by Adrian Goldsworthy
New York & Oxford: Osprey Bloomsbury, 2023. pp. 144.
Illus., maps, chron., personae, biblio., index. $20.00 paper. ISBN: 1472855078
A Very Good Overview of the Roman Civil Wars of 49-44 B.C.
A revised edition of Goldsworthy's original 2002 work, this little book offers what is essentially a concise briefing on the events of Caesar's civil war.
Despite its brevity, however, Goldsworth, author of Augustus: First Emperor of Rome, Caesar: Life of a Colossus, and many other works on Roman history, does quite a good job. He covers the political background and issues, fills us in on the principal actors, the developments that led Caesar to undertake a civil war, and the events as they unfolded. By its very nature, of course, much detail is lost – some events covered in a single page could easily take up a substantial volume – but overall, this is an excellent introduction to the subject for those who lack much background in Roman history and the demise of the Republic.
A volume in the Osprey series "Essential Histories," even the seasoned student of Roman history will likely find some things of interest in this excellent short book.
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Note: Caesar's Civil War is also available in e-editions.
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