Wedding in Gaul (414) -- Funerals in Barcelona (414-416) -- Making of an empress (417-425) -- Restoration and rehabilitation (425-431) -- Bride, a book, and a pope (437-438) -- Between Rome and Ravenna (438-450).

Despite her status as one of history's most important women, the story of Galla Placidia's life has been largely forgotten. Though the Roman empress witnessed the decline and fall of the Roman Empire in the 5th century and lived a life of almost constant suffering, her actions helped postpone the fall of Rome and had massive, widespread impact on the empire that can still be felt today. She watched the barbarian king Alaric and his horde of Visigoth warriors sack Rome, slaughter many of the city's inhabitants, and take her hostage. Surviving captivity, Galla Placidia became the queen of the barbarians who had imprisoned her. Eventually, she became the only woman to rule the Roman empire alone. Soldiers obeyed her commands while Popes and Christian saints alike sought her advice. Despite all obstacles and likely suffering from what we now know as PTSD, she lived to an old age by the standards of the time. This book uses the letters and writings of Galla Placidia's contemporaries to reconstruct, in more depth and detail than has previously been attempted, the remarkable story of her life and the decline and fall of the Roman Empire.

Cover -- Contents -- List of Illustrations -- Introduction. A Forgotten Empress -- 1 The "Most Noble" Princess: 379-395 -- 2 Orphan Princess in Stilicho's Shadow: 395-408 -- 3 Held Hostage by the Goths: 408-412 -- 4 Queen of the Visigoths: 411-416 -- 5 Wife and Mother in Ravenna: 416-424 -- 6 Empress of the Romans: 424-437 -- 7 The Empress Mother and Her Children: 438-455 -- Epilogue. The Fall of the Western Empire: 455-476 -- Notes -- Bibliography -- Index -- A -- B -- C -- D -- E -- F -- G -- H -- I -- J -- L -- M -- N -- O -- P -- Q -- R -- S -- T -- U -- V -- W -- Z.

The time was the late Imperial period, an era when Rome wore her& ;vast empire like a huge ancient toga, worn thin from overuse, badly& ;tattered and frayed around the edges, and studded too sparsely with& ;precious jewels. Galla Placidia was one of those few precious jewels . . .& ;a brilliant diamond sparkling in the last rays of a setting sun.& ;This historical novel is based on the true story of a remarkable& ;woman who lived at a major crossroads of history, when the ancient& ;pagan past was overtaken by the strong young religion of Christianity.& ;Daughter, sister, wife, and mother of emperors, Galla Placidia was& ;instrumental in leading Rome through the tumultuous transition from a& ;pagan to a Christian state.& ;The product of three years of research and visits to each of the& ;original sites from Lisbon to Istanbul, the book follows the life of Galla& ;Placidia from her privileged Imperial youth and her abduction by the& ;Goths when she was twenty, through her marriage to the Gothic chieftain& ;and his assassination, to her return to Rome, her marriage to the Roman& ;emperor, and finally to the years she served as regent for her young son.& ;Even in death, Galla Placidia's story defies the ordinaryGalla Placidia is& ;buried in the catacombs beneath St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, resting& ;near the Great Fisherman himself

A comprehensive survey of Ravenna's history and monuments in late antiquity, including discussions of scholarly controversies, archaeological discoveries, and interpretations of art works.

A riveting history of the city that led the West out of the ruins of the Roman Empire At the end of the fourth century, as the power of Rome faded and Constantinople became the seat of empire, a new capital city was rising in the West. Here, in Ravenna on the coast of Italy, Arian Goths and Catholic Romans competed to produce an unrivaled concentration of buildings and astonishing mosaics. For three centuries, the city attracted scholars, lawyers, craftsmen, and religious luminaries, becoming a true cultural and political capital. Bringing this extraordinary history marvelously to life, Judith Herrin rewrites the history of East and West in the Mediterranean world before the rise of Islam and shows how, thanks to Byzantine influence, Ravenna played a crucial role in the development of medieval Christendom. Drawing on deep, original research, Herrin tells the personal stories of Ravenna while setting them in a sweeping synthesis of Mediterranean and Christian history. She narrates the lives of the Empress Galla Placidia and the Gothic king Theoderic and describes the achievements of an amazing cosmographer and a doctor who revived Greek medical knowledge in Italy, demolishing the idea that the West just descended into the medieval "Dark Ages." Beautifully illustrated and drawing on the latest archaeological findings, this monumental book provides a bold new interpretation of Ravenna's lasting influence on the culture of Europe and the West.

Documents the stories of eight wives of Roman rulers, assessing their historical contributions and cultural influence and drawing parallels between modern first ladies and the lives of such ancient-world figures as Livia, Helena, and Julia.