The classical art of command: eight Greek generals who shaped the history of warfare

417 Pages·2017·10.65 MB·English

by  Joseph Roisman

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The Classical Art of Command
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The Classical Art
joseph
roisman of Command
Eight Greek Generals Who
Shaped the History of Warfare
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Names: Roisman, Joseph, 1946– author.
Title: The classical art of command : eight Greek generals who shaped the
history of warfare / Joseph Roisman.
Other titles: Greek generals who shaped the history of warfare
Description: New York, NY : Oxford University Press, [2017] | Includes
bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2016019526 (print) | LCCN 2016019663 (ebook) |
ISBN 9780199985821 (hardback) | ISBN 9780190641931 (online) |
ISBN 9780199985838 (Updf) | ISBN 9780199985845 (epub)
Subjects: LCSH: Greece—History, Military—To 146 B.C. |
Generals—Greece—Biography. | Command of troops—Case studies. |
Leadership—Greece—History—To 1500. | Leadership—Case studies.
Classification: LCC DE88 .R65 2017 (print) | LCC DE88 (ebook) |
DDC 355.0092/238—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2016019526
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Printed by Sheridan Books, Inc., United States of America
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To Hanna, Elad, Helaina and Talia, Shalev, Diana and Noa
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CONTENTS
Maps and Illustrations xi
Preface xiii
List of Abbreviations xv
Introduction: Greek Generals and Warfare
in the Classical Age 1
Eight Greek Generals 1
Two Generals in Action 4
Greek Generals: Responsibilities
and Personality 7
What Generals Did, Their Qualifications,
and Their Offices 9
Land Warfare 14
The Armies of Sparta, Athens, Boeotia,
Syracuse, Persia, and Carthage 18
Greek Battleships and Navies 22
1 Leonidas of Sparta: The Lion at the Gates 25
Leonidas’ Sparta and His Military
Challenges 25
The Threat of War 28
Preliminaries to the Battle
of Thermopylae 32
Leonidas in Thermopylae 36
The Aftermath 52
Conclusion 55
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2 Themistocles of Athens: The Clever
Counselor 57
Themistocles, His City, and His
Military Challenges 57
Themistocles and the Athenian Navy 60
Themistocles and the Persian War Till
the Battle of Artemisium 63
Themistocles in Artemisium 67
The Battle of Salamis 72
Themistocles after Salamis 91
Conclusion 99
3 Pericles of Athens: The Magisterial
Commander 101
Pericles, Athenian Democracy, and His
Military Challenges 101
Pericles’ Generalship Prior to the War
Against Samos (463/ 2– 441) 103
The Samian Revolt 111
Pericles’ Strategy of
the Peloponnesian War 121
Pericles and the Peloponnesian War:
The Limits of His Strategy 125
Conclusion 141
4 Demosthenes of Athens: The Master
of Surprise 145
Demosthenes and His Military
Challenges 145
Defeat and Victories in Western Greece 148
Astonishing Success in Pylos 152
Sneak Attack on Megara 163
Coming Out Empty- Handed in Boeotia 168
Disaster in Sicily 173
Conclusion 184
5 Lysander of Sparta: The Lion and the Fox 187
Lysander and His Military Challenges 187
Lysander’s First Admiralship and the Battle
of Notium 189
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Victory at Aegospotami 197
Lysander and the Spartan Empire 206
The Fall of a Hero 215
Conclusion 225
6 Dionysius I of Syracuse: The Evolution
of a General 227
Dionysius’ Syracuse and His Military
Challenges 227
Dionysius’ Early Career Up to the Battle
of Gela (405) 230
The Buildup of Syracuse’s Power 238
Preparations for the Second Carthaginian
War (397– 392) 241
The Siege of Motya 246
Besieged in Syracuse 252
Campaigns in Southern Italy
(ca. 396– 383) 259
The Third and Fourth Carthaginian
Wars (383– 367) 267
Conclusion 271
7 Epaminondas and Pelopidas of Thebes:
The Double- Edged Returns of Daring 275
Epaminondas and Pelopidas, Their Military
Challenges and Their City 275
Revolution in Thebes 277
The Sacred Band and the Battle of Tegyra
(375) 281
The Battle of Leuctra (371) 286
Theban Supremacy and the First Invasion
of the Peloponnese 298
The Second Invasion of the Peloponnese 305
Pelopidas’ Missteps in Thessaly 309
The Third Invasion of the Peloponnese
and the Naval Bill 313
Pelopidas’ Last Battle 317
Epaminondas’ Last Battle 322
Conclusion 337
Contents ix