Search results for ""author james romm""

A portrait of one of the ancient world’s first political celebrities, who veered from failure to success and back again “This colorful biography of Demetrius . . . explores his rich inner life and reveals an ancient world of violence and intrigue.”—New York Times Book Review The life of Demetrius (337–283 BCE) serves as a through-line to the forty years following the death of Alexander the Great (323–282 BCE), a time of unparalleled turbulence and instability in the ancient world. With no monarch able to take Alexander’s place, his empire fragmented into five pieces. Capitalizing on good looks, youth, and sexual prowess, Demetrius sought to weld those pieces together and recover the dream of a single world state, with a new Alexander—himself—at its head. He succeeded temporarily, but in crucial, colossal engagements—a massive invasion of Egypt, a siege of Rhodes that went on for a full year, and the Battle of Ipsus—he came up just short. He ended his career in a rash invasion of Asia and became the target of a desperate manhunt, only to be captured and destroyed by his own son-in-law. James Romm tells the story of Demetrius the Besieger’s rise and spectacular fall but also explores his vibrant inner life and family relationships to depict a real, complex, and recognizable figure.

Read more less

From classicist James Romm comes a “striking…fascinating” (Booklist) deep dive into the last decades of ancient Greek freedom leading up to Alexander the Great’s destruction of Thebes—and the saga of the greatest military corps of the time, the Theban Sacred Band, a unit composed of 150 pairs of male lovers.The story of the Sacred Band, an elite 300-man corps recruited from pairs of lovers, highlights a chaotic era of ancient Greek history, four decades marked by battles, ideological disputes, and the rise of vicious strongmen. At stake was freedom, democracy, and the fate of Thebes, at this time the leading power of the Greek world. The tale begins in 379 BC, with a group of Theban patriots sneaking into occupied Thebes. Disguised in women’s clothing, they cut down the agents of Sparta, the state that had cowed much of Greece with its military might. To counter the Spartans, this group of patriots would form the Sacred Band, a corps whose history plays out against a backdrop of Theban democracy, of desperate power struggles between leading city-states, and the new prominence of eros, sexual love, in Greek public life. After four decades without a defeat, the Sacred Band was annihilated by the forces of Philip II of Macedon and his son Alexander in the Battle of Chaeronea—extinguishing Greek liberty for two thousand years. Buried on the battlefield where they fell, they were rediscovered in 1880—some skeletons still in pairs, with arms linked together. From violent combat in city streets to massive clashes on open ground, from ruthless tyrants to bold women who held their era in thrall, The Sacred Band recounts “in fluent, accessible prose” (The Wall Street Journal) the twists and turns of a crucial historical moment: the end of the treasured freedom of ancient Greece.

Read more less

Comprising relevant selections from the four ancient writers whose portraits of Alexander the Great still survive--Arrian, Diodorus, Plutarch, and Quintus Curtius--this volume provides a complete narrative of the important events in Alexander's life. The Introduction sets these works in historical context, stretching from the conclusion of the Peloponnesian War through Alexander's conquest of Asia, and provides an assessment of Alexander's historical importance as well as a survey of the central controversies surrounding his personality, aims and intentions. This edition includes a timeline, maps, a bibliography, a glossary, and an index.

Read more less

Although Plutarch did not intend his Lives as a historical record, they sometimes furnish the best account we have of events in classical Greece. In many instances they are the only account available to those exploring ancient history through primary sources.In this compilation from Plutarch's Greek Lives, James Romm gathers the material of greatest historical significance from fifteen biographies, ranging from Theseus in earliest times to Phocion in the late fourth century BCE. While preserving the outlines of Plutarch's character portraits, Romm focuses on the central stories of classical Greece: the rivalry between Athens, Sparta, and Thebes, the rise of Macedon, andthe conflicts between these European states and the Achaemenid Persian empire. Bridging Plutarch’s gaps with concise summaries, Romm creates a coherent narrative of the classical Greek world.This edition features the elegant new translation of Pamela Mensch. Footnotes provide the historical context often omitted by Plutarch and plentiful and detailed cross-references. Also included are a bibliography, maps, a chronological chart, a glossary, and an index.

Read more less

Comprising relevant selections from the four ancient writers whose portraits of Alexander the Great still survive--Arrian, Diodorus, Plutarch, and Quintus Curtius--this volume provides a complete narrative of the important events in Alexander's life. The Introduction sets these works in historical context, stretching from the conclusion of the Peloponnesian War through Alexander's conquest of Asia, and provides an assessment of Alexander's historical importance as well as a survey of the central controversies surrounding his personality, aims and intentions. This edition includes a timeline, maps, a bibliography, a glossary, and an index.

Read more less

This volume includes a wealth of helpful footnotes; more than a dozen maps and illustrations; a chronology of the Archaic Age; a glossary of main characters, places, and terms; suggested further reading; and an index of proper nouns.

Read more less

Major figures in the civil wars that ended the Roman Republic, the names Pompey, Caesar, Cicero, Brutus and Antony haunt us with questions of character and authority. Plutarch’s rich, vivid profiles show character-shaping history through grand scale events and intimate details. The creator and master of the biographical form, Plutarch locates character in small gestures such as Brutus’s punctilious use of money or Caesar’s plainspoken discourse. In this reader’s edition, the translation lends a straightforward clarity to the prose and the notes identify people, places and events in the text. The substantial introduction and foreword explore Plutarch as an historical figure and the history of the Republic’s fall.

Read more less

Although Plutarch did not intend his Lives as a historical record, they sometimes furnish the best account we have of events in classical Greece. In many instances they are the only account available to those exploring ancient history through primary sources.In this compilation from Plutarch's Greek Lives, James Romm gathers the material of greatest historical significance from fifteen biographies, ranging from Theseus in earliest times to Phocion in the late fourth century BCE. While preserving the outlines of Plutarch's character portraits, Romm focuses on the central stories of classical Greece: the rivalry between Athens, Sparta, and Thebes, the rise of Macedon, andthe conflicts between these European states and the Achaemenid Persian empire. Bridging Plutarch’s gaps with concise summaries, Romm creates a coherent narrative of the classical Greek world.This edition features the elegant new translation of Pamela Mensch. Footnotes provide the historical context often omitted by Plutarch and plentiful and detailed cross-references. Also included are a bibliography, maps, a chronological chart, a glossary, and an index.

Read more less

Designed for students with little or no background in ancient Greek language, history, and culture, this new abridgment presents those selections that comprise Herodotus’ historical narrative. These are meticulously annotated, and supplemented with a chronology of the Archaic Age, Historical Epilogue, glossary of main characters and places, index of proper names, and maps.

Read more less

Designed for students with little or no background in ancient Greek language, history, and culture, this new abridgment presents those selections that comprise Herodotus' historical narrative. These are meticulously annotated, and supplemented with a chronology of the Archaic Age, Historical Epilogue, glossary of main characters and places, index of proper names, and maps.

Read more less

Major figures in the civil wars that ended the Roman Republic, the names Pompey, Caesar, Cicero, Brutus and Antony haunt us with questions of character and authority. Plutarch’s rich, vivid profiles show character-shaping history through grand scale events and intimate details. The creator and master of the biographical form, Plutarch locates character in small gestures such as Brutus’s punctilious use of money or Caesar’s plainspoken discourse. In this reader’s edition, the translation lends a straightforward clarity to the prose and the notes identify people, places and events in the text. The substantial introduction and foreword explore Plutarch as an historical figure and the history of the Republic’s fall.

Read more less