- Fiction set in the Roman empire
The following article Fiction set in the Roman Empire lists all 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.
Historical novels listed in chronological order
Middle Republic
"If you know of works set in the Middle Republic, please expand this section."
* "Roma", publishedMarch 6 ,2007 , bySteven Saylor . According to the author's website, the book covers part of Rome's Republican history. [http://www.stevensaylor.com/ Saylor, Steven. "Steven Saylor website". RetrievedMay 16 ,2007 ] No works, apart from Saylor's Roma, are known to be set partially or wholly in the Middle Republic. Books about Hannibal, such asDavid Anthony Durham 'sPride of Carthage (2005), do feature Romans from the Middle Republic.Late Republic
* "Spartacus" by
Howard Fast
* "Spartacus" byLewis Grassic Gibbon
* The "Masters of Rome " series byColleen McCullough .
* The "Emperor" series byConn Iggulden , is more alternate history than fictionalized biography in some respects.
*"Young Caesar" (1958) byRex Warner
* "Pro Caelio" byStephen Ciraolo , possibly based on Cicero's famous speechPro Caelio defending a friend on various charges.
* "Imperium (novel) " by Robert Harris, showing Cicero's rise to the consulship in 63 BC; a fictionalized biography told by his slave, later freedman, Tiro
* "A Pillar of Iron" (1965) byTaylor Caldwell , a fictionalized biography of Cicero.
* "Imperial Caesar" 1960) also byRex Warner
* "The Ides of March" byThornton Wilder , culminating in Caesar's assassination."Julius Caesar (play) " (16th century) by Shakespeare
* "The Last King: Rome's Greatest Enemy" (2005) by Michael Curtis Ford
* "The Conquered" byNaomi Mitchison (1923) Gaul & Gallic Wars 1st century BC
* "Beric the Briton: A Story of the Roman Invasion" byG. A. Henty (1893)
* "The Education of Julius Caesar: A Biography, A Reconstruction" byArthur D. Kahn Schocken Books, New York 1986Early/High Empire (27 BC to 190 AD)
* "Legion" by
William Altimari set during the reign of Augustus Caesar, takes place in 11 B.C.battle of the Lupia River
* "Centurion: A Novel of Ancient Rome" byPeter W. Mitsopoulos set during the reign of Augustus Caesar, takes place in 9A.D.,battle of Teutoburg Forest
* "The Eagle of the Ninth " series byRosemary Sutcliffe (1954) set in Roman Britain c130 AD
* "68 A.D." byD.G. Bellenger
* " [http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1425941818 The Wall] " byPaul Tilbury (2007) an account of a soldiers' life in the garrison manning Hadrians' Wall.
* "Let the Emperor Speak: A novel of Caesar Augustus" by Allan Massie, Doubleday & Company, Inc., New York, 1987 (First published in Great Britain in 1986 by the Bodley Head as AUGUSTUS).The Julio-Claudian Dynasty
* "Caesar", "Anthony", "Augustus", "Tiberius", "Caligula" and "Nero's Heirs" by
Allan Massie .Books about early Christians or the Christ include:
* (1880) byLew Wallace ; famously made into a film starringCharlton Heston ; set in the reign ofTiberius in Judaea, the Mediterranean, and Rome. Epilogues carry the story into the reign ofNero
* "The Robe " (1942), byLloyd C. Douglas , set in the same period as Ben-Hur; like Ben-Hur, more famous as a film.* "
I Am a Barbarian " (1967, written 1941) byEdgar Rice Burroughs ; the fictionalized memoirs ofCaligula 's slave.Books about Claudius or set in his reign include:
* "I, Claudius " (1934) and its sequel, "Claudius the God" (1935), byRobert Graves . The classic and influential dramatised account of the life of the emperor Claudius, made into a popularTV series (see below).
* The Eagle series by Nigerian-born British novelistSimon Scarrow . The first book "Under the Eagle " (part of theEagle series ) was published 2000 bySimon Scarrow . Story of Roman invasion of Britain, featuring a youngVespasian . Other books in the series include "The Eagle's Conquest " (2001 set in 42 AD (introducingBoudicca at the end); "When the Eagle Hunts " (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 Vadis" (1895/1896), byHenryk Sienkiewicz set in the reign ofNero in 64 AD.
* "" byRebecca East
* "A Song for Nero" (2003) byTom Holt , writing as Thomas Holt.The Flavian Dynasty
* "
The Last Days of Pompeii " by E.G.Bulwer-Lytton
* "Pompeii" by Robert Harris, set in the reign ofTitus . A film is forthcoming in 2008.The Nervan-Antonian Dynasty
* "Medicus" (2007) by Ruth Downie; debut in a mystery series concerning a military doctor stationed in
Britannia .Middle Empire (191 AD to -- AD), when Diocletian splits the Empire
* "Helena" by
Evelyn Waugh ; 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.
* "Mémoires d'Hadrien " byMarguerite Yourcenar
* "Following Hadrian: A Second-Century Journey through the Roman Empire" byElizabeth Speller
* "The Last Legion: A Novel" byValerio Massimo Manfredi ; fictionalized story of the emperorValerian and what might have happened to his surviving retinue.
* "The Water Thief" (2007) byBen Pastor ; in 304 AD the historian toDiocletian investigates the death ofAntinous ,Hadrian 's favored male consort.Late Empire: West (-457 AD)
* "The Young Julian" by
Thomas J., Ph.D. Hairston
* "Julian" (1964 byGore Vidal , fictionalized biography of the emperor Julian who tried to revivePaganism
* "Eagle in the Snow " (1970) byWallace Breem ; set inBritannia andGermania in the late 4th and early 5th Century; features aMithraic Roman general.
* "Titus Andronicus " (play) (16th century) by Shakespeare, based on a fictional Imperial Roman general fighting the Goths.
* "Gods And Legions: A Novel of the Roman Empire" (2002) by Michael Curtis Ford
* "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 FordLate Empire: Byzantine (-457 AD)
Other books about the Byzantine empire and the Crusades are listed under fiction set in Byzantium
* "
Count Belisarius " (1938), byRobert Graves , set in the 6th century AD, in the reign ofJustinian Justinian, a novel, by H N Turteltaub August 1998Unknown period
* "
Avventura nel primo secolo " byPaolo Monelli
* "The Roman" (1964) byMika Waltari
* "The Door in the Wall", "The Key", "The Lock" by Benita Kane Jaro
* "Sand of the Arena" by James Duffy
* "The Nero Prediction" byHumphry Knipe
* "In the Army of Marcus Batallius" byDavid M. Ross
* "Gods and Legions: A Novel of The Roman Empire" byMichael Curtis Ford
* "The Quest For the Lost Roman Legions" byTony Clunn
* "Three's Company", "Winter Quarters", "Conscience of the King", "The Little Emperors" and "Family Favourites" byAlfred Duggan
* "Domitia & Domitian" byDavid Corson
* "Games of Venus" bySylvia Shults
* "The Flames of Rome" byPaul L. Maier
* "Antonia" byBrenda Jagger
* "The Tribune: A Novel of Ancient Rome" byPatrick Larkin
* "Hadrian's Wall: A Novel" byWilliam Dietrich
* "The Centurion: A Novel" (1986) byJan de Hartog Detective fiction * The "
Roma Sub Rosa " series (1991-2005) bySteven Saylor , starts with "Roman Blood" (1991); the books cover the period 80 BC to 48 BC.
* The "Marcus Didius Falco " series byLindsey Davis , starts withThe Silver Pigs ; set in the reign ofVespasian .
* The "SPQR" series byJohn Maddox Roberts .
* The "Germanicus Mosaic " series byRosemary Rowe - set in Roman Britain.
* The "I, Claudia" series of novels byMarilyn Todd featuring her picaresque heroineClaudia Seferius
* The "Publius Aurelius " series byDanila Comastri Montanari
* The "Eagle" series bySimon Scarrow
* The "Marcus Corvinus " series byDavid Wishart
* "", byAnne Hart
* The "Roman Mysteries" young adults' detective/drama series byCaroline Lawrence
* The "Caius Trilogy " by German authorHenry Winterfeld : "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" byPhilip Boast cience fiction
=Science fiction/time travel novels=* "Caesar's Bicycle" (1997) (Timeline Wars series) by John Barnes
* "Household Gods " (1999), byJudith Tarr andHarry Turtledove set in the reign ofMarcus Aurelius Alternate universe fiction
"The following
alternate history novels are set in fictional universes prior to the present day."
* "Lest Darkness Fall " (1939 byL. Sprague de Camp ; time-travel and alternate history set in 535 AD.
* "Agent of Byzantium " byHarry Turtledove set in an alternate 14th century with no Islam.
* "Hannibal's Children " and its sequel "The Seven Hills " byJohn Maddox Roberts "The following alternate history story is set in a fictional universe prior to the present day"
* "Delenda Est" (1955) byPoul Anderson ; now available in "Guardians of Time" (1960 and 1985) editions); Rome defeated by Carthage in theSecond Punic War 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:"
* "Romanitas" (2005), bySophia McDougall
* "Rome Burning" (2006), sequel to "Romanitas", bySophia McDougall
* "Roma Eterna ", a 2003 novel byRobert Silverberg
* TheGermanicus trilogy , a collection of books byKirk Mitchell .
* "Orbis (novel) " (2002), byScott Mackay 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.Comic books
* "
Asterix " series byRené Goscinny (stories) andAlbert Uderzo (illustrations)Works inspired by Roman history, or by works of fiction and non-fiction about Rome
Science fiction inspired by Rome or works about Rome*"Empire of the Atom", by
A. E. van Vogt , translates Graves' novel (above) into a science fiction context
*The "Foundation series " byIsaac Asimov is derived from Gibbon'sDecline and Fall of the Roman Empire .Comic books
* "
Leading Comics " - in the 1940s, a series called "Nero Fox" (about afunny animal fox named Nero Fox, who was emperor of Rome) was published as a backup series in this comic title.
* "Trigan Empire " was a Science Fiction comic series telling of adventures on the planet Elekton with many similarities to the Roman EmpireMovies
* "Quo Vadis" - U.S. 1951 director Mervyn LeRoy
* "The Robe" - U.S. 1953 directorHenry Koster
* "Demetrius and the Gladiators " - U.S. 1954 director Delmer Daves (sequel to "The Robe")
* "Jupiter's Darling - U.S. 1955 directorGeorge Sidney , based on a play byRobert Sherwood
* "Ben-Hur" U.S. 1959
* "Spartacus" - U.S. 1960 directorStanley Kubrick
* "Cleopatra" - U.S. 1963 directorJoseph L. Mankiewicz
* "The Fall of the Roman Empire" - U.S. 1964 directorAnthony Mann
* "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum " - U.S. 1966 directorRichard Lester
* "Satyricon" - Italy 1970 directorFederico Fellini
* "Caligula" - U.S. 1979 directorTinto Brass
* "History of the World Part 1 " - U.S. 1981 directorMel Brooks
* "Gladiator" - U.S. 2000 directorRidley Scott
* "Quo Vadis" - Polish/U.S. 2001 director Jerzy Kawalerowicz, remake of 1951 filmPlays
*
Joseph Addison
** "Cato"
*Albert Camus
** "Caligula"
*Henrik Ibsen
**"Emperor and Galilean "
*Ben Jonson
** "Sejanus, His Fall"
*Heinrich von Kleist
** "Die Hermannsschlacht"
*William Shakespeare
** "Titus Andronicus "
** "Julius Caesar"
** "Antony and Cleopatra "
** "Coriolanus"
** "Cymbeline "
*Robert Sherwood
**"The Road to Rome " (1927), on which a little-known 1955 film "Jupiter's Darling" was based.
*Stephen Sondheim
** "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum "Television
* "I, Claudius"
* "Mystery Science Theater 3000 " (part of season 8)
* "Up Pompeii! "
* "The Roman Holidays"
* "Rome"
* "Spartacus " miniseries by Robert Dornhelm (director)
* "" a dramatized documentary
* "Julius Caesar" minisieries byUli Edel Video Games
* ""
* ""
* The "Caesar" video games series
* ""
* "Legion Arena "
* ""
* ""
* ""ee also
*
Fiction set in Ancient Greece References
External links
* [http://intraweb.stockton.edu/eyos/page.cfm?siteID=78&pageID=1 Fictional Rome]
* [http://histmyst.org/ The Detective and the Toga - Roman mysteries]
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