Customer Reviews

Philippi 42 BC: The death of the Roman Republic (Campaign)

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Some time ago, I read Pharaslus, author's first effort with Osprey Campaign series and praised his insightful narrative while downgrading book's illustrations, photos and maps which I thought were inferior efforts. After reading Philippi, his second effort into the Osprey Campaign series, I am quite please to discover that his narrative is still quite excellent and his support material, illustrations, photos and maps proves to be quite excellent as well.

The book follows the typical Osprey Campaign series format. You got your background material, leaders, armies and campaign overview as you get to the main event. The author managed to handled it quite well and his narrative proves to be well written with clarity and understanding of the events at hand. I found many of his comments on leaders to be insightful and well thought-out. A good example would be that I enjoyed his insightful look at Mark Anthony who does so well in the crises but fades in every day duties. I agreed with the author on that score. Unlike his first book, this time around the author's narrative was well supported by illustrations, photos and maps. These elements clearly support the written words at hand. I did find it interesting that this campaign wasn't as cut and dry as I was led to believed. There were many political elements that made it near run thing for the victors. The author's narrative however, smoothly lay out the details in way easy to understand.

My knowledge on this campaign is somewhat limited so I welcome this book that gave me fresh information and insights into what happened at Philippi beside what Shakespeare wrote.

Most readers who pick up this volume, Philippi 42 BC, will already have some knowledge of the events depicted herein based upon high school memories of Shakespeare's play Julius Caesar and perhaps the more recent HBO series Rome. Si Sheppard's narrative on the final showdown between the Republican conspirators who assassinated Julius Caesar in 44 BC and the Triumvir forces led by Mark Antony and young Octavian has all the drama of these popular sources but with the added benefit of historical accuracy. This is one of the most decisive battles of Roman history and here it is vividly conveyed in a solidly-researched and well-written volume. Although the author clearly leans toward Antony - it is difficult not to at this point - he gives Brutus and Cassius a fare shake. Overall, this is a very good volume in Osprey's campaign series and useful both for Roman specialist readers as well as general readers seeking more knowledge about the events in this tumultuous period in Roman history. After finishing this volume, most readers will eagerly anticipate the author's final installment of this Death-of-the-Roman Republic trilogy, on Actium.

After an excellent introduction outlining the events surrounding Julius Caesar's assassination and the development of rival factions led by Brutus/Cassius, Mark Antony and Octavian, the author provides short biographies of the opposing commanders and a brief discussion of the opposing armies. Although both armies were essentially trained and equipped along nearly identical lines (it was a civil war), the author notes that unlike earlier Roman armies, "political loyalties were fluid in the terminal Republic, and this had a commensurate impact on military discipline." Graphically, this volume has six 2-D maps (the Roman world, March 44 BC; two maps on the Battle of Forum Gallorum, April 43 BC; the approach to Philippi; the Italian theater of operations, 44-38 BC; the eastern theater of operations, 44-38 BC) and two 3-D BEV maps (First and Second Battles of Philippi). There are also three battle scenes by Steve Noon (the Fall of Xanthus, Antony victorious in the first battle of Philippi and the naval battle in the Adriatic) that are quite good, although all three are essentially from the viewpoint of the Triumvir forces. The author also provides a short section on the battlefield today and a 2-page bibliography. The other photos and illustrations in this volume are also quite good - no photos of broken vases, defaced wall murals or contemporary Greek cows chewing grass in a field that populate some other Osprey Ancient-era volumes.

The author devotes a 10-page section to discussing the initial outbreak of civil war, finally ending in the alliance of Mark Antony and Octavian to eliminate the Republican faction. This is followed by a 12-page section that discusses the approach to Philippi and which has the opposing plans section tucked in here as well. I found this the only section that was a bit hard to follow because the maps that support it appear much later in the volume. The two battles of Philippi are covered in a 29-page section which is adequate to summarize all the main actions. Given that the Triumvirs had about 123,000 troops and the Republicans 107,000, this was one of the largest battles of the Roman World. Readers will appreciate how Mark Antony cunningly attempted to outflank the Republicans by means of a covert path built through a marsh, but the author also notes that the Republicans' passivity was based upon the idea that their superior logistical position would ultimately give them the victory in a protracted campaign. Antony had to win quickly or his army would have fallen apart. In this account, Antony is clearly the superior commander, while Octavian is trounced in the first battle and plays little role in the second. The events after Philippi become a bit confusing with too many names and places mentioned in rapid succession without sufficient explanation; it would have been useful for the author to include a short chart or table summarizing who many of this minor characters were and which faction they supported. Nevertheless, this is a very good volume which accomplishes its purpose of melding political intrigue and military operations into a coherent story and even includes some information on the role of economics.

The voting system of the roman republic led to certain citizens being much more politically important then others, creating a true oligarchy where the equites and patricians ruled over the masses (altough there was a certain social mobility)- This was the political system defended by the conspirators/republicans; not some romantic democracy like certain authors try to convince their audience.

The author is unbiased in this aspect, not taking sides. Although with different visions of Rome, Marcus Antonius, Octavianus, Cassius and Brutus, they where all warlords! Commanding powerfull personal armies loyal to them and not to the state. There was an huge revolution: the army realized its political power, even refusing to fight or demanding and mediating truces.

This book sumarizes with excelence the chain of events leading to the battle, with Mutina, Forum Galorum (with maps for both the versions of Sulpicius Galba and Appian) and the alliance of the second triunvirate. Impressive how the senate was dependent of certain privatus.

Also interesting is the description of training and organization of the belligerent forces and the impressive number of mobilized personnel at the time! The recruiters (conquistores) must have had a hell of a job.

Both battles of Philippi are very well described, with detail and emotion, analysing both ancient and modern sources. Although somewhat similar with the situation at Pharsalus, the author states very clearly the differences between them and the necessity of Brutus to attack at the second battle of Philippi.

The aftermath could lead to two great Osprey books: The Perusian War and the trashings that Ventidius gave the Parthians at Taurus Mountains, Amanus Gates and cyrrestica, pacifying the East and inverting the political leverage that the Parthians had won after Carrhae.

Good photos and maps. Absolutely gorgeous paintings by Steve Noon (a mixture of realism and expressionism that conveys a sense of movement and "you are there" feeling that is difficult to express).

This book has only one small mistake: The image on page 23 is not of a tribune; that stellae is of a centurion of legio martia named Minucius.

A great book with beautifull art - Mr. Si Sheppard, please,keep doing a good job.

The two battles fought at Philippi, Greece, in the fall of 42 BC marked the end of the Roman Republic, and of the last great conspirators against Julius Caesar. I will not go into detail here since other reviewers have already excellently described the book, but it is a worthy purchase, revealing all the details of these battles and the movements leading up to them, from the weapons of the rank-and-file legionaries to the strong personalities that led them.

Visually speaking I found this volume more impressive than the author's earlier work on the Battle of Pharsalus. Not only are the color plates of higher quality (quite frankly, beautiful) but the photographs and artworks throughout the book apply more to the classical era. Virtually every page of his previous work had one or several Rennaisance-era paintings on it, hardly a realistic source on the appearance of Roman soldiers and generals.

For those who are classicists who are familiar with either Roman military history and/or the processes leading to the downfall of the Republic in the 1st century BC, will find this book a bit superficial. But to those who are new to the subject will find Sheppard's book to be a concise, informative and well-written summary of not only the two battles of Philippi in October 42 BC, but also of Roman military tactics and organization at the time, the leading personalities, the political background, and the campaigns both preceding and following the Philippi battles. Well-illustrated with photos, maps, and paintings, the two battles of Philippi are vividly brought to life. For those readers who are new to the subject of the Roman history in the 1st century BC, following the assassination of the Roman dictator Julius Caesar in 44 BC by a group of Republican die-hards led by Marcus Junius Brutus, a new round of civil wars broke out. On one side, the eastern half of the Roman world was seized by the group which assassinated Caesar, led by Brutus and Cassius committing to upholding the Old Republic. In Italy itself, there was a civil war between Mark Anthony, Caesar's right-hand man and the Caesar's chosen heir, a unhealthy teenager named Gaius Octavian. Ultimately, Octavian and Anthony joined forces together with Marcus Lepidus in the Second Triumvirate to take on the Republican fraction. In the fall of 42 BC, the two sides met on a battlefield in northern Greece near the city of Philippi to decide the fate of the Roman world.

Since this book runs to a less than hundred pages, obliviously a great deal has been condensed, and for those hungering for more information would do well to consult the bibliography at the end of the book. But to say a book is a summary of a subject is not to say it is useless. Indeed, the very brevity of the book really helps by bringing the most important information up to the fore. Indeed, despite the succinctness of Sheppard's treatment, one gets a real sense of the Roman world in that time with enormous legions loyal to no-one offering their support to whatever side could best satisfy their yearnings for land and money. In particular, Sheppard offers vivid and sharp portraits of the four leading personalities. Especially noteworthy is that Sheppard sidesteps the widespread tendency to offer a hagiogragical treatment of the two Republican commanders, Cassius and Brutus, who many are too many are inclined to see as idealist defenders of the Republic. Through Sheppard does not deny the elements of idealism with Cassius and especially Brutus, who also points out those two Roman gentlemen could be just as brutal and ruthless as their opponents when it came to getting what they wanted with cities razed and the population sold into slavery (at the same time, Sheppard also highlights the muderous and cruel actions of both Anthony and Octavian in dealing with their enemies-there were no saints in this war). Moreover, Sheppard points out that however much Cassius and Brutus show themselves as defenders of the Republic that the latter was doomed even if they won Philippi. Without trying to deny the importance of individuals to the workings of history, by the 1st century BC, various political, economic and social changes had made the existing structure of the Republic obsolete, and there was nothing in the long run that could have been done to stop the clock. Something was going to have to give. However, Sheppard is no determinist, and makes clear that the precise form of the decline of the Republic was still open to contingency. In particular, he takes pains to point how strong the Republican position was in the eastern half of the Roman world with the legions of the Second Triumvirate in the Balkans short of food and money, and partially cut off by naval blockade from reinforcements from Italy. The triumph of the Second Triumvirate was no sure thing.

On the republican side, Cassius was an able and ruthless soldier while Brutus through not without some military ability, was probably the better man (in a moral sense). On the side of the Second Triumvirate, Mark Anthony was a great general, but a terrible politician. Anthony could win battles, but not the peace. By contrast, Octavian (the future Emperor Augustus) was a totally inept general, but a shrewd, cunning and treacherous politician. Reading this book which traces all of the mishaps of the early Octavian's career, one is amazed that this sickly teenager devoid of military ability was in the end the one who triumphed and put an end to the civil wars which plagued Rome in the 1st century BC. But that was all in the future. Sheppard makes clear that through Octavian and Anthony were celebrated as co-victors of Philippi, it was the latter, not the former who was the real victor of the battle. All said, an excellent introduction to the subject

The Battle of Philippi is the story of the battle between two armies of Romans. One under the eager Mark Antony and the not so eager Octavian. The other under the effective Cassius and the not so effective Brutus. The subtitle of the book, The Death of the Roman Republic sounds nice, but let's face facts, it was dead the second Caesar died on the Senate's floor.
The battle is a complex one, with tons of factors, such as terrain, supply issues, and the experience of some of the troops. In the end, I learned a lot about Roman tactics and how important leaders are in the military machinery of the Legions. After reading the book you will realize just how important Mark Antony was to the Second Triumvirate. The maps really did help, even if some of the events are not as well documented as we would like.
If you watched HBO's Rome this was the one they were able to show you in 15 minutes or so. I think it is an important battle that has been overlooked by general history and military history.

Another great addition to my large collection of Osprey Campaign series books about famous battles fought in history.

I am not an expert on this period of Roman history but I knew the general outline of the battle. However, this literary effort would be better described as a Comic Book. The land and sea areas described are vast and there is a great number of participants. The author skips around from one area to another and from one group of players to another. The pictures are not really necessary and the description of the battle seems shallow. If there were a large map on my wall with the areas of operations and a corresponding list of the main characters,their allies,where they were located and when they came into play the book would be much more understandable and comprehensible. I continuously had to refer back to see what and where he was talking about.
I read the first review and it was written either by the author or a close relative. In all my life I have only thrown away one book but this was close to being the second. I decided that it could always be used as a bad example.

This is the first time I have ever been so disappointed that I wrote a review of any kind.