Ep. 143: Antony, Cleopatra, Octavian and the War that Made the Roman Empire with Barry Strauss

"In our society, you've done your job as a citizen if you've voted, done jury duty, and paid your taxes. But Athenian democracy was direct democracy, not representative democracy-- so every citizen had to hold a public office. A radically different societal make up."

Historian of the ancient world Barry Strauss is here, along with his new book, The War that Made the Roman Empire: Antony, Cleopatra, and Octavian at Actium. In the wide-ranging conversation, Barry and Daniel cover many aspects of this pivotal yet little-known battle that was to define the future of the Roman Empire and consequently Western civilization. Besides the intricacies of the relationships between these larger than life figures and their ambitions, Barry connects leadership and its essential qualities to situations of today's world, so the characters of the Ancient World shine in a new relevance. Besides discussing this particular battle, Barry and Daniel also speak about the importance of teaching history in a university setting, and how crucial it is for students of the 21st century to face the tough lesson of the past-- whether pleasant or not. 

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Barry Strauss is a classicist and a military and naval historian and consultant. He is Professor of History and Classics, Bryce and Edith M. Bowmar Professor in Humanistic Studies at Cornell University, the visiting Corliss Dean Page Fellow at the Hoover Institution, Series Editor of Princeton’s Turning Points in Ancient History, and an author of bestselling books. Professor Strauss has spent years researching and studying the leaders of the ancient world and has written and spoken widely of their mistakes and successes. He is also a widely acclaimed military and naval historian whose analyses of the strategies and campaigns of some of history’s great commanders reveal the successful rules of engagement that were true on the battlefield and resonate in today’s boardrooms and executive suites.

He is a former Chair of Cornell's Department of History as well as a former Director of Cornell’s Judith Reppy Institute for Peace and Conflict Studies, where he studied modern engagements from Bosnia to Iraq and from Afghanistan to Europe. He also served as Distinguished Visiting Professor in the Department of Defense Analysis at the Naval Postgraduate School. He is an expert on military strategy. He is currently director as well as a founder of Cornell’s Program on Freedom and Free Societies, which investigates challenges to constitutional liberty at home and abroad. He holds fellowships from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the German Academic Exchange Service, the Korea Foundation, the MacDowell Colony, the American School of Classical Studies at Athens, the American Academy in Rome, among others and is the recipient of Cornell’s Clark (now Russell) Award for Excellence in Teaching. In recognition of his scholarship, he received the Lucio Colletti Journalism Prize for literature and he was named an Honorary Citizen of Salamis, Greece. He holds a Ph.D. from Yale and a B.A. from Cornell. Professor Strauss's books have been translated into nineteen languages. He is also the author of over 60 scholarly articles and reviews.

Professor Strauss is a well-known television personality with appearances on The History Channel, The Discovery Channel, CNN, PBS, and Netflix. He is the host of the popular podcast, "ANTIQUITAS: Leaders and Legends of the Ancient World," which is accessible on most platforms.