Episodes

Julius Caesar pursues Pompey to the port city of Brundisium. There, the two face off in the first great engineering contest of the civil war as Caesar attempts to blockade the port and Pompey works to slow Caesar’s progress until his fleet can arrive. There is also a special segment at the end of the episode regarding the Gladiator films so make sure to listen all the way through or you will miss out. Buy Marcus Aurelius Meditations (Amazon): https://amzn.to/41yVO0q We are a participant in the A...

Sitting in his country villa, Cicero struggles to choose a side; Julius Caesar or Pompey and the Optimates. From his vantage, neither option looks appealing. Meanwhile, Julius Caesar makes his much anticipated (and dreaded) return to Rome after a 10 year absence from his mother city. There, Caesar soon finds himself butting heads with a troublesome Tribune of the Plebs over the fate of the Roman treasury. In a flash of temper, Caesar runs roughshod over the ancient rights of the Tribunes and, po...

Julius Caesar’s rapid march toward Spain is stalled by the defiant city of Massilia (modern Marseille). Ahenobarbus unexpectedly resurfaces and re-enters the Roman Civil War. We set the stage for Julius Caesar’s campaign in Spain. Caesar’s legate Fabius, sent ahead to start the war while Caesar organizes the siege of Massilia, soon finds himself in peril - without Caesar around to save him. Buy Machiavelli"s " The Prince " (Amazon): https://amzn.to/40SdPoL We are a participant in the Amazon Ser...

Julius Caesar arrives in Spain, the picture of confidence. Even having to borrow money from his officers to pay his soldiers doesn't seem to dampen his self-belief, or the belief of his followers. Taking command of the Spanish campaign, he quickly begins trying to outmaneuver Afranius and Petreius. Caesar's luck abandons him though, when his veteran army panics and the Ninth Legion finds itself trapped in what amounts to a killing zone. Audible 30 Day Free Trial and 1 Free Audiobook (2 for Prime...

When monsoon rains hit Northeastern Spain, the Sicoris River floods, obliterating both of Julius Caesar's bridges. Now stranded in a narrow strip of land between two flooded rivers, Caesar soon runs out of food and his troops begin to starve. Finding himself in an increasingly desperate situation, Caesar must find a way to regain access to the Eastern bank of the river or else the war will be lost. Meanwhile, Decimus Brutus fights a naval battle at Massilia against Ahenobarbus and the Massiliote...

With their position growing worse by the day, Afranius and Petreius decide to make a run for it and attempt to march to Celtiberia where they expect to find support. For Julius Caesar, everything depends on stopping them from reaching a set of mountains/hills at which point they will be out of his reach and the war will become protracted. And so the race begins, with both armies rushing to reach the mountain pass first. Along the way, Caesar's soldiers become fed up with his famous clemency and ...

When Pompeian soldiers and officers start to mingle with Caesar's army in an attempt to bring about a peace, Petreius decides to renew the war in brutal fashion. After a game of cat and mouse, Julius Caesar finally corners the Pompeians and receives their surrender. With both Roman armies listening, Caesar then launches into one of his greatest speeches and one of his most ostentatious displays of clemency. We then dive deep on the enigma that is Caesar's clemency and all its hidden facets. Stay...

Julius Caesar rushes Further Spain in an attempt to bring the province under his control and consolidate his power in Spain. Meanwhile, in the Illyrian theatre of war (the modern Balkans), Caesar's subordinates, Gaius Antonius and Publius Cornelius Dolabella, suffer crushing defeats. Even defeats can have honor though, and so, 1,000 men from the town of Opitergium decide to set an example in this civil war and refuse to surrender to the Pompeians. The result is as bloody as it is memorable. Webs...

As Caesar wrestles the Spains under his control, Gaius Scribonius Curio leads two legions and 500 cavalry on an invasion of the Roman province of Africa (modern Tunisia). At 34 years old, Curio is young and inexperienced yet talented, dynamic and full of confidence. Arrayed against him are the combined forces of the Roman senator Publius Attius Varrus and the King of Numidia, Juba. Time will tell if Curio's confidence aids him or leads to a fall from grace. Website www.themarchofhistory.com Venm...

Gaius Scribonius Curio marches against the approaching Numidian army. Finding success, he presses his luck and pursues his foe… only to be led into a trap. With the Numidians surrounding them, Curio and his army are forced to make a desperate last stand. Meanwhile, the rest of the army is now eager to flee Africa. But the available ships do not have room for everyone, and soon chaos breaks out as no soldier wants to be left behind. We end with a discussion of Curio’s legacy and the view our anci...

The forces of Julius Caesar put the Greek city-state of Massilia under siege. Massilia is equipped with mighty defenses and its people are determined to resist the Roman war machine. To overcome these defenses, the legions will need to utilize all their ancient engineering skills to build truly incredible siege-works. For months this siege is waged on land and sea as the Romans build ever more complex siege works and the clever Massiliotes break out every trick in the book to frustrate the Roman...

The Siege of Massilia reaches its dramatic climax as Caesar’s legions build new and innovative siegeworks to overcome the defiant Massiliotes. At last, Julius Caesar arrives on the scene and quickly gets hit with a flurry of news items. In his absence, Rome has appointed Caesar as Dictator. On a more ominous note, the veteran Ninth Legion has instigated a mutiny among Caesar’s army in Placentia. Always one for decisive and bold action, Caesar races to the scene to face down the mutineers. Amazon...

The March of History goes back in time to Italy in the spring of 49 BC, where Marcus Tullius Cicero still sits around his country villas agonizing over what action he should take in this civil war. Cicero's natural loyalty lies with Pompey and the Optimates who he feels have the moral right on their side. And yet, Cicero is furious with Pompey for his failures around the Rubicon crossing and his abandonment of Rome and Italy—and even more terrified of Pompey's plans to imitate Sulla if he wins t...