Warfare in the Classical World: War and the Ancient Civilisations of Greece and Rome (Classic conflicts)

Rating:
Summary: A delighting trip over our past
Review: A look at our past is a look at out past wars. All over the history, civilizations, kingdoms and states have emerged, survived or obliterated based in their skill to win battle after battle (not only at the battlefields but also at the political arena). I am afraid it's not different nowdays.

It's interesting to have a look at gifted generals whose best skill was to know the timely place and time for fighting and their pursuit of decesive wins. Overall, victory depends usually in just one man with his skills and shortcomings.

I love this book on account of its global outlook of wars as one of the weapons in the array of ancient leaders. Demografy, economy or beliefs are key factor that great generals were able to tip in their favor.

In this book, the author is bent on placing each leader or general into political, economical and social context. It is not only a catalogue of wars, outflaking movements and so on. There are plently of examples of great generals almost ever-winner that could not overcome other factors and eventually were defeated (as Anibal or Espartacus) by enemies, comrades or chiefs. On the contrary how geniuos as Julio Cesar or Escipion africanus could innovate and emerged victorious against all hurdles by fair means or fouls.

In the list of gifted people, there were really little known people who made great exploits (as Lucullus, the brother of Anibal and so on). Many factors drive life and glory and not always the best or better is the winner.

This book must be thought of as a global modern view that places each name and battle in a place in History and that directs you into reading ancient sorces of much narrow scope and less reliable but closer to real facts: Xenophon, Arrio, Julio Cesar, tuciddides and so many which are shed with a different light under a more encopassing view.

All in all, a pleasure to enjoy. By the way, how different in the real story of Spartacus from the famous film. Men, with our mistakes are the best sources or our grievances.

Rating:
Summary: A Lucid and Indispensable Study of Classical Warfare
Review: The number of misconceptions about ancient warfare is legion. There is a tendency to see ancient battles as little more than bloody scrums, with none of the tactical art, deception, or finesse of modern battle. Indeed, the tactics and weaponry are often perceived as being static, nowhere near as fluid as those of today.

John Warry punctures all of these myths with his seminal work "Warfare in the Classical World", which covers the Greek and Roman art of war in a single slim, accessible volume.

Warry does not fall into the trap which often befalls military historians in that he strives to place each conflict in its proper political context. Surprisingly, there is not a single battle map in the book, as he is for the most part concerned with how armies fight and not the results of single battles.

In each section, Warry begins with an incisive commentary on the sources from which we have inherited our historical knowledge, probing the biases of each. He then describes the political scene of the day before analyzing the art of war as practiced at the time, finally wrapping up with a brief summary.

This makes for highly entertaining and thought-provoking reading, and allows the reader to grasp the evolution of land and naval warfare from the Homeric Age to the fall of Rome.

And what an evolution this was, from the individual, hand-to-hand combat of the Heroic Greeks to the extremely disciplined and varied tactics of the Roman Legion. Ancient warfare was anything but a static affair as brilliant warriors constantly sought the battlefield edge through new tactics and weaponry.

Take, for example, the evolution of the spear, from the short, thrusting weapon used by early Greek phalangists to the throwing spear represented by the Roman pilum, craftily designed so as to make the shields of the barbarian hordes they faced useless. Or the rise and fall of elephants in battle, first used by Persians battling the Greeks, then employed by the Carthaginians against Rome before falling out of favor with Hannibal's defeat at Zama. Talk about heavy cavalry!

This book will delight even the most casual interest in military history or the ancient world. For the professional soldier, this work is an essential reference which belongs on your bookshelf, if only to convince the boss that you do study your profession. Rush out and pick up a copy today.

Rating:
Summary: A Lucid and Indispensable Study of Classical Warfare
Review: The number of misconceptions about ancient warfare is legion. There is a tendency to see ancient battles as little more than bloody scrums, with none of the tactical art, deception, or finesse of modern battle. Indeed, the tactics and weaponry are often perceived as being static, nowhere near as fluid as those of today.

John Warry punctures all of these myths with his seminal work "Warfare in the Classical World", which covers the Greek and Roman art of war in a single slim, accessible volume.

Warry does not fall into the trap which often befalls military historians in that he strives to place each conflict in its proper political context. Surprisingly, there is not a single battle map in the book, as he is for the most part concerned with how armies fight and not the results of single battles.

In each section, Warry begins with an incisive commentary on the sources from which we have inherited our historical knowledge, probing the biases of each. He then describes the political scene of the day before analyzing the art of war as practiced at the time, finally wrapping up with a brief summary.

This makes for highly entertaining and thought-provoking reading, and allows the reader to grasp the evolution of land and naval warfare from the Homeric Age to the fall of Rome.

And what an evolution this was, from the individual, hand-to-hand combat of the Heroic Greeks to the extremely disciplined and varied tactics of the Roman Legion. Ancient warfare was anything but a static affair as brilliant warriors constantly sought the battlefield edge through new tactics and weaponry.

Take, for example, the evolution of the spear, from the short, thrusting weapon used by early Greek phalangists to the throwing spear represented by the Roman pilum, craftily designed so as to make the shields of the barbarian hordes they faced useless. Or the rise and fall of elephants in battle, first used by Persians battling the Greeks, then employed by the Carthaginians against Rome before falling out of favor with Hannibal's defeat at Zama. Talk about heavy cavalry!

This book will delight even the most casual interest in military history or the ancient world. For the professional soldier, this work is an essential reference which belongs on your bookshelf, if only to convince the boss that you do study your profession. Rush out and pick up a copy today.

Rating:
Summary: Text-only version of the Illustrated Encyclopedia
Review: This book has exactly the same text as the Illustrated Encyclopedia of ancient warfare by the same author, but there are no illustrations. If you can spare a few more bucks, by the illustrated version: it has a wealth of battle maps, color plates and other illustrated material which makes this text-only version pale in comparison, although it is still quite informative. I give it 4 stars while I would give the illustrated version 5.