This is the first full-length study of the final war between Rome and the ancient Macedonian monarchy and its last king, Perseus. The Roman victory at the Battle of Pydna in June 168 BC was followed by the abolition of the kingdom of Macedon - the cradle of Philip II, Alexander the Great, and the Antigonid monarchs who followed. The first historian of Rome's rise to world power, and a contemporary of the war, Polybius of Megalopolis, recognized the significance of these events in making Rome an almost global power beyond compare - a sole superpower, in other words. Yet Roman authority did not lack challenges from lesser states and insurgents in the decades that followed. The book's meticulous documentation, close analysis, and engagement in scholarly controversy will appeal to academics and students, while general readers will appreciate its brisk narrative style and pacing.

This is the first full-length study of the final war between Rome and the ancient Macedonian monarchy and its last king, Perseus. The Roman victory at the Battle of Pydna in June 168 BC was followed by the abolition of the kingdom of Macedon - the cradle of Philip II, Alexander the Great, and the Antigonid monarchs who followed. The first historian of Rome's rise to world power, and a contemporary of the war, Polybius of Megalopolis, recognized the significance of these events in making Rome an almost global power beyond compare - a sole superpower, in other words. Yet Roman authority did not lack challenges from lesser states and insurgents in the decades that followed. The book's meticulous documentation, close analysis, and engagement in scholarly controversy will appeal to academics and students, while general readers will appreciate its brisk narrative style and pacing.

In this bold new interpretation of the origins of ancient Rome's overseas empire, Dr Burton charts the impact of the psychology, language and gestures associated with the Roman concept of amicitia, or 'friendship'. The book challenges the prevailing orthodox Cold War-era realist interpretation of Roman imperialism and argues that language and ideals contributed just as much to Roman empire-building as military muscle. Using a constructivist theoretical framework drawn from international relations, Dr Burton replaces the modern scholarly fiction of a Roman empire built on networks of foreign clients and client-states with an interpretation grounded firmly in the discursive habits of the ancient texts themselves. The results better account for the peculiar rhythms of Rome's earliest period of overseas expansion - brief periods of vigorous military and diplomatic activity, such as the rolling back of Seleucid power in Asia Minor and Greece in 192-188 BC, followed by long periods of inactivity.

In this bold new interpretation of the origins of ancient Rome's overseas empire, Dr Burton charts the impact of the psychology, language and gestures associated with the Roman concept of amicitia, or 'friendship'. The book challenges the prevailing orthodox Cold War-era realist interpretation of Roman imperialism and argues that language and ideals contributed just as much to Roman empire-building as military muscle. Using a constructivist theoretical framework drawn from international relations, Dr Burton replaces the modern scholarly fiction of a Roman empire built on networks of foreign clients and client-states with an interpretation grounded firmly in the discursive habits of the ancient texts themselves. The results better account for the peculiar rhythms of Rome's earliest period of overseas expansion - brief periods of vigorous military and diplomatic activity, such as the rolling back of Seleucid power in Asia Minor and Greece in 192-188 BC, followed by long periods of inactivity.

Archaeological evidence is enriched when it is viewed against the backdrop of its natural landscape setting. This setting is not readily apparent in the lower Lea valley, where evidence for the natural topography has been cut away by quarrying and reservoir construction or buried by metres of alluvium and modern made ground. The Lea Valley Mapping Project, funded by the Aggregates Levy Sustainability Fund, has taken a geoarchaeological approach to reconstructing the past landscape and its relationship to archaeological distributions by using existing borehole information to model the buried topography and past environment of the lower Lea valley from the M25 to the confluence of the Lea and the Thames. The results place the known archaeology within its past landscape context and also predict the archaeological potential of the study area, which readers can investigate by referring both to the maps in the monograph and to the accompanying gazetteer. They can also download the interpreted geo-referenced datasets produced for the project from the ADS website. This book will be an indispensable guide not only for those wishing to know the archaeological potential and past landscape characteristics of the lower Lea valley but to anyone proposing to investigate the buried landscape in other river valleys or wanting an introduction to Quaternary deposits, environments and landscape processes in Greater London.