Brilliant book on one of Rome's most colourful emperors, the eight foot barbarian Maximus Thrax, who worked his way up from being a common soldier to the most powerful man in the world. It's a great hero's journey only Maximinus isn't really a hero - he was kind of a dictator who killed a bunch of innocent people.
Like all Emperors I guess... only Maximinus annoyed the Senate of Rome so much they rose up against him, in a terrifically exciting campaign as described by Herodian, where the people of Aquiela fought him off in a siege that resulted in his own troops killing him.
It didn't help Rome in the long run. It's an interesting "what if" - what if Thrax had survived; he was s superb fighter and could have stabilised the Empire. But maybe he wasn't a good enough politician. Knocking off Alexander Severus didn't really help.
Pearson does a great job, contextualising the Empire and Thrax's life, pointing out he likely suffered acromegaly. He's sympathetic to the Emperor, arguing many others did worse and noting his battlefield achievements. Certainly his successors didn't make a go of it being unable to work as a team.
Pearson also talks about Thrax's cultural impact - plays on the Siege of Aquilena, and Gladiator, as well as Nazi's who were convinced he was a German. A terrific book - definitive, easily.
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