Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the great Roman military disaster of 9 AD when Germanic tribes under Arminius ambushed and destroyed three legions under Varus. According to Suetonius, emperor Augustus hit his head against the wall when he heard the news, calling on Varus to give him back his legions. The defeat ended Roman expansion east of the Rhine. Victory changed the development of the Germanic peoples, both in the centuries that followed and in the nineteenth century when Arminius, by then known as Herman, became a rallying point for German nationalism.With Peter Heather Professor of Medieval History at King’s College LondonEllen O'Gorman Senior Lecturer in Classics at the University of BristolAndMatthew Nicholls Fellow and Senior Tutor at St John’s College, OxfordProducer: Simon Tillotson

Peter Heather, a historian specializing in the fall of the Roman Empire, and John Rapley, a political economist, share insights on the collapse of Rome and its parallels to modern Western challenges. They discuss common misconceptions about Rome's fall, the role of governance over mere economic decline, and the shifting dynamics of global power, especially with the rise of China. The conversation also touches on socio-economic issues facing younger generations and the political discontent stemming from broken promises of stability.

Peter Heather, uno dei più grandi storici viventi esperto del tardo impero romano e delle migrazioni barbariche, discute l'impatto delle invasioni sul declino di Roma. Analizza come le interazioni con i Goti e gli Unni abbiano contribuito alla destabilizzazione dell'impero. Si approfondisce la figura di Giustiniano e le sue campagne militari, le ribellioni nelle province come Britannia ed Egitto, e il ruolo di Teodorico nel plasmare il futuro dell'Occidente. Un'intensa riflessione sulle sfide storiche e le dinamiche geopolitiche che risuonano ancora oggi.