This is the first full-length study to investigate how modern Italian imperialism used the memory of the Roman empire in support of its colonial endeavours in Africa.
The book, Restorations of Empire in Africa: Ancient Rome and Modern Italy’s African Colonies, takes a broad view of cultural documents from the second half of the nineteenth century and the first half of the twentieth century.
It argues that colonialism in Africa, modelled on ancient Roman imperialism, played a central role in the promotion and consolidation of the Italian project of nation-building. Moreover, it demonstrates the continued legacies of colonialism in Italy’s contemporary relationships towards Africa.
Drawing together a broad range of source material, from archaeology and classical literature to Fascist popular culture, this book employs innovative theoretical frameworks to shed fresh light on why Classics still matters so much today.
Dr Sam Agbamu is lecturer and researcher in Classics at the University of Reading