Warfare in the Classical World: An Illustrated Encyclopedia of Weapons, Warriors, and Warfare in the Ancient Civilizations of Greece and Rome

Rating:
Summary: A well researched introduction to the period. Recommended.
Review: A very well researched and clearly written account from Homeric times to the fall of Rome. The text is consise and excellently illustrated. Tactics and the political background to military strategy are discussed in depth, and pointers to original and secondary sources provided. The sections on siege and naval warfare are particularly good.

Rating:
Summary: A classic introduction to warfare in the Classical World
Review: This is a wonderful book. It reads well and has superb illustrations of the fighting men and their weapons. It gives one a real feel of the era and the men who fought in them. It is also not too long and doesn't bore you with dry detail. Of course it is not as detailed as the serious studies on the eras such as Webster's and Bohec's studies of the Imperial Roman Army but then again it is not meant to be. It accomplishes what it sets out to do which is put you in the basic know on warfare in ancient Greece and Rome and also has much detail on their respective foes such as the Persians, Scythians, Gauls etc. However I still don't understand why it is termed an encyclopedia since it doesn't follow the standard alphabetical format (although an encyclopedia doesn't necessarily have to...I was just wondering?). Great book anyway and well worth the purchase. Peter Connelly's book "Greece and Rome at War" is also in the same vein but somehow I still prefer this one.