Catherine Fletcher’s book presents the extensive impact of the Roman road network across Europe and the Mediterranean, highlighting its significance from the Roman era through the Middle Ages. The roads functioned as practical infrastructure while also serving as cultural monuments, maintaining the legacies of Roman patrons and emperors. Notably, around 70 pages delve into the roads' importance for pilgrims and crusaders during the Middle Ages. Fletcher’s engaging narrative combines scholarly insight with humor and personal anecdotes, inviting a diverse audience, from history buffs to casual readers, to appreciate this ancient marvel.
The longevity of the road network is remarkable, and its staggering scale conveys Roman power on a level no individual building, however grand, can match.
In part, it's because the Romans themselves decided that they should be. Graves' Claudius had a point when he called the roads monuments: the milestones beside them kept the names of patrons and emperors alive long after the Romans were gone.
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