Tag: Political Systems

Collections: Raising Carthaginian Armies, Part III: Generals, Warlords and Vassals

This is the third part (I, II) of our series looking at how Carthage's complex, multipart armies were raised and constituted. Last time, we looked at the backbone of Carthage's armies: North African troops levied out of Carthage's subject communities in North Africa. These fellows seem to have been directly employed by the Carthaginian state, … Continue reading Collections: Raising Carthaginian Armies, Part III: Generals, Warlords and Vassals →

Collections: Hoplite Wars: Part IVa, The Status of Hoplites

This is the last part of our four-part series (I, II, IIIa, IIIb, Intermission, IVa, IVb) on the debates surrounding ancient Greek hoplites and the phalanx formation in which they fought. We've spent the last two entries in this series looking at warfare quite narrowly through the lens of tactics: hoplite spacing, depth, fighting style, … Continue reading Collections: Hoplite Wars: Part IVa, The Status of Hoplites →

Collections: On the Gracchi, Part I: Tiberius Gracchus

This week, we're going to talk a bit about the brothers Tiberius (trib. 133) and Gaius (trib. 123-2) Gracchus, the famous Roman reformers of the late second century. There's actually a fair bit to say about both of them, so we're going to split this treatment over two weeks, talking about Tiberius this week and … Continue reading Collections: On the Gracchi, Part I: Tiberius Gracchus →

Collections: Nitpicking Gladiator II, Part II

Last week, we started our nitpicking of Gladiator II (2024) by looking at the problems with the films chronology and its portrayal of the Roman army of the early third century, both in its equipment and in its battle tactics. This week, we're going to move forward to the main action of the film, set … Continue reading Collections: Nitpicking Gladiator II, Part II →

Collections: Teaching Paradox, Imperator, Part IIIb: Imperator Interrupted

This is the second half of the third and final part of our three-part (I, IIa, IIb, IIIa, IIIb) look at Paradox Interactives ancient grand strategy game, Imperator: Rome, which covers (inter alia) the period of the collapse of the Roman Republic, which we generally call the Late Republic (c. 133-31 BC). Last time, we … Continue reading Collections: Teaching Paradox, Imperator, Part IIIb: Imperator Interrupted →

Collections: Teaching Paradox, Imperator, Part IIIa: De Re Publica

This is the first half of the third part of our three-part (I, IIa, IIb, IIIa, IIIb) look at Paradox Interactive’s ancient grand strategy game Imperator: Rome, running from the late fourth through the first century BCE, a period that, relevant for today's discussion, covers the Middle and Late Roman Republic, including the collapse of … Continue reading Collections: Teaching Paradox, Imperator, Part IIIa: De Re Publica →

Collections: The Philosophy of Liberty – On Liberalism

It is once again the week of July 4th and so, as is customary here, I am going to use this week's post to talk about the United States or more correctly this week about the political philosophy the United States was founded on: liberalism. Now an immediate clarification is necessary, because in the United … Continue reading Collections: The Philosophy of Liberty – On Liberalism →