Download or read book The Rise of the Seleukid Empire 323 223 BC written by John D. Grainger and published by Pen and Sword. This book was released on 2014-08-06 with total page 367 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The first of three books on the ancient Greek dynasty “reads with the pull of a novel and shows how the new Empire rose and fell.”—Firetrench The Seleukid kingdom was the largest state in the world for a century and more between Alexander’s death and the rise of Rome. The first king, Seleukos I, established a pattern of rule which was unusually friendly towards his subjects, and his policies promoted the steady growth of wealth and population in many areas which had been depopulated when he took them over. In particular the dynasty was active in founding cities from Asia Minor to Central Asia. Its work set the social and economic scene of the Middle East for many centuries to come. Yet these kings had to be warriors too as they defended their realm from jealous neighbors. John D Grainger’s trilogy charts the rise and fall of this superpower of the ancient world. In the first volume, he relates the remarkable twists of fortune and daring that saw Seleukos, an officer in an elite guard unit, emerge from the wars of the Diadochi (Alexander’s successors) in control of the largest and richest part of the empire of the late Alexander the Great. After his conquests and eventual murder, we then see how his successors continued his policies, including the repeated wars with the Ptolemaic rulers of Egypt over control of Syria. The volume ends with the deep internal crisis and the Wars of the Brothers, which left only a single member of the dynasty alive in 223 BC.

Download or read book The Rise of the Seleukid Empire 323 223 BC written by John D. Grainger and published by Pen and Sword. This book was released on 2014-08-06 with total page 366 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The first of three books on the ancient Greek dynasty “reads with the pull of a novel and shows how the new Empire rose and fell.”—Firetrench The Seleukid kingdom was the largest state in the world for a century and more between Alexander’s death and the rise of Rome. The first king, Seleukos I, established a pattern of rule which was unusually friendly towards his subjects, and his policies promoted the steady growth of wealth and population in many areas which had been depopulated when he took them over. In particular the dynasty was active in founding cities from Asia Minor to Central Asia. Its work set the social and economic scene of the Middle East for many centuries to come. Yet these kings had to be warriors too as they defended their realm from jealous neighbors. John D Grainger’s trilogy charts the rise and fall of this superpower of the ancient world. In the first volume, he relates the remarkable twists of fortune and daring that saw Seleukos, an officer in an elite guard unit, emerge from the wars of the Diadochi (Alexander’s successors) in control of the largest and richest part of the empire of the late Alexander the Great. After his conquests and eventual murder, we then see how his successors continued his policies, including the repeated wars with the Ptolemaic rulers of Egypt over control of Syria. The volume ends with the deep internal crisis and the Wars of the Brothers, which left only a single member of the dynasty alive in 223 BC.

Download or read book Rome Parthia Empires at War written by Gareth C. Sampson and published by Pen and Sword Military. This book was released on 2020-08-05 with total page 248 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A Roman historian examines the motivation and strategy behind Marc Anthony’s invasion of Parthia and the reasons for its ultimate defeat. In the mid-first century BC, the Roman Empire was rivaled only by the Parthian Empire to the east. The first war between these two ancient superpowers resulted in the total defeat of Rome and the death of Marcus Crassus. When Rome collapsed into Civil War in the 1st century, BC, the Parthians took the opportunity conquer the Middle East and drive Rome back into Europe. What followed was two decades of war which saw victories and defeats on both sides. The Romans were finally able to gain a victory over the Parthians thanks to the great general Publius Ventidius. These victories acted as a springboard for Marc Antony’s plans to conquer the Parthian Empire, which ended in ignominious defeat. In this authoritative history, Gareth Sampson analyses the military campaigns and the various battles between Rome and Parthia. He provides fascinating insight into the war that in many ways defined the Middle East for the next 650 years.

Download or read book Creators Conquerors and Citizens written by Robin Waterfield and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2018-01-02 with total page 545 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "We Greeks are one in blood and one in language; we have temples to the gods and religious rites in common, and a common way of life." So the fifth-century historian Herodotus has some Athenians declare, in explanation of why they would never betray their fellow Greeks to the enemy, the "barbarian" Persians. And he might have added further common features, such as clothing, foodways, and political institutions. But if the Greeks knew that they were kin, why did many of them side with the Persians against fellow Greeks, and why, more generally, is ancient Greek history so often the history of internecine wars and other forms of competition with one another? This is the question acclaimed historian Robin Waterfield sets out to explore in this magisterial history of ancient Greece. With more information, more engagingly presented, than any similar work, this is the best single-volume account of ancient Greece in more than a generation. Waterfield gives a comprehensive narrative of seven hundred years of history, from the emergence of the Greeks around 750 BCE to the Roman conquest of the last of the Greco-Macedonian kingdoms in 30 BCE. Equal weight is given to all phases of Greek history -- the Archaic, Classical, and Hellenistic periods. But history is not just facts; it is also a matter of how we interpret the evidence. Without compromising the readability of the book, Waterfield incorporates the most recent scholarship by classical historians and archaeologists and asks his readers to think critically about Greek history. A brilliant, up-to-date account of ancient Greece, suitable for history buffs and university students alike, Creators, Conquerors, and Citizens presents a compelling and comprehensive story of this remarkable civilization's disunity, underlying cultural solidarity, and eventual political unification.

Download or read book Culture and Ideology under the Seleukids written by Eva Anagnostou-Laoutides and published by Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG. This book was released on 2022-01-19 with total page 372 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The volume offers a timely (re-)appraisal of Seleukid cultural dynamics. While the engagement of Seleukid kings with local populations and the issue of “Hellenization” are still debated, a movement away from the Greco-centric approach to the study of the sources has gained pace. Increasingly textual sources are read alongside archaeological and numismatic evidence, and relevant near-eastern records are consulted. Our study of Seleukid kingship adheres to two game-changing principles: 1. We are not interested in judging the Seleukids as “strong” or “weak” whether in their interactions with other Hellenistic kingdoms or with the populations they ruled. 2. While appreciating the value of the social imaginaries approach (Stavrianopoulou, 2013), we argue that the use of ethnic identity in antiquity remains problematic. Through a pluralistic approach, in line with the complex cultural considerations that informed Seleukid royal agendas, we examine the concept of kingship and its gender aspects; tensions between centre and periphery; the level of “acculturation” intended and achieved under the Seleukids; the Seleukid-Ptolemaic interrelations. As rulers of a multi-cultural empire, the Seleukids were deeply aware of cultural politics.

Download or read book Reign of Arrows written by Nikolaus Leo Overtoom and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2020-05-11 with total page 397 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From its origins as a minor nomadic tribe to its status as a major world empire, the rise of the Parthian state in the ancient world is nothing short of remarkable. In their early history, the Parthians benefitted from strong leadership, a flexible and accommodating cultural identity, and innovative military characteristics that allowed them to compete against and even overcome Greek, Persian, Central Asian, and eventually Roman rivals. Reign of Arrows provides the first comprehensive study, in almost a century, dedicated entirely to early Parthian history. Assimilating a wide array of especially recent scholarship across numerous fields of study, Nikolaus Overtoom presents the most cogent, well rounded, and up-to-date account of the Parthian empire in its wider context of Hellenistic history. It explains the political and military encounters that shaped the international environment of the Hellenistic Middle East from the middle third to the early first centuries BCE. This study combines traditional historical approaches, such as source criticism and the integration of material evidence, with the incorporation of modern international relations theory to better examine the emergence and expansion of Parthian power. Relevant to historians, classicists, political scientists, and general readers interested in the ancient world and military history, Reign of Arrows reimagines and reconstructs the rise of the Parthians within the hotly contested and dangerously competitive international environment of the Hellenistic world.

Download or read book Rome s Great Eastern War written by Gareth C. Sampson and published by Pen and Sword Military. This book was released on 2021-08-31 with total page 417 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This military history of Ancient Rome analyses the empire’s revitalized push against rising enemies to the East. In the century since Rome’s defeat of the Seleucid Empire in the 180s BC, the East was dominated by the rise of new empires: Parthia, Armenia, and Pontus, each vying to recreate the glories of the Persian Empire. By the 80s BC, the Pontic Empire of Mithridates had grown so bold that it invaded and annexed the whole of Rome’s eastern empire and occupied Greece itself. But as Rome emerged from the devastating effects of the First Civil War, a new breed of general emerged with it, eager to re-assert Roman military dominance and carve out a fresh empire in the east. In Rome’s Great Eastern War, Gareth C. Sampson analyses the military campaigns and battles between a revitalized Rome and the various powers of the eastern Mediterranean hinterland. He demonstrates how this series of conflicts ultimately heralded a new phase in Roman imperial expansion and reshaped the ancient East.

Download or read book Cataphracts written by Erich B Anderson and published by Grub Street Publishers. This book was released on 2016-11-30 with total page 271 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A deeply researched and page-turning history of armored cavalry in the ancient world from the Eurasian steppe tribes to the late Byzantine Empire. Cataphracts were the most heavily armored form of cavalry in the ancient civilizations of the East, with riders and horses both clad in heavy armor. Originating among the wealthiest nobles of various central Asian steppe tribes such as the Massagetae and Scythians, the traditions and strategies of these proud warriors were adopted and adapted by several major empires—the Achaemenid Persians, Seleucids, Sassanians, and eventually the Romans and their Byzantine successors—from c. 4000 BCE to 1200 CE. Usually armed with long lances, the cataphracts harnessed the mobility and sheer mass of their horses to the durability and solid fighting power of the spear-armed phalanx. Although very expensive to equip and maintain, they were a powerful force in battle and remained in use for many centuries. In this compelling historical survey, Erich B. Anderson assesses the development, equipment, tactics, and combat record of cataphracts and the similar clibinarii, showing also how enemies sought to counter them. This is a valuable study of one of the most interesting weapon systems of the ancient world. “A valuable study of one of the most interesting troop types of the ancient world.” —The Armourer “The first comprehensive survey of heavy armored cavalry . . . that played a particularly important role in the military history of Late Antiquity . . . This is a good survey of the history of heavy cavalry in the ancient world, covering arms, equipment, organization, tactics, and battles.” —The NYMAS Review

Download or read book New Perspectives in Seleucid History Archaeology and Numismatics written by Roland Oetjen and published by Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG. This book was released on 2019-12-16 with total page 831 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Dedicated to Getzel M. Cohen, a leading expert in Seleucid history, this volume gathers 45 contributions on Seleucid history, archaeology, numismatics, political relations, policy toward the Jews, Greek cities, non-Greek populations, peripheral and neighboring regions, imperial administration, economy and public finances, and ancient descriptions of the Seleucid Empire. The reader will gain an international perspective on current research.

Download or read book The Macedonian Phalanx written by Richard Taylor and published by Pen and Sword Military. This book was released on 2020-12-02 with total page 659 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An overview on one of the most successful infantry formations used by Alexander the Great and his successors to dominate the ancient world. The Macedonian pike phalanx dominated the battlefields of Greece and the Near and Middle East for over two centuries. It was one of the most successful infantry formations of the ancient world, only rivaled by the manipular formation of the Roman legions. The phalanx was a key factor in the battlefield success of Alexander the Great and after his death dominated the armies of his Successors (the Diadochoi), who ruled from Greece and Egypt to the borders of India. Richard Taylor gives an overview of the phalanx’s development, organization, equipment and training. He analyses the reasons for its success, with an emphasis on case studies of the many battles in which it was used, from Philip II’s reign to the Mithridatic Wars. He discusses whether the famous defeats by the Romans necessarily mean it was inherently inferior to the manipular legion tactics, and considers what other factors were in play. The clear, accessible and well-researched text is supported by diagrams and battle maps, making this an outstanding study of this mighty formation.

Download or read book A Companion to Greeks Across the Ancient World written by Franco De Angelis and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2020-05-07 with total page 640 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An innovative, up-to-date treatment of ancient Greek mobility and migration from 1000 BCE to 30 BCE A Companion to Greeks Across the Ancient World explores the mobility and migration of Greeks who left their homelands in the ten centuries between the Early Iron Age and the Hellenistic period. While most academic literature centers on the Greeks of the Aegean basin area, this unique volume provides a systematic examination of the history of the other half of the ancient Greek world. Contributions from leading scholars and historians discuss where migrants settled, their new communities, and their connections and interactions with both Aegean Greeks and non-Greeks. Divided into three parts, the book first covers ancient and modern approaches and the study of the ancient Greeks outside their homelands, including various intellectual, national, and linguistic traditions. Regional case studies form the core of the text, taking a microhistory approach to examine Greeks in the Near Eastern Empires, Greek-Celtic interactions in Central Europe, Greek-established states in Central Asia, and many others throughout Europe, Africa, and Asia. The closing section of the text discusses wider themes such as the relations between the Greek homeland and the edges of Greek civilization. Reflecting contemporary research and fresh perspectives on ancient Greek culture contact, this volume: Discusses the development and intersection of mobility, migration, and diaspora studies Examines the various forms of ancient Greek mobility and their outcomes Highlights contributions to cultural development in the Greek and non-Greek world Examines wider themes and the various forms of ancient Greek mobility and their outcomes Includes an overview of ancient terminology and concepts, modern translations, numerous maps, and full references A Companion to Greeks Across the Ancient World is a valuable resource for students, instructors, and researchers of Classical antiquity, as well as non-specialists with interest in ancient Greek mobilities, migrations, and diasporas.

Download or read book Brill s Companion to Diet and Logistics in Greek and Roman Warfare written by and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2023-12-04 with total page 467 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The adage that an army “marches on its stomach” finds renewed emphasis in this collection of essays. Focusing on military diet and supply from Homer through the Roman Empire, Diet and Logistics in Greek and Roman Warfare explains regional dietary options and reassesses traditional notions of “provisioning” while exploring topics ranging from strategy and subterfuge to trade and terror. Through fresh insights drawn from current research and excavation spanning the Greco-Roman world, contributors confirm how providing food and drink for soldiers was critical to every army’s success and survival. This volume stimulates reevaluation of ancient militaries and encourages new research.

Download or read book Athens After Empire written by Ian Worthington and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2020-10-09 with total page 425 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A major new history of Athens' remarkably long and influential life after the collapse of its empire To many the history of post-Classical Athens is one of decline. True, Athens hardly commanded the number of allies it had when hegemon of its fifth-century Delian League or even its fourth-century Naval Confederacy, and its navy was but a shadow of its former self. But Athens recovered from its perilous position in the closing quarter of the fourth century and became once again a player in Greek affairs, even during the Roman occupation. Athenian democracy survived and evolved, even through its dealings with Hellenistic Kings, its military clashes with Macedonia, and its alliance with Rome. Famous Romans, including Julius Caesar and Mark Antony, saw Athens as much more than an isolated center for philosophy. Athens After Empire offers a new narrative history of post-Classical Athens, extending the period down to the aftermath of Hadrian's reign.

Download or read book Alexander s Marshals written by Waldemar Heckel and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2016-08-05 with total page 399 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This substantially revised and updated second edition of The Marshals of Alexander’s Empire (1992) examines Alexander’s most important officers, who commanded army units and were involved in military and political deliberations. Chapters on these men have been expanded, giving greater attention to personalities, bias in the sources, and the social as well as military setting, including more on familial connections and regional origins in an attempt to create a better understanding of factions. The major confrontations, military and political, are treated in greater detail within the biographies, and a discussion of the organization and command structure of the Makedonian army has been added.

Download or read book Revolutionizing a World written by Mark Altaweel and published by UCL Press. This book was released on 2018-02-26 with total page 338 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book investigates the long-term continuity of large-scale states and empires, and its effect on the Near East’s social fabric, including the fundamental changes that occurred to major social institutions. Its geographical coverage spans, from east to west, modern-day Libya and Egypt to Central Asia, and from north to south, Anatolia to southern Arabia, incorporating modern-day Oman and Yemen. Its temporal coverage spans from the late eighth century BCE to the seventh century CE during the rise of Islam and collapse of the Sasanian Empire. The authors argue that the persistence of large states and empires starting in the eighth/seventh centuries BCE, which continued for many centuries, led to new socio-political structures and institutions emerging in the Near East. The primary processes that enabled this emergence were large-scale and long-distance movements, or population migrations. These patterns of social developments are analysed under different aspects: settlement patterns, urban structure, material culture, trade, governance, language spread and religion, all pointing at movement as the main catalyst for social change. This book’s argument is framed within a larger theoretical framework termed as ‘universalism’, a theory that explains many of the social transformations that happened to societies in the Near East, starting from the Neo-Assyrian period and continuing for centuries. Among other influences, the effects of these transformations are today manifested in modern languages, concepts of government, universal religions and monetized and globalized economies.

Download or read book The Hellenistic Court written by Andrew Erskine and published by Classical Press of Wales. This book was released on 2017-12-14 with total page 473 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Hellenistic courts were centres of monarchic power, social prestige and high culture in the kingdoms that emerged after the death of Alexander. They were places of refinement, learning and luxury, and also of corruption, rivalry and murder. Surrounded by courtiers of varying loyalty, Hellenistic royal families played roles in a theatre of spectacle and ceremony. Architecture, art, ritual and scholarship were deployed to defend the existence of their dynasties. The present volume, from a team of international experts, examines royal methods and ideologies. It treats the courts of the Ptolemies, Seleucids, Attalids, Antigonids and of lesser dynasties. It also explores the influence, on Greek-speaking courts, of non- Greek culture, of Achaemenid and other Near Eastern royal institutions. It studies the careers of courtesans, concubines and 'friends' of royalty, and the intellectual, ceremonial, and artistic world of the Greek monarchies. The work demonstrates the complexity and motivations of Hellenistic royal civilisation, of courts which governed the transmission of Greek culture to the wider Mediterranean world - and to later ages.

Download or read book Hellenistic Land Battles 300 167 BCE written by Fred Eugene Ray, Jr. and published by McFarland. This book was released on 2020-09-29 with total page 237 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Hellenistic Period (323-31 BCE) saw the Grecian phalanx--long dominant in Mediterranean warfare--challenged by legionary formations from the rising city-state of Rome. The Roman way of war would come to eclipse phalanx-based combat by the 160s yet this was not evident at the time. Rome suffered numerous defeats against the phalanxes of Pyrrhus and Hannibal, its overseas campaign against the brilliant Spartan mercenary Xanthippus met disaster, and several Roman victories over Hellenistic foes were not decisive. The story of combat in this pivotal era is not well documented. This book for the first time provides detailed tactical analyses for all 130 significant land engagements of Hellenistic armies 300-167 BCE.