Although the academic field of “Gender Studies” has fallen on hard times due to the ongoing anti-DEI (“diversity, equity, and inclusion”) political movement in America, it is still alive and well in Europe. This collection of ten essays, edited by several Finnish scholars serves as proof of that.

Romans had a word for it. The Latin term virtus, derived from the word vir (meaning “man”) was a fundamental Roman cultural value. War-making was a central male activity of the Roman Republic and the Empire that followed it. For example, coin inscriptions often celebrate the virtus of the emperor, or of the army; their manliness, physical prowess, and aggressiveness. Women, of course, have also always been a part of war, whether as victims, resources, trophies, and sometimes, warriors.

The book’s chapters explore various aspects of war and masculinity in the culture of Rome and its medieval successor states:

1. “Take It Like a Roman: Pain and Masculinity in Imperial War Epic,” byElina Pyy

2. “Beyond Lucretia. War and Sexual Violence in Livy’s Ab Urbe Condita,” by Jussi Rantala

3. “Women and War: Unveiling Female Agency in Roman Historiography,” by Katariina Mustakallio

4. “War Scenes in Pompeian Homes? Military virtus and the Roman Domestic Realm,” by Ria Berg

5. “The Roman Imperial Rhetoric of Emasculation in Visual Represen-tations of War,” by Jaakkojuhani Peltonen & Jussi Rantala

6. “Blood, Toil, Tears and Sweat: The viri fortes in Ammianus Marcellinus’ Res gestae,“ by. Jaakkojuhani  Peltonen

7. “Brains and Brawn: Intellectual and Physical Manliness in Agathias’ Histories ,” by Michael Edward Stewart

8. “War and Masculinity in Tenth Century Byzantium: The History of Leo the Deacon,” by Shaun Tougher

9. “Warriors and Women in Northern Europe (400 - 1000 CE),” by Philip Line

10. “Saints Day Sermons and Knightly Virtues: Late Medieval Sermons on Saint George, by Jussi Hanska

Of value to the serious scholar of ancient and medieval warfare, these highly technical, literary, and art-historical studies are likely to be of limited value for the armchair students of these periods. The very high price of this slim volume makes it likely that only the most generously funded University libraries will ever acquire a copy, but that is the unfortunate state of academic publishing today. 

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Our Reviewer: Mike Markowitz is an historian and wargame designer. He writes a monthly column for CoinWeek.Com and is a member of the ADBC (Association of Dedicated Byzantine Collectors). His previous reviews include Caesar Rules: The Emperor in the Changing Roman World, Ancient Rome on the Silver Screen, Justinian: Emperor, Soldier, Saint, Persians: The Age of the Great Kings, Polis: A New History of the Ancient Greek City-State, At the Gates of Rome: The Battle for a Dying Empire, Roman Emperors in Context, After 1177 B.C., Cyrus the Great, Barbarians and Romans: The Birth Struggle of Europe, A.D. 400–700, Crescent Dawn: The Rise of the Ottoman Empire and the Making of the Modern Age, The Missing Thread: A New History of the Ancient World Through the Women Who Shaped It, The Roman Provinces, 300 BCE–300 CE: Using Coins as Sources, The Cambridge Companion to Marcus Aurelius’ Meditations, Archaic Greece, Amazons: The History Behind the Legend, The Byzantine World, Classical Controversies, and Reassessing the Peloponnesian War.

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Note: War and Masculinity in Roman and Medieval Culture is also available in e-editions.

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