The Roads To Rome
A History
Format:Hardback
Publisher:Vintage Publishing
Published:13th Jun '24
£25.00
This title is due to be published on 13th June, and will be despatched as soon as possible.
Brimming with life and drama, this is the first book to explore two thousand years of European history through one the greatest imperial networks ever built
'a delightful, novel and authoritative history from the ground up' JUDITH HERRIN
‘erudite, entertaining and infinitely readable’ HELENA ATTLEE
‘a magical and informative ode’ MICHAEL SCOTT
‘a must-read for tourists and armchair travellers alike’ ROSS KING
‘an essential guide to the many hidden layers of history beneath our feet’ KELCEY WILSON-LEE
'All roads lead to Rome.' It's a medieval proverb, but it's also true: today's European roads still follow the networks of the ancient empire, as Rome’s extraordinary legacy continues to grip our imaginations.
Over the two thousand years since they were first built, the roads have been walked by crusaders and pilgrims, liberators and dictators, but also by tourists and writers, refugees and artists. As channels of trade and travel, and routes for conquest and creativity, Catherine Fletcher shows how the roads forever transformed the cultures, and intertwined the fates, of a vast panoply of people across Europe and beyond.
Reflecting on his own walk on the Appian Way, Charles Dickens observed that here is ‘a history in every stone that strews the ground.’ Based on outstanding original research, and brimming with life and drama, this is the first book to explore two thousand years of history through one of the greatest imperial networks ever built.
Past and present cleverly entwine in Catherine Fletcher’s erudite, entertaining and infinitely readable journey along the roads that stitch Europe’s history together. -- Helena Attlee * author of THE LAND WHERE LEMONS GROW *
This is history quite literally following in the footsteps of the past: covering and uncovering the ways in which the Roman road network has become part of the DNA of every society since. It’s a magical and informative ode to the majesty and mystical power of the humble roadway. -- Michael Scott * Professor of Classics and Ancient History, University of Warwick *
With verve and expertise, Catherine Fletcher has tramped the far-flung Roman roads of Europe and created a delightful, novel and authoritative history from the ground up. -- Judith Herrin * author of BYZANTIUM *
The Roads to Rome is a vibrant, enchanting and rich compendium. Catherine Fletcher is an essential guide to the many hidden layers of history beneath our feet. -- Kelcey Wilson-Lee * author of DAUGHTERS OF CHIVALRY *
Catherine Fletcher’s mastery of history and storytelling converge beautifully in this captivating exploration of the Roman roads. She expertly leads us on a journey that reaches from Rome to Spain to Constantinople, and from the remote past into the present. A must-read for tourists and armchair travellers alike. -- Ross King * author of THE BOOKSELLER OF FLORENCE *
In her magnificently imagined and vividly composed book, Catherine Fletcher gives new meaning to the word journeyman (these days journeyperson). Among her pages, we journey the thousands of miles of Roman roads from 500 BCE to the present and are never made timeless or homeless. Fletcher offers us justification for an infinity of plannable holidays or long hours of cosy reading at home. All readers should direct themselves to her Romes. -- Richard Bosworth * author of MUSSOLINI'S ITALY *
Brilliant and gripping, here is the full true Renaissance in a history of compelling originality and freshness -- Simon Sebag Montefiore * on THE BEAUTY AND THE TERROR *
ISBN: 9781847928030
Dimensions: 240mm x 156mm x 40mm
Weight: 750g
400 pages