket term, typically used to refer to non-Abrahamic, indigenous polytheistic religious traditions.... - The Last Legion: A Novel by Valerio Massimo ManfrediValerio Massimo ManfrediValerio Massimo Manfredi is an Italian historian, writer, archaeologist and journalist.-Biography:He was born in Piumazzo di Castelfranco Emilia, province of Modena and is married to Christine Fedderson Manfredi, who translates his published works from Italian to English...
; fictionalized story of the emperor ValerianValerian (emperor)Valerian , also known as Valerian the Elder, was Roman Emperor from 253 to 260. He was taken captive by Persian king Shapur I after the Battle of Edessa, becoming the only Roman Emperor who was captured as a prisoner of war, resulting in wide-ranging instability across the Empire.-Origins and rise...
and what might have happened to his surviving retinue. - Eagle in the SnowEagle in the SnowEagle in the Snow is a historical fiction novel. Written in 1970 by Wallace Breem, the novel is set in Britannia and Germania in the late 4th and early 5th century, and centres on the Roman general Paulinus Gaius Maximus, a Mithraic in an age of Christianization...
(1970) by Wallace BreemWallace BreemWallace Breem was a British librarian and author. He was the Librarian and Keeper of Manuscripts of the Inner Temple Law Library, and wrote historical novels, including Eagle in the Snow ....
; set in BritanniaBritanniaBritannia is an ancient term for Great Britain, and also a female personification of the island. The name is Latin, and derives from the Greek form Prettanike or Brettaniai, which originally designated a collection of islands with individual names, including Albion or Great Britain. However, by the...
and GermaniaGermaniaGermania was the Greek and Roman geographical term for the geographical regions inhabited by mainly by peoples considered to be Germani. It was most often used to refer especially to the east of the Rhine and north of the Danube...
in the late 4th and early 5th century; features a Mithraic Roman general. - The Little Emperors (1951) by Alfred DugganAlfred DugganAlfred Duggan was an English historian, archeologist and best-selling historical novelist during the 1950s. Although he was raised in England, Duggan was born Alfred Leo Duggan in Buenos Aires, Argentina to a family of wealthy landowners of Irish descent. His family moved to England when he was...
. A succession of coups in late-Roman Britain. - Dominic (1991) by Kathleen Robinson. The life and times of a dwarf, set in Gaul, Egypt, Constantinople, and finally Germania, 397 AD.
- Gods And Legions: A Novel of the Roman Empire (2002) by Michael Curtis FordMichael Curtis FordMichael Curtis Ford is an American historical novelist, writing novels about Ancient Rome and Ancient Greece. He has worked variously as a laborer, a ski patrolman, a musician, a consultant, a banker, a Latin teacher, and a translator. He holds degrees in Economics and Linguistics and lives in...
- The Sword of Attila: A Novel of the Last Years of Rome (2005) by Michael Curtis Ford
- The Fall of Rome: A Novel of a World Lost (2007) by Michael Curtis Ford
Late Empire: Byzantine (457-1453 AD)
Other books about the Byzantine empire and the Crusades are listed under fiction set in Byzantium- Count BelisariusCount BelisariusCount Belisarius is a historical novel by Robert Graves, first published in 1938, recounting the life of the Byzantine general Belisarius ....
(1938), by Robert GravesRobert GravesRobert von Ranke Graves 24 July 1895 – 7 December 1985 was an English poet, translator and novelist. During his long life he produced more than 140 works...
, set in the 6th century AD, in the reign of Justinian - Justinian, a novel, by H N Turteltaub (Harry TurtledoveHarry TurtledoveHarry Norman Turtledove is an American novelist, who has produced works in several genres including alternate history, historical fiction, fantasy and science fiction.- Life :...
), August 1998
Unknown period
- Avventura nel primo secolo (Adventure in the First Century) by Paolo Monelli
- Sand of the Arena by James Duffy
- The Nero Prediction by Humphry KnipeHumphry KnipeVictor Humphry Knipe is a sociology and history author, and adult film writer, director, and website administrator. He is a co-author of The Dominant Man: The Pecking Order in Human Society, a sociology book which has been translated into five languages, and the sole author of The Nero Prediction,...
- In the Army of Marcus Batallius by David M. Ross
- Domitia & Domitian by David Corson
- Games of Venus by Sylvia Shults
- Antonia by Brenda Jagger
- The Tribune: A Novel of Ancient Rome by Patrick LarkinPatrick LarkinPatrick Larkin is a bestselling novelist specializing in historical, military, and espionage thrillers. His collaborations with Larry Bond, including Red Phoenix, Vortex, Cauldron, The Enemy Within, and Day of Wrath, have won critical acclaim for their suspense, realism, and unblinking appreciation...
- Hadrian's Wall: A Novel by William Dietrich
- The Centurion: A Novel (1986) by Jan de HartogJan de HartogJan de Hartog was a Dutch playwright, novelist and occasional social critic who moved to the United States in the early 1960s and became a Quaker.- Early years :...
Detective fiction
- The Roma Sub RosaRoma Sub RosaRoma Sub Rosa is the title of the series of mystery novels by Steven Saylor set in, and populated by, noteworthy denizens of ancient Rome. The series is noted for its historical authenticity. The phrase "Roma Sub Rosa" means, in Latin, "Rome under the rose"...
series (1991–2005) by Steven SaylorSteven SaylorSteven Saylor is an American author of historical novels. He is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin, where he studied history and Classics....
, starts with Roman Blood (1991); the books cover the period 80 BC to 48 BC - The Marcus Didius FalcoMarcus Didius FalcoMarcus Didius Falco is the central character and narrator in a series of novels by Lindsey Davis. Using the concepts of modern detective stories , Davis portrays the world of the Roman Empire under Vespasian...
series by Lindsey DavisLindsey DavisLindsey Davis is an English historical novelist, best known as the author of the Falco series of crime stories set in ancient Rome and its empire.-Biography:...
, starts with The Silver PigsThe Silver PigsThe Silver Pigs is a crime novel by Lindsey Davis. Set in Rome and Britannia during AD 70, just after the year of the four emperors, The Silver Pigs stars Marcus Didius Falco, informer and imperial agent....
; set in the reign of VespasianVespasianVespasian , was Roman Emperor from 69 AD to 79 AD. Vespasian was the founder of the Flavian dynasty, which ruled the Empire for a quarter century. Vespasian was descended from a family of equestrians, who rose into the senatorial rank under the Emperors of the Julio-Claudian dynasty...
, and taking place in many locales around the Empire - The SPQR series by John Maddox RobertsJohn Maddox RobertsJohn Maddox Roberts is an author who has written many science fiction and fantasy novels, including his successful historical fiction, such as the SPQR series and Hannibal's Children....
, set in the early Empire - The I, Claudia series by Marilyn Todd, featuring her picaresque heroine Claudia SeferiusClaudia SeferiusClaudia Seferius is a fictional heroine created by author Marilyn Todd. The heiress to a wine merchant's business, she is also an amateur sleuth, living in Ancient Rome during the reign of Augustus Caesar.-Character history:...
- The Publius AureliusPublius AureliusPublius Aurelius Statius is a detective, main character of a series of novels by Italian author Danila Comastri Montanari. Statius, a member of the ancient Senatus Romanus, solves mysteries in ancient Rome and other places in Italy and Gaul....
series by Danila Comastri MontanariDanila Comastri MontanariDanila Comastri Montanari is an Italian mystery fiction writer. She created the Publius Aurelius Statius series.-Publius Aurelius series:*1990 - Mors tua*1991 - In corpore sano*1993 - Cave canem... - The Eagle series by Simon ScarrowSimon ScarrowSimon Scarrow is a UK-based author, born in Nigeria and now based in Norfolk. He completed a master's degree at the University of East Anglia after working at the Inland Revenue, and then went into teaching as a lecturer, firstly at East Norfolk Sixth Form College, then at City College Norwich.He...
(see above) - The Marcus Corvinus series by David WishartDavid Wishart-Life and work:Wishart was born in Arbroath, Scotland. He studied Greek and Latin classics at Edinburgh University and after graduation taught for four years in a secondary school. He then retrained as a teacher of English as a Foreign Language and worked abroad for eleven years, in Kuwait, Greece...
; early Empire - The Gaius Petreius Ruso series by Ruth Downie, about a military doctor stationed in BritanniaBritanniaBritannia is an ancient term for Great Britain, and also a female personification of the island. The name is Latin, and derives from the Greek form Prettanike or Brettaniai, which originally designated a collection of islands with individual names, including Albion or Great Britain. However, by the...
during HadrianHadrianHadrian , was Roman Emperor from 117 to 138. He is best known for building Hadrian's Wall, which marked the northern limit of Roman Britain. In Rome, he re-built the Pantheon and constructed the Temple of Venus and Roma. In addition to being emperor, Hadrian was a humanist and was philhellene in...
's reign - Roman Justice: SPQR: Too Roman To Handle, by Anne Hart
- The Germanicus Mosaic series by Rosemary Rowe - set in later Roman Britain
- The Roman MysteriesThe Roman MysteriesThe Roman Mysteries is a series of historical novels for children by Caroline Lawrence. The first book, The Thieves of Ostia, was published in 2001, finishing with The Man from Pomegranate Street, published in 2009, and 17 more novels were planned, plus a number of "mini-mysteries" and companion...
young adults' detective/drama series by Caroline LawrenceCaroline LawrenceCaroline Lawrence is an English American author, best known for The Roman Mysteries series of historical novels for children. The series is about a Roman girl called Flavia and her three friends: Nubia , Jonathan and Lupus... - The Caius Trilogy by German author Henry WinterfeldHenry WinterfeldHenry Winterfeld , published under the pseudonym Manfred Michael, was a German writer and artist famous for his children's and young adult novels.-Bibliography:...
: Caius ist ein Dummkopf (Caius is an Idiot); Caius geht ein Licht auf (Caius has an Inspiration), and Caius in der Klemme (Caius in a Fix). The first part was published in English with the alternate title Detectives in Togas. The second was published in English with the alternate title Mystery of the Roman Ransom. - The Third Princess: A Septimus Severus Quistus Roman Mystery by Philip Boast
- The Aurelia Marcella mystery series by Jane Finnis; set in BritanniaBritanniaBritannia is an ancient term for Great Britain, and also a female personification of the island. The name is Latin, and derives from the Greek form Prettanike or Brettaniai, which originally designated a collection of islands with individual names, including Albion or Great Britain. However, by the...
in the late 1st century, and featuring an innkeeper near York who claims she runs "the best mansio north of the Humber"
Science fiction/time travel novels
- Arria Marcella (1852) by Théophile GautierThéophile GautierPierre Jules Théophile Gautier was a French poet, dramatist, novelist, journalist, art critic and literary critic....
set in 79 AD in PompeiiPompeiiThe city of Pompeii is a partially buried Roman town-city near modern Naples in the Italian region of Campania, in the territory of the comune of Pompei. Along with Herculaneum, Pompeii was destroyed and completely buried during a long catastrophic eruption of the volcano Mount Vesuvius spanning... - Caesar's Bicycle (1997) (Timeline Wars series) by John BarnesJohn Barnes (author)-Writing:Two of his novels, The Sky So Big and Black and The Duke of Uranium have been reviewed as having content appropriate for a young adult readership, comparing favorably to Robert A. Heinlein's "juvenile" novels...
- Household GodsHousehold GodsHousehold Gods is a science fiction time-travel novel written by Harry Turtledove and Judith Tarr.-Plot summary:The story focuses on Nicole Gunther-Perrin, a young lawyer in late 20th Century Los Angeles who is dissatisfied with her hectic life, which includes balancing her career with being a...
(1999), by Judith TarrJudith TarrJudith Tarr is an American author, best known for her fantasy books. She received her B.A. in Latin and English from Mount Holyoke College in 1976, and has an M.A. in Classics from Cambridge University, and an M.A. and Ph.D. in Medieval Studies from Yale University...
and Harry TurtledoveHarry TurtledoveHarry Norman Turtledove is an American novelist, who has produced works in several genres including alternate history, historical fiction, fantasy and science fiction.- Life :...
set in the reign of Marcus Aurelius - The Time Travelling Cat and the Roman Eagle (2001) by Julia JarmanJulia JarmanJulia Jarman is a British author of books for children of all reading ages and ability.- Background :Julia Jarman was born Julia Hudspeth in the city of Peterborough, and now lives in Riseley, Bedfordshire. She studied English and Drama at Manchester University and then qualified as a teacher...
- Toss of the Coin (Time Rangers) (1998) by Rob ChildsRob ChildsRob Childs is a British author, who has written over eighty books, mainly aimed at young people. Most of the books have a sporting theme, with over fifty being about football. Rob has also written non-sports books based on historical characters: for example, Guy Fawkes and Sir Francis Drake...
- The Chance (2006) by Hils Wilson
- A. D. 62 Pompeii (2003) by Rebecca East
Alternate universe fiction
The following alternate history novels are set in fictional universes prior to the present day.- Lest Darkness FallLest Darkness FallLest Darkness Fall is an alternate history science fiction novel written in 1939 by author L. Sprague de Camp. The book is often considered one of the best examples of the alternate history genre; it is certainly one of the most influential...
(1939) by L. Sprague de CampL. Sprague de CampLyon Sprague de Camp was an American author of science fiction and fantasy books, non-fiction and biography. In a writing career spanning 60 years, he wrote over 100 books, including novels and notable works of non-fiction, including biographies of other important fantasy authors...
; a time-travelling American alters history, set in 535 AD. - Agent of Byzantium by Harry TurtledoveHarry TurtledoveHarry Norman Turtledove is an American novelist, who has produced works in several genres including alternate history, historical fiction, fantasy and science fiction.- Life :...
set in an alternate 14th century with no Islam. - Hannibal's ChildrenHannibal's ChildrenHannibal's Children is the 2002 alternate history novel by John Maddox Roberts.-Plot introduction:The Carthaginians won the Second Punic War against the Romans. The defeated Romans were forced to go into exile north of the Danube River...
and its sequel The Seven HillsThe Seven HillsThe Seven Hills is the 2005 alternate history novel by John Maddox Roberts, a sequel to his 2002 novel Hannibal's Children..-Plot introduction:War breaks out again between the Carthaginians and the Romans...
by John Maddox RobertsJohn Maddox RobertsJohn Maddox Roberts is an author who has written many science fiction and fantasy novels, including his successful historical fiction, such as the SPQR series and Hannibal's Children....
. A victorious Hannibal sends all the Romans into exile, but they found a new city and their descendants return for vengeance.
The following alternate history story is set in a fictional universe prior to the present day
- "Delenda Est" (1955) by Poul AndersonPoul AndersonPoul William Anderson was an American science fiction author who began his career during one of the Golden Ages of the genre and continued to write and remain popular into the 21st century. Anderson also authored several works of fantasy, historical novels, and a prodigious number of short stories...
; now available in Guardians of Time (1960 and 1985) editions); Rome defeated by Carthage in the Second Punic WarSecond Punic WarThe Second Punic War, also referred to as The Hannibalic War and The War Against Hannibal, lasted from 218 to 201 BC and involved combatants in the western and eastern Mediterranean. This was the second major war between Carthage and the Roman Republic, with the participation of the Berbers on...
and what follows.
The following alternate history novels are set in fictional universes where the Roman Empire never fell, and has endured to the present day:
- The Aquiliad (1983), by Somtow Sucharitkul. Circa 50 AD. A romp in which Roman legions discover America, battle the Aztecs, encounter Big Foot, and drive off flying saucers.
- Orbis (novel) (2002), by Scott MackayScott MackayScott Mackay is a Canadian science fiction author from Toronto, where he still lives with his wife and two children. He is the award-winning author of eleven novels and over forty short stories. His short story, Last Inning, won the 1999 Arthur Ellis Award for best short mystery fiction...
. Romans return to a modern day Earth to retake it from Alien invaders who exiled them centuries ago and imposed a strange form of Christianity. - Gunpowder EmpireGunpowder EmpireGunpowder Empire is an alternate history novel by Harry Turtledove. It is the first part of the Crosstime Traffic series.-Plot summary:In the novel, Jeremy and Amanda Solter are two teenagers living in the late 21st century...
, a 2003 novel by Harry TurtledoveHarry TurtledoveHarry Norman Turtledove is an American novelist, who has produced works in several genres including alternate history, historical fiction, fantasy and science fiction.- Life :... - Roma EternaRoma EternaRoma Eterna is a 2003 novel by Robert Silverberg which presents an alternate history in which the Roman Empire survives to the present day.-Plot introduction:...
, a 2003 novel by Robert SilverbergRobert SilverbergRobert Silverberg is an American author, best known for writing science fiction. He is a multiple nominee of the Hugo Award and a winner of the Nebula Award.-Early years:... - RomanitasRomanitas (novel)Romanitas is an alternate history novel by Sophia McDougall, published by Orion Books. It is the first of a planned trilogy of novels based on a world where the Roman Empire has survived to contemporary times and now dominates much of the world....
(2005), by Sophia McDougallSophia McDougallSophia McDougall is a British novelist, playwright, and poet.-Novelist:McDougall is best known internationally as the author of alternate history novels published by Orion Publishing Group and based on the premise that the Roman Empire survived to contemporary times.-Books:*Romanitas , Orion Books... - Rome BurningRome BurningRome Burning is the second book of Sophia McDougall's projected trilogy, following her debut novel, Romanitas, set in a world where the Roman Empire has survived to contemporary times.- Plot :...
(2006), sequel to Romanitas, by Sophia McDougallSophia McDougallSophia McDougall is a British novelist, playwright, and poet.-Novelist:McDougall is best known internationally as the author of alternate history novels published by Orion Publishing Group and based on the premise that the Roman Empire survived to contemporary times.-Books:*Romanitas , Orion Books... - The Germanicus trilogyGermanicus trilogyThe Germanicus trilogy is an alternate history trilogy of books written by Kirk Mitchell, consisting of Procurator, New Barbarians and Cry Republic...
, a collection of books by Kirk MitchellKirk MitchellKirk Mitchell is an American author who is known for his time travel, alternate history, historical fiction, and adventure fiction novels. Mitchell has also created several novelizations of movies....
. - EmperorEmperor (Stephen Baxter)Book one of four in Stephen Baxter's alternate history and science fiction series Time's Tapestry.-Synopsis:A mysterious prophecy from the future shapes the destiny of a family through four centuries of the Roman occupation of Britain. Begins in 4 BC and incorporates such later events as the...
(2006), by Stephen Baxter. After a Celtic chieftain obeys an ancient prophecy, and sides with the invaders, the history of Roman Britain takes a different path. First in a series.
Comic books
- The Adventures of Alix (1948-now) series by Jacques MartinJacques MartinJacques Martin may refer to:*Jacques Martin , , hockey coach*Jacques Martin , , French TV host and producer*Jacques Martin , French writer and artist of comics*Jacques-Paul Martin, French curial cardinal...
- AstérixAsterixAsterix or The Adventures of Asterix is a series of French comic books written by René Goscinny and illustrated by Albert Uderzo . The series first appeared in French in the magazine Pilote on October 29, 1959...
(1959-now) series by René GoscinnyRené GoscinnyRené Goscinny was a French comics editor and writer, who is best known for the comic book Astérix, which he created with illustrator Albert Uderzo, and for his work on the comic series Lucky Luke with Morris and Iznogoud with Jean Tabary.-Early life:Goscinny was born in Paris in 1926, to a family...
(stories) and Albert UderzoAlbert UderzoAlbert Uderzo is a French comic book artist, and scriptwriter. He is best known for his work on the Astérix series, but also drew other comics such as Oumpah-pah, also in collaboration with René Goscinny.-Early life:...
(illustrations). A tiny village in Gaul holds out against the Roman Army, and its doughtiest warriors meet all the famous Romans. - Murena (1997-now) series by Jean DufauxJean DufauxJean Dufaux is a Belgian comic book writer. Initially beginning his professional career as a journalist for "CINÉ-PRESSE", Dufaux started writing comic books in the 1980s...
and Philippe Delaby - Le Fléau des Dieux (2000–2006) series by Valérie Mangin and Aleksa GajicAleksa GajicAleksa Gajić is a Serbian comics artist. Gajić is best known as the illustrator of Scourge of the Gods , written by Valérie Mangin, and Technotise...
. Science fiction set in a remote future
Science fiction inspired by Rome or works about Rome
- Empire of the Atom, by A. E. van VogtA. E. van VogtAlfred Elton van Vogt was a Canadian-born science fiction author regarded by some as one of the most popular and complex science fiction writers of the mid-twentieth century: the "Golden Age" of the genre....
, translates Graves' novel about Belisarius (above) into a science fiction context. - The Foundation series by Isaac AsimovIsaac AsimovIsaac Asimov was an American author and professor of biochemistry at Boston University, best known for his works of science fiction and for his popular science books. Asimov was one of the most prolific writers of all time, having written or edited more than 500 books and an estimated 90,000...
, about the fall of a galactic empire, is derived from Gibbon's Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. - Julian Comstock by Robert Charles WilsonRobert Charles WilsonRobert Charles Wilson is an American-Canadian science fiction author.Wilson was born in the United States in California, but grew up near Toronto, Ontario. Apart from another short period in the early 1970s spent in Whittier, California, he has lived most of his life in Canada, and in 2007 he...
, about a post-apocalyptic America transformed into a neo-Roman Empire, and a high born youth who, like Julian the ApostateJulian the ApostateJulian "the Apostate" , commonly known as Julian, or also Julian the Philosopher, was Roman Emperor from 361 to 363 and a noted philosopher and Greek writer....
, fights the power of the Church. - Bread and Circuses (Star Trek: The Original Series)
Comic books
- Leading ComicsLeading ComicsLeading Comics was a comic book published by what is now DC Comics during the 1940s and early 1950s, a period known to fans and historians as the Golden Age of Comic Books. At the title's inception, DC was actually two companies, National Comics and All-American Publications...
- in the 1940s, a series called "Nero Fox" (about a funny animalFunny animalFunny animal is a cartooning term for the genre of comics and animated cartoons in which the main characters are humanoid or talking animals, with anthropomorphic personality traits. The characters themselves may also be called funny animals...
named Nero Fox, who was emperor of Rome) was published as a backup series in this comic title. - Trigan EmpireTrigan EmpireThe Rise and Fall of the Trigan Empire, later called simply The Trigan Empire was a science fiction comic series written mainly by Mike Butterworth and most notably drawn by Don Lawrence...
was a Science Fiction comic series telling of adventures on the planet Elekton with many similarities to the Roman Empire
Movies
- Quo VadisQuo Vadis (1951 film)Quo Vadis is a 1951 epic film made by MGM. It was directed by Mervyn LeRoy and produced by Sam Zimbalist, from a screenplay by John Lee Mahin, S. N. Behrman and Sonya Levien, adapted from Henryk Sienkiewicz's classic 1896 novel Quo Vadis. The music score was by Miklós Rózsa and the cinematography...
- U.S. 1951 director Mervyn LeRoy - The RobeThe Robe (film)The Robe is a 1953 American Biblical epic film that tells the story of a Roman military tribune who commands the unit that crucifies Jesus. The film was made by 20th Century Fox and is notable for being the first film released in the widescreen process CinemaScope.It was directed by Henry Koster...
- U.S. 1953 director Henry KosterHenry KosterHenry Koster was born Hermann Kosterlitz in Berlin, Germany. He became a film director and later moved to Hollywood. Koster's father, a salesman, left home when Henry was a young man... - Demetrius and the GladiatorsDemetrius and the GladiatorsDemetrius and the Gladiators is a 1954 sword and sandal drama film and a sequel to The Robe. It was made by 20th Century Fox, directed by Delmer Daves and produced by Frank Ross. The screenplay was by Philip Dunne based on characters created by Lloyd C...
- U.S. 1954 director Delmer DavesDelmer DavesDelmer Daves was an American screenwriter, director, and producer.-Life and career:Born in San Francisco, Delmer Daves first pursued a career as a lawyer...
(sequel to The Robe) - Jupiter's DarlingJupiter's Darling (film)Jupiter's Darling is a musical romance film released by MGM in 1955 and directed by George Sidney. It starred Esther Williams as the Roman woman Amytis, Howard Keel as Hannibal, the Carthaginian military commander and George Sanders as Fabius Maximus, Amytis's fiance...
- U.S. 1955 director George SidneyGeorge SidneyGeorge Sidney was an American film director and film producer who worked primarily at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.-Career:...
, based on a play by Robert SherwoodRobert SherwoodRobert Sherwood may refer to:*Robert Emmet Sherwood , American playwright, editor, and screenwriter*Robert Edmund Sherwood , American clown and author*Bobby Sherwood , American bandleader... - Ben-HurBen-Hur (1959 film)Ben-Hur is a 1959 American epic film directed by William Wyler and starring Charlton Heston in the title role, the third film adaptation of Lew Wallace's 1880 novel Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ. The screenplay was written by Karl Tunberg, Gore Vidal, and Christopher Fry. The score was composed by...
- U.S. 1959 director William WylerWilliam WylerWilliam Wyler was a leading American motion picture director, producer, and screenwriter.Notable works included Ben-Hur , The Best Years of Our Lives , and Mrs. Miniver , all of which won Wyler Academy Awards for Best Director, and also won Best Picture... - SpartacusSpartacus (film)Spartacus is a 1960 American epic historical drama film directed by Stanley Kubrick and based on the novel of the same name by Howard Fast...
- U.S. 1960 director Stanley KubrickStanley KubrickStanley Kubrick was an American film director, writer, producer, and photographer who lived in England during most of the last four decades of his career... - King of Kings - U.S. 1961 director Nicholas RayNicholas RayNicholas Ray was an American film director best known for the movie Rebel Without a Cause....
- CleopatraCleopatra (1963 film)Cleopatra is a 1963 British-American-Swiss epic drama film directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz. The screenplay was adapted by Sidney Buchman, Ben Hecht, Ranald MacDougall, and Mankiewicz from a book by Carlo Maria Franzero. The film starred Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, Rex Harrison, Roddy...
- U.S. 1963 director Joseph L. MankiewiczJoseph L. MankiewiczJoseph Leo Mankiewicz was an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. Mankiewicz had a long Hollywood career and is best known as the writer-director of All About Eve , which was nominated for 14 Academy Awards and won six. He was brother to screenwriter and drama critic Herman J... - The Fall of the Roman EmpireThe Fall of the Roman Empire (film)The Fall of the Roman Empire is a 1964 English-language epic film produced by Samuel Bronston Productions and the Rank Organisation, and released by Paramount Pictures. It was directed by Anthony Mann and produced by Samuel Bronston with Jaime Prades and Michal Waszynski as associate producers. The...
- U.S. 1964 director Anthony MannAnthony MannAnthony Mann was an American actor and film director, most notably of film noirs and Westerns. As a director, he often collaborated with the cinematographer John Alton and with James Stewart in his Westerns.-Biography:... - The Greatest Story Ever ToldThe Greatest Story Ever ToldThe Greatest Story Ever Told is a 1965 American epic film produced and directed by George Stevens and distributed by United Artists. It is a retelling of the story of Jesus Christ, from the Nativity through the Resurrection. This film is notable for its large ensemble cast and for being the last...
- U.S. 1965 director George StevensGeorge StevensGeorge Stevens was an American film director, producer, screenwriter and cinematographer.Among his most notable films were Diary of Anne Frank , nominated for Best Director, Giant , winner of Oscar for Best Director, Shane , Oscar nominated, and A Place in the Sun , winner of Oscar for Best... - A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the ForumA Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the ForumA Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by Burt Shevelove and Larry Gelbart....
- U.S. 1966 director Richard LesterRichard LesterRichard Lester is an American film director based in Britain. Lester is notable for his work with The Beatles in the 1960s and his work on the Superman film series in the 1980s.-Early years and television:... - SatyriconSatyricon (film)Satyricon is a 1969 Italian fantasy drama film written and directed by Federico Fellini. It is loosely based on Petronius's work, Satyricon, a series of bawdy and satirical episodes written during the reign of the emperor Nero and set in imperial Rome.-Plot:The film opens on a graffiti-covered...
- Italy 1970 director Federico FelliniFederico FelliniFederico Fellini, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI , was an Italian film director and scriptwriter. Known for a distinct style that blends fantasy and baroque images, he is considered one of the most influential and widely revered filmmakers of the 20th century... - Jesus Christ SuperstarJesus Christ Superstar (film)Jesus Christ Superstar is a 1973 American film adaptation of the Andrew Lloyd Webber/Tim Rice rock opera of the same name. Directed by Norman Jewison, the film centers on the conflict between Judas and Jesus during the last weeks before the crucifixion of Jesus...
- U.S. 1973 director Norman JewisonNorman JewisonNorman Frederick Jewison, CC, O.Ont is a Canadian film director, producer, actor and founder of the Canadian Film Centre. Highlights of his directing career include In the Heat of the Night , The Thomas Crown Affair , Fiddler on the Roof , Jesus Christ Superstar , Moonstruck , The Hurricane and The... - SebastianeSebastianeSebastiane is a controversial 1976 film written and directed by Derek Jarman and Paul Humfress. It portrays the events of the life of Saint Sebastian, including his iconic martyrdom by arrows. Most of the controversy surrounding the film derives from the homoeroticism portrayed between the soldiers...
- UK 1976 director Derek JarmanDerek JarmanMichael Derek Elworthy Jarman was an English film director, stage designer, diarist, artist, gardener and author.-Life:... - CaligulaCaligula (film)Caligula is a 1979 American-produced Italian biographical film directed by Tinto Brass, with additional scenes filmed by Giancarlo Lui and Penthouse founder Bob Guccione. The film concerns the rise and fall of Roman Emperor Gaius Caesar Germanicus, better known as Caligula...
- U.S. 1979 director Tinto BrassTinto BrassGiovanni Brass , better known as Tinto Brass, is an Italian filmmaker. He is noted especially for his work in the erotic genre, with films such as Così fan tutte , Paprika, Monella and Trasgredire... - Monty Python's Life of BrianMonty Python's Life of BrianMonty Python's Life of Brian, also known as Life of Brian, is a 1979 British comedy film written, directed and largely performed by the Monty Python comedy team...
- U.K. 1979 director Terry JonesTerry JonesTerence Graham Parry Jones is a Welsh comedian, screenwriter, actor, film director, children's author, popular historian, political commentator, and TV documentary host. He is best known as a member of the Monty Python comedy team.... - History of the World Part 1 - U.S. 1981 director Mel BrooksMel BrooksMel Brooks is an American film director, screenwriter, composer, lyricist, comedian, actor and producer. He is best known as a creator of broad film farces and comic parodies. He began his career as a stand-up comic and as a writer for the early TV variety show Your Show of Shows...
- The Last Temptation of ChristThe Last Temptation of Christ (film)The Last Temptation of Christ is a 1988 drama film directed by Martin Scorsese. It is a film adaptation of the controversial 1953 novel of the same name by Nikos Kazantzakis. It stars Willem Dafoe as Jesus Christ, Harvey Keitel as Judas Iscariot, Barbara Hershey as Mary Magdalene, David Bowie as...
- U.S. 1988 director Martin ScorseseMartin ScorseseMartin Charles Scorsese is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film historian. In 1990 he founded The Film Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to film preservation, and in 2007 he founded the World Cinema Foundation... - TitusTitus (film)Titus is a 1999 film adaptation of Shakespeare's revenge tragedy Titus Andronicus, about the downfall of a Roman general. It was the first film of the play . The film was made by Overseas Filmgroup and Clear Blue Sky Productions and released by Fox Searchlight Pictures...
- U.S. 1999 director Julie TaymorJulie TaymorJulie Taymor is an American director of theater, opera and film. Taymor's work has received many accolades from critics, and she has earned two Tony Awards out of four nominations, the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Costume Design, an Emmy Award and an Academy Award nomination for Original Song... - GladiatorGladiator (2000 film)Gladiator is a 2000 historical epic film directed by Ridley Scott, starring Russell Crowe, Joaquin Phoenix, Connie Nielsen, Ralf Möller, Oliver Reed, Djimon Hounsou, Derek Jacobi, John Shrapnel and Richard Harris. Crowe portrays the loyal Roman General Maximus Decimus Meridius, who is betrayed...
- U.S. 2000 director Ridley ScottRidley ScottSir Ridley Scott is an English film director and producer. His most famous films include The Duellists , Alien , Blade Runner , Legend , Thelma & Louise , G. I... - Quo VadisQuo Vadis (2001 film)Quo Vadis is a 2001 Polish film directed by Jerzy Kawalerowicz based on the book of the same title by Henryk Sienkiewicz. It was Poland's submission to the 74th Academy Awards for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, but was not nominated....
- Polish/U.S. 2001 director Jerzy Kawalerowicz, remake of 1951 film - King ArthurKing Arthur (film)King Arthur is a 2004 film directed by Antoine Fuqua and written by David Franzoni. It stars Clive Owen as the title character, Ioan Gruffudd as Lancelot, and Keira Knightley as Guinevere....
- U.S. 2004 director Antoine FuquaAntoine FuquaAntoine Fuqua is an American film director. He directed the film Training Day as well as Tears of the Sun, King Arthur, Shooter and Brooklyn's Finest... - The Passion of the ChristThe Passion of the ChristThe Passion of the Christ is a 2004 American drama film directed by Mel Gibson and starring Jim Caviezel as Jesus. It depicts the Passion of Jesus largely according to the New Testament Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John...
- U.S. 2004 director Mel GibsonMel GibsonMel Colm-Cille Gerard Gibson, AO is an American actor, film director, producer and screenwriter. Born in Peekskill, New York, Gibson moved with his parents to Sydney, Australia when he was 12 years old and later studied acting at the Australian National Institute of Dramatic Art.After appearing in... - The Nativity StoryThe Nativity StoryThe Nativity Story is a 2006 drama film based on the nativity of Jesus starring Keisha Castle-Hughes and Shohreh Aghdashloo. Filming began on May 1, 2006 in Matera, Italy and in Morocco. New Line Cinema released it on December 1, 2006 in the United States and one week later on December 8 in the...
- U.S. 2006 director Catherine HardwickeCatherine HardwickeCatherine Hardwicke is an American production designer, film writer and film director. Her works include the independent film Thirteen, which she co-wrote with Nikki Reed, the film's co-star, the Biblically-themed The Nativity Story, the vampire film Twilight, and the werewolf film Red Riding Hood... - AgoraAgora (film)Agora is a 2009 Spanish historical drama film directed by Alejandro Amenábar and written by Amenábar and Mateo Gil. The biopic stars Rachel Weisz as Hypatia, a female mathematician, philosopher and astronomer in 4th century Roman Egypt who investigates the flaws of the geocentric Ptolemaic system...
- Spain 2009 director Alejandro AmenábarAlejandro AmenábarAlejandro Fernando Amenábar Cantos is a Spanish- Chilean film director. Amenábar was born in Santiago, Chile to a Spanish mother and Chilean father, but the family moved to Spain just one year after his birth...
Plays
- Joseph AddisonJoseph AddisonJoseph Addison was an English essayist, poet, playwright and politician. He was a man of letters, eldest son of Lancelot Addison...
- Cato
- Albert CamusAlbert CamusAlbert Camus was a French author, journalist, and key philosopher of the 20th century. In 1949, Camus founded the Group for International Liaisons within the Revolutionary Union Movement, which was opposed to some tendencies of the Surrealist movement of André Breton.Camus was awarded the 1957...
- Caligula
- Henrik IbsenHenrik IbsenHenrik Ibsen was a major 19th-century Norwegian playwright, theatre director, and poet. He is often referred to as "the father of prose drama" and is one of the founders of Modernism in the theatre...
- Emperor and GalileanEmperor and GalileanEmperor and Galilean is a play written by Henrik Ibsen. Although it is one of the writer’s lesser known plays, on several occasions Henrik Ibsen called Emperor and Galilean his major work...
- Emperor and Galilean
- Ben JonsonBen JonsonBenjamin Jonson was an English Renaissance dramatist, poet and actor. A contemporary of William Shakespeare, he is best known for his satirical plays, particularly Volpone, The Alchemist, and Bartholomew Fair, which are considered his best, and his lyric poems...
- Sejanus, His FallSejanus (play)Sejanus His Fall, a 1603 play by Ben Jonson, is a tragedy about Lucius Aelius Seianus, the favorite of the Roman emperor Tiberius. It was possibly an allegory of James I and his corrupt court....
- Sejanus, His Fall
- Heinrich von KleistHeinrich von KleistBernd Heinrich Wilhelm von Kleist was a poet, dramatist, novelist and short story writer. The Kleist Prize, a prestigious prize for German literature, is named after him.- Life :...
- Die Hermannsschlacht
- William ShakespeareWilliam ShakespeareWilliam Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
- Titus AndronicusTitus AndronicusTitus Andronicus is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, and possibly George Peele, believed to have been written between 1588 and 1593. It is thought to be Shakespeare's first tragedy, and is often seen as his attempt to emulate the violent and bloody revenge plays of his contemporaries, which were...
- Julius CaesarJulius Caesar (play)The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, also known simply as Julius Caesar, is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in 1599. It portrays the 44 BC conspiracy against...
- Antony and CleopatraAntony and CleopatraAntony and Cleopatra is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written sometime between 1603 and 1607. It was first printed in the First Folio of 1623. The plot is based on Thomas North's translation of Plutarch's Lives and follows the relationship between Cleopatra and Mark Antony...
- CoriolanusCoriolanus (play)Coriolanus is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1605 and 1608. The play is based on the life of the legendary Roman leader, Gaius Marcius Coriolanus.-Characters:*Caius Martius, later surnamed Coriolanus...
- CymbelineCymbelineCymbeline , also known as Cymbeline, King of Britain or The Tragedy of Cymbeline, is a play by William Shakespeare, based on legends concerning the early Celtic British King Cunobelinus. Although listed as a tragedy in the First Folio, modern critics often classify Cymbeline as a romance...
- Titus Andronicus
- Robert SherwoodRobert SherwoodRobert Sherwood may refer to:*Robert Emmet Sherwood , American playwright, editor, and screenwriter*Robert Edmund Sherwood , American clown and author*Bobby Sherwood , American bandleader...
- The Road to Rome (1927), on which a little-known 1955 film Jupiter's DarlingJupiter's Darling (film)Jupiter's Darling is a musical romance film released by MGM in 1955 and directed by George Sidney. It starred Esther Williams as the Roman woman Amytis, Howard Keel as Hannibal, the Carthaginian military commander and George Sanders as Fabius Maximus, Amytis's fiance...
was based.
- The Road to Rome (1927), on which a little-known 1955 film Jupiter's Darling
- Stephen SondheimStephen SondheimStephen Joshua Sondheim is an American composer and lyricist for stage and film. He is the winner of an Academy Award, multiple Tony Awards including the Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre, multiple Grammy Awards, a Pulitzer Prize and the Laurence Olivier Award...
- A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the ForumA Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the ForumA Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by Burt Shevelove and Larry Gelbart....
- A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum
Television
- I, ClaudiusI, Claudius (TV series)I, Claudius is a 1976 BBC Television adaptation of Robert Graves' I, Claudius and Claudius the God. Written by Jack Pulman, it proved one of the corporation's most successful drama serials of all time...
- Julius CaesarJulius Caesar (TV miniseries)Julius Caesar is a 2002 mini-series about the life of Julius Caesar. It was directed by Uli Edel, and written by Peter Pruce and Craig Warner. It is a dramatization of the life of Julius Caesar through 82 BC to his death in 44 BC...
minisieries by Uli Edel - MasadaMasada (miniseries)Masada is an American television miniseries that aired on ABC in April 1981. Advertised by the network as an "ABC Novel for Television," it was a fictionalized account of the historical siege of the Masada citadel in Israel by legions of the Roman Empire in AD 73. The TV series' script is based on...
- Mystery Science Theater 3000Mystery Science Theater 3000Mystery Science Theater 3000 is an American cult television comedy series created by Joel Hodgson and produced by Best Brains, Inc., that ran from 1988 to 1999....
(part of season 8) - Pompeii: The Last DayPompeii: The Last DayPompeii: The Last Day is a 2003 dramatized documentary that tells of the eruption of Mount Vesuvius on 24 August 79 AD. This eruption covered the Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum in ash and pumice, killing all those trapped between the volcano and the sea. The documentary portrayed the...
a dramatized documentary - The Roman HolidaysThe Roman HolidaysThe Roman Holidays is a Hanna-Barbera animated television series that was broadcast in 1972 on NBC. It ran for 13 episodes before being cancelled...
- RomeRome (TV series)Rome is a British-American–Italian historical drama television series created by Bruno Heller, John Milius and William J. MacDonald. The show's two seasons premiered in 2005 and 2007, and were later released on DVD. Rome is set in the 1st century BC, during Ancient Rome's transition from Republic...
- Spartacus miniseries by Robert Dornhelm (director)
- Spartacus: Blood and SandSpartacus: Blood and SandSpartacus: Blood and Sand is a Starz television series that premiered on January 22, 2010. The series is inspired by the historical figure of Spartacus , a Thracian gladiator who from 73 to 71 BC led a major slave uprising against the Roman Republic. Executive producers Steven S...
- Up Pompeii!Up Pompeii!Up Pompeii! is a British television comedy series broadcast between 1969 and 1970, starring Frankie Howerd. The first series was written by Talbot Rothwell, a scriptwriter for the Carry On films, and the second series by Rothwell and Sid Colin. Two later specials were transmitted in 1975 and...
- Bread and Circuses (Star Trek: The Original Series)
Video games
- Rome: Total WarRome: Total WarRome: Total War is a PC strategy game developed by The Creative Assembly and released on by Activision...
- Rome: Pathway to PowerRome: Pathway to PowerRome: Pathway to Power is an adventure game with strategic elements set in ancient Rome. The objective is to advance a character from a Roman slave throughout the ranks of Roman society and eventually become Caesar.Rome: Pathway to Power used an isometric interface and was based on an engine...
- The Caesar video games seriesCaesar (video game)Caesar is a city-building computer game where the player undertakes the role of a Roman governor, building ancient Roman cities.Released in 1992 on the Amiga, ported the next year to Atari ST, PC and Macintosh, the game was similar to SimCity...
- Centurion: Defender of RomeCenturion: Defender of RomeCenturion: Defender of Rome is a turn-based strategy video game with real-time battle sequences, designed by Kellyn Beck and Bits of Magic and published by Electronic Arts. Originally released on the DOS platform for the PC in 1990, the game was later ported to the Amiga and the Mega Drive in 1991...
- Legion ArenaLegion ArenaLegion Arena is a real-time tactical RPG by Slitherine Strategies that allows the player to play as several tribes during the rise of the Roman Empire. The player can play as the Latin tribes, the Celts and the Romans. It is published by Freeverse Software for Mac OS X and Strategy First for Windows...
- Circus Maximus: Chariot Wars
- Gladiator: Sword of VengeanceGladiator: Sword of VengeanceGladiator: Sword Of Vengeance was a hack and slash game from Acclaim Entertainment. At the time many big third person action games like BloodRayne and Prince of Persia were enjoying major success. So Acclaim decided to join the genre with their own third person hack and slash action game Gladiator:...
- Spartan: Total WarriorSpartan: Total WarriorSpartan: Total Warrior is a spin-off action game of the Total War series, developed by The Creative Assembly and published by Sega. It was released on Xbox, PlayStation 2 and GameCube...