Book review: Great naval battles of the ancient greek world

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16 April 2019
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If your view of the battles of Greece’s city states is one of land-based action only then you’re missing half the story.

Author: Owen Rees

Reviewed by: Duncan Evans 

 

Buy your copy here.

 

If your view of the battles of Greece’s city states is one of land-based action only then you’re missing half the story. Trade and battle in the Mediterranean were key to the success and wealth of the main players. The author presents 13 key battles at sea over a century of Greek warfare in this follow up to his own Great Battles of the Classical Greek World book. These cover the Persian conflicts, Archidamian War, Ionian War and a couple of key battles at the start of the 4th century BC that defined who would be the major players in the coming years.

 

Each battle starts by setting the background, explains the forces arranged on either side, then gets into the fighting. The aftermath is then discussed because these battles all need to be set in context. The author does a good job of all of this, though, it might be worth reading his other Greek book first.

 

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Buy your copy here.

• Pen & Sword

• 222 pages • Hardback • £19.99

 

As reviewed in The Armourer May 2019.

 

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