03-20-2010, 12:57 AM
As you seem to be in the UK, a good idea (if you haven't already) is to join your local library - you'd not only have access to their own collection (and some of them can be quite good), but also to the inter-library loan service too, which can get you a lot of other material for only a few pence. If you're able to get to London, also consider joining the British Library - membership's free, and you can sign up as an 'unpublished novelist' (!). That way you won't be tied to only those books you can afford...
For sources on X Equestris, really there's not much to go on other than what Caesar writes in the 'Commentaries'. A good first stop for any legion history is Keppie's 'Making of the Roman Army':
[url:3amj4h3d]http://books.google.com/books?id=PJrWf09LoSoC&printsec=frontcover&dq=roman+army&lr=&cd=22#v=onepage&q=&f=false[/url]
This provides all the available evidence on the legions to the date of publication. If you want a single-volume reference on the army in general, Goldsworthy's 'Complete Roman Army' is good, and has lots of nice pictures:
[url:3amj4h3d]http://www.amazon.co.uk/Complete-Roman-Army-Adrian-Goldsworthy/dp/0500051240/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1269042958&sr=8-1[/url]
Although I actually prefer one of his earlier books, 'The Roman Army at War' - less pics, more text:
[url:3amj4h3d]http://books.google.com/books?id=55KE-nNtTRUC&printsec=frontcover&dq=roman+army&cd=4#v=onepage&q=&f=false[/url]
One problem is that the majority of these army overviews (Webster, Le Bohec and others) concentrate on the principiate, as we have far more evidence for the Imperial era. The late republic is a period of transition, so a certain of lateral thinking might be necessary! Hildinger's 'Swords against the Senate' concentrates more on the political and social aspects than the nuts and bolts, but might be worth a look to get an idea of the wider context of Caesarian military life:
[url:3amj4h3d]http://books.google.com/books?id=eEtGd1DbG6wC&dq=roman+army&lr=&cd=39[/url]
Similarly, for an understanding of the political world surrounding the wars, one of the many histories of the fall of the republic would be good. Biographies of the various participants (Caesar, Pompey, Marc Antony, Augustus etc) are widely available and provide a good way into the subject. Tom Holland's 'Rubicon' might give a good overview, although some people find Holland's rehashing of old ideas a bit 'popular history' (see the reviews on Amazon, and here on RAT). For something more in-depth, try Syme's 'Roman Revolution': it was written before the second world war, and some of the interpretations could now be questioned (of course!), but despite its initially dense appearance, it's a really good read:
[url:3amj4h3d]http://books.google.com/books?id=LliyGzhAo1wC&printsec=frontcover&dq=syme+roman+revolution&lr=&cd=1#v=onepage&q=&f=false[/url]
You'll also need to know as much as possible about the world around the events. Adkin's 'Handbook to Life in Ancient Rome' contains a digest of information about everything from money to transportation - invaluable stuff:
[url:3amj4h3d]http://books.google.com/books?id=9JJdqJ8YGH8C&printsec=frontcover&dq=inauthor:%22Lesley+Adkins%22&lr=&cd=1#v=onepage&q=&f=false[/url]
Again, it's old and dated in places, but I've always liked Ayrault's Dodge's book on the campaigns of Caesar - Dodge was a US army officer in the Civil War, and gives an interestingly practical analysis of Caesar's own writings. The book is complete online here:
[url:3amj4h3d]http://www.archive.org/stream/caesarhistoryofa00dodguoft#page/n9/mode/2up[/url]
As a comparison, try and get hold of a copy of JFC Fuller's 'Julius Caesar: Man, Soldier and Tyrant' - again, Fuller was an army officer (British, first world war), but his view of Caesar's tactics and strategy is quite different to that of Dodge. (Fuller was also an early exponent of 'blitzkreig' warfare and a fascist - in his view, being a reckless military tyrant isn't necessarily a bad thing...):
[url:3amj4h3d]http://books.google.com/books?id=ju9BW8_zpyYC&dq=caesar+tyrant&cd=1[/url]
Beyond that, I would suggest just reading everything you can possibly find - depending on how scholarly you want to be, for example, wading through Cicero's collected letters (available online) can provide loads of background on daily life (albeit wealthy and senatorial!) of the era. There are plenty of books about Roman social life, customs, food and religion that could also provide ideas for the background to a story. I particularly like Dalby's 'Empire of Pleasures', which is supposedly about 'luxury and indulgence' but is actually more of geographical survey of the empire and its produce:
[url:3amj4h3d]http://books.google.com/books?id=RXAq6YkI5XgC&printsec=frontcover&dq=empire+pleasures&lr=&cd=1#v=onepage&q=&f=false[/url]
Any of these titles can point you off in further directions (always check the bibliography) - it just depends how far you want to go...
Hope that helps!
- Nathan
For sources on X Equestris, really there's not much to go on other than what Caesar writes in the 'Commentaries'. A good first stop for any legion history is Keppie's 'Making of the Roman Army':
[url:3amj4h3d]http://books.google.com/books?id=PJrWf09LoSoC&printsec=frontcover&dq=roman+army&lr=&cd=22#v=onepage&q=&f=false[/url]
This provides all the available evidence on the legions to the date of publication. If you want a single-volume reference on the army in general, Goldsworthy's 'Complete Roman Army' is good, and has lots of nice pictures:
[url:3amj4h3d]http://www.amazon.co.uk/Complete-Roman-Army-Adrian-Goldsworthy/dp/0500051240/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1269042958&sr=8-1[/url]
Although I actually prefer one of his earlier books, 'The Roman Army at War' - less pics, more text:
[url:3amj4h3d]http://books.google.com/books?id=55KE-nNtTRUC&printsec=frontcover&dq=roman+army&cd=4#v=onepage&q=&f=false[/url]
One problem is that the majority of these army overviews (Webster, Le Bohec and others) concentrate on the principiate, as we have far more evidence for the Imperial era. The late republic is a period of transition, so a certain of lateral thinking might be necessary! Hildinger's 'Swords against the Senate' concentrates more on the political and social aspects than the nuts and bolts, but might be worth a look to get an idea of the wider context of Caesarian military life:
[url:3amj4h3d]http://books.google.com/books?id=eEtGd1DbG6wC&dq=roman+army&lr=&cd=39[/url]
Similarly, for an understanding of the political world surrounding the wars, one of the many histories of the fall of the republic would be good. Biographies of the various participants (Caesar, Pompey, Marc Antony, Augustus etc) are widely available and provide a good way into the subject. Tom Holland's 'Rubicon' might give a good overview, although some people find Holland's rehashing of old ideas a bit 'popular history' (see the reviews on Amazon, and here on RAT). For something more in-depth, try Syme's 'Roman Revolution': it was written before the second world war, and some of the interpretations could now be questioned (of course!), but despite its initially dense appearance, it's a really good read:
[url:3amj4h3d]http://books.google.com/books?id=LliyGzhAo1wC&printsec=frontcover&dq=syme+roman+revolution&lr=&cd=1#v=onepage&q=&f=false[/url]
You'll also need to know as much as possible about the world around the events. Adkin's 'Handbook to Life in Ancient Rome' contains a digest of information about everything from money to transportation - invaluable stuff:
[url:3amj4h3d]http://books.google.com/books?id=9JJdqJ8YGH8C&printsec=frontcover&dq=inauthor:%22Lesley+Adkins%22&lr=&cd=1#v=onepage&q=&f=false[/url]
Again, it's old and dated in places, but I've always liked Ayrault's Dodge's book on the campaigns of Caesar - Dodge was a US army officer in the Civil War, and gives an interestingly practical analysis of Caesar's own writings. The book is complete online here:
[url:3amj4h3d]http://www.archive.org/stream/caesarhistoryofa00dodguoft#page/n9/mode/2up[/url]
As a comparison, try and get hold of a copy of JFC Fuller's 'Julius Caesar: Man, Soldier and Tyrant' - again, Fuller was an army officer (British, first world war), but his view of Caesar's tactics and strategy is quite different to that of Dodge. (Fuller was also an early exponent of 'blitzkreig' warfare and a fascist - in his view, being a reckless military tyrant isn't necessarily a bad thing...):
[url:3amj4h3d]http://books.google.com/books?id=ju9BW8_zpyYC&dq=caesar+tyrant&cd=1[/url]
Beyond that, I would suggest just reading everything you can possibly find - depending on how scholarly you want to be, for example, wading through Cicero's collected letters (available online) can provide loads of background on daily life (albeit wealthy and senatorial!) of the era. There are plenty of books about Roman social life, customs, food and religion that could also provide ideas for the background to a story. I particularly like Dalby's 'Empire of Pleasures', which is supposedly about 'luxury and indulgence' but is actually more of geographical survey of the empire and its produce:
[url:3amj4h3d]http://books.google.com/books?id=RXAq6YkI5XgC&printsec=frontcover&dq=empire+pleasures&lr=&cd=1#v=onepage&q=&f=false[/url]
Any of these titles can point you off in further directions (always check the bibliography) - it just depends how far you want to go...
Hope that helps!
- Nathan
Nathan Ross
