The Phoenicians and the Ancient World

The study of the Phoenician Civilization is key to understanding Secret Societies and the History of Western Civilization. Where the Phoenicians came from, and how they came to possess unusual knowledge in diverse fields are matters of some dispute. But it is universally agreed that from at least 1200 B.C. until the fall of Carthage, the Phoenicians were the most sophisticated merchant nation of ancient times, and that during this period they used their secret, specialized knowledge to gain control over commerce throughout the western world.

The Phoenicians had both admirable and deplorable traits. Although obviously intelligent and industrious, many of their habits and religious practices were abhorrent. As Canaanites, they practiced human sacrifice, and participated in horrific rituals involving sexual perversions, child abuse, and indescribable atrocities. These practices, which were associated with the worship of Baal and Astarte, were much more than just bizarre and detestable religious rites. They were a form of mind-control and conditioning that instilled a strange form of loyalty and submission to the cult. These appalling rituals separated their participants from the moral laws that govern greater humanity and destroyed their sense of empathy and conscience. It was an intentional form of brain-washing and it explains a great deal of the notoriously deceitful Phoenician character.

Other Canaanite nations engaged in similar practices, but the Phoenicians are of special interest because they were the most prosperous and sophisticated of the Canaanite nations. They were sea-farers, explorers, merchants, spies, and consummate organizers. They traveled the world, setting up colonies, trading posts, and networks of spies and allies, and secret agents. They made trading alliances with networks of merchants worldwide and married into noble families in foreign nations so their descendants would be accepted as native rulers. They established secret societies and "mystery cults" to bring prominent natives under their control, used their secret knowledge to gain enormous influence over vast regions. It is impossible to understand the Ancient world without recognizing the enormous influence of the Phoenicians and their vast network of agents, allies, and minions.

Introduction       Disappearance from History      
Secret Societies       Secret Knowledge      
Tyre and Carthage       Phoenician-Roman Empire      
Reading: Phoenicia       Reading: Other      

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Introduction to Phoenician Civilization

Most people know very little about the Phoenicians—and this is intentional. Some don't even realize how they are related to the Canaanites of the Bible or the Carthaginians of Roman history. All, in fact are of the same race and we use the terms 'Phoenicians' and 'Canaanites' somewhat interchangeably. Both to refer to the ring-leaders of a world wide trading network that has exerted enormous influence on civilizations since ancient times. Conventional histories confirm that the Phoenicians were a wealthy and powerful nation during the Biblical era, but it is inferred that they faded from history long ago and are no longer relevant. Yet nothing could be farther from the truth.

In order to provide a quick overview of conventional Phoenician history, based on both Biblical and historical sources, we have included an introduction to Phoenician History in our Ancient Rome study unit. The summary gives a short synopsis of the information that can be found in the best commonly available Phoenician histories and it is written at a level appropriate to High School students. We have also modified the Study Guide for Ancient Rome to better emphasize the role of Phoenician subterfuge in the 'Decline of the Republic' and the 'Age of Caesars' units.

The following sections develop ideas that are best understood after one is familiar with the basics of Phoenician civilization, so it is worth reading our short Summary before proceeding.


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What Really Happened to the Phoenicians?

According to conventional histories, Phoenicia fell under control of the Assyrian and Babylonian Empires by the 7th century B.C. and Tyre, the leading Phoenician city in Lebanon was destroyed in 332 B.C. by Alexander the Great. Carthage rose to be the chief Phoenician city in the West, until it too was destroyed by the Romans in 146 B.C.. We are told that when their city was destroyed, most Carthaginians perished or were enslaved; that their entire library was destroyed; and that soon after the Roman victory over Carthage, the remaining Phoenician colonies, mines, trading centers, and commercial ventures fell into Roman hands. We are told that since the early Christian era, the Phoenician civilization has been defunct, and few artifacts or written records of it remain.

This familiar account, however, is almost entirely false. It is impossible to know the complete truth, but a much more likely scenario involves deception on a scale that is incomprehensible to most people. There has been an intentional suppression of historical evidence and a revision of records to blot out the evidence of continued Phoenician influence well into imperial times. That Phoenicians played a major role in the Roman Empire is undeniable, given that the Severan dynasty (193-235 A.D.) was of Phoenician heritage, and openly practiced the Canaanite Religion. The details of Phoenician civilization are not well-known to most students or Roman history, but the more one learns about Punic culture and Canaanite methods of infiltration and subversion, the more obvious it is that all of the Caesars were under Phoenician influence. From Marius to Maecenas, and from Julius Caesar to Justinian, the conversion of Rome from a self-governing Republic to a foreign-controlled military dictatorship was a Canaanite-Phoenician project.

In order to speculate upon what really happened to the Ancient Phoenicians after the fall of Carthage, it must be understood that they were not so much a nation as network of interlocking, largely autonomous clans. Tyre and Carthage were, at one point, their chief cities, but they had strongholds throughout the Mediterranean, including Cadiz, Alexandria, Heliopolis, Palmyra, Utica, and many others. They operated as a widely diffused cult and their manner of government;—spread over hundreds of trading centers and colonies—resembled in some respects a trading alliance, and in others a "Secret Society" or criminal syndicate. Phoenicia was always a network rather than a nation, held together by secret signs and symbols, initiation rituals, "levels" or "degrees" of secret knowledge, and an oligarchical and highly distributed ruling structure.

The Phoenicians, along with their worldwide trading partners were, in fact, the forefathers of all secret societies, worldwide. And it is through this network that they have been the invisible masterminds of 'Hidden History' since ancient times and have continued to spin their web of espionage, corruption, and deceit to the present day.


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Phoenicians and Secret Societies

Almost all Secret Societies,—worldwide and in all ages,—are organized along similar lines. In spite of wide differences in their stated missions and national affiliations, at the highest levels, most secret societies use Phoenician symbolism, and Canaanite techniques of secrecy, deception, diversion, blackmail, flattery, and brain-washing to control their members. All secret societies are hierarchical, and include both inner and outer circles. All have strange initiation ceremonies and share "secrets". Member progress to different levels of authority based on how controllable they are and how useful their talents are to the cabal.

The connections between Phoenicians and Secret Societies are abundant, but one needs to have a good understanding of Phoenician history and culture in order to recognize most of them. I will provide a few examples, but many more connections, both subtle and obvious could be made.

NOTE: Most secret societies are composed of both "insiders" who know of the Canaanite associations of the order, and "outsiders" who have no idea of the horrifying innermost secrets.]

Additional associations between Phoenicians and Secret Societies are too numerous to mention, but at the heart of every influential secret society;—in the inner sanctuaries, where the "secret of secrets" are revealed,—are the core pathologies of Phoenician mind control that make their agents irreconcilable enemies of humanity: Child abuse, human sacrifice, and sexual perversion. These activities, by which one severs all trace of natural human affections, are among the innermost "secrets" of all Canaanite Secret Societies.


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Secret Knowledge of the Phoenicians

It is important to understand that the forefathers of the Phoenicians; who passed on to them a great deal of secret knowledge, were extremely sophisticated and knowledgeable. The idea that our ancient ancestors were ignorant and primitive is a myth intentionally cultivated to hide the fact that the ancients; and the Phoenicians in particular, had access to extremely advanced knowledge in a number of fields that allowed them to gain predominance over much of the rest of humanity.

Some of this knowledge, including their knowledge of metal working, glass-blowing, dyes, architecture, and ship-building is well known among historians. But there is considerable evidence that they also possessed advanced knowledge in many other fields, including anatomy and medicine, astronomy, electro-magnetism, open-ocean navigation, and world geography. There is evidence, for example, that they were able to predict eclipses—knowledge which it would have required many centuries of astrological observations to obtain—and that they established colonies and traded with the Americas in Biblical times.

Where they obtained this knowledge is rarely speculated upon, but it is generally implied (in conventional histories) that they came upon it themselves, or gathered it from observing other nations during their travels. But another explanation may be that it was handed down to them from antediluvian ancestors, and intentionally kept secret. The fact that the Phoenicians appear to have possessed much more secret knowledge than is generally recognized, and that they kept many of their most valuable knowledge secret for centuries, supports the theory that "Secret Knowledge" was at the heart of the Phoenician civilization, and that the covert networks, secret societies, and "Mystery Cults" they established in every area under their influence, were methods of passing on and controlling the dissemination of their inherited secrets.

The following tentative conclusions can be drawn about the Phoenician Civilization and its relationship to "Secret Knowledge."

It is impossible to believe that the secret knowledge of the ancient Phoenicians arose spontaneously. For a discussion of the origin of the secret knowledge of the the Phoenicians, refer to the Antediluvian Advanced Topics page.

It is also obvious that this secret knowledge, which was the primary legacy of the Phoenicians, was much too valuable to lose. The idea that they would allow their libraries, or secret technology to be destroyed or to fall into enemy hands is unthinkable. Phoenician books, tokens, and artifacts were never lost; they were hidden.

Now that we have a more clear understanding about the nature of the Phoenician network of trading colonies and their secret knowledge, it is not difficult to speculate on what really happened to the Phoenicians.


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After Tyre and Carthage

The following is a somewhat speculative account of the probable history of the Phoenician network following the fall of the cities of Tyre and Carthage. But it is important to understand that these cities, although important strongholds of the Phoenician nation, were never their primary sources of strength. A widespread network of colonies and traders, both openly associated with Phoenicia and covert, long pre-existed the fall of their major cities. They were a hydra, not a snake; and nothing essential to the Phoenician civilization when their great cities were destroyed.

After the Fall of Tyre

The Ptolemaic kingdom was the wealthiest and most powerful of the Hellenistic states. It controlled lucrative trade routes between India and the Mediterranean, and acquired thousands of manuscripts from throughout the ancient world for its library and museum at Alexandra. At the same time the dynasty was notorious for its perversions, including incest, sodomy, and pedophilia, and for the propagation of mystery cults and Hermeticism. It would almost seem that the Ptolemiac kingdom arose from the ashes of Tyre, and embodied the Phoenician attributes of wealth, commerce, industry, scholarship, alongside with their associated Canaanite vices.

After the Fall of Carthage

Carthage was the largest of many Phoenician colonies that existed throughout Africa, Spain, and western Europe. Cadiz, and virtually the entire Guadalquivir valley in Spain, had been settled by Phoenicians since 1000 B.C., and the Moroccan coast and many islands in the region were scattered with Phoenician colonies as well. And in addition to established colonies, the Phoenicians had allies, agents, and trading ports in every important city in the Mediterranean. After the second Punic War, some of these towns fell under Roman control, but the network of Phoenician traders still retained control of vast treasure stores, and had spies and agents in hundreds of towns, even in Rome itself.

Here are a few interesting facts about the siege of Carthage in 145 B.C.

Based on these well-established facts, it is reasonable to assume that the majority of the Carthaginian population escaped from the city and took their books, treasure and secret knowledge with them. Where did they go? Probably mostly to Spain, West Africa, and Italy.

Roman history from the fall of Carthage to the age of Caesar (146-44 B.C.) is packed with wars, conflict, and revolution. Once one understands that during this period a wealthy, insidious, and vengeful enemy was always at work, funding foreign and domestic rebellions against the Roman government, the fall of the republic is far easier to comprehend.


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The Phoenician-Roman Empire

The true story of the Fall of the Roman Republic and the Rise of the Empire is easily discernable once you understand that a wealthy, powerful, and vengeful network of Phoenicians was actively working to conquer Rome from within. Once this is accepted, and the long-established Phoenician techniques of infiltration and subversion are understood, it can be seen that many of the great "Roman Heroes" of the late Republic and Early Imperial era were neither "Roman", nor were they "Heroes".

During the century following the fall of Carthage, the populares party, first promoted by the Gracchi, and later led by Marius, Cinna, Drusus and eventually the Caesars, were not primarily concerned with promoting the interests of Roman plebeians. All of their supposed "reform" laws included provisions to extend "Roman Citizenship", and therefore control of the Roman government, to their chosen agents. They did this under the cover of "popular reform" of course, by offering legislation that provided "rights of Citizenship" to Rome's "Italian allies". But the goal was always to replace the Roman Oligarchy with a Canaanite Oligarchy, and in this they eventually succeeded. A few key players in this drama were as follows:

I have listed only five of several dozen Roman heroes who were certainly Canaanite agents. Many other renowned families, such as Crassus, Servilius, Lepidus, Aemilius, Sergius, and even Scipio and Pompeius were likely infiltrated, either by bribery, or by marriage of "plebian" heiresses into Patrician families. (Remember, Canaanites always have agents on both sides of every political controversy). And those are just the traitors from the Senatorial class. A great many of the most suspicious characters of ancient Rome were "wealthy plebeians" of the Equestrian class. These families were influential in commerce, industry, mining and minting, real-estate, and money-lending. During the first century B.C, the Equestrian class gained complete control of both trade and the Roman justice system. For several generations they were the only class allowed to sit on juries, and they came to control the market of both domestic and foreign trade, including slaves. Their members usually served as "tribunes of the Plebes" and used this position, along with copious bribery, to expand their influence.

The agents working to turn the Roman Republic into a Canaanite Empire did a brilliant job of using the legal system to destroy Roman sovereignty, while feigning concern for the poor and dispossessed. They gave more political power to the "the poor", then had foreign agents usurp that power; they passed laws to distribute public land among the poor, then bought up the land of men unequipped to farm it; they passed laws to distribute imported low-cost grain to the poor, but these generous programs destroyed the livelihoods of local farmers. Many similar tactics, of offering services to the poor which end up benefitting plutocrats, are still used very effectively in modern times.


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Reading—Phoenician History

Conventional Histories Reading List

Ancient history is a difficult topic because a great deal of history has been falsified or suppressed by operators who sought to keep humanity ignorant of its past. The information contained in conventional histories related to Phoenician history is very limited. The books listed below are fairly authoritative conventional histories of Phoenicia and Carthage. They were written in the late 19th century and were based on ancient sources and recent archeological findings. They provide many essential insights, but all imply that the Phoenician civilization dwindled into insignificance after the fall of Carthage and provide little information of its influence on the Roman Empire.

These books are available on the Heritage History website.

History of Phoenicia   by George Rawlinson
The first half of this history of the Phoenicians covers the land, art, industry, cities, commerce, and religion of the Canaanites people. The second half covers their political history from about 1200 B.C. to 600 A.D. Of particular interest are chapters on colonies, commerce, religion and history. Overall, the book emphasizes the positive contributions of Phoenicia rather than dwelling on some of the more despicable aspects of its religious rites and commercial enterprises.226 credits


The Story of Carthage   by Alfred J. Church
The Punic civilization was one of the most advanced in the ancient world, but few native works survived the destruction of Tyre and Carthage. About a third of this book is dedicated to the internal history and legends of the city of Carthage, but most of the rest gives accounts of the ancient wars that Carthage engaged in with the Greeks on the island of Sicily and with the Romans for control of the Western Mediterranean.108 credits


Another enormously important source of information about the Phoenicians is the Old Testament. Almost all the historical books of the Bible, and many of the Prophets refer to struggles between the Jews and their Canaanite neighbors. We've summarized much of the critical information in both Biblical and other historical sources in our summary of Phoenician History. This summary of "The Phoenicians" is currently included in the Ancient Rome Study Program. It is based mostly on conventional sources, and is written at a level appropriate for high school students. In does explain the significance of some of the more demonic aspects of Canaanite culture without dwelling on perverse matters in detail.

The following books are also conventional histories that include many details that are of interest to advanced researchers. We have not yet completed their conversion, but PDFs are available at the Internet Archive.

History of Tyre Wallace Fleming     (1915) PENDING   N/A
History of Tyre PENDING  
Wallace Fleming     (1915) N/A
Religions of the Ancient World George Rawlinson     (1885) PENDING   N/A
Religions of the Ancient World PENDING  
George Rawlinson     (1885) N/A

Fleming's book covers both ancient and medieval history of Tyre, including the Crusades. While never mentioning the continued existence of a crypto-Canaanite ruling class, it nevertheless provides insights into how Tyre continued to thrive while supposedly under Roman, Christian, and Moslem control.

Rawlinson's book on Ancient Religions has one chapter dedicated to the perverse religious practices of the Phoenicians, but many of the other chapters are relevant to the history of secret societies as well. Canaanites have infiltrated virtually all world religions, and have since ancient times. There are elements of the Canaanite religion in virtually all ancient religions. For example, the Osiris Myth, the cult of Mithra, the Eleusinian mysteries, Sun worship, the dualist philosophy of Manicheism, and many other aspects of Ancient religion play a key role in occult associations worldwide.

[Note: The Rawlinson brothers were highly respected authorities on ancient civilizations in mid 19th century England. However, the family had close ties to the extremely sketchy East India Company, and their books omit a great deal of the information about the ancient world that is provided lesser known authors, such as A.H.L. Hereen.]

Speculative Histories Reading List

During the 19th century, there was wide speculation among certain historians that the Phoenicians had established colonies over a much larger area than was previously recognized, in Britain, Scandinavia, and the Americas. Overall, the following works, provide a great deal of evidence that the Phoenician trading network of ancient times was far more extensive that is generally recognized. All provide a richer, more insightful view of the Ancient Phoenicians than do conventional histories.

Did Phoenicians Discover America?    by Thomas C. Johnston
This fascinating account of the worldwide Phoenician trading network makes a convincing case that the ancient mariners had access to sophisticated technology, including magnetic compasses and were able to navigate across oceans during Biblical times. The author demonstrates dozens of astonishing similarities between Phoenician, Polynesian, and Mesoamerican culture and makes a convincing case the Aztecs and other central American civilizations were deeply influenced by Phoenician colonists. Such theories were widely discussed over 100 years ago, but are usually ignored rather than seriously engaged by modern scholars. 100 credits


The following books are all excellent resources for learning about ancient civilizations. They are packed with both speculative inferences and very well substantiated facts about the ancient world. We are working to convert some of them, but certain footnotes are of high importance, and our conversion process does not preserve them. For books such as these, access to the photocopies of the original text is essential. These are available at the Internet Archive.

Phoenician Origin of Britons Laurence Waddell     (1924) PENDING   N/A
Phoenician Origin of Britons PENDING  
Laurence Waddell     (1924) N/A
Historical Researches: Phoenicians Arnold H. L. Heeren     (1833) PENDING   N/A
Historical Researches: Phoenicians PENDING  
Arnold H. L. Heeren     (1833) N/A
Historical Researches: Carthaginians Arnold H. L. Heeren     (1833) PENDING   N/A
Historical Researches: Carthaginians PENDING  
Arnold H. L. Heeren     (1833) N/A
Historical Researches: Egyptians Arnold H. L. Heeren     (1833) PENDING   N/A
Historical Researches: Egyptians PENDING  
Arnold H. L. Heeren     (1833) N/A

[Note: Some of these books refer to an "Aryan" master race, or refer to Phoenicians as Aryans. This requires a certain amount of explanation. In previous centuries, historians used the term Aryan to referred to inhabitants of "Ariana", a region in Central Asia encompassing modern Iran and Afghanistan. (The country name "Iran" is from the root "Ariana"). It has since become associated with "White Supremacy", but older Historians used this term to describe a race native to Central Asia rather than Germans or Celts. To put this in perspective, Waddell's claim that the original Phoenicians were "Aryans" is not completely inconsistent with Hereen's claim that the Phoenician trading network originated in Babylon/Chaldea.]

About the Authors

Thomas C. Johnston's well-researched book "Did the Phoenicians Discover America?" makes a compelling case that the Phoenicians 1) used a magnetic compass and other advanced ocean-navigation techniques in ancient times, but kept these technologies hidden, and 2) traveled extensively to the Americas, using both Pacific and Atlantic routes, over hundreds of years, and 3) tremendously influenced the Meso-American civilizations both culturally and ethnically. Although his book enjoyed a surge of popularity when published and was cited by numerous other 19th century historians, it has been since relegated to the "memory hole," and Johnston's well-documented claims are dismissed by modern scholars.

A.L. Hereen was a 19th German Historian who published a six volume, comprehensive study of the trading routes and economic systems of ancient nations. By focusing on evidences of ancient trade, and making novel interpretations of archaic literature and monuments, Hereen's research paints a much more sophisticated picture of the Ancient Phoenicians than is commonly recognized. He provides hundreds of evidences (some speculative, some very well grounded) that a far-flung trading network existed in ancient times between Egypt, the Middle East, and the Far East, and that the organizers of this sophisticated network likely originated in Mesapotamia, and moved their base of operations to the Levant (at which point they were referred to as Phoenicians). He claims that the Phoenicians presided over a network of caravan routes as well as a naval empire, made alliances with many ancient nations, and sought to established trading monopolies in every port. Hereen's works cover all the nations of antiquity, not just Phoenicia, and offer some of the most fascinating insights into antiquity that we have encountered. Although the extraordinary value of Hereen's works was recognized in his day, he has since been almost forgotten and is rarely cited by modern historians.

Lawrence Waddell was a British archeologist who spent many years examining first hand archeological monuments in India, Afghanistan, Iran and Turkey before turning his attention to recently uncovered British artifacts. He claims the Phoenicians were "Aryans" (see Note) and that they established colonies in Britain in ancient times. Waddell's book was also popular in his time, but has also been dismissed by modern Scholars as pseudo-science. As an interesting side-note, Waddell is thought to have been the inspiration for "Indiana Jones."


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Reading—Ptolemy, Seleucid, and Roman Empires

Phoenician Influence in Ptolemy and Seleucid Empires.

Following Alexander's conquest of the Levant, the Phoenicians, who had controlled commerce in the region for nearly a thousand years, gradually "disappeared" from the history of the region. About the same time, however, crypto-Canaanite "Jews" and "Greeks" began to play a leading role in the Ptolemaic and Seleucid Dynasties in Egypt and Syria, especially in the Capitals of Alexandria, Seleucia, and Antioch. All three cities, built by Ptolemaic and Seleucid leaders from the ground up, became centers of trade and government. Both empires began to exhibit distinct "Canaanite" characteristics including magnificent architecture; sophisticated cultural achievements; notoriously decadent luxury and depravity; and a great divide between the ruling "nobility" and the indigenous "serfs."

The following books from the general Heritage History library also cover events during the Diadochi era.

Pyrrhus   by Jacob Abbott
The decades following the death of Alexander the Great involved a long and complicated series of wars between his generals, which split his empire. Pyrrhus, a prince of Epirus, was a leading historical character during this time, and Abbott uses his life to illuminate the entire era. Other characters including Alexander's villainous mother Olympias and his trusted advisor Antipater figure prominently in this story. Pyrrhus himself is a fascinating character, combining great talent and energy with fatal weaknesses. 83 credits


Cleopatra   by Jacob Abbott
This story of Cleopatra starts with a brief history of Egypt and the illustrious Ptolemies. By the time Cleopatra came of age, her life was already full of danger and intrigue, even before her romantic encounter with Julius Caesar. Under the protection of Caesar she enjoyed a few years of security on the throne of Egypt, but the death of Caesar led her to seek protection from his successor, Mark Antony. Their tragic story is one of the most dramatic liaisons in history. 90 credits


The Hammer   by Alfred J. Church
This story is based on the first book of Maccabees from the Old Testament. It is set during the Macedonian occupation of Judea (around 250 B.C.), a very critical period in Jewish history, and tells the story of a young Jewish man who is first attracted to the "modern" Greek way of life, but eventually joins the Maccabee brothers in their desperate revolt against their Macedonian overlords. The conflict between the cosmopolitan and decadent Greek manner of life, and the customs of traditional Judaism is well portrayed . 135 credits


Phoenician Influence during the Roman Empire.

By careful analysis of the centuries following the Fall of Carthage, it is possible to trace the careers of certain Roman leaders who seem to have played a major, but little understood role in the fall of the Republic. The primary sources of Roman history are limited and historians have interpreted them a certain way. In many histories Marius, Cinna, Caesar and the populares are popular heroes. But given the change in character of Roman civilization from the freedoms of the republic, to the tyranny of empire, these characters are better described as traitors to the republic rather than national heroes. They were, however, heroes to the wealthy Canaanite leaders, largely of the equestrian class, who backed them.

We have rewritten the "era summaries" of several of our "Ancient Rome" study units to highlight the role of certain suspicious characters in Roman history, but cannot do more than point out dubious associations and unsettling "coincidences." There are no books that we are aware of that provide a comprehensive analysis of Canaanite influence on the Roman Empire, although signs of their presence are fairly obvious and almost any conventional history of Rome can be read from a "conspiratorial" viewpoint.

The following books, however, provides certain unusual insights into Roman history that are not presented in typical histories. Bennett's "Live of Cinna" focuses on the events leading up and encompassing the Marius-Sulla and leaves no doubt whatsoever that the leaders of the Populares party were backed by wealthy "Italians" outside of Rome, who sought to overthrow the senate. And Del Mar's history of money in the ancient world provides helpful insight into economic turmoil in Rome beginning in the Punic era, when the silver mines of Spain fell into the hands of certain well-connected Italians. He makes the case that the Roman government's loss of control of its money supply was of enormous consequence.

Cinna and His Times   by Harold Bennett
This book uses ancient sources to explain in detail the political and conspiratorial goings-on in the years 88-80 B.C., during which the Marius-Sulla civil war and proscriptions occurred. It is an informed and balanced look at one of the most critical periods in Roman history. Both Cinna and Marius, the main protagonists, were closely related to Julius Caesar, and he appears to have inherited their mission to overthrow the Roman Republic and replace it with a military dictatorship. 30 credits


History of Money in Ancient Times   by Alexander Del Mar
The book covers the monetary systems of all the major civilizations of the Ancient World, including the eastern civilizations of Japan, China, and India. Of greatest interest, is an extended history of money during the Kingdom, Republican, and Imperial periods of ancient Rome including an analysis of how the sudden influx of precious metals following the conquest of Spain and Carthage greatly complicated the politics and decline of the Republic. 100 credits


Last Days of Jerusalem   by Alfred J. Church
Based on War of the Jews by Josephus, this book tells the dramatic story of the bravery, fanaticism, and treachery which lead to the fall of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. Josephus was an eyewitness to the events, first as Jewish leader in a neighboring town that fell to the Romans, then as Roman captive. He tried unsuccessfully to negotiate with the zealots holding Jerusalem and save the city from destruction. 48 credits


The more one studies Roman history with an awareness of Canaanite methods, however, the more suspicious Roman Imperial period appears. The behavior and proclivities of such notorious Romans as Maecenas, Sejanus, Nero, and Caracalla are prototypically Canaanite. The Praetorian Guard shows many signs of a Canaanite-style elite force of slave-soldiers, and the notorious escapades of the Empress Messalina, the wife of Claudius, could only by tolerated in a Canaanite household. Even Cicero, Cato, and the "Five Good Emperors" have suspicious associations. And to cap off two hundred years of crypto-Canaanite Rule, the Severan dynasty was openly Canaanite, and Elagabalus was a deeply disturbed priest of Baal. It is no coincidence that the historical sources of Imperial Rome are strangely meagre, and almost devoid of compelling heroes.


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