It was a period of exceptional activity and expansion of Rome, but as the title of the book indicates, my focus is limited to the Greek East and mainly continental Greece. The expansion of the Roman Empire into the Hellenized areas east of the Balkan Peninsula began later, although the foundations were laid during the period I examine. Roman expansion in the West was happening more or less simultaneously, with a series of wars against the wealthy and powerful North African city of Carthage (the Punic Wars) and then with the Spanish tribes. These events, crucial for the history of the Mediterranean, will be mentioned in this book mainly from the perspective that the Roman experiences in the West shaped their attitude towards the opportunities and events in the East – the confrontation with Hannibal and the exhaustion of resources are the most important factors. In any case, the titanic struggle with Carthage has over time managed to divert attention from the equally critical events occurring further east.

I intersperse the (mainly military) narrative of events with comments and “parenthetical observations” on social and cultural issues, which illuminate and add depth to our understanding of that period. For example, when the conquest of Greece began, Rome was still relatively poor and austere; thus, when it came into greater contact with its older neighbors, with their long cultural history and noble reputation, persistent questions arose: How much of this education can we adopt without losing our identity? Would it matter? What is our identity? The Romans were forced to self-identify in contrast to the Greeks, and the beginning of this process of self-identification is a fascinating aspect of the history of the period – fascinating but also difficult to understand.