Great dynasties of the world: The Roman emperors

Ian Sansom on Augustus, the politician's politician'If there is anyone who qualifies as the founding father of western civilisation, it is Augustus," writes Anthony Everitt in The First Emperor: Caesar Augustus and the Triumph of Rome (2006). To found a family dynasty is one thing. To found an entire civilisation based on a family dynasty is entirely another. So how did Augustus do it?According to some, Augustus was simply an inspirational leader ? like, say, Boris Johnson. "He was about the greatest politician the world has ever seen," remarked the mayor of London in an interview last year. "If you wanted to have a first 11 of the world's leading politicians, the most accomplished diplomats and ideologues of all time, you'd have Augustus as your kind of midfield playmaker, captain of the

Read more ...