logo
episode-header-image
Feb 2010
19m 29s

035- Crassus and Pompey

MIKE DUNCAN
About this episode
After Sulla's death two men emerged as the vanguard of Rome's new political generation: Marcus Crassus who would become Rome's richest man and Pompey the Great, who would become Rome's greatest general. In a few years these two men would join forces with Julius Caesar to form the first Triumvirate.
Up next
Feb 2010
036- I Am Spartacus!
From 73-71 BC a gladiator named Spartacus led a slave revolt in southern Italy. Despite defeating the Romans on numerous occasions, the slave army was eventually defeated by Marcus Crassus (with an unsolicited assist from Pompey). 
19m 49s
Feb 2010
037- Go East Young Man
After clearing the Mediterranean of pirates in 67 BC Pompey was put in charge of the war with Mithridates. He promptly conquered his way to Jerusalem. 
19m 30s
Feb 2010
038- The Catiline Conspiracy
In 63 BC an embittered two-time consular candidate named Catiline conspired to overthrow the Roman government. He was stopped by Rome's greatest politician and orator, Marcus Tullius Cicero. 
20m 9s
Recommended Episodes
Nov 2022
Crassus: Rome’s richest man
Author Peter Stothard explores the eventful life of Marcus Licinius Crassus, an enormously wealthy politician and general, who rivalled Julius Caesar and Pompey the Great in late Republican Rome. In conversation with Rob Attar, Peter explores Crassus’s rise to wealth and influenc ... Show More
40m 9s
Dec 2022
The Rise and Fall of Crassus
<p>Often overshadowed by his more successful peers (anyone heard of Julius Caesar?), Crassus' rise and fall from power is that of legend. A Roman General, Statesman, and once called the 'Richest Man In Rome', Crassus' power and influence is undisputed. But how did Crassus come to ... Show More
35m 16s
Jul 2020
1a. Marius vs. Sulla
<p class="p1">A generation before Julius Caesar etched his name into the history books, Republican Rome was dominated by two larger than life personalities, Marius and Sulla. To understand the world Julius Caesar was born into, you need to understand the great feud between these ... Show More
1h 56m
Jul 2022
The Games to Win Ancient Rome
July 13, 44 BCE. Julius Caesar is dead, stabbed by a trusted friend. With Rome shaken, the Senate meets to decide next steps. They're confronting the brutal power struggle already breaking out among three men: Brutus, the deadly friend; Marc Antony, Caesar's gifted military comma ... Show More
26m 47s
Mar 2025
Rise of Julius Caesar
<p>Julius Caesar is one of history’s most famous figures. But before his legendary conquests and romance with Cleopatra, how did he rise to power?</p><br><p>In this episode of <em>The Ancients</em>, host Tristan Hughes is joined by Professor Catherine Steel to explore Caesar’s ea ... Show More
51m 51s
Feb 2024
Sulla
<p>Lucius Cornellius Sulla Felix is one of the most important Roman statesmen of antiquity. An inspiration to figures such as Julius Caesar, Sulla rose to prominence during the late second and early first centuries BC, and was a military man turned dictator after his brutal victo ... Show More
51m 44s
Jun 2025
Julius Caesar
<p>The Romans built an empire that reshaped the world through brutal wars, brilliant strategy, and even the power of the pen. From the blood-soaked battlefields to the marble halls of Rome, a few towering figures stand out: Pompey, Scipio, Augustus, Trajan, Marcus Aurelius... but ... Show More
56m 39s
Dec 2021
The Fall of the Roman Empire Episode 4 "Augustus"
Julius Caesar lies dead on the floor of the Senate. What will happen now? The answer lies with a man called Octavian, who will surprise and astonish the ancient world by reinventing the Roman state and ensuring two hundred years of peace - he is better known by his honorary title ... Show More
21m 11s
Jul 2022
Julius Caesar’s Rise To Power
Greg Jenner is joined by Dr Shushma Malik and Ahir Shah as they travel back to Ancient Rome to meet one of history’s biggest names, Julius Caesar. With a name so good his family used it multiple times, for every relative, we follow the rise to power of the man who would one day b ... Show More
57m 54s
May 2025
The Gracchi
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the brothers Tiberius and Gaius Gracchus whose names are entwined with the end of Rome's Republic and the rise of the Roman Emperors. As tribunes, they brought popular reforms to the Roman Republic at the end of the 2nd century BC. Tiberius (c163-1 ... Show More
49m 9s