After his takeover of the Roman Empire during the Year of the Four Emperors (AD 69), Vespasian and his advisors sought any avenue of raising taxes. One seemingly unsavoury tax they (re-)employed in AD...

Episode 11: Aric and Dr Crawford move on to character of Solon and the the constitutional changes he introduced to the Athenian system of government in teh early 6th century BC... https://mncvgk.podb...

An island from the end of the Ice Age in Britain, the earliest identified inhabitants of the Isle of Mann were hunter-gatherers and fishermen of the Mesolithic period, who were capable of rudimentary ...

“puto, ut sancti Innocentii, qui apostolicae cathedrae et supra dicti viri successor et filius est, teneas fidem” “I think that you should keep the faith of St. Innocent, who is the successor and son ...

Episode 12: We reach a pivotal point in Athenian history with the tyranny of Pisistratus, whose reforms pave the way for democracy and whose sons play a role in bringing about the Persian Wars...https...

Episode 53 - With the river diverted, the Athenians and their Egyptian allies are no longer in de-Nile... this expedition and rebellion is doomed...https://mncvgk.podbean.com/e/a-soldier-and-a-scholar...

Those of you who have been following CANI since the earliest days of its 2014 reincarnation, you will know that the hoard of Roman silver found at Ballinrees near Coleraine in Northern Ireland and the...

While in the East, a great blaze of light in the sky could be a hopeful sign of the rise of a powerful leader, the Greco-Romans dreaded comets as portents of doom, war or the overthrow of a ruler. Whe...

The otherwise unknown Sentius wrote his name into the annals of Roman history, specifically Cassius Dio LXVIII.22.3, on the backdrop of the Roman emperor Trajan's invasion and conquest of much of the ...

Aside from its eponymous founder, the imperial men of the Severan dynasty all met murderous ends - Geta was butchered in his mother’s arms, Caracalla was stabbed whilst answering the ‘call of nature’,...

With the demise of Nero – the last Julio-Claudian emperor – you would be forgiven for thinking that the extinguishing of that dynasty marked the end of the bloodline of its founder, the emperor August...

Episode 9: Aric and Dr. Crawford turn their attention to the other great city state of fifth century BC Greece... Athens https://mncvgk.podbean.com/e/a-soldier-and-a-scholar-9-athens-part-1/ A (hopefu...

The mixed reactions to the Red Comet recorded in A Clash of Kings and the concordant early episodes of the second season of Game of Thrones reflect similar ambiguous responses in history to such astro...

YouTube video by Classical Association Northern Ireland

YouTube video by Classical Association Northern Ireland

A (hopefully) fun and accessible portal into Ancient History, with some academic and 'real world' insights.Episode 8: Aric and Dr. Crawford finally reach the thing that the Spartans are most famous fo...

Episode 52 - Having trouble defeating an enemy holed up on an island? Just redirect a section of the world's biggest river...https://mncvgk.podbean.com/e/a-solider-and-a-scholar-52-the-fury-of-inaros-...

As they streak across the sky, striking awe into onlookers, it is easy to forget that such comets could, with just a few degrees difference in angle, be harbingers of the ultimate doom to life on this...

I have written elsewhere of an instance of the reign of a Persian king, Shapur II, technically beginning before he was born with him being ‘crowned in utero’…https://classicalassociationni.wordpress.c...

So far we have seen ancient influences on the use of molten metal, battlefield tactics, the burning of a daughter in search of divine favour and the role of a woman, her actions and fate in sparking a...

YouTube video by Classical Association Northern Ireland

YouTube video by Classical Association Northern Ireland

In S05E09 "The Dance of Dragons," Game of Thrones viewers were confronted with perhaps the most heart-wrenching and harrowing scenes of the show so far as perhaps the most innocent character in the en...

We saw last time that the career of Pierius must have been significant enough before his appearance in the historical record for Odoacer to promote him to his chief bodyguard, comes domesticorum. T…

YouTube video by Classical Association Northern Ireland

“her pride was swollen beyond measure; she was a Fury in mortal form, incessantly adding fuel to her husband's rage, and as thirsty for human blood as he” Ammianus XIV.1.2The peculiarities of the usur...

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The Bann Disc was found in March 1939 by men dredging the east bank of the River Bann near Loughan Island, Co. Derry just above Loughan Graveyard. It is a small, slightly convex bronze disc that measures just 10.6 cm across, but given that small size, it is in good shape despite having been submerged in wet mud for up to 2,000 years, with only a few holes, some of which were intentionally made. It was also fortunate that it was dug up again and that in digging it up, it was not further damaged o

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A (hopefully) fun and accessible portal into Ancient History, with some academic and 'real world' insights.Episode 5: Aric and Dr. Crawford delve into the statement "Because Sparta was Sparta" and wh...

Flavius Odoacer is most famous as the man who deposed the ‘last’ western emperor Romulus Augustulus in 476, becoming the first non-Roman ruler of Italy for centuries. He did technically act as a vi…

With the defeat of Macrinus at the Battle of Antioch on 8 June 218 and his subsequent capture and execution before the month was out, it is usually accepted that the Severan dynasty was restored to po...

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In 216BC, the Italian countryside played host to the Battle of Cannae between the forces of Carthage and the legions of the Roman Republic during the Second Punic War. Fresh from two major victories, ...

History is littered with instances of power being thrust upon children of a young age. Ivan the Terrible became Grand Prince of Moscow aged 3; Puyi, the last emperor of China, ascended at just 2 ye…

Kilwarlin Moravian Church is situated in the countryside of Co. Down, near Hillsborough.  As a member of University Road Moravian Church, Belfast, I first visited Kilwarlin some 40 years ago during…

A (hopefully) fun and accessible portal into Ancient History, with some academic and 'real world' insights.Episode 4: Join Peter and Aric as they give you a tour and rundown of the state of the Greek ...

As I am sure many of you know, history can be open to interpretation. Of course, the same can be said for the iconography, cult, norms and values of the various historic societies in question. Many…

https://www.historyhit.com/who-was-emperor-zeno-and-how-did-he-deal-with-the-fall-of-the-western-roman-empire/

A (hopefully) fun and accessible portal into Ancient History, with some academic and 'real world' insights.Episode 3: Before looking at Greece, Aric and Peter investigate the background of the 'great ...

YouTube video by Classical Association Northern Ireland