Customer Reviews

The Spartans

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

On the whole the book was excellent, especially when it comes to photographs of archaeological remains. The only thing I had a problem with, being new to greek warfare, was that to get full use of the book a prior knowledge of Greek basics is needed. This would not be a book I would suggest for the introductory reader. One example of the difficulties is that he speaks of several different groups that make up the "Spartans," but never explains how they relate, who they are, etc. If you are looking for photographs of archaeological remains this is definately a book you can use and if you have a basic background in Greek warfare it will also be helpful in providing good, solid, and authoritative information.

There's nothing like an illustrated study of an ancient epoch to really thrust you back into the essence of what it was like to live during the period under consideration. Such is the case with this present edition from the Osprey Military ELITE SERIES.

This book is rich in the amount of information that it bestows to the reader on what it must have been like to be a Laconian warrior some 2,500 years ago. The book details a rough historical outline of the Spartans as it concentrates on the rigorous training, tactics, dress, social structure, eating habits, rituals, organization, discipline, attitudes and alliances of the Laconians.

The text is adorned with sundry pictures of artifacts and artwork from ancient Greece that bring help the reader visualize the topics being discussed by the archeologist author, Nick Sekunda. The middle pages offer lush modern illustrations of different Spartans and allies in the way scholars believe they were dressed and armed. One of the paintings depicts the key moment of Amompharetos' insubordination of Pausanias' orders @ the battle of Platea in 479BC.

For those who have the ambition to learn all they possibly can about this majestic race, this text belongs on your bookshelf. For those who have a passing curiousity in the Lacedamons, this edition serves as a superb introduction.

I use these books when making historically based drawings. As reference material they are generally excellent. The illustrations are by no means top notch but the gritty little details of everyday life make them great for both Artists and Reinactors but the skimpy text makes them too light for historians. The greek hopolite book is the better of the two editions.

The Spartan Army was my first read in the Osprey series. From the posted reviews I expected something more thorough and written with a style typically found in historical references. What I discovered was a picture book with a very small amount of supporting text. Outside of a brief description of the territory, the military organization and fashion (yes that's right I said fashion) of the period I found little useful information in this book. An example of the paucity of information would be how the book detailed the organization of the military into divisions, but failed to mention even the most famous of the Spartan division leaders or Generals. The book spoke of the weapons used to fight, but did not describe any battles. I also think the organization of the book is somewhat confusing leading to disconnected passages and topics as opposed to drawing a history from beginning to end. The illustrations and photos, while nice, are captioned in a way to make it confusing at times whether the items are Spartan authentic or just general for the period. As opposed to my original expectation for a thorough treatment of Spartan history, I think the book is best used as a supporting set of pictures and illustrations for a more comprehensive treatment of the Spartan army.

I love this whole series of books by Osprey on the warrior elite. Great book for kids. Lots of artwork. Easy to understand history and outline of Spartan culture. Great for the novice. May be too light for the serous student of Sparta. Well worth your money. Wyatt Kaldenberg

This title takes the reader past the infamous Battle of Thermopylae and examines the whole Spartan military system from its gradual birth in the 8th Century BC until its decline in the 4th. It captures numerous interesting details-like the poems of Tyrtaios and the brutal treatment of the helots. The 12 color plates are good, but would have looked better if by Angus McBride or Christa Hook. Overall it is a good source on this brutal warrior society and the state they fought to maintain for centuries.

This volume is part of a series purportedly presenting brief, due to page/space limitations, overall descriptions of the "elite" military units of the past (and some present as well). As far as it goes, the text here is fine and reasonably accurate, although there is little explanation of the origins of the three divisions in Spartan society, ie. the Spartiates themselves, the perioikoi, and the helots. An understanding of these elements is essential to any understanding of why Spartan society was indeed organized as it was. My greatest complaint, however, has to do with the illustrations. There is little to be done about the ancient portrayals and artifacts: they are as they are. However when an artist is brought in to provide illustrations, there should be some thought given by the authors/publishers to their purpose in including these illustrations. In this instance, Sekunda's representations of Spartan soldiers all look very much like Aztecs or Mayans and nothing like Greeks. Further,they all look exactly alike. Were they all interbred?
Compare these illustrations with those in the volume in the same series, The Ancient Greeks, with superb illustrations by Angus McBride. This is similar to my constant complaint about authors who illustrate their works on ancient "whatever" with page after page of Medieval and Renaissance art which, while easily and cheaply available, bear no resemblance to actuality and are thus misleading to readers. Authors and publishers need to pay more atention to the quality of the illustrations included in their works.

Frankly, I am disappointed in "The Spartan Army". Yes, there is some interesting information about the Spartan's, some I haven't read of before, but the author writes in a kind of haphazard rambling fashion that makes it difficult to extract the information. The author starts describing some aspect of Spartan life and then, just as it's becoming interesting, veers off to some other seemingly unconnected topic. It reads like a high school English class essay that the author threw together at the last minute.

Great book, it is short but very descriptive and accurate. Gives good general knowledge background on the Spartan army. What could make it better is to go into detail on the battle array and more tactics.

Enjoyed this book tremendously; Not only are the color plates excellent, but the photos of archaeological evidence are also great. Especially liked the plate of the warriors of Lycurcus' era (not many artists venture to illustrate this poorly documented period).