History of Alexander, Volume II: Books 6-10

by Quintus Curtius Rufus, John Carew Rolfe (Translator)

Quintus Curtius was apparently a rhetorician who lived in the first century of the Roman empire and, early in the reign of Claudius (41-54 CE), wrote a history of Alexander the Great in 10 books in clear and picturesque style for Latin readers. The first two books have not survived--our narrative begins with events in 333 BCE--and there is material missing from books V, VI, and X. One of his main sources is Cleitarchus who, about 300 BCE, had made Alexander's career a matter of marvellous adventure.

Curtius is not a critical historian; and in his desire to entertain and to stress the personality of Alexander, he elaborates effective scenes, omits much that is important for history, and does not worry about chronology. But he does not invent things, except speeches and letters inserted into the narrative by traditional habit. 'I copy more than I believe', he says. Three features of his story are narrative of exciting experiences, development of a hero's character, and a disposition to moralise. His history is one of the five extant works on which we rely for the career of Alexander the Great.

The Loeb Classical Library edition of Quintus Curtius is in two volumes.

Genres: History

640 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 54

Reviews

[John Isles · Rating 4 out of 5]

As usual in the series, the Latin text faces an English translation, in this case by John C. Rolfe (1859-1943) which seems rather dated but is generally accurate. There is a detailed general index to both Volumes I and II, and a map of Alexander's campaigns.

[Hossam · Rating 4 out of 5]

This volume is longer than the previous one, and I believe it shows more the dark side of Alexander than the previous one. Sometimes I wonder if these informations he is bringing are true, since he talked about the Amazonian women who met him and her leader proposed him to marry one of them, it is proven to be a myth nothing more. Plus, so many true events were mentioned in the book was also proven by Arrian and Plutarch but Quintus keeps on coming with brand new details.

[Jeremy Lucas · Rating 4 out of 5]

While no doubt written with an eye toward legend rather than explicit non-fiction, the tales and tracks of Alexander, as translated here, portray a very different side of the Macedonian king who originally left Greece with a sense of patriotism. In the beginning, throughout Books 1-5, we find somewhat reasonable justifications for Alexander's campaign against the Persian Empire, an empire that had spent years (and arguably centuries) attacking Greek cities, well before the birth of Alexander or even his father. But once Alexander finishes that campaign against Darius and the Persian Empire, once he sits on the throne in Babylon and Persepolis, once he tastes that final victory, he then weighs the urge to go farther, to invade cities and lands beyond the Tigris River, beyond the Indus Valley, beyond the mountains, as far as the Indian Ocean (or whatever the Macedonians believed to be the ocean, if not the Bay of Bengal or the Arabian Sea more likely). In turn, Alexander becomes more aggressive, more irritable, more ambitious, and ultimately, more god-like with every new obstacle to his power being vanquished, even at the cost of so many lives from either side of these repetitive contests, each one a battle over his rising, expanding, and seemingly global right to rule. In the end, Alexander's biographically-obvious death shows up in the text as an almost necessary if anti-climactic act, considering all the brutality that came before.

[Nathan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Perhaps not strictly accurate as history, Alexander's hubris, his creeping "Persianizing," his boundless energy and scenes of his conflicts with his Macedonian soldiers and officers receive much better treatment then the chronicle of dates, battles, and peoples conquered.