When does history begin? What characterizes it? This brilliant and beautifully written book dissolves the logic of a beginning based on writing, civilization, or historical consciousness and offers a model for a history that escapes the continuing grip of the Judeo-Christian time frame. Daniel Lord Smail argues that in the wake of the Decade of the Brain and the best-selling historical work of scientists like Jared Diamond, the time has come for fundamentally new ways of thinking about our past. He shows how recent work in evolution and paleohistory makes it possible to join the deep past with the recent past and abandon, once and for all, the idea of prehistory.
In this concise history of war, Jeremy Black ranges widely, giving due attention to non-western as well as western traditions. Black probes the diverse character of military capability and the varied nature of military change. The history of war is inextricably bound to the history of the world and for us, as human beings, warfare has often proved to be the pivotal cause, means and consequence of change within society. Through a detailed exploration of 'world-scale' issues of warfare, presented within a chronological framework that spans human history, Jeremy Black skilfully illustrates this fact whilst providing the reader with other astute insights and compelling interpretations of war.
History of Greek and Roman Warfare, Volume 2: Rome from the Late Republic to the Late Empire
Second volume of a systematic account of the various themes underlying the warfare of the Roman world from the Late Republic to the sixth-century empire of Justinian and his successors. It reflects recent developments resulting from new evidence and fresh analyses emphasising social, economic, political and economic approaches.
History of Greek and Roman Warfare, Volume 1: Greece, the Hellenistic World and the Rise of Rome
First volume of a systematic account of the various themes underlying the warfare of the Greek world from the Archaic to the Hellenistic period and of Early and Middle Republican Rome. It reflects recent developments resulting from new evidence and fresh analyses emphasising social, economic, political and economic approaches.
A History of the Classical Greek World: 478 - 323 BC
This book gives an accessible account of classical Greek history, from the aftermath of the Persian Wars in 478 bc to the death of Alexander the Great in 323 bc. The author describes the years which witnessed the flourishing of democracy in Athens; the establishment of the Athenian empire; the Peloponnesian War, which involved the whole Greek world; the development of Macedonian power under Philip II; and the conquests of Alexander the Great. His account combines narrative with analysis, and deals with major social, economic and cultural developments as well as political and military events.
