Rome: Empire Without Limit with Mary Beard

In this myth-busting, compelling BBC history documentary, renowned classicist Mary Beard revisits and reassesses the legends surrounding the origins of Rome. She argues that the period of greatest Roman expansion occurred when Rome itself was little more than a provincial backwater which used brutal tactics to overpower its enemies. Why was a state such as this so successful at war and conquest?

Mary Beard explores the physical world of the Roman Empire, and finds surprising parallels with our own world. Setting out in the footsteps of the emperor Hadrian, she discovers a vast empire bound together by a common material culture, and a globalised economy of such scale that evidence of its side-effects can still be seen today, thousands of miles away from Rome.

In this myth-busting BBC history documentary about the Roman Empire, Mary Beard looks at the idea of identity and discovers that many ‘Romans’ never saw Rome. People from conquered lands were encouraged to become Roman citizens, leading to an incredibly diverse ruling class. What did it mean to be, or to become, Roman and how did the very different parts of the empire react to Roman rule?

Mary tackles the biggest puzzle of all: why, and how, did the Roman Empire fall? Surveying the massive walls and fortifications of Britain and Germany, she discovers an empire under pressure, struggling to control its borders.