Check This Out: Julius Caesar marches on Rome

Historia Civilis talks about ancient history in a way that fascinates

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Over the weekend I went from having a vague understanding of life in ancient Rome to being accutely aware of what the year 49 B.C.E. must have been like for a Roman citizen, senator or legionaire. This is thanks to a series of videos done by the YouTube channel Histria Civilis that are near-impossible not to binge.

If you wanted you could learn about the entirety of the Roman Empire, the Greek city-states and what life was like for everyone involved, but I chose to binge the time period where Rome changed from a republic to an empire.

 

A classic case of "I-don't-know-who-to-cheer-for."

Were you only to view that video Ceasar might seem like the bad guy, but watch the videos that cover the years leading up to it and you'll find that Rome was a place with a slowly devolving social structure.

Politicians had taken to walking the streets with armed gangs, the Pomerium (the point at which no one was permitted to carry a blade in Rome, covered in another brilliant video) was being respected less and less, Gaul was constantly looking for ways to eject Roman influence and a dozen other society altering issues were becoming the norm. This was a time with no heroes, but plenty of champions.

Historia Civilis is certainly worth your time if you have even a passing interest in the ancient world.