Archaeologist and historian Richard Miles traces the development of Western civilization, from the first cities in Mesopotamia to the fall of the Roman Empire. In this six-part series, Miles travels through the Middle East, Egypt, Pakistan and the Mediterranean to discover how the challenges of society -- religion and politics, art and culture, war and diplomacy, technology and trade -- were dealt with and fought over in order to maintain a functioning civilization. Stories are told of disappeared, ruined and modern cities, from ancient Iraq to modern Damascus, to reveal how successes and failures of the ancients shaped the world today.
Archaeologist and historian Richard Miles travels to Syria, Egypt, Anatolia and southern Greece to examine how the first societies were created and organised, with agriculture, ci…
Archaeologist and historian Richard Miles examines the collapse of the Bronze Age 3,000 years ago, and how the civilisations of the subsequent Iron Age emerged. He explores the fo…
Richard Miles examines the paradoxes of Greek civilisation. The archaeologist and historian explains how despite being famed for its artistic, cultural and scientific achievements…
Archaeologist and historian Richard Miles explores the triumphs and legacy of Alexander the Great, the conqueror who rose from the minor kingdom of Macedon and went on to control …
Richard Miles travels to Sicily and North Africa to explore the rise of the Roman Republic, from its fratricidal mythical beginnings, to its emergence as a powerful empire. Beginn…
In the last of the series, archaeologist and historian Richard Miles examines the rise and fall of the Roman Empire. At the height of its power, the Roman Empire extended the bene…