{"product_id":"the-mad-emperor-9780861546855","title":"The Mad Emperor","description":"\u003cb\u003eBook Synopsis\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWhat happens when you put the Roman Empire in the hands of a teenage boy? The life and times of the worst Roman emperor of all.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWhat happens when you put the Roman Empire in the hands of a teenage boy? Discover the scandalous life and times of Rome''s \u003ci\u003eworst \u003c\/i\u003eemperor. \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e''Buy the book; it''s very entertaining.'' David Aaronovitch, \u003ci\u003eThe Times\u003c\/i\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003eOn 8 June 218 AD, a fourteen-year-old Syrian boy, egged on by his grandmother, led an army to battle in a Roman civil war. Against all expectations, he was victorious.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003eVarius Avitus Bassianus, known to the modern world as Heliogabalus, was proclaimed emperor. The next four years were to be the strangest in the history of the empire.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003eHeliogabalus humiliated the prestigious Senators and threw extravagant dinner parties for lower-class friends. He ousted Jupiter from his summit among the gods and replaced him with Elagabal. He married a Vestal Virgin - \u003ci\u003etwice\u003c\/i\u003e. Rumours abounde\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eTrade Review\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e'\u003cstrong\u003eSidebottom is an agile guide and draws the reader’s attention to the remarkably inclusive nature of the empire\u003c\/strong\u003e, from its acceptance of different cultures into citizenship (the exact and polar opposite of, say, Qatar), its routine freeing of slaves and its acceptance of new gods into its pagan pantheon… \u003cstrong\u003eBuy the book, it’s very entertaining\u003c\/strong\u003e.'\u003c\/p\u003e -- David Aaronovitch, \u003ci\u003eThe Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e'The decadence, debauchery and sexual promiscuity that marked the adolescent’s time on the imperial throne make for \u003cstrong\u003ea rollicking read\u003c\/strong\u003e.'\u003c\/p\u003e -- Daily Mail\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cstrong\u003eAncient history was never less dry\u003c\/strong\u003e than in Harry Sidebottom’s superbly entertaining and always scholarly account of the reign of Heliogabalus... \u003cstrong\u003eThere is something for every reader: sex, politics, scandals and a compelling portrait of imperial society and culture\u003c\/strong\u003e.’\u003c\/p\u003e -- Tony Barber * Financial Times, Book of the Year *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e'We are used to being told that the historical truth is less exciting than the myth. But, as Harry Sidebottom’s \u003cem\u003eThe Mad Emperor\u003c\/em\u003e demonstrates, this is one of those rare cases when the history does not fall short. While working hard to correct the preconceptions of both scholars and general readers, Sidebottom presents\u003cstrong\u003e a picture of third-century imperial Rome that is, if anything, wilder than the popular imagination\u003c\/strong\u003e.'\u003c\/p\u003e -- \u003ci\u003eTelegraph\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘Harry Sidebottom certainly makes the most of this potential. In thirteen chapters he takes us on \u003cstrong\u003ean enjoyable romp through the few highs and many lows of Heliogabalus’s fleeting four years as emperor\u003c\/strong\u003e, between 218 CE and 222… \u003cstrong\u003eThroughout Sidebottom showcases the historian in action\u003c\/strong\u003e, assessing his sources, trawling through prosopography and carefully identifying marble portrait busts. He offers a scholarly but readable biography of an emperor who has been rather short of such attentions.’\u003c\/p\u003e -- TLS\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cstrong\u003eSidebottom has an expert’s command\u003c\/strong\u003e of the rebarbative source base for third-century Rome… \u003cstrong\u003eA whole scholarly architecture lies beneath and underpins his thoroughly convincing portrait of a failed emperor\u003c\/strong\u003e. His conclusions must be taken seriously.’\u003c\/p\u003e -- LRB\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Mad Emperor\u003c\/em\u003e recreates the Ancient World with the eye of a poet and the sure hand of a scholar.\u003c\/strong\u003e’\u003c\/p\u003e -- Barry Strauss, author of \u003ci\u003eTen Caesars\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e'Harry Sidebottom skilfully juggles what to believe and what not to believe… The racy story is \u003cstrong\u003etold with the vivid phrasing and descriptive powers of an accomplished novelist\u003c\/strong\u003e… supported by a rich back story and a fascinating discussion of his legacy…\u003cstrong\u003e a well-illustrated and absorbing read\u003c\/strong\u003e.'\u003c\/p\u003e -- Guy de la Bédoyère, BBC History Magazine\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e'\u003cstrong\u003eSidebottom brings [Heliogabalus] vividly back to life.\u003c\/strong\u003e His prose feels \u003cstrong\u003evibrant and effortless\u003c\/strong\u003e but also rewards close reading.'\u003c\/p\u003e -- Daisy Dunn, author of Not Far from Brideshead: Oxford Between the Wars\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cstrong\u003eA scholarly but highly readable account\u003c\/strong\u003e of the teenager who became classical Rome’s most reviled emperor, but who may be viewed with a touch more sympathy now.’\u003c\/p\u003e -- Matthew Kneale, author of \u003ci\u003eRome: A History in Seven Sackings\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘\u003cstrong\u003eA riveting and rollicking account of a much maligned but truly thrilling era in Roman history\u003c\/strong\u003e.’\u003c\/p\u003e -- Emma Southon, author of \u003ci\u003eA Fatal Thing Happened On the Way to the Forum\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e'\u003cstrong\u003eCombining the pace of a novelist, the training of a scholar and the instincts of a true historian, this is a wonderful exploration of the Roman world under its strangest emperor\u003c\/strong\u003e.'\u003c\/p\u003e -- Adrian Goldsworthy, author of \u003ci\u003ePax Romana\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e'\u003cstrong\u003eAn absolute belter\u003c\/strong\u003e'\u003c\/p\u003e -- Paul Ross * TalkSPORT, Book of the Week *","brand":"Oneworld Publications","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48866103624023,"sku":"9780861546855","price":10.44,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0817\/1739\/5799\/files\/9780861546855.jpg?v=1722277052","url":"https:\/\/bookcurl.com\/products\/the-mad-emperor-9780861546855","provider":"Book Curl","version":"1.0","type":"link"}