the ancient world was torn apart by a conflict that was as dramatic, divisive, and destructive as the world wars of the twentieth century: the Peloponnesian War. Donald Kagan, one of the world’s most respected classical, political, and military historians, here presents a new account of this vicious war of Greek against Greek, Athenian against Spartan. The Peloponnesian War is a magisterial work of history written for general readers, offering a fresh examination of a pivotal moment in Western civilization. With a lively, readable narrative that conveys a richlydetailed portrait of a vanished world while honoring its timeless relevance, The Peloponnesian War is a chronicle of the rise and fall of a great empire and of a dark time whose lessons still resonate today.

    Selected from Plutarch's Roman Lives, they include prominent figures who achieved fame for their pivotal roles in Roman history, such as soldierly Marcellus, eloquent Cato and cautious Fabius. Here too are vivid portraits of ambitious, hot-tempered Coriolanus; objective, principled Brutus and open-hearted Mark Anthony, who would later be brought to life by Shakespeare. In recounting the lives of these great leaders, Plutarch also explores the problems of statecraft and power and illustrates the Roman people's genius for political compromise, which led to their mastery of the ancient world.

    Was late antiquity therefore merely a time of decline? In this vibrant and compact introduction, Gillian Clark shedslight on the concept of late antiquity and the events of its time, showing that this was in fact a period of great transformation. Late antiquity saw Roman law codified, Christian creeds formulated, the Talmud compiled, and the Qur'an composed. If the Goths sacked the city of Rome, the Vandalsbuilt churches in Africa and Attila the Hun received an embassy from Constantinople. Anthony of Egypt and Simeon Stylites offered spectacular new models of holiness, while Augustine and Basil and Benedict devised rules for monastic communities. Late antique artists produced the mosaics of Ravennaand the first dome of Hagia Sophia. And it was also the period when emperors Diocletian in the third century and Justinian in the sixth enacted extensive and much-needed reforms of government.

    In this book, two of the 1st central figures in the effort to decode the glyphs, Linda Schele & David Freidel, detail this history. A Forest of Kings is the story of Maya kingship, from the beginning of its institution & the 1st great pyramid builders 2000 years ago to the decline of Maya civilization & its destruction by the Spanish. Here the great rulers of pre-Columbian civilization come to life again with the decipherment of their writing. At its height, Maya civilization flourished under great kings like Shield-Jaguar, who ruled for over 60 years, expanding his kingdom & building some of the most impressive works of architecture in the ancient world. Long placed on a mist-shrouded pedestal as austere, peaceful stargazers, Maya elites are now known to have been the rulers of populous, aggressive city-states. Hailed as "a Rosetta stone of Maya civilization" (Brian M. Fagan, author of People of the Earth), A Forest of Kings is "a must for interested readers," says Evon Vogt, Harvard anthropology professor.

    “Fascinating, brave & sometimes infuriating” (Time), this dark history is more than a chronicle of religion. It's the central tragedy of Western civilization, its fault lines reaching deep into our culture to create “a deeply felt work” (San Francisco Chronicle) as Carroll wrangles with centuries of strife & tragedy to reach a courageous & affecting reckoning with difficult truths.

    Gavin Menzies makes the argument that in the year 1434, China—then the world's most technologically advanced civilization—provided the spark that set the European Renaissance ablaze. From that date onward, Europeans embraced Chinese intellectual ideas, discoveries, and inventions, all of which form the basis of western civilization today.

    600. Centered around a traditional political and military narrative, it presents in-depth coverage of Roman social, economic, and cross-cultural developments, providing a reader of a greater understanding of the people, places, and events that shaped the great Roman empire. KEY TOPICS: This comprehensive book covers such topics as the foundations of early Rome and Italy; the Phoenicians, Etruscans and Greeks in pre-Roman Italy, early Rome to 500 B.C.; early Roman society, religion, and values; the rise of the Roman Republic; the Roman Conquest of Italy; the late Republic; the rise of Caesar; the early Roman empire; the impact of Augustus on Roman life; Tiberius and Caligula; Claudius, Nero, and the Julio-Claudians; the Flavians; crisis and change in the third and fourth centuries A.D.; Constantine and Christianity; and the Church and its legacy. MARKET: For anyone interested in a comprehensive book on the history of the Roman people, from prehistory through 600 A.D.

    Boatwright, Daniel Gargola, and Richard J.A. Talbert explore this question as they guide readers through a comprehensive sweep of Roman history, ranging from the prehistoric settlements to the age of Constantine. Vividly written and accessible, The Romans traces Rome's remarkable evolution from village, to monarchy, to republic, and eventually to one-man rule by an emperor whose power at its peak stretched from Scotland to Iraq and the Nile Valley. Firmly grounded in ancient literary and material sources, the book describes and analyzes major political and military landmarks, from the Punic Wars, to Caesar's conquest of Gaul and his crossing of the Rubicon, to the victory of Octavian over Mark Antony, and to Constantine's adoption of Christianity. It also introduces such captivating individuals as Hannibal, Mithridates, Pompey, Cicero, Cleopatra, Augustus, Livia, Nero, Marcus Aurelius, and Shapur. The authors cover issues that still confront modern states worldwide, including warfare, empire building, consensus forging, and political fragmentation. They also integrate glimpses of many aspects of everyday Roman life and perspective--such as the role of women, literature, entertainment, town-planning, portraiture, and religion--demonstrating how Rome's growth as a state is inseparable from its social and cultural development. Ideal for courses in Roman history and Roman civilization, The Romans is enhanced by almost 100 illustrations, more than 30 maps (most produced by the Ancient World Mapping Center), and 22 textual extracts that provide fascinating cultural observations made by ancient Romans themselves.

    After angry Protestants tossed three representatives of the Holy Roman Empire out the window of the royal castle in Prague, world war spread from Bohemia with similar abandon and relentless persistence, destroying European powers from Spain to Sweden as they marched on the contested soil of Germany. Fanatics, speculators, and ordinary people found themselves trapped in a nightmarish world of famine, disease, and seemingly unstoppable destruction. The Thirty Years War was a turning point in the making of modern Europe and the modern world: out of it came the system of nation-states that remains fundamental to international law. C.V. Wedgwood's magisterial book is the only comprehensive account of the war in English, as well as a triumph of scholarship and literature. Includes maps and charts.

    505–565 AD) was the greatest general of the Eastern Roman Empire and is among history’s most notable military personalities. At the age of 29, he twice defeated the Persians and reconquered North Africa from the Vandals, before going on to regain the Italian peninsula from the Ostrogoths, including the Eternal City, Rome. Fighting in the name of Justinian I, Belisarius recaptured large portions of the original territory of the ancient Roman Empire. However, Byzantium was both unwilling and incapable of retaining much of Belisarius’s hard-won advances, and soon after his death, the empire once again retracted.In Belisarius: The Last Roman General, historian Ian Hughes recounts the life of this great soldier. In addition, he explains the evolution of classical Roman armies and systems of warfare into those of the Byzantine Empire, as well as those of their chief enemies, the Persians, Goths, and Vandals. Based on ancient source and drawing on a wealth of modern research, Belisarius’s career is set in the context of the turbulent times in which he lived and his reputation is reassessed to give a balanced portrait of this neglected giant among ancient commanders.

    Watts offers a new history of the fall of the Roman Republic that explains why Rome exchanged freedom for autocracy. For centuries, even as Rome grew into the Mediterranean's premier military and political power, its governing institutions, parliamentary rules, and political customs successfully fostered negotiation and compromise. By the 130s BC, however, Rome's leaders increasingly used these same tools to cynically pursue individual gain and obstruct their opponents. As the center decayed and dysfunction grew, arguments between politicians gave way to political violence in the streets. The stage was set for destructive civil wars--and ultimately the imperial reign of Augustus. The death of Rome's Republic was not inevitable. In Mortal Republic, Watts shows it died because it was allowed to, from thousands of small wounds inflicted by Romans who assumed that it would last forever.

    This book traces their development from earliest times through their period of glory and ultimate decline to their rediscovery and study in modern times. All of Egypt's surviving temples--from the gargantuan temple of Amun at Karnak to minuscule shrines such as the oasis Oracle of Siwa, where Alexander went to hear himself proclaimed god--are discussed and illustrated with factfiles, photographs, plans, and specially commissioned perspective views. * "Houses of Eternity" considers the historical origin and development of Egyptian temples, describing their role in ancient Egyptian society, their later Christian and Muslim use, and their modern rediscovery. * "Buildings Fit for Gods" looks at how the temples were built, decorated, expanded--and sometimes destroyed. * "Worlds Within Worlds" examines each part of the sacred structures in detail--from the massive pylon towers, colossal statues, and obelisks that fronted many temples to the darkened sanctuaries and mysterious crypts of their inner depths. * "Between Heaven and Earth" discusses the temple's relationship to the pantheon of Egypt's gods, along with the roles and rituals of pharaohs and priests, and the sacred rites and festivals enacted there. * "Temples of Gods and Kings" is the most extensive catalogue of Egyptian temples yet published in one volume and serves as a guide to the ancient sites. The book's format follows the highly successful, visual style of the other volumes in Thames Hudson's best-selling "Complete" series, creating both an authoritative reference book and an entertaining guide for everyone fascinated by the eternal mysteries of ancient Egypt.

    Building on research that has only recently confirmed that the world endured a 500year cold snap, renowned archaeologist Brian Fagan shows how the increasing cold influenced familiar events from Norse exploration to the settlement of North America to the Industrial Revolution. This is a fascinating book for anyone interested in history, climate, and how they interact.

    Martin as source material for Game of Thrones, comes a classic book on innovation and technological change in medieval EuropeIn this account of Europe’s rise to world leadership in technology, Frances and Joseph Gies show how early modern technology and experimental science were direct outgrowths of the decisive innovations of medieval Europe, in the tools and techniques of agriculture, craft industry, metallurgy, building construction, navigation, and war. The Gieses report that many of Europe’s most important inventions—the horse harness, the stirrup, the magnetic compass, cotton and silk cultivation and manufacture, papermaking, firearms, and “Arabic” numerals—had their origins outside Europe, in China, India, and the Middle East. Europe synthesized its own innovations—the three-field system, water power in industry, the full-rigged ship, the putting-out system—into a powerful new combination of technology, economics, and politics.

    Regularly, repeatedly, and with impunity, queens like Hatshepsut, Nefertiti, and Cleopatra controlled the totalitarian state as power-brokers and rulers. But throughout human history, women in positions of power were more often used as political pawns in a male-dominated society. What was so special about ancient Egypt that provided women this kind of access to the highest political office? What was it about these women that allowed them to transcend patriarchal obstacles? What did Egypt gain from its liberal reliance on female leadership, and could today's world learn from its example?Celebrated Egyptologist Kara Cooney delivers a fascinating tale of female power, exploring the reasons why it has seldom been allowed through the ages, and why we should care.