At the height of its power, the Roman Empire encompassed the entire Mediterranean basin, extending much beyond it from Britain to Mesopotamia, from the Rhine to the Black Sea. Rome prospered for centuries while successfully resisting attack, fending off everything from overnight robbery raids to full-scale invasion attempts by entire nations on the move. How were troops able to defend the Empire's vast territories from constant attacks? And how did they do so at such moderate cost that their treasury could pay for an immensity of highways, aqueducts, amphitheaters, city baths, and magnificent temples?

In The Grand Strategy of the Roman Empire, seasoned defense analyst Edward N. Luttwak reveals how the Romans were able to combine military strength, diplomacy, and fortifications to effectively respond to changing threats. Rome's secret was not ceaseless fighting, but comprehensive strategies that unified force, diplomacy, and an immense infrastructure of roads, forts, walls, and barriers. Initially relying on client states to buffer attacks, Rome moved to a permanent frontier defense around 117 CE. Finally, as barbarians began to penetrate the empire, Rome filed large armies in a strategy of "defense-in-depth," allowing invaders to pierce Rome's borders.

This updated edition has been extensively revised to incorporate recent scholarship and archeological findings. A new preface explores Roman imperial statecraft. This illuminating book remains essential to both ancient historians and students of modern strategy.

• We started tracking this book on September 29, 2017.
• This book was $16.17 when we started tracking it.
• The price of this book has changed 76 times in the past 2,720 days.
• The current price of this book is $27.54 last checked 4 hours ago.
• This book is at its lowest price in the past 90 days.
• This lowest price this book has been offered at in the past six months is $24.49.
• This lowest price this book has been offered at in the past year is $19.97.
• The lowest price to date was $16.17 last reached on April 27, 2020.
• This book has been $16.17 12 times since we started tracking it.
• The highest price to date was $29.95 last reached on February 26, 2025.
• This book has been $29.95 2 times since we started tracking it.

• Politics & Social SciencesPolitics & GovernmentInternational & World PoliticsDiplomacy
• HistoryAncient CivilizationsRome
• HistoryMilitaryStrategy

• Text-to-Speech: Disabled
• Lending: Disabled
• File Size: 134 KB