IF YOU WEREN‘T A CHRISTIAN, A JEW OR A CLOSE RELATIVE OF THE EMPEROR,
life in the Roman empire could be peaceful and pleasant. - P109
The Roman postal service made regular visits to settlements at the empire‘s
frontiers, carrying news back and forth. - P109
In all the great cities like Alexandria orRome you could find everything you needed for a comfortable life.
Of course, in Rome there were
whole districts of barrack-like buildings,
crudely built andmany storeys high, where poor people lived. - P109
The private houses and villas of thewell-to do, in contrast, were luxuriously furnished with beautiful Greek works of art, and had delightful small gardens with cooling fountains. - P109
When he dropped his handkerchief into thearena, it was the signal for the games to begin. The gladiators would appear andstanding in front of the imperial box, cry: ‘Hail Caesar! We who are about to diesalute you!‘
- P110
But you mustn‘t imagine that emperors did nothing but sit in amphitheatres,
or that they were all layabouts and raving lunatics like Nero. On the contrary, theyspent most of their time maintaining peace in the empire. - P110
Beyond the distant frontiers all around were fierce, barbarian tribes waiting to raid and pillage the rich
provinces. The Germans, who lived in the north at the other side of the Danube
and the Rhine, were especially troublesome Caesar had already clashed with them during his conquest of Gaul. - P110
The German warriors really were dangerous enemies. The Romans hadalready learnt this to their cost during Augustus‘s rule. At that time the leader of a Germanic tribe called the Cherusci was a man called Arminius. - P111
Brought upin Rome, he knew all about Roman military tactics and, one day, when a Romanarmy was marching through Teutoburg Forest he ambushed it and annihilated itcompletely. - P111
After that, the Romans kept out of that region. But it was all the morevital for them to secure their frontiers against the Germans. - P111
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