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The Persian War

herodotus william shepherd

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Selections from Herodotus' History which follow the events of the great war between the Greeks and the Persians. The translated extracts include Herodotus' descriptions of the preparations for war and of the great land- and sea-battles which took place. Linking commentaries explain Greek and Persian strategies and battle manoeuvres. Background information on the ships and on the soldiers fighting in the war is also given.

140 pages, Paperback

First published January 1,1882

This edition

Format
140 pages, Paperback
Published
January 1, 1882 by Cambridge University Press
ISBN
9780521281942
ASIN
0521281946
Language
English

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About the author

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herodotus

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Herodotus (Greek: Ηρόδοτος) (c. 484 – c. 425 BC) was a Greek historian and geographer from the Greek city of Halicarnassus, part of the Persian Empire (now Bodrum, Turkey) and a later citizen of Thurii in modern Calabria, Italy. He is known for having written the Histories – a detailed account of the Greco-Persian Wars. Herodotus was the first writer to perform systematic investigation of historical events. He has been described as "The Father of History", a title conferred on him by the ancient Roman orator Marcus Tullius Cicero.
The Histories primarily cover the lives of prominent kings and famous battles such as Marathon, Thermopylae, Artemisium, Salamis, Plataea, and Mycale. His work deviates from the main topics to provide a cultural, ethnographical, geographical, and historiographical background that forms an essential part of the narrative and provides readers with a wellspring of additional information.
Herodotus has been criticized for his inclusion of "legends and fanciful accounts" in his work. The contemporaneous historian Thucydides accused him of making up stories for entertainment. However, Herodotus explained that he reported what he could see and was told. A sizable portion of the Histories has since been confirmed by modern historians and archaeologists.

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Community Reviews

Rating(3.9 / 5.0, 19 votes)
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19 reviews All reviews
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GwenPineapple
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 1,2025
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I love history,especially concerning the antiquities. So honestly this would have gotten 4 stars no matter what. That being said,the pairing of classical music and Roy Marsden's smooth and unencumbered narration of all the epic battles, speeches, military stratagem and geography made it truly 3 dimensional. Xerxes as the English would say was a true c@#t. His ascension to the throne is mini series material.
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melodyvonshewk
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 1,2025
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Herodotus' "The Persian War" is the history of wars between Greeks and Persians in the ancient ages. Herodotus was the great researcher, the great historian of ancient documents of a lot of human, natural facts. Herodotus' Historian View for the history of ancient ages was one of the sources of the Modern Historian's View for the history. Herodotus writes the wars of Greeks and Persians "objectively", but Herodotus keeps his individual understanding, Herodotus' "synthesis" of "indiviual" and "social" is a very useful "methodological practice" for the Historians. Herodotus' "The Persian War" is one of the best histories about ancient wars - "a historical geography" of ancient world.
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saigonoe
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 1,2025
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I think this part was better when taken in with the rest of "the Histories."
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SmallZwaffet
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 1,2025
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صرفا یک بازنویسی از جنگ‌های مدیک در تاریخ هرودوته.
چیز بیشتری نداره.
به نظرم متن خود هرودوت رو بخونید بهتره.
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idiot_box18
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 1,2025
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I'd enjoyed Thucydides in college but had avoided Herodotus because he was not cited as being as reliable as a source. Applying for work at a great books college which required Herodotus, however, got me to read the thing and it turned out to be much, much more interesting than expected.

While Thucydides comes across as a recognizable historian, Herodotus comes across as an elderly, well-travelled storyteller. Many of his accounts, including his explanation of the ultimate causes of the Persian War, are pure myth, but his account of the war itself and the events leading up to it constitute the first real history we have of anything.

The book isn't just about the Persian War, however. It also includes descriptions of the lifeways of various exotic peoples including, notably, the Scythians and Egyptians. One imagines Herodotus making a living as a lecturer to enthralled, and possibly skeptically amused, audiences in his old age.
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JuroandKado
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 1,2025
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It was ok. I'm a total douche for having nothing but that to say about Herodotus. Admitted. I know a bit more about things, but it wasn't much fun. Douche cred achieved x 10.
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mr__wizard
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 1,2025
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I remember trying (and failing) to read this as a child. It is an intriguing and at times mysterious book. I wish that I knew more about Herodotus himself, and perhaps had access to an annotated scholarly edition. Enjoyable, but hard to read.
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ShamPowWow
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 1,2025
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Awesome story about the rise of the Persian empire and the epic heroism of the Greeks in defending their homeland. Although Herodotus exaggerates a lot, it makes the story interesting so long as you take what he says with a grain of salt. I liked how this story offered an exciting new perspective on biblical era history.
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