History of the Ancient World

Below are the in-print works in this collection. Sort by title, author, format, publication date, or price »

Cover: The Triumph of Empire: The Roman World from Hadrian to Constantine

The Triumph of Empire: The Roman World from Hadrian to Constantine

Kulikowski, Michael

Michael Kulikowski takes readers into the political heart of imperial Rome, beginning with the reign of Hadrian, who visited the farthest reaches of his domain and created stable frontiers, and spanning to the decades after Constantine the Great, who overhauled the government, introduced a new state religion, and founded a second Rome.

Cover: Age of Conquests: The Greek World from Alexander to Hadrian

Age of Conquests: The Greek World from Alexander to Hadrian

Chaniotis, Angelos

The world that Alexander remade in his lifetime was transformed once again by his death in 323 BCE. Over time, trade and intellectual achievement resumed, but Cleopatra’s death in 30 BCE brought this Hellenistic moment to a close—or so the story goes. Angelos Chaniotis reveals a Hellenistic world that continued to Hadrian’s death in 138 CE.

Cover: The Rise of Rome: From the Iron Age to the Punic Wars

The Rise of Rome: From the Iron Age to the Punic Wars

Lomas, Kathryn

By the third century BC, Rome was poised to build an empire throughout the Mediterranean basin. What transformed a once-modest settlement into the region’s preeminent power? In the story of Rome’s rise Kathryn Lomas identifies nascent political structures that unified the empire’s diverse populations and finds the beginnings of Italian peoplehood.

Cover: The Origin of Empire: Rome from the Republic to Hadrian

The Origin of Empire: Rome from the Republic to Hadrian

Potter, David

Starting with the Roman army’s first foray beyond its borders and ending with Hadrian’s death (138 CE), David Potter’s panorama of the early Empire recounts the wars, leaders and social transformations that lay the foundations of imperial success. As today’s parallels reveal, the Romans have much to teach us about power, governance and leadership.

Cover: The Tragedy of Empire: From Constantine to the Destruction of Roman Italy

The Tragedy of Empire: From Constantine to the Destruction of Roman Italy

Kulikowski, Michael

Michael Kulikowski traces two hundred years of Roman history during which the Empire became ungovernable and succumbed to turbulence and change. A sweeping political narrative, The Tragedy of Empire tells the story of the Western Roman Empire’s downfall, even as the Eastern Empire remained politically strong and culturally vibrant.

Cover: New Rome: The Empire in the East

New Rome: The Empire in the East

Stephenson, Paul

Modern states have ever looked to antiquity for lessons, coveting Rome’s power and fearing its decline. So why did Rome collapse? Scientific study is providing novel answers. Placing texts and artifacts alongside evidence from ice cores and ancient DNA, Paul Stephenson shows the key roles of environmental disaster and pandemics in the fall of Rome.

Sort by title, author, format, publication date, or price »

Back to top

In the Shadow of Quetzalcoatl: Zelia Nuttall and the Search for Mexico’s Ancient Civilizations, by Merilee Grindle, from Harvard University Press

Recent News

Black lives matter. Black voices matter. A statement from HUP »

From Our Blog

Jacket: Iron and Blood: A Military History of the German-Speaking Peoples since 1500, by Peter Wilson, from Harvard University Press

A Lesson in German Military History with Peter Wilson

In his landmark book Iron and Blood: A Military History of the German-Speaking Peoples since 1500, acclaimed historian Peter H. Wilson offers a masterful reappraisal of German militarism and warfighting over the last five centuries, leading to the rise of Prussia and the world wars. Below, Wilson answers our questions about this complex history,