Customer Reviews

The Fall of the Athenian Empire (A New History of the Peloponnesian War)

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The Peloponnesian War, along with the myriad feuds that latched on to the central conflict between Sparta and Athens in the latter half of the fifth century BCE, can be an exhausting subject. The civil and international politics involved in fostering and perpetuating the war rival even today's most complex conflicts.

In this, The fourth and final installment of Kagan's history of the Peloponnesian War. Kagan skillfully rounds out the set and the war itself. These books come in and out of circulation, so best to get ahold of them while they're available. Again, Kagan's work is superb

For the historian, or avid history buff (however you might self-identify), these works are a necessary addition to your library. The more casual reader might, however, consider purchasing Kagan's abridged work entitled simply "The Peloponnesian War." It includes the main thrust of the narrative, but with markedly less analysis of the political motivations included in these volumes.

More difficult read than the other books in the series due to the intricacy of Athenian politics from 411-404 BC and the paucity of source material. However, the prose continues to be strong and the narrative captivating. Kagan is the very best -- accept no substitutes.

This is an outstanding documentary and analysis of the causes of the fall of the Athenian Empire which occurs as a result of the P. This history begins after the failure of the Sicilian Expedition and provided considerable more detail and analysis than his "History of the Peloponnesian War" which is an excellent book for the general reader who wants to know more about this important war. This documentary provided signifiantly more detail and analysis than Thucydidas history of the same war.

I highly recommend this to the serious student of the Peloponnesian War.