Power grabs and dictators

A post from 2017 but updated for 2024

The Death of Caesar, Vincenzo Camuccini, 1798 (public domain)

Updated text: It’s 2024 and today is the ides of March in the Roman calendar. It’s the day the Russian (read Soviet) leader seeks reelection, a travesty which will be the continuation of his initial power […]

Persecuting the Pagans

British Museum display (Author photo)

Probably because of various Hollywood films, it’s “general knowledge” that those nasty Romans spent all their time killing Christians.

Well, no…

Romans, for the most part, were comparatively tolerant in matters of religious belief and allowed countless religious sects, cults, saviours and redeemers to proselytise without restrictions. Most […]

Exile - what does it actually mean?

I expect we can all name a number of famous exiles without too much bother – Napoleon Bonaparte, Leon Trotsky, Benazir Bhutto, Roman poet Ovid, Marlene Dietrich, Aristotle, the von Trapp family, Albert Einstein, to name but a few.

Exile is essentially a separation from your homeland and can be temporary or permanent. Sometimes […]