Ancient history focuses on two of the great civilisations of the ancient Mediterranean: Greece and Rome. These civilisations have been enormously influential throughout subsequent human history.

The Greeks invented democracy, history, philosophy and the scientific method, while the Mediterranean has never again been united as it was under Roman rule.

Rome's legacy continues to resonate in modern oratory, law, urbanisation and international relations. Much of Western culture claims to have its roots in ancient Greece and Rome, yet these ancient societies were also exotically different from our own.

Studying ancient history will enable you to speak with some authority on ancient Greek and Roman history and to think critically and analytically about major issues and controversies during those times. It also develops your global perspective by allowing you to study the history of two very different and chronologically distant cultures.  

First-year courses in Ancient History focus on Classical Greece and Late Republican Rome, while also training students in how to use and read ancient sources (in translation).

Later year courses cover a range of periods and aspects of Greek and Roman history, including politics, war and imperialism, society and economy, art and architecture and mythology.