By the Spear

By the Spear
Author: Ian Worthington
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Total Pages: 411
Release: 2014
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 0199929866

A unique military and cultural history that chronicles the reigns of Philip and Alexander the Great in one sweeping narrative.

The Rise of the Macedonian Empire

The Rise of the Macedonian Empire
Author: Arthur Curteis
Publisher: Ozymandias Press
Total Pages: 147
Release: 2018-04-13
Genre: History
ISBN: 1531282253

The first two centuries of the Macedonian monarchy, covered by the reigns of six kings, were a period shrouded in obscurity, during which the rising kingdom had enlarged itself at the expense of its neighbors, and crossing the Axios had even reached the Strymon. This career of conquest had been scarcely arrested by the Persian invasions of Europe. Indeed Alexander I, son of Amyntas, was cunning enough to bow to the storm, and while cautiously doing his utmost to befriend the Greeks, affected to fall in with Persian ideas as to Macedon being the centre of a great vassal state, and thankfully accepted any extension of territory which the Great King might be pleased to give him. By these means he gained a footing among the Thracian tribes as far as Mount Haemus, while he attained an object by which he set even greater store as a true-blooded Hellene; for his claims to that title were publicly acknowledged at Olympia, and his victories in the Stadium celebrated by the Hellenic Pindar. Yet the difficulties of Alexander did not cease, but rather increased when danger no longer threatened Greece from the side of Persia. He had removed his capital from Aigai to Pydna, a step nearer to the Hellenes whom he admired so much. But close to Pydna lay Methone, an independent Greek city; while to the eastward in Chalcidice, and as far as the Strymon, were numerous Hellenic colonies whose sympathies drew them naturally to the south rather than the west - to Hellas, not to Macedon - and which, after the Persian wars, recognized in the maritime Athens their natural leader and protectress...

Macedonia

Macedonia
Author: Michael Palairet
Publisher: Cambridge Scholars Publishing
Total Pages: 465
Release: 2016-02-08
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1443888435

These two volumes cover the entire period of Macedonia’s written history. Volume 1 moves from the Temenid kingdom in the Fifth Century BC, through Hellenistic, Roman, Byzantine, Bulgarian and Serbian rule, to the overthrow of Christian rule by the Ottoman Turks. Many of the highlights in ancient Macedonian history were created by King Philip II and his son Alexander, and by the struggles of the Antigonid regime to withstand the ambitions of the Romans. High points in the Byzantine rule were achieved under Emperor Justinian in the 6th Century, and again under Basil II in the 11th. Geography made Macedonia a transit territory for the Crusades, but their passage was marked nevertheless by wanton brutality. By the beginning of the 13th Century, Byzantine power had passed its apogee, and it suffered the sack of Constantinople by the Fourth Crusade. The ensuing establishment of the Latin Empire exposed Macedonia to repeated rounds of devastation by Latin, Bulgarian and Greek warlords. Despite the recovery of Constantinople by Michael Palaeologus, the much-weakened Byzantine Empire could no longer withstand its foes. Despite the transient displacement of Greek power by Serbian rule, Macedonia was destined to succumb to the Ottomans. The emphasis in Volume 1 is weighted geographically towards Aegean Macedonia – northwestern Greece – where the ancient kingdom was rooted. Vardar Macedonia – the lands that now comprise the Macedonian Republic – only emerged as a civilised historical entity during the Middle Ages. This voyage through history not only documents the Macedonian past, but also discovers its cultural heritage. This includes the mosaics and sculptures of the Alexandrine era, and its Christian churches, for Christianity left its indelible mark on Macedonian civilisation. The book follows the emergence of early Christianity from the time of St. Paul, but gives emphasis to the artistic culture of late antiquity. A further chapter is devoted to Orthodox mysticism and its fourteenth century role in the creation of the secret churches in the lakes of Ohrid and Prespa. Another charts the strange history of Athos, Macedonia’s Holy Mountain peninsula, in its formative period.

Demosthenes of Athens and the Fall of Classical Greece

Demosthenes of Athens and the Fall of Classical Greece
Author: Ian Worthington
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 411
Release: 2015
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 0190263563

The first ever biography of Demosthenes written in English for a popular audience, set against the rich backdrop of late classical Greece and Macedonia

Alexander the Great Failure

Alexander the Great Failure
Author: John D Grainger
Publisher: A&C Black
Total Pages: 514
Release: 2009-08-11
Genre: History
ISBN: 082644394X

In this authoritative book John Grainger explores the foundations of Alexander's empire and why it did not survive after his untimely death in 323 BC.

Alexander the Great - An Illustrated Military History

Alexander the Great - An Illustrated Military History
Author: Nigel Rodgers
Publisher: Anness Pub Limited
Total Pages: 128
Release: 2011-11-01
Genre: History
ISBN: 9781844768219

A magnificent illustrated military history of Alexander The Great: covering the rise of Macedonia, the battles, campaigns and tactics of Alexander, and the collapse of his vast empire after his early death, all depicted in more than 250 pictures.

A History of Macedonia

A History of Macedonia
Author: Robert Malcolm Errington
Publisher: Univ of California Press
Total Pages: 344
Release: 1990-01-01
Genre: History
ISBN: 9780520063198

In this single-volume history, R. Malcolm Errington provides a modern account of the political and social framework of ancient Macedon. He places particular emphasis on the structure of the Macedonian state and its functioning in different stages of historical development from the sixth to the second century B.C. Errington's main emphasis is not on the biographies of the great kings but rather on the flexible political interplay between king, nobility, and people; on the growth of cities and their political function within the state; and on the development of the army as a motor of military, social, and politicalchange.

Alexander the Great: A Very Short Introduction

Alexander the Great: A Very Short Introduction
Author: Hugh Bowden
Publisher: OUP Oxford
Total Pages: 131
Release: 2014-07-24
Genre: History
ISBN: 0191016365

Alexander the Great became king of Macedon in 336 BC, when he was only 20 years old, and died at the age of 32, twelve years later. During his reign he conquered the Achaemenid Persian Empire, the largest empire that had ever existed, leading his army from Greece to Pakistan, and from the Libyan desert to the steppes of Central Asia. His meteoric career, as leader of an alliance of Greek cities, Pharaoh of Egypt, and King of Persia, had a profound effect on the world he moved through. Even in his lifetime his achievements became legendary and in the centuries that following his story was told and retold throughout Europe and the East. Greek became the language of power in the Eastern Mediterranean and much of the Near East, as powerful Macedonian dynasts carved up Alexander's empire into kingdoms of their own, underlaying the flourishing Hellenistic civilization that emerged after his death. But what do we really know about Alexander? In this Very Short Introduction, Hugh Bowden goes behind the usual historical accounts of Alexander's life and career. Instead, he focuses on the evidence from Alexander's own time -- letters from officials in Afghanistan, Babylonian diaries, records from Egyptian temples -- to try and understand how Alexander appeared to those who encountered him. In doing so he also demonstrates the profound influence the legends of his life have had on our historical understanding and the controversy they continue to generate worldwide. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.