Stephen Dando-Collins – författare

The assassination of Julius Caesar is one of the most notorious murders in history. Two thousand years after it occurred, many compelling questions remain about his death: Was Brutus the hero and Caesar the villain? Did Caesar bring death on himself by planning to make himself king of Rome? Was Mark Antony aware of the plot, and let it go forward? Who wrote Antony''s script after Caesar''s death? Using historical evidence to sort out these and other puzzling issues, historian and award-winning author Stephen Dando-Collins takes you to the world of ancient Rome and recaptures the drama of Caesar''s demise and the chaotic aftermath as the vicious struggle for power between Antony and Octavian unfolded. For the first time, he shows how the religious festivals and customs of the day impacted on the way the assassination plot unfolded. He shows, too, how the murder was almost avoided at the last moment.

A compelling history that is packed with intrigue and written with the pacing of a first-rate mystery, The Ides will challenge what you think you know about Julius Caesar and the Roman Empire.

The assassination of Julius Caesar is one of the most notorious murders in history. Two thousand years after it occurred, many compelling questions remain about his death: Was Brutus the hero and Caesar the villain? Did Caesar bring death on himself by planning to make himself king of Rome? Was Mark Antony aware of the plot, and let it go forward? Who wrote Antony''s script after Caesar''s death? Using historical evidence to sort out these and other puzzling issues, historian and award-winning author Stephen Dando-Collins takes you to the world of ancient Rome and recaptures the drama of Caesar''s demise and the chaotic aftermath as the vicious struggle for power between Antony and Octavian unfolded. For the first time, he shows how the religious festivals and customs of the day impacted on the way the assassination plot unfolded. He shows, too, how the murder was almost avoided at the last moment.

A compelling history that is packed with intrigue and written with the pacing of a first-rate mystery, The Ides will challenge what you think you know about Julius Caesar and the Roman Empire.

Stephen Dando-Collins paints a vivid and definitive portrait of daily life in the Tenth Legion as he follows Caesar and his men along the blood-soaked fringes of the Empire. This unprecedented regimental history reveals countless previously unknown details about Roman military practices, Caesar''s conduct as a commander and his relationships with officers and legionaries, and the daily routine and discipline of the Legion. From penetrating insights into the mind of history''s greatest general to a grunt''s-eye view of the gruesome realities of war in the Classical Age, this unique and riveting true account sets a new standard of exellence and detail to which all authors of ancient military history will now aspire.

The action-filled movie 300 focused on Ancient Greece''s epic battle of Thermopylae, in which King Leonidas led 300 Spartans into battle against Xerxes and his million-strong Persian forces. In the sequel, 300: Rise of an Empire, the action moves to the sea, covering ten years starting with the Battle of Marathon and ending with naval engagement the Battle of Artemisium, which occurred the same day as Thermopylae.

Rise of an Empire tells the story of the real men and events depicted in the movie, focusing on the Athenian general Themistocles, one of the world''s greatest warriors. He became warlord of Greece, built their navy and, by uniting Greece to defeat Xerxes'' fleet, enabled what we call western civilization. Packed with vivid detail, clashes of arms and ships, blood and glory, Rise of an Empire tells a story even bigger than the big screen could contain.

Sixty killers, wearing the purple-trimmed togas of Roman senators, unsheathed their hidden daggers to stab the most feared and powerful man in the Empire. Hundreds of their colleagues ran screaming from the Theater of Pompey the Great, proclaiming the bloody deed to the thousands of citizens who clogged the streets outside. It was the most public of crimes. Yet, two millennia after the murder of Julius Caesar, many questions remain unanswered. Was Brutus a treasonous villain or a hero of Rome? Were the killers motivated by noble sentiment or venality? Why did so many of Caesar''s formerly loyal lieutenants take part in the murder?

InThe Ides, celebrated author and classical researcher Stephen Dando-Collins transports listeners to the streets, palaces, and gathering places of ancient Rome to experience a richly detailed, convincingly accurate, and stunningly suspenseful account of Caesar''s final days. He traces the conspiracy that brought the conqueror down, from a surprising holiday meeting between Cassius and Brutus to its chaotic conclusion and beyond.

Drawing deeply from ancient manuscripts, Dando-Collins documents Caesar''s campaign to persuade the Senate, which had already declared him a "living god," to appoint him king of Rome before his planned departure on a military mission on March 19, 44 BC. He reveals why many Romans already considered Caesar a tyrant and why Brutus, who may well have been Caesar''s illegitimate son, felt a special obligation to depose this man who would be king.

This compelling history follows the mercurial Cassius and even-tempered Brutus as they carefully feel out potential coconspirators, knowing that one wrong choice could be their last. It reveals the dramatic lengths to which Brutus'' wife Porcia went to prove he could trust her with his secret; why Caesar, even as the killers paced in restless anticipation of his arrival, canceled the Senate session he had called—and how a close associate convinced him to change his mind.

Complete with a thoughtful analysis of why the plotters failed in their aim to restore the Republic and a chilling account of the deadly power struggles that continued for years after Caesar''s death,The Idesis a must-have for anyone fascinated with the Roman Empire, military history, and an incredible story well told.