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Fulvia: The Woman Who Broke All the Rules in Ancient Rome
Fulvia was born into wealth, privilege, and prestige around the year 80 BCE, yet there was nothing inherently special about her--she was not a saint, an empress, or a queen. But during the years leading up to the fall of the Roman Republic, Fulvia was moving in the most powerful social circles, and by her death in 40 BCE she had amassed a degree of political and military power unprecedented for a woman.
Fulvia's success came at considerable cost, however. None of her three marriages to politically powerful men--most famously to Marc Antony--lasted, and three of her five children died violently. She was repeatedly ridiculed for daring to step outside the confines of the domestic sphere. The deliberate and systematic destruction of her reputation shaped her legacy for two millennia.
Ample literary, documentary, and archaeological sources for Fulvia exist, yet most contemporary depictions of her were extremely negative. Historian Jane Draycott, reading between the lines of the ancient evidence, proposes a more nuanced interpretation. Using Fulvia as a guide, she invites readers to visit an unfamiliar Rome, one in which women played a crucial role during Rome's violent transition from a republic to the dictatorship of the Roman Empire.
Book Details
- Publisher: Yale University Press
- Publish Date: Jul 22nd, 2025
- Pages: 296
- Language: English
- Edition: undefined - undefined
- Dimensions: 0.00in - 0.00in - 0.00in - 0.00lb
- EAN: 9780300278040
- Categories: • Women• Ancient - Rome• Historical
About the Author
Praise for this book
"Vitriolic allegations against thrice-widowed Fulvia by her enemies in Rome have stained her reputation for more than two millennia. Jane Draycott's impeccable research reveals a nuanced and vital biography of this fascinating woman of the Late Republic."--Adrienne Mayor, author of The Poison King: The Life and Legend of Mithradates, Rome's Deadliest Enemy
"A sensitive biography, stylishly written. As she uncovers Fulvia's story, Draycott also reveals fascinating details about the lives of Roman women and adds a new perspective on the end of the Republic."--Josiah Osgood, author of Uncommon Wrath: How Caesar and Cato's Deadly Rivalry Destroyed the Roman Republic
"History may be written by the winners, but Jane Draycott has done a brilliant job bringing to life a fascinating, ambitious woman known to us almost exclusively through the words of her enemies. Draycott gives Fulvia back her rightful place as one of the most powerful and influential people (of any gender) in Rome during the last turbulent days of the Republic."--Donna Zuckerberg, author of Not All Dead White Men
"Fulvia is the enthralling tale of a Roman woman shamed for fighting for the survival of her family and for a public presence not allowed to women in the Roman Republic. Draycott's ability to sort through the historical slander to recover the lives, ambitions, and desires of ancient women is unparallelled."--Sarah E. Bond, author of Strike: Labor, Unions, and Resistance in the Roman Empire