Memoria Press Famous Men Series

The Famous Men series is Memoria Press's set of four history programs: Famous Men of Rome, Famous Men of Greece, Famous Men of the Middle Ages, and Famous Men of Modern Times. The publisher's series page lists A. B. Poland and John H. Haaren as the authors of the texts and quotes their preface on teaching history through biography. Each set adds a Student Guide and a Teacher Guide.

Last updated: 2026-10-08 · Every Homeschool Editorial Team

At a glance

Method	Classical and subject-specialist (Every Homeschool classification); biography-based history, which the authors' preface on the series page describes as a preparation for the study of history
Worldview	Memoria Press says its entire curriculum is Christian, explicit in some materials and implicit in others. Every Homeschool classifies the entry as Christian · Ecumenical, a term the publisher does not use to describe its curriculum, and it states no denominational affiliation on the pages we read
Grades	Rome Set: Grades 4-8; Greece Set: Grades 5-8; Middle Ages Set: Grades 5-8; Modern Times Set: Grades 6-8
Formats	Print text, Student Guide, and Teacher Guide; the Rome, Greece, and Middle Ages sets also include digital flashcards for the Memoria Press App and streaming instructional videos; the texts are also sold as eBooks, such as the Rome eBook, which the publisher lists as EPUB and MOBI files
Cost tier	Budget for the books alone (Every Homeschool classification): on their own product pages the text, Student Guide, and Teacher Guide for Rome (text, Student Guide, Teacher Guide), Greece (text, Student Guide, Teacher Guide), and the Middle Ages (text, Student Guide, Teacher Guide) are $20.05, $21.50, and $20.50, which is $62.05 for the three (our arithmetic), and the full sets are $110.25, retrieved October 2026
Parent intensity	3 (Every Homeschool rating)
ESA-common	Not verified
Accredited	Not applicable: a curriculum product, not a school
Established	Not stated for the series. The product pages show Memoria Press edition copyright dates: 2006 for the Rome text, 2008 for the Modern Times text, 2009 for the Middle Ages text, and 2018 for the Greece text, Second Edition
Website	memoriapress.com

Our scoreboard (1-5)

Criterion	Score	One-line reason
Academic rigor	4	In our assessment, the two lessons in the Rome Student Guide sample pair a dated chapter title with facts to know, vocabulary, written comprehension questions, and activities
Ease of teaching	4	The publisher says the Teacher Guides for Rome, Greece, and the Middle Ages include quizzes or tests, those sets include streaming instructional videos from a master teacher, and lesson plans are sold separately
Content quality	4	In our assessment, biography-driven texts; the publisher describes 30 stories for Rome and thirty-two Greeks for Greece
Flexibility	4	Each title is sold as its own set, and the publisher's Classical Core sets place them in different grades (fifth, sixth, and seventh)
Value for money	5	The text, Student Guide, and Teacher Guide for Rome, Greece, or the Middle Ages are $62.05 together on their own product pages (our arithmetic), and the Modern Times set is $51.90, retrieved October 2026
Worldview scope	3	Memoria Press's FAQ describes its whole curriculum as Christian; the Rome Student Guide sample includes an activity comparing the story of Romulus and Remus with the story of Cain and Abel
Visual/design	3	In our assessment, the Student Guide sample pages are plain black-and-white pages with writing lines; the publisher describes color illustrations in Modern Times and added maps in the new Rome edition
Support resources	3	Teacher Guides, streaming instructional videos, and digital flashcards, separately sold lesson plans, a live online class option on the Rome set page, and a Memoria Academy Famous Men of Rome course

Who the publisher is

Memoria Press's About page describes it as a family-run publishing company that produces classical Christian education materials for home and private schools. The page says the company has developed a K-12 classical curriculum at Highlands Latin School in Louisville, Kentucky, where it says its programs are written and field-tested, and it lists Highlands Latin School among the institutions it calls the Memoria Press Family.

The publisher lists A. B. Poland and John H. Haaren as the authors of each Famous Men text. Memoria Press's product pages credit its guides to named authors. The Rome Student Guide, Third Edition lists Cheryl Lowe and Leigh Lowe, the Greece Student Guide, Second Edition lists Leigh Lowe, the Middle Ages Student Guide, Second Edition lists Leigh Lowe and Tanya Charlton, and the Modern Times Student Guide lists Tanya Charlton.

Memoria Press says its entire curriculum is Christian, with explicit references to the faith and Scripture in some materials and implicit ones in others, and says it has released a separate line of products for educators in public settings. The FAQ does not say which products are in that line. The pages we read state no denominational affiliation. The Rome Student Guide sample's Lesson 1 includes an activity comparing the story of Romulus and Remus with the story of Cain and Abel, and its appendix lists "Christ Conquers Caesar."

The core pedagogy

The publisher's series page quotes the authors' preface, which says that each conspicuous feature of history presented to a child should have an individual for its center, and that prominent educators have long recognized the value of biography as a preparation for the study of history. The four sets, as the publisher describes them:

• Famous Men of Rome: 30 stories covering all of ancient Rome's history from its founding to its demise. The new edition adds maps of Rome, Italy, and the Roman Empire and a glossary of people and places.
• Famous Men of Greece: thirty-two famous Greeks through stories of the rise, Golden Age, and fall of Greece. The page says the first 11 Student Guide lessons are a review of Greek mythology and are not included on the Final Exam or the flashcards.
• Famous Men of the Middle Ages: the Middle Ages told through figures including Attila the Hun, Charlemagne, William the Conqueror, Edward the Black Prince, and Joan of Arc, which the publisher calls a precursor to Famous Men of Modern Times.
• Famous Men of Modern Times: history after the fall of Constantinople in 1453, covering men from Lorenzo the Magnificent to Count von Bismarck. The publisher says the text has color illustrations.

The Rome and Modern Times pages say the publisher offers a year-long workbook course covering the title. On the Rome, Greece, Middle Ages, and Modern Times pages, each of the 30 workbook lessons includes famous quotes, a drill of key people and places, 10 vocabulary words, 5-10 comprehension questions, and an activities section (mapwork, discussion questions, and research projects for Rome and Greece; mapwork, timelines, discussion questions, and art projects for the Middle Ages and Modern Times). The Rome, Greece, and Middle Ages pages list an appendix with maps, a "Who Said That?" worksheet, a timeline, drill questions, and drawing pages, and the Modern Times page lists supplemental exercises including maps, a "Who Said That?" worksheet, and drawing pages. The Teacher Guides for Rome, Greece, and the Middle Ages say they include quizzes or tests. Lesson plans for each title are sold separately and listed on the publisher's individual lesson plans page.

The publisher's Classical Core grade pages place Famous Men of Rome in the fifth grade set, the Middle Ages in the sixth grade set, and Greece in the seventh grade set. Its pages give different grade ranges in different places: the series page labels the sets Grades 4-8, 5-8, and 6-8, and the Memoria Academy Famous Men of Rome course lists grade level 3-5. Families should rely on the label on the product page they are buying from.

A day in the life

The publisher does not state a daily time or a weekly pace for Famous Men at home, so none is given here. The publisher's own Rome Student Guide sample shows how a lesson is laid out:

• The table of contents lists 25 lessons, from Romulus to the End of the Western Empire, with a review lesson after every five (the set page says 30 workbook lessons), plus an appendix with a Roman history timeline, a Who Said That? worksheet, maps, excerpts from Horatius at the Bridge, a pronunciation guide, and drill questions.
• Lesson 1, "Romulus (753-672 B.C.)," lists ten facts to know and two quotations, ten vocabulary items, six comprehension questions with writing lines, and seven activities. The activities include drawing a family tree, starting a Roman history timeline with 753 B.C., locating Italy, Rome, the Tiber River, and the Palatine Hill on the appendix maps, and discussing how the story of Romulus and Remus is similar to the story of Cain and Abel. The sample says activities marked with an asterisk may be given as composition assignments.
• Lesson 21, "Trajan (53-119 A.D.)," follows the same layout with facts to know, four vocabulary items, seven comprehension questions, and two activities, one of which is drawing a map of Rome during Trajan's rule.

The Rome set page says students can take the course with a master teacher in a live online class. The Memoria Academy Famous Men of Rome course page lists the course for grade level 3-5 (ages 8-11), says students need to devote 30 minutes per day, lists the text, Student Guide, and Ancient Civilization Wall Maps as required, and lists the Teacher Guide and flashcards as optional.

What they do exceptionally well

Biography with dates and a timeline. The publisher describes the Rome text as 30 stories running from Rome's founding to its demise, and the two lesson pages in the Rome Student Guide sample carry dated titles, while its appendix lists a Roman history timeline. In our assessment, a family that wants history built around people and dates will find that structure here.

A full workbook for each title. The publisher lists quotes, a key people and places drill, vocabulary, comprehension questions, and activities in every lesson, and the Rome, Greece, and Middle Ages sets include streaming instructional videos from a master teacher. In our assessment, a parent who wants a ready structure will find one in the Student and Teacher Guides.

Four periods under one publisher. The publisher sells Rome, Greece, the Middle Ages, and Modern Times as separate sets, so a family can start with the period that fits its plan.

What they do poorly

Visually plain guides. In our assessment, the Student Guide sample pages are black-and-white pages with writing lines, and families who want a full-color workbook will not find one in the guide. Among the set pages we read, only Modern Times describes color illustrations.

Grade labels differ. The product pages label Rome Grades 4-8, Greece and the Middle Ages Grades 5-8, and Modern Times Grades 6-8. The Classical Core sets place them in fifth, seventh, and sixth grade, and the Memoria Academy Rome course lists grade level 3-5. In our assessment, a family should read the sample pages and match them to the student's reading level.

The sets cover specific periods. The publisher describes Rome, Greece, the Middle Ages, and the period after the fall of Constantinople in 1453. In our assessment, a family that wants a period or region not named in those descriptions will need other materials.

Set prices rise with videos and flashcards. The text, Student Guide, and Teacher Guide for Rome, Greece, or the Middle Ages are $62.05 together on their own product pages (our arithmetic), and the set with flashcards and streaming videos is $110.25, retrieved October 2026.

Who it fits / who it doesn't

• Pick Famous Men if: you want biography-based history for the middle grades; you want a Student Guide and Teacher Guide for each title; you want the option of streaming instructional videos and digital flashcards in the set; you are comfortable with a publisher that describes its whole curriculum as Christian.

• Skip Famous Men if: you want a single title that covers all periods of history; you want a full-color workbook; you want only the text without a Student Guide or Teacher Guide.

Cost honest assessment

All prices below are the publisher's current selling prices, retrieved October 2026.

• Famous Men of Rome, Greece, and the Middle Ages: each set is $110.25. The set includes the text, the Student Guide, the Teacher Guide, digital flashcards, and streaming instructional videos.
• On their own product pages the text is $20.05, the Student Guide is $21.50, and the Teacher Guide is $20.50, which together are $62.05 (our arithmetic). The set page shows the same three items at $17.04, $18.28, and $17.43 only as part of the $110.25 set.
• On their own pages the streaming instructional videos are $55.00 and the digital flashcard app access is $12.65 (Memoria Press App page). Physical flashcards can be added to a set for $5.
• Famous Men of Modern Times: the set is $51.90 for the text, Student Guide, and Teacher Guide, with no videos or flashcards listed in the set.

The price on the page you order from is the one that applies.

ESA eligibility notes

Whether any state ESA marketplace lists Memoria Press or the Famous Men titles was not confirmed for this review. The publisher's pages that we read do not state which ESA programs accept its products. Families should confirm with their program administrator that the specific items they plan to buy are eligible and whether the program applies restrictions to religious curriculum.

Alternatives

In our assessment, a family that wants a history program from a different publisher could compare these with Famous Men. Each publisher's own site is the place to check its scope and prices.

• The Story of the World (Well-Trained Mind Press)
• Veritas Press
• The Mystery of History