Paperback : HK$115.00
On 8 June AD218 a fourteen-year-old Syrian boy led an army to battle in a Roman civil war. Rallying his retreating troops in person, against all expectations, he was victorious. Varius Avitus Bassianus, known to the modern world as Heliogabalus, was proclaimed emperor. The next four years were to be the strangest in the history of the empire. Heliogabalus humiliated the prestigious Senators and threw extravagant dinner parties for his lower-class friends. He ousted Jupiter from his summit among the gods and replaced him with Elagabal. He married a Vestal Virgin - twice. Rumours abounded that he was a prostitute, that he enjoyed sex with men, that he wanted his physicians to give him a vagina. His contemporaries were unanimous: Heliogabalus was the worst emperor ever. For Antonin Artaud, his life was 'anarchy in action'. But we've forgotten all about him. How did a teenager from an obscure imperial outpost rise up to the very top? In the first biography of Heliogabalus in over half a century, Harry Sidebottom unveils the high drama of sex, religion, power and culture in Ancient Rome as we've never seen it before.
On 8 June AD218 a fourteen-year-old Syrian boy led an army to battle in a Roman civil war. Rallying his retreating troops in person, against all expectations, he was victorious. Varius Avitus Bassianus, known to the modern world as Heliogabalus, was proclaimed emperor. The next four years were to be the strangest in the history of the empire. Heliogabalus humiliated the prestigious Senators and threw extravagant dinner parties for his lower-class friends. He ousted Jupiter from his summit among the gods and replaced him with Elagabal. He married a Vestal Virgin - twice. Rumours abounded that he was a prostitute, that he enjoyed sex with men, that he wanted his physicians to give him a vagina. His contemporaries were unanimous: Heliogabalus was the worst emperor ever. For Antonin Artaud, his life was 'anarchy in action'. But we've forgotten all about him. How did a teenager from an obscure imperial outpost rise up to the very top? In the first biography of Heliogabalus in over half a century, Harry Sidebottom unveils the high drama of sex, religion, power and culture in Ancient Rome as we've never seen it before.
Teenager. Religious fanatic. Prostitute. The life and times of the worst Roman emperor you’ve never heard of.
Dr Harry Sidebottom teaches Ancient History at Lincoln College, Oxford. Since publication of Fire in the East in 2008, he has written and published a novel each year, all of which have been Sunday Times top 5 bestsellers. His Warrior of Rome series has been published in 14 countries. Harry is also the editor of the forthcoming Blackwell Encyclopaedia of Ancient Battles.
'Sidebottom is an agile guide and draws the reader’s attention to
the remarkably inclusive nature of the empire, from its acceptance
of different cultures into citizenship (the exact and polar
opposite of, say, Qatar), its routine freeing of slaves and its
acceptance of new gods into its pagan pantheon… Buy the book, it’s
very entertaining.'
*David Aaronovitch, The Times*
'The decadence, debauchery and sexual promiscuity that marked the
adolescent’s time on the imperial throne make for a rollicking
read.'
*Daily Mail*
‘Ancient history was never less dry than in Harry Sidebottom’s
superbly entertaining and always scholarly account of the reign of
Heliogabalus... There is something for every reader: sex,
politics, scandals and a compelling portrait of imperial society
and culture.’
*Financial Times, Book of the Year*
'We are used to being told that the historical truth is less
exciting than the myth. But, as Harry Sidebottom’s The Mad Emperor
demonstrates, this is one of those rare cases when the history does
not fall short. While working hard to correct the preconceptions of
both scholars and general readers, Sidebottom presents a picture of
third-century imperial Rome that is, if anything, wilder than the
popular imagination.'
*Telegraph*
‘Harry Sidebottom certainly makes the most of this potential. In
thirteen chapters he takes us on an enjoyable romp through the few
highs and many lows of Heliogabalus’s fleeting four years as
emperor, between 218 CE and 222… Throughout Sidebottom showcases
the historian in action, assessing his sources, trawling through
prosopography and carefully identifying marble portrait busts. He
offers a scholarly but readable biography of an emperor who has
been rather short of such attentions.’
*TLS*
‘Sidebottom has an expert’s command of the rebarbative source base
for third-century Rome… A whole scholarly architecture lies beneath
and underpins his thoroughly convincing portrait of a failed
emperor. His conclusions must be taken seriously.’
*LRB*
‘The Mad Emperor recreates the Ancient World with the eye of a
poet and the sure hand of a scholar.’
*Barry Strauss, author of Ten Caesars*
'Harry Sidebottom skilfully juggles what to believe and what not to
believe… The racy story is told with the vivid phrasing and
descriptive powers of an accomplished novelist… supported by a rich
back story and a fascinating discussion of his legacy… a
well-illustrated and absorbing read.'
*Guy de la Bédoyère, BBC History Magazine*
'Sidebottom brings [Heliogabalus] vividly back to life. His prose
feels vibrant and effortless but also rewards close reading.'
*Daisy Dunn, author of Not Far from Brideshead: Oxford Between the
Wars*
‘A scholarly but highly readable account of the teenager who became
classical Rome’s most reviled emperor, but who may be viewed with a
touch more sympathy now.’
*Matthew Kneale, author of Rome: A History in Seven
Sackings*
‘A riveting and rollicking account of a much maligned but truly
thrilling era in Roman history.’
*Emma Southon, author of A Fatal Thing Happened On the Way to
the Forum*
'Combining the pace of a novelist, the training of a scholar and
the instincts of a true historian, this is a wonderful exploration
of the Roman world under its strangest emperor.'
*Adrian Goldsworthy, author of Pax Romana*
'An absolute belter'
*TalkSPORT, Book of the Week*
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