Women of Rome
Power, Influence, and Agency in the Ancient World
James Coverley · 2024 · 312 pages
Roman women could not vote, hold office, or command an army. They were legally the property of their fathers and then their husbands. And yet some of the most consequential decisions in Roman history were made by women — or unmade by them.
Enjoying this?
Subscribe to get every new article, translation, and book — delivered to your inbox.
This book recovers their stories. From Cornelia, mother of the Gracchi, to Livia, the emperor's wife who may have been the most powerful person in Rome, to the Vestal Virgins who held more legal rights than most Roman men — these are the women the official history tried to push to the margins, and who refused to stay there.
A revisionist history and a compelling narrative in equal measure.
Available formats
The Cych Press