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Great Battles of the Hellenistic World
For almost two centuries the Macedonian phalanx, created by Philip II and refined by his son, Alexander the Great, dominated the battlefields of the ancient world from the sweltering riverbanks of India to the wooded hills of Italy. As the preferred weapon of some of antiquity's greatest commanders, this powerful military system took center stage in many of the largest and most decisive conflicts of ancient times. Joseph Pietrykowski explores the struggles that shook the ancient world and shaped history. From the structure and composition of the opposing armies, to the strategy of their campaigns, to the leadership decisions and tactics that decided the engagements, Great Battles of the Hellenistic World examines seventeen landmark conflicts from Chaironeia to Pydna over the course of 170 years of bloody warfare.
256 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2009
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
March 5, 2023
This is a fine book that describes some of the epic battles that were fought throughout the Hellenistic period. Starting with the rise of Macedonia and the birth of the Macedonian phalanx and ending with the Roman conquest of Greece.
From the great battles of Alexander the Great, the Italian invasion of Pyrrhus of Epirus or the massive battles between the Ptolemies and the Seleucids, Pietrykowski does a good job at bringing these epic battles to life. His descriptions of the battles and of the hardships the soldiers had to endure, such as fighting elephants or deflecting thousands of arrows was very entertaining.
Pietrykowski starts of by giving a brief overview of the campaign and the context prior to the battle at hand, followed by a description of the battlefield itself and the armies and the leaders present. After this is done he continues with a lively account of the battle itself, with very simple yet helpful maps of the battlefield and the armies to show the developments throughout the fight.
This is a nice book that serves as a good extra reading for anyone who likes the Hellenistic period but wants to look a bit deeper into the battles than other books do. Four stars!
From the great battles of Alexander the Great, the Italian invasion of Pyrrhus of Epirus or the massive battles between the Ptolemies and the Seleucids, Pietrykowski does a good job at bringing these epic battles to life. His descriptions of the battles and of the hardships the soldiers had to endure, such as fighting elephants or deflecting thousands of arrows was very entertaining.
Pietrykowski starts of by giving a brief overview of the campaign and the context prior to the battle at hand, followed by a description of the battlefield itself and the armies and the leaders present. After this is done he continues with a lively account of the battle itself, with very simple yet helpful maps of the battlefield and the armies to show the developments throughout the fight.
This is a nice book that serves as a good extra reading for anyone who likes the Hellenistic period but wants to look a bit deeper into the battles than other books do. Four stars!
July 31, 2015
No other tactical revolution in the ancient world, except for perhaps the use of a spear over that of a club, saw as many far reaching, and wide sweeping consequences, as the restructuring of the Theban phalanx as done by Philip II of Macedon. From the hills of Greece to the jungles of India and even the fields of southern Italy the Macedonian style phalanx revolutionized warfare and allowed a backwards, tiny, near destitute kingdom to conquer the known world.
I did genuinely enjoy this book, however I enjoyed it to the level of closer to three and a half stars, but since goodreads still doesn't allow half star ratings, I thought I'd assist the author and give him a solid four. The way book is set up it is almost necessary to have a solid background in the military history of the ancient world as the author skims over the political and historical background to every tactical encounter he highlights, this book focuses on battles. Without knowing much in the way of what Rome was doing before Pyyrhos journeyed to Italy to assist the Tarentines, you might not have a clue as to why this is such an important event, or how trans formative for the history of the ancient world (and even to us today as we are a result of history) the battles between the legions and phalanx turned out to be.
The author touches on one topic that I believe he should have delved into in an entire chapter as it would have gone a great way towards rounding out the quality of the book: he briefly mentions the devolution of the Greek way of war following the death of Alexander and the Wars of the Diadochi (Successors) as by the time of the Roman-Macedon Wars the Greeks and Macedonians were fighting in a way very similar in terms of tactics to the way battles were waged since before the original Persian invasions centuries earlier. The elongation of the sarissa's to 20 feet or better made the already inflexible phalanx a nearly impossible to maneuver formation as the constant warfare eroded the Greeks ability top sustain massed casualties in the pursuit of victory. Their further modification of the phalanx following the exploits of Antigonus the One Eyed (a man who deserves his own book) showcased the need to defeat the enemy while keeping him entirely away from ones own space. It was an attempt to achieve victory without closing in for the kill, and the modular, open order of the early Roman legions, designed for close in, rapid maneuver tactical warfare, entirely took advantage of this Greek doctrinal weakness.
Had the author spent more time on the evolution of Greek warfare, and how it changed, or didn't, in the face of the invasions of the Gauls or the meeting of the Roman legions would have gone a long way towards filling out what is otherwise a collection of battle narratives.
However, for that this book is stellar. Personally I was thrilled by the depiction of the Battle of Magnesia between the Romans, their own Greek allies and the Seleucid Empire in central Anatolia (Turkey). The writing conveyed a sense of the scene as if you were an aide to either the Strategos or the Consul in charge, wonderful narrative flair without going into purple prose. The drawback, however, is that the battle narrative lacks context, hence my desire for a 3.5 rating.
All in all a good book. If the author ever finishes his proposed work on 'Great Battles of the Classical Greek World', I'll be sure to purchase a copy. However, as a word of advice, maybe a bit more on the context of each battle. It would help those less familiar with ancient military history. But for those who are familiar with the time period, it's a thrilling look at some of the greatest battles in Western history.
Solidly recommended.
I did genuinely enjoy this book, however I enjoyed it to the level of closer to three and a half stars, but since goodreads still doesn't allow half star ratings, I thought I'd assist the author and give him a solid four. The way book is set up it is almost necessary to have a solid background in the military history of the ancient world as the author skims over the political and historical background to every tactical encounter he highlights, this book focuses on battles. Without knowing much in the way of what Rome was doing before Pyyrhos journeyed to Italy to assist the Tarentines, you might not have a clue as to why this is such an important event, or how trans formative for the history of the ancient world (and even to us today as we are a result of history) the battles between the legions and phalanx turned out to be.
The author touches on one topic that I believe he should have delved into in an entire chapter as it would have gone a great way towards rounding out the quality of the book: he briefly mentions the devolution of the Greek way of war following the death of Alexander and the Wars of the Diadochi (Successors) as by the time of the Roman-Macedon Wars the Greeks and Macedonians were fighting in a way very similar in terms of tactics to the way battles were waged since before the original Persian invasions centuries earlier. The elongation of the sarissa's to 20 feet or better made the already inflexible phalanx a nearly impossible to maneuver formation as the constant warfare eroded the Greeks ability top sustain massed casualties in the pursuit of victory. Their further modification of the phalanx following the exploits of Antigonus the One Eyed (a man who deserves his own book) showcased the need to defeat the enemy while keeping him entirely away from ones own space. It was an attempt to achieve victory without closing in for the kill, and the modular, open order of the early Roman legions, designed for close in, rapid maneuver tactical warfare, entirely took advantage of this Greek doctrinal weakness.
Had the author spent more time on the evolution of Greek warfare, and how it changed, or didn't, in the face of the invasions of the Gauls or the meeting of the Roman legions would have gone a long way towards filling out what is otherwise a collection of battle narratives.
However, for that this book is stellar. Personally I was thrilled by the depiction of the Battle of Magnesia between the Romans, their own Greek allies and the Seleucid Empire in central Anatolia (Turkey). The writing conveyed a sense of the scene as if you were an aide to either the Strategos or the Consul in charge, wonderful narrative flair without going into purple prose. The drawback, however, is that the battle narrative lacks context, hence my desire for a 3.5 rating.
All in all a good book. If the author ever finishes his proposed work on 'Great Battles of the Classical Greek World', I'll be sure to purchase a copy. However, as a word of advice, maybe a bit more on the context of each battle. It would help those less familiar with ancient military history. But for those who are familiar with the time period, it's a thrilling look at some of the greatest battles in Western history.
Solidly recommended.
November 2, 2015
Excellent review of Hellenistic warfare
This is an outstanding summary of Greek warfare in general and the development and modification of the phalanx both before and after Alexander the Greats campaigns. The author provides the correct balance between describing the political/strategic background while emphasizing how the tactical role of the phalanx evolved. Highly recommended.
This is an outstanding summary of Greek warfare in general and the development and modification of the phalanx both before and after Alexander the Greats campaigns. The author provides the correct balance between describing the political/strategic background while emphasizing how the tactical role of the phalanx evolved. Highly recommended.
November 14, 2020
One of the more consistent aspects of the Hellenistic World was the continual fighting that took place between the various successor states to Alexander the Great. Some empires bring periods of peace, but it never seems as if the various regimes of the Hellenistic world were able to be at peace for any length of time at all. Whether the states were fighting against each other over territory in Greece, Anatolia, or the Middle East, whether they were fighting with peripheral states like Rome and Parthia and the Galatians, or whether there was some sort of civil conflict going on between rival children of a previous emperor, the various states that proliferated in the breakup of Alexander the Great's Macedonian empire found themselves constantly fighting, or at least it seems that way to the contemporary reader, and this book serves a valuable purpose in providing a discussion of what the author considers to be the great battles of the time period between 340 and 150 BC. To be sure, this book could have included a lot more, but it makes for a compelling piece of military history in that it discusses both familiar battles (often under unfamiliar names) as well as unfamiliar battles, like the struggle between Antigonus and Eumenes in Persia, that deserve to be better known.
This book is a moderately sized one at between 200 and 250 pages. It begins with acknowledgements, a preface, a key to the maps, and an introduction that discusses the importance of understanding war to understand the Hellenistic era. After that the book is divided into five parts. The first part of the book looks at some of the battles of Phillip and Alexander that set up the Hellenistic age to begin with, namely Chaironeia and the domination of the Greeks, Grakios, Issos, and Guagamela that led to the conquest of the Persian Empire by Alexander, and the Hydapses River that allowed Alexander to win before leaving India. The second part of the book discusses the battles of the first generation of successors, which included the battles of Paraitakene and Gabiene between Antigonus and Eumenes, the defeat of Demetrius at Gaza, and the decisive battle of Ipsos that led to Antigonus' death. The third part of the book then looks at the three battles of Pyrrhos of Epeiros against the Romans, his victories at Heraklea and Asculum and this his crushing defeat at Beneventum. The fourth part of the book looks at later battles like Sellasia and Raphia. Finally, the fifth section of the book discusses the battles of the Roman conquest of Greece and Anatolia, with a look at Kynoskephalai, Magnesia, and Pydna, as well as a conclusion, notes, bibliography, and index that round out the work.
One of the aspects of the Great Battles of the Hellenistic world that the author succeeds at wonderfully is explaining the context of the battles and their aftermath. It can be hard to keep all the names apart, and the author does a good job in creating the narrative that allows the battles to make sense, and also does a good job at discussing the various tactical innovations that followed the depopulation of Macedonian fighting males for various armies, showing how it is that Macedonians were made out of local troops where they could not be obtained, and how it was that war elephants played a pivotal role in some battles because of their abilities to counter cavalry and block up sections of a battlefield. One of the notable aspects seen here is that most of the battles discussed in this book were either battles between Greeks and Romans or between Greeks and other Greeks, demonstrating that making a battle great required there to be noteworthy peoples on both sides of the field, rather than on one. Sadly, none of the battles of the Jewish War of Independence against the Seleucids made the cut. Admittedly, though, that would have made the book longer and required the author to deal with questions of religion that might still be contentious.
This book is a moderately sized one at between 200 and 250 pages. It begins with acknowledgements, a preface, a key to the maps, and an introduction that discusses the importance of understanding war to understand the Hellenistic era. After that the book is divided into five parts. The first part of the book looks at some of the battles of Phillip and Alexander that set up the Hellenistic age to begin with, namely Chaironeia and the domination of the Greeks, Grakios, Issos, and Guagamela that led to the conquest of the Persian Empire by Alexander, and the Hydapses River that allowed Alexander to win before leaving India. The second part of the book discusses the battles of the first generation of successors, which included the battles of Paraitakene and Gabiene between Antigonus and Eumenes, the defeat of Demetrius at Gaza, and the decisive battle of Ipsos that led to Antigonus' death. The third part of the book then looks at the three battles of Pyrrhos of Epeiros against the Romans, his victories at Heraklea and Asculum and this his crushing defeat at Beneventum. The fourth part of the book looks at later battles like Sellasia and Raphia. Finally, the fifth section of the book discusses the battles of the Roman conquest of Greece and Anatolia, with a look at Kynoskephalai, Magnesia, and Pydna, as well as a conclusion, notes, bibliography, and index that round out the work.
One of the aspects of the Great Battles of the Hellenistic world that the author succeeds at wonderfully is explaining the context of the battles and their aftermath. It can be hard to keep all the names apart, and the author does a good job in creating the narrative that allows the battles to make sense, and also does a good job at discussing the various tactical innovations that followed the depopulation of Macedonian fighting males for various armies, showing how it is that Macedonians were made out of local troops where they could not be obtained, and how it was that war elephants played a pivotal role in some battles because of their abilities to counter cavalry and block up sections of a battlefield. One of the notable aspects seen here is that most of the battles discussed in this book were either battles between Greeks and Romans or between Greeks and other Greeks, demonstrating that making a battle great required there to be noteworthy peoples on both sides of the field, rather than on one. Sadly, none of the battles of the Jewish War of Independence against the Seleucids made the cut. Admittedly, though, that would have made the book longer and required the author to deal with questions of religion that might still be contentious.
December 16, 2018
Wonderfully researched and written book which focuses almost solely on the buildup to and execution of 17 different major battles of the ancient world. The time period covers from Alexander the Great (and his father Phillip) until the fall of Greece and Macedonia to the Romans. A great book if you like tactics and clearly drawn maps rather than romanticized stories.
December 23, 2025
entertaining
A very good synopsis of the Macedonian phalanx and its impact on war. The background and setup of each battle was good and gave a good understanding of the impact and slow movement of the system. It is inevitable that it would see its day and the Roman legion saw its demise. A good read.
A very good synopsis of the Macedonian phalanx and its impact on war. The background and setup of each battle was good and gave a good understanding of the impact and slow movement of the system. It is inevitable that it would see its day and the Roman legion saw its demise. A good read.
July 18, 2022
Maps of battles were OK, could have been labeled better. And the book really could have benefited from maps showing the battle locations.
June 7, 2014
I loved this book almost as much as I loved "Masters of Command" (my new favorite history book). It starts each chapter by laying out the broad campaign and explaining it in detail. Then in zooms into each battle and explains the tactics and how the battle field effected the outcome. It also goes in depth on the strengths and weaknesses of each leader and their army. Finally it plays out the battle step by step with views from both sides. All in all this book was a pleasure to read and I hope that the author continues their great work.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews