Athens and Sparta : the rivalry that shaped ancient Greece / Adrian Goldsworthy.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Goldsworthy, Adrian Keith, Author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Athens (Greece)--History.

Athens (Greece).

Sparta (Extinct city)--History.

Sparta (Extinct city).

Greece--History--Athenian supremacy, 479-431 B.C.

Greece.

Greece--History--Peloponnesian War, 431-404 B.C.

Sparta (Extinct city)--Civilization.

Greece--History--Persian Wars, 500-449 B.C.

Athens (Greece)--Civilization.

Sparta (Extinct city)--Athenian supremacy, 479-431 B.C.

Physical Description:

x, 622 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : color illustrations, maps ; 25 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Other Title:

Rivalry that shaped ancient Greece

Place of Publication:

New York : Basic Books, 2026.

Summary:

"From an award-winning historian, the definitive history of classical Greece and the rivalry of its two greatest cities. No period has more profoundly influenced the Western world than classical Greece, and at its center stood two cities: Athens and Sparta. Side by side, they beat the Persians, the only superpower of that age. Yet later, they spread conflict and destruction throughout the eastern Mediterranean, culminating in the horrors of the Peloponnesian War. Athens and Sparta tells the definitive history of the relationship between brutal, militaristic Sparta and brash, radically democratic Athens. Eminent historian Adrian Goldsworthy narrates their incredible rise to prominence and how they became allies, rivals, and enemies. Ultimately, Goldsworthy shows that Athens and Sparta were more than competitors vying for power. They were polar opposites in ideology and culture, both driven by the Greek longing to excel, who led radically different experiments in how to run a state. A remarkable account of ancient Greece at its height, this is the tale of the two cities that helped build it-before almost tearing it apart"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

List of maps

Acknowledgments

Prologue

Introduction

Part One: The rise of the cities. Greeks

Land and cities

The lawgiver

The great pronouncement

The tyrants

The people

The peers

The spearmen

Part Two: Yoke fellows: The struggle iwth the Persian empire. Great kings

The charge

The ships and the conference

The 300-and the 700 and the rest

The wooden walls

The great battle

Honour, prestige, and empire

Part Three: Great evils for the Greeks. Tremors

Peace, pride, and power

The general

The causes and the true reason

The beginning of great evils for the Hellenes

Something unheard of

Fickle fortune

Lust for glory

'Ships lost...don't know what to do'

To the sounds of flutes and celebration

Conclusion

Chronology

Notes

Bibliography

Illustration credits

Index.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9781541619982

1541619986

OCLC:

1535238048

Publisher Number:

90104535233