Search Results: Ancient Military History from Viceroy Books

Osprey Pub Co, 2001. New book, 96 pages, CAM084. ’Never, except in the battle of Cannae, had there been so destructive a slaughter recorded in our annals.’ Thus the Roman historian Ammianus Marcellinus recorded the battle of Adrianople, which spelled the beginning of the end of the Roman Empire. Such a crushing Roman defeat by Gothic cavalry proved to the Empire, as well as to the Goths themselves, that the migratory barbarians were a force to be reckoned with. This book tells the story of the misguided Roman plans and the surprise attack of Gothic cavalry, and puts forward the most recent theories as to the true location of the battlefield. Contents: Origins of the Campaign; Opposing Commanders; Opposing Armies; Opposing Plans; The Campaign & Battle; Aftermath; Chronology; Bibliography; The battlefield today; Index.. Soft Cover. As New. Illus. by Gerrard, Howard. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" Tall.

Osprey Pub Co, 2001. New book, 96 pages, CAM084. ’Never, except in the battle of Cannae, had there been so destructive a slaughter recorded in our annals.’ Thus the Roman historian Ammianus Marcellinus recorded the battle of Adrianople, which spelled the beginning of the end of the Roman Empire. Such a crushing Roman defeat by Gothic cavalry proved to the Empire, as well as to the Goths themselves, that the migratory barbarians were a force to be reckoned with. This book tells the story of the misguided Roman plans and the surprise attack of Gothic cavalry, and puts forward the most recent theories as to the true location of the battlefield. Contents: Origins of the Campaign; Opposing Commanders; Opposing Armies; Opposing Plans; The Campaign & Battle; Aftermath; Chronology; Bibliography; The battlefield today; Index.. Soft Cover. As New. Illus. by Gerrard, Howard. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" Tall.

Histoire & Collection, 2011. New book, 66 pages. The Romans had been at odds with the 'Gauls' for a very long time indeed. Somewhere between 390 and 386 BC, a Senoni warchief called Brennus managed to capture Rome and ransom the city with his famous Vae Victis. Nonetheless, the sack of Latium’s capital, highlighted by Livy in his History of Rome, helped to forge a centuries-old loathing between the Romans, ashamed of being forced to capitulate to Brennus, and the Gauls, insolently proud of their triumph. The next step was part of the competition between the 'Great Powers' of the period. Independent Gaul was implicated in the global expansionist process of Roman might, which took place throughout the whole of the Mediterranean basin. Finally, Gaul merely became a political pawn in the hands of the triumvirs Pompey, Crassus and Caesar after they took over control of the Republic at the end of its decline, from the 60s BC onwards. It was therefore as a victim of what was at… Read More

Oxford, United Kingdom: Osprey Pub Co, 2007. New book, 96 pages, ESS067. Complex and unstable, in 922 BC the kingdom of Ancient Israel was divided into Judah, in the South, and Israel, in the North. For the next 200 years, there was almost constant warring between these kingdoms and their neighbors. These bitter feuds eventually led to the collapse of Israel, leaving Judah as a surviving nation until the emergence of the Babylonian Empire, the destruction of Jerusalem in 586 BC, and the exile of the Judean people. Using ancient Jewish, Biblical, and other contemporary sources, this title examines the politics, fighting, and consequences of Israel's battles during this period. Focusing on the turbulent relationship between the kingdoms of Israel and Judah, this book explains Israel's complex, often bloody, foreign policy, and provides a definitive history of these ancient conflicts. Contents: Introduction - Chronology - Background to War - Warring Sides - Outbreak - The Fighting - Portrait of a… Read More

Pen & Sword, 2009. New book, 164 pages. Alexander the Great is often regarded as the greatest military genius of all time (Julius Caesar wept at the feet of his statue in envy of his achievements). Most of his thirteen year reign as king of Macedon was spend in hard campaigning, during which he was never defeated in open battle and never besieged a city he did not take. Yet, while biographies of Alexander abound, there are relatively few full length books dedicated to the Macedonian army which made his dazzling conquests possible. Stephen English investigates every element of the Macedonian forces, analysing the recruitment, equipment, organisation, command and tactics of each of the fighting arms (including the famous pike phalanxes, elite hypaspists, and incomparable Companion Cavalry). Alexander's naval forces are also covered. The author draws on recent archaeological evidence and scholoarship to present a detailed portrait of the army which conquered half the known world and repeatedly… Read More

Vintage, 2009. New book, 290 pages. Attila the Hun - godless barbarian and near mythical warrior king - has become a byword for mindless ferocity. His brutal attacks smashed through the frontiers of the Roman empire in a savage wave of death and destruction. His reign of terror shattered an imperial world that had been securely unified by the conquests of Julius Caesar five centuries before. This book goes in search of the real Attila the Hun. For the first time it reveals the history of an astute politician and first-rate military commander who brilliantly exploited the strengths and weaknesses of the Roman empire. We ride with Attila and the Huns from the windswept steppes of Kazakhstan to the opulent city of Constantinople, the the Great Hungarian Plain to the fertile fields of Champagne in France. Challenging our own ideas about barbarians and Romans, imperialism and civilisation, terrorists and superpowers, this is the absorbing story of an extraordinary and complex individual who helped to bring… Read More

Oxford, United Kingdom: Osprey Publishing Ltd, 2006. New book, 224 pages. Sieges played a central role in many conflicts of the ancient world, and generals such as Darius, Alexander the Great, Hannibal and Scipio Africanus successfully used siegecraft to gain their objectives. As siege tactics became an integral part of war, generals employed the minds of engineers and scientists to develop tactics that ranged from penetrating the defences or blockading the city through tricks and deception. This fascinating book explores the development of siege warfare in the ancient world from Ancient Persia in the 6th century BC to the 4th century Roman World, examining the techniques and weapons on this period.. Hard Cover. As New/As New. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall.

Shire Books, 2004. New book, 64 pages. In AD 60, only seventeen years after the Roman invasion of Britain, the Iceni and Trinovantes of East Anglia and Essex joined forces in revolt against the harsh and oppressive Roman administration of the province. Their leader was Queen Boudica of the Iceni. With most of the Roman army away on campaign in North Wales, the Britons faced little initial resistance. The Roman cities of Colchester, London and Verulamium were sacked before Boudica and her warriors were defeated at a pitched battle against the Roman general Suetonius Paullinus in the Midlands.This book tells the story of how the Romans coped with the most serious threat to their hold on Britain and explains the important contribution archaeology has made towards understanding the revolt.. Soft Cover. As New. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall.

Oxford, United Kingdom: Osprey Publishing Ltd, 1994. New book, 96 pages, CAM036. Cannae is rightly regarded as one of the greatest battles of military history. Hannibal's stratagem has become a model of the perfectly fought battle and is studied in detail at military academies around the world. At Cannae the Romans confronted Hannibal with an army of 80,000 infantry and 6,000 cavalry. Hannibal faced them with 40,000 foot and 10,000 horse. The engagement that followed was a masterpiece of battlefield control. By the end of the conflict the Romans had lost 47,500 infantry and 2,700 cavalry killed and a further 19,300 captured.. Soft Cover. As New. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall.

Allen Lane, 2010. New book, 521 pages. The devastating struggle to the death between the Carthaginians and the Romans was one of the defining dramas of the Ancient World. In an epic series of land and sea battles both sides came close to victory before the Carthaginians finally buckled and their capital city, history and culture were almost utterly erased. The last great threat to Roman supremacy across the entire Mediterranean had gone, fulfilling Cato the Elder's insistent demand that 'Carthage must be destroyed'. This book brilliantly brings to life this lost empire - from its origins among the Phoenician settlements of Lebanon to its apotheosis as the greatest sea-power in the Mediterranean, with interests stretching from the Middle East to southern Spain. Roman ferocity tried to remove Carthage from history, but it is possible nonetheless to create an extraordinary narrative of a civilization which left an indelible, if often hidden legacy for those that followed. At the heart of all… Read More

Pen & Sword, 2010. New book, 259 pages. In the later 2nd century BC, after a period of rapid expansion and conquest, the Roman Republic found itself in crisis. In North Africa her armies were already bogged down in a long and difficult guerrilla war in a harsh environment when an invasion by a coalition of Germanic tribes, the Cimbri, Teutones and Ambrones, threatened Italy and Rome itself, inflicting a series of heavy reverses on Roman forces, culminating in the catastrophic defeat at the Battle of Arausio. Gaius Marius was the man of the hour. He brought the first war to a victorious end, crushing the Numidian King Jugurtha in battle and leading him back to Rome in chains. Before his ship even returned to Italy, the senate elected Marius to lead the war against the northern invaders. Reorgaising and reinvigorating the demoralised Roman legions, he led them to two remarkable victories in the space of months, crushing the Teutones and Ambrones at Aquae Sextiae and the Cimbri at Vercellae. The… Read More

Greenhill Press, 2007. New book, 287 pages. Ancient Rome was uniquely bellicose. Her legionaries are often cited as the original professional soldiers and famed for their iron discipline, but they were also formidable individual warriors, sometimes berserks, who gloried in single combat, taking heads and despoiling their enemies. They were men who believed they were sired by a god of war, driven by the need to create and sustain heroic reputations, and who disrobed in public to display battle scars. Yet these same warriors read philosophy, wrote history and recited poetry. For the Glory of Rome introduces the heroic, yet utterly ruthless, men who carved out the Roman Empire. The author examines the deeds of men like Siccius Dentatus, the victor of eight single combats and a hero of the common people; Decius Mus, the consul who charged into the midst of the enemy at Sentinum to devote himself to the gods of the Underworld; and the feuding centurions Pullo and Vorenus, rivals for every post and honour… Read More

Osprey Pub Co, 2007. New book, 96 pages, CAM182. Granicus River was Alexander's first great victory over the Persians, where he demonstrated the heroic style of active and decisive leadership that was the hallmark of his career. In the initial engagement, Alexander's 5,000 cavalry, supported by archers and javelin men, routed a force of 20,000 Persian cavalry This convincing victory was the springboard for the subjugation of the coastal cities, the neutralisation of the Persian navy and ultimately the conquest of the Persian Empire. Exploring the courageous leadership of one of the world's most inspirational yet ruthless leaders, this book provides a detailed analysis of the battle, strategy and tactics of the forces engaged. Contents: Origins of the Campaign - Chronology - Opposing Commanders - Opposing Armies - Opposing Plans - Campaign - The Battle - Aftermath - Battlefield Today - Bibliography.. Soft Cover. As New. Illus. by Hook, Richard. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall.

Oxford, United Kingdom: Osprey Publishing, Limited, 2003. New book, 95 pages, ESS036. This book covers one of the defining periods of European history. The series of wars between the Classical Greeks and the Persian Empire produced the famous battles of Marathon, Thermopylae and Salamis, as well as an ill-fated attempt to overthrow the Persian king in 400 BC, which helped to inspire the conquests of Alexander the Great.To tell the story of these momentous events, of the lives of great men and women, of the societies and cultures that produced them, and to explain how and why they came into conflict was the aim of Herodotus, 'the Father of History', whose account of the wars is our principal source and the first book to be called a 'history'.. Soft Cover. As New. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall.

Osprey Pub Co, 2010. New book, 64 pages, CMD11. By the end of the First Punic War Carthage had been humiliatingly chased from the high seas, its once-powerful fleet reduced to a handful of triremes. However in 219 BC Hannibal, the eldest son of the charismatic general Hamilcar Barca, began the Second Punic War and was so successful that he threatened to destroy Roman power completely. Hannibal was a cool, thoughtful general, and can arguably be described as the greatest general of antiquity. His genius rested on a mixture of bluff, double bluff, and an ability to use all troop types to their best advantage. The battle of Cannae remains a chef-d'oeuvre to which generations of subsequent generals have aspired.. Soft Cover. As New. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall.

Osprey Pub Co, 2010. New book, 64 pages, CMD04. One of the greatest military commanders in history, Julius Caesar's most famous victory - the conquest of Gaul - was to him little more than a stepping stone to power. An audacious and decisive general, his victories over the Gauls allowed him to challenge for the political leadership of Rome. Leading a single legion across the Rubicon in 49 BC, Caesar launched a civil war which would end the Roman Republic and usher in the Roman Empire, with Caesar at its helm. This examination of the great general's life covers his great victories and few defeats, looking at the factors which lay behind his military genius.. Soft Cover. As New. Illus. by Dennis, Peter. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall.

Oxford, United Kingdom: Osprey Pub Co, 2007. New book, 224 pages. To the classical civilisations of Greece and Rome, the Celtic Warrior of the late Iron Age was the archetypal barbarian: savage, undisciplined, and bloodthirsty beyond belief. In a clash of cultures that lasted almost five hundred years, the rich and vibrant society in which he lived, fought and died was vitually destroyed, becoming the stuff of myth and legend. Covering the period from the first mention of Celts by ancient Greek writers to the Roman conquest of Britain. Stephen Allen examines the Celtic warrior, his society and his place within it, and the conflicts that would eventually destroy his world. Beautifully illustrated with colour photos of Celtic artefacts and craftsmanship, this book provides a fascinating insight into a culture whose legacy has endured to the present day.. Hard Cover. As New/As New. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall.

Osprey Pub Co, 2010. New book, 96 pages, CAM224. In AD 77, Roman forces under Agricola marched into the northern reaches of Britain in an attempt to pacify the Caledonian tribesman. For seven years, the Romans marched and battled across what is now Scotland. Finally, in AD 83, they fought the final battle at Mons Graupius where 10,000 Caledonians were slaughtered from only 360 Roman dead. It proved the high-water mark of Roman power in Britain. Following unrest elsewhere in the empire, the north of Scotland was abandoned and Rome’s forces began their long retreat. Never again would Roman arms stand on the edge of the known world. Contents: Origins of the campaign, Chronology, Opposing forces, Opposing commanders and plans, The campaign, The battle, Aftermath, The battlefield today, Bibliography, Abbreviations, Index.. Soft Cover. As New. Illus. by O'Brogain, Sean. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall.

University Park, Illinois, U.S.A.: Osprey Pub Co, 2002. New book, 95 pages, ESS027. It is a testament to the fascination of the subject that even today the events of the Peloponnesian War are studied for what they can teach about diplomacy, strategy and tactics. This book reveals the darker side of Classical Greek civilization. From the horrific effects of overcrowding and the plague on the population of Athens, to the vicious civil strife that often erupted in cities allied with Athens or Sparta, this volume offers vivid and at times disturbing insights into the impact of warfare on the people who are celebrated as the founders of Western civilization. . Soft Cover. As New. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall.

University Park, Illinois, U.S.A.: Osprey Pub Co, 2002. New book, 95 pages, ESS027. It is a testament to the fascination of the subject that even today the events of the Peloponnesian War are studied for what they can teach about diplomacy, strategy and tactics. This book reveals the darker side of Classical Greek civilization. From the horrific effects of overcrowding and the plague on the population of Athens, to the vicious civil strife that often erupted in cities allied with Athens or Sparta, this volume offers vivid and at times disturbing insights into the impact of warfare on the people who are celebrated as the founders of Western civilization. . Soft Cover. As New. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall.