AD262 - the Imperium is in turmoil after the struggle for the throne. Furthermore, Ephesus, Asia's metropolis, lies in ruins, shattered by a mighty earthquake. Yet an even greater threat to the Empire advances from the North. The barbaric Goth tribes sail towards Ephesus, determined to pillage the city. Only Ballista, Warrior of Rome, knows the ways of the barbarians, and only he can defeat them.

The Huns, invading through Dariali Gorge on the modern-day border between Russia and Georgia in AD 395 and 515, spread terror across the late antique world. Was this the prelude to the apocalypse? Prophecies foresaw a future Hunnic onslaught, via the same mountain pass, bringing about the end of the world. Humanity’s fate depended on a gated barrier deep in Europe’s highest and most forbidding mountain chain. Centuries before the emergence of such apocalyptic beliefs, the gorge had reached world fame. It was the target of a planned military expedition by the Emperor Nero. Chained to the dramatic sheer cliffs, framing the narrow passage, the mythical fire-thief Prometheus suffered severe punishment, his liver devoured by an eagle. It was known under multiple names, most commonly the Caspian or Alan Gates. Featuring in the works of literary giants, no other mountain pass in the ancient and medieval world matches Dariali’s fame. Yet little was known about the materiality of this mythical place. A team of archaeologists has now shed much new light on the major gorge-blocking fort and a barrier wall on a steep rocky ridge further north. The walls still standing today were built around the time of the first major Hunnic invasion in the late fourth century – when the Caucasus defenses feature increasingly prominently in negotiations between the Great Powers of Persia and Rome. In its endeavor to strongly fortify the strategic mountain pass through the Central Caucasus, the workforce erased most traces of earlier occupation. The Persian-built bastion saw heavy occupation for 600 years. Its multi-faith medieval garrison controlled Trans-Caucasian traffic. Everyday objects and human remains reveal harsh living conditions and close connections to the Muslim South, as well as the steppe world of the north. The Caspian Gates explains how a highly strategic rock has played a pivotal role in world history from Classical Antiquity into the twentieth century.

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • “Steven Pressfield brings the battle of Thermopylae to brilliant life.”—Pat Conroy At Thermopylae, a rocky mountain pass in northern Greece, the feared and admired Spartan soldiers stood three hundred strong. Theirs was a suicide mission, to hold the pass against the invading millions of the mighty Persian army. Day after bloody day they withstood the terrible onslaught, buying time for the Greeks to rally their forces. Born into a cult of spiritual courage, physical endurance, and unmatched battle skill, the Spartans would be remembered for the greatest military stand in history—one that would not end until the rocks were awash with blood, leaving only one gravely injured Spartan squire to tell the tale. . . .

Details Persias growing military and economic power in the late antique worldThe Sasanian Empire (3rd7th centuries) was one of the largest empires of antiquity, stretching from Mesopotamia to modern Pakistan and from Central Asia to the Arabian Peninsula. This mega-empire withstood powerful opponents in the steppe and expanded further in Late Antiquity, whilst the Roman world shrunk in size. Recent research has revealed the reasons for this success: notably population growth in some key territories, economic prosperity, and urban development, made possible through investment in agriculture and military infrastructure on a scale unparalleled in the late antique world. Our volume explores the empires relations with its neighbours and key phenomena which contributed to its wealth and power, from the empires armed forces to agriculture, trade and treatment of minorities. The latest discoveries, notably major urban foundations, fortifications and irrigations systems, feature prominently. An empire whose military might and culture rivalled Rome and foreshadowed the caliphate will be of interest to scholars of the Roman and Islamic world.Challenges our Eurocentric world view by presenting a Near-Eastern empire whose urban culture and military apparatus rivalled that of Rome Covers the latest discoveries on foundations, fortifications and irrigation systemsIncludes case studies on Sasanian frontier walls and urban culture in the Sasanian Empire

In a first installment of a best-selling British series that illuminates modern issues through retellings of historical events, third-century Roman defender Ballista takes increasingly extreme measures to reinforce the crumbling walls of a lonely city. Original.

The acclaimed author continues his epic tale of Ancient Roman intrigue in the tumultuous third-century in this sequel to Fire in the East. Born a Barbarian, Marcus Clodius Ballista rises through the ranks of the Roman army to become defender of the Empire’s eastern border. But when treachery causes him to lose the city of Arete, Ballista finds himself in retreat from the Persian Sassanid forces—and out of favor among the senators at home. As the imperial court grows increasingly concerned about religious fanaticism, the aging emperor Valerian once again calls on Ballista to defend the empire, this time sending him to the far-off port city of Ephesus. There, Ballista is charged with crushing a troublesome Christian sect. Renowned for their skilled blending of action and historical accuracy, Sidebottom's Warrior of Rome novels take the reader from the shouts of the battlefield to the whisperings of the emperor's inner circle. Endnotes and an extensive bibliography reveal the fascinating research and scholarship brought to life in this exciting tale.