Skip to main content

Bringing ancient history into the 21st century

Bringing ancient history into the 21st century

  • Date26 October 2018

A professor at Royal Holloway has develop a brand new website dedicated to bringing ancient history into the 21st century for students and teachers alike.

Old city, cityscape, rome, evening, landmark, Italy - Italian Studies

Richard Alston, Professor of Roman History at the Classic Department, created the Ancient Roman History website to enable teachers and A-Level and undergraduate students studying classics and ancient history as a one-stop-shop where they can source all the information needed for their studies.

This means there is no real need to buy copious amounts of heavy and sometimes, expensive, text books, as well as not being able to find reference books at their local libraries.

The website focusses on the political and social history of the period from the Battle of Actium in 31 BC to the death of the Emperor Trajan in AD 117 and aims to guide students and teachers through this complicated period of history.

The site provides links to key visual and written resources and offers core historical information. In addition, it suggests ways in which people might approach the period and its core issues.

Richard Alston, Professor of Roman History at Royal Holloway, said: “I decided to create this website as classical history, especially Roman History, can be very difficult to navigate, and it is not always easy for students or teachers to find the information or references they need.

“I wanted to give the users information to be confident in finding their own answers, and perhaps even to ask new and more interesting questions about the historical matters themselves.

“Understanding history is so important and I hope this new website will help with that.”

The Department of Classics at Royal Holloway provides wide-ranging and intellectually stimulating undergraduate and postgraduate degree programmes.

The staff are experienced teachers and leading researchers in their many and varied fields, with a strong track record of publications.

The department has a large and active graduate programmes at MA and PhD levels, a track record of attracting a number of significant research projects, and access to the world-class research resources of the University of London.

The department is located in the International Building on Royal Holloway’s spectacular campus. To find out more about our friendly and supportive department, browse the rest of this site or – even better – come and visit us in person, either on an Open Day or by individual arrangement.

Explore Royal Holloway

Get help paying for your studies at Royal Holloway through a range of scholarships and bursaries.

There are lots of exciting ways to get involved at Royal Holloway. Discover new interests and enjoy existing ones.

Heading to university is exciting. Finding the right place to live will get you off to a good start.

Whether you need support with your health or practical advice on budgeting or finding part-time work, we can help.

Discover more about our 21 departments and schools.

Find out why Royal Holloway is in the top 25% of UK universities for research rated ‘world-leading’ or ‘internationally excellent’.

Royal Holloway is a research intensive university and our academics collaborate across disciplines to achieve excellence.

Discover world-class research at Royal Holloway.

Discover more about who we are today, and our vision for the future.

Royal Holloway began as two pioneering colleges for the education of women in the 19th century, and their spirit lives on today.

We’ve played a role in thousands of careers, some of them particularly remarkable.

Find about our decision-making processes and the people who lead and manage Royal Holloway today.