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Home / Historical Periods / Roman Republic / Late Roman Republic

Phase

Late Roman Republic

133–27 BCE

The Late Roman Republic began with the political violence around the Gracchi and ended with Octavian’s settlement as Augustus in 27 BC. Between those points Rome faced land pressure, slave labour, military reform, Italian demands for citizenship, eastern wars, repeated emergency commands and civil war. The republic still possessed its traditional offices and assemblies, but its older habits of compromise became increasingly fragile.

This phase matters because it shows how Roman expansion changed Roman politics. Generals such as Marius, Sulla, Pompey and Caesar built military reputations that could overpower senatorial authority, while reformers, tribunes and rival factions turned public life into a contest over land, citizenship, command and legitimacy. The period created the conditions for imperial government even before the formal end of the republic.

Late-republic fiction is especially rich because it combines public institutions with intensely personal ambition. Colleen McCullough’s Masters of Rome, Robert Harris’s Cicero trilogy, Steven Saylor’s Roma Sub Rosa mysteries, Conn Iggulden’s Emperor novels and Vincent B. Davis II’s Sertorius Scrolls all use this world of elections, patronage, armies and civil breakdown. It is a useful context for books about Marius, Sulla, Sertorius, Cicero, Pompey, Caesar and the men and families caught between republican ideals and armed power.

Related people for Late Roman Republic

Arsinoe IV of Egypt69 BCE–42 BCE Augustus64 BCE–14 Aulus Gabiniusdied 47 BCE Caesarion48 BCE–31 BCE Caligula12–41 Catilinec. 108–62 BCE Cato the Younger95–46 BCE Cicero107 BCE–44 BCE Claudius11 BCE–54 Cleopatra70 BCE–31 BCE Cleopatra Selene II41 BCE–6 BCE Clodiaborn 96 BCE Fulviac. 83/77–40 BCE Gaius Cassius Longinus83 BCE–43 BCE Gaius Marius158 BCE–87 BCE Gaius Servilius Glaucia143 BCE–101 BCE Galba4 BCE–69 Gnaeus Mallius Maximusc. 3rd century BCE–c. 2nd century BCE Herod the Great75 BCE–5 BCE Julius Caesar101 BCE–45 BCE Lucius Appuleius Saturninus131 BCE–101 BCE Lucius Cornelius Cinna136 BCE–85 BCE Lucullus118 BCE–58 BCE Marcus Aemilius Lepidusc. 90–13 BCE Marcus Junius Brutus86 BCE–43 BCE Marcus Licinius Crassus116 BCE–54 BCE Mark Antony83–30 BCE Mithridates VI of Pontus135 BCE–64 BCE Octavia the Younger67 BCE–12 BCE Pompey106–48 BCE Ptolemy XII Auletesc. 117–51 BCE Ptolemy XIII Theos Philopator63 BCE–48 BCE Publius Clodius Pulcherc. 90s BCE–53 BCE Publius Cornelius Lentulus Surac. 114–63 BCE Quintus Sertorius124 BCE–73 BCE Quintus Servilius Caepio151 BCE–c. 2nd century BCE Sallust87 BCE–36 BCE Scipio Aemilianus186 BCE–130 BCE Serviliaborn 101 BCE Spartacus104 BCE–72 BCE Sullac. 138–78 BCE Tiberius43 BCE–37 Tiberius Gracchus163 BCE–134 BCE Titus Annius Milo96 BCE–49 BCE Vespasian9–79

Series

Series about Late Roman Republic (8 series)

Cicero Trilogy in Order

by Robert Harris 3 books 4.3

Robert Harris’s Cicero Trilogy reconstructs the final decades of the Roman Republic through Tiro, Cicero’s enslaved secretary and eventual freedman. Imperium follows the advocate’s prosecution of Verres and campaign for the consulship; Lustrum places his consulship inside the Catilinarian crisis; and Dictator carries him through exile, Caesar’s civil…

Emperor in Order

by Conn Iggulden 5 books 4.6

The Emperor series is a highly fictionalised retelling of Julius Caesar’s life and the violent end of the Roman Republic. It follows Caesar from youth through war, political ascent and conquest, then continues beyond his assassination into the struggle between Octavian, Antony and Caesar’s killers.

Gladiator in Order

by Simon Scarrow 4 books 4.4

The Gladiator novels follow the young Marcus Cornelius Primus in the final decades of the Roman Republic. Enslavement, gladiatorial training and the search for his abducted mother draw him into the rivalries surrounding Julius Caesar, Pompey and the continuing memory of Spartacus’s revolt.

Masters of Rome in Order

by Colleen McCullough 7 books 4.5

The Masters of Rome series reconstructs the final century of the Roman Republic from the rise of Gaius Marius in 110 BCE to the settlement that made Octavian Augustus in 27 BCE. Across seven novels, military commands, elections, family alliances, provincial wealth and personal patronage become instruments in…

Roma Sub Rosa in Order

by Steven Saylor 13 books 4.1

The Roma Sub Rosa series follows Gordianus the Finder through the last generation of the Roman Republic. His investigations begin in the aftermath of Sulla’s dictatorship and continue through slave revolt, aristocratic trials, Catiline’s conspiracy, Caesar’s civil war and the assassination of Julius Caesar. The series uses murder…

The Forgotten Legion Chronicles in Order

by Ben Kane 3 books 4.4

The Forgotten Legion Chronicles follow the enslaved twins Romulus and Fabiola, the Etruscan seer Tarquinius and the gladiator Brennus during the final decades of the Roman Republic. Their stories stretch from Rome and Gaul to Carrhae, Parthia, Egypt and Asia Minor, intersecting with Crassus, Caesar, Brutus and Mark…

The Sertorius Scrolls in Order

by Vincent B. Davis II 7 books 4.4

The Sertorius Scrolls follow Quintus Sertorius through the late Roman Republic, beginning with his youth and military service before moving into the crises of Marius, Sulla, the Social War and civil conflict. The series is strongest for readers interested in the generation before Caesar, when Roman politics was…

Books

27 Best Novels About the Late Roman Republic

Bestselling authors first, then star rating.

Non Fiction

13 Non-Fiction Books About the Late Roman Republic

Histories, biographies and reference works are listed separately from the historical novels above.