After winning the Battle of Philippi Antony and Octavian divided the empire into two halves. Antony took control of the east where he formed an alliance with Cleopatra, while Octavian commanded the west.
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April 05, 2009
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Just wanted to say I look forward to this podcast posting more than any other. Also, regarding HBO Rome series, the tragic thing about the second season was that they knew they were going to be cancelled early on, so they rushed through or slightly changed events to give the series some sort of ending. Additionally, I believe they went for cultural authenticity first, and historical accuracy second. Only the good die young.
Posted by: Anonym. | April 06, 2009 at 05:52 AM
Is anyone else unable to download this episode? iTunes says "the disk structure is corrupted and unreadable".
Posted by: Joe | April 06, 2009 at 09:31 AM
Never mind my last comment, it was a problem at my end.
Posted by: Joe | April 06, 2009 at 11:33 AM
Mike,
You've done an excellent job yet again at portray the real men behind the history of Rome. I was a little disappointed that you made no mention of Salvidienus Rufus involvement in Octavian's rise to power and then his later treachery, although he was a relatively minor figure compare to Agrippa. I am a little curious if you will dive more into the the relationship between Octavian/Augustus and Agrippa. I'm also interested in the Private life and personality of Octavian/Augustus, what was he like as a man?
Great work I look forward to next weeks episode.
Posted by: Matt | April 06, 2009 at 02:13 PM
I have thoroughly enjoyed each and every episode thus far in THoR and wanted to say thanks. You obviously put a lot of care and effort into making each installment thorough, concise and entertaining. Keep up the fantastic work!
Posted by: Lance W. | April 07, 2009 at 08:37 AM
Thanks for the time you spend on these.
Posted by: Antonetz | April 07, 2009 at 09:56 AM
A super series, recounting and explaining history clearly. My only problem is that the volume is very low when I play back on my iphone. Anyone got any hints on how to get more volume? thanks again for the podcast Mike
Posted by: seamus | April 09, 2009 at 08:58 AM
Speaking of Rufus, where is Gaius Maecenas? Octavian was the hand, Maecenas was the velvet glove, and Agrippa was the brass knuckles. They were a team and the two other men were the only reason why Octavian got as far as he did. Just saying.
Posted by: Robert Thompson | April 11, 2009 at 12:32 AM
Wow, I'm totally hooked on this. I listen to it everywhere I go. Mike you're a real star for putting this impressive series together. I hope it inspires others to do something similar. I made one podcast years ago - it was meant to be a humorous alternative guide to a more seedy part of London. It took me ages and loads of work. I never got past the first episode so I appreciate the work involved in this effort. Can't thank you enough, have a good break but please come back.
Posted by: Niall, Birmingham UK | April 11, 2009 at 04:14 AM
Yeah, Augustus really had a PR machine behind him in Maecenas. Looking at the emperor Augustus became you would never believe the stuff he did to get there, all thanks to Agrippa, Maecenas, and his own considerable genius.
Posted by: Matt | April 11, 2009 at 07:14 PM
I have thoroughly enjoyed each and every episode thus far in THoR and wanted to say thanks. You obviously put a lot of care and effort into making each installment thorough, concise and entertaining. Keep up the fantastic work!
Posted by: cheap gaia gold | June 19, 2009 at 11:48 PM
Mike,
Many, many thanks. I'm totally addicted to your podcasts. I'm an amateur historian, a history major in college, and have been reading Roman history for years. But I never had the whole story from start to finish. Too often I'd be reading about the transition from Republic to Empire, my real interest, (whether in primary or secondary sources) but I never had the historical background of the Republic I'd need really to understand the transition. You are doing it, providing me with many retroactive 'aha' moments, and you are doing it with wit and flair. Bravo!
I've only just started, so I'm at episode 11 or so. So far I have one suggestion. I wish you would devote a little more attention to the sources you are using. You do mention Livy, true. But who else? What are his strengths and weaknesses? What about secondary sources? I liked 12 Byzantine Rulers, too, but this was also Lars's weakness, and it seems to me so far you are paying a little less attention to sources than did he.
But that relatively minor quibble aside, I'm very grateful for your work!
Posted by: James Nash | April 06, 2010 at 07:16 PM