ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book. The book focuses on to integrate the emperor—the manager of war—and the military forces within the social, economic, religious, and symbolical context. In the later half of the second century B.C., once the land redistribution reforms of the Gracchi had failed, the ruling order had no alternative but to open the army's ranks to all citizens regardless of background. By the middle third of the first century B.C., the allies had finally been accepted as citizens and the slaves were crushed, but the Civil Wars ended only when Augustus finally defeated, in 31 B.C., the last contenders to the supreme power: Marcus Antonius and Cleopatra, the queen of Egypt. During the same period, Roman supremacy extended to the whole Mediterranean, and to all lands west of the Rhine and south of the Danube, while Emperor Claudius completed the conquest of Britain.
