The Birth of the Roman Empire
The Ancients
History Hit
4.7 • 4.5K Ratings
🗓️ 16 January 2022
⏱️ 53 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
16 January 27 BC is a date sometimes associated with the beginning of the Roman Empire. It was on that day that Octavian received the name Augustus, effectively becoming the first emperor of Rome. Augustus ordered the gates of Janus to be closed, marking an end to the period of Civil War that had characterised Rome for decades before. Entering into a new era of peace, how did Augustus monopolise peace as a concept, and allow Rome to hold onto this new era and way of life across it's Empire? This week Tristan is joined by Dr Hannah Cornwell, author of Pax and the Politics of Peace, to talk about this transitional period, it's reflections in art and monumental architecture, and ultimately, how the Roman Empire came to be.
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Transcript
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| 0:30.1 | It's The Entrance on History Hit. |
| 0:43.8 | I'm Tristan Hughes, your host. |
| 0:45.6 | And in today's podcast, where we're talking all about the beginning, |
| 0:48.8 | the birth of the Roman Empire capital E. |
| 0:53.0 | Because if you type that into your Google, you might see one particular data |
| 0:57.0 | that emerges straight away, which is the 16th of January, 27th BC. |
| 1:02.5 | So what happened on this particular day? |
| 1:04.4 | Why is it sometimes I stress sometimes associated with the beginning of the Roman Empire? |
| 1:11.3 | Well, to explain this, I was delighted to get on the podcast Dr. Hammer Cornwell |
| 1:15.4 | from the University of Birmingham. |
| 1:17.3 | Hannah, she's a lecturer in ancient history and she has a particular focus |
| 1:21.0 | on Roman, political and social history of the late Roman Republic and early empire. |
| 1:26.3 | The turn of the first century BC, that time period, |
| 1:29.1 | focusing in on imperialism, peace and diplomacy. |
| 1:32.9 | Now, I mentioned imperialism, peace and diplomacy right there because we start |
... |
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