Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The First of the Great Captains, Unveiled, September 12, 2000
This book is not a biography -- it is a military history of the art of war during ancient times, with Alexander the Great prominently featured. This volume is the first of five (the next three also published by Da Capo Press) that the author uses to describe and prescribe the art of war. In this inaugural book, Dodge effectively defines his terms, principally the term strategy. This is important because this theme is progressed through the times and actions of Alexander, Hannibal, Caesar, Gustavus Adolphus, and Napoleon.Dodge's unique contribution to the subject comes from a few persepectives: first, Dodge was a soldier in the Union Army. His books were all published before the turn of the 20th century. He has often physically walked the terrain, studied the topography, and diligently compares the ancient accounts with common sense observation, with some surprising conclusions. Second, Dodge concentrates on what he is qualified to judge, military operations, tactics, leadership, and morale. He is not interesting in court politics, who loved whom, or how much it cost to outfit an elefant for battle. Many times these aspects are presented, but the author makes pains to state his inability to interpret such events. What he does do is to bring to life the man, his armies, battles, and campaigns. Most of all, the reader gets the sense of the Great Captain's position in the military story of man. There are some weaknesses. There is a sense of "post holing" as Dodge attempts to cover 3000 years of military history and innovation. At times, the military aspects receives more attention than it should, and the books ends rather abruptly instead of leading into the next volume: Hannibal. With these weaknesses in mind the reader will have an enjoyable experience. Dodge's style is crisp, entertaining, humorous at times, and always provocative as he inevitably compares ancient military practices with those that he was familiar with, 19th century America. The whole series is worth its weight.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A semenal work that should become a classic., September 23, 2002
Alexander by Theodore Dodge is a beautifully written book that delves into all relevant areas relating to Alexander's fight to spread Hellenism. The book gives detailed and unequivoval accounts of his great battles. It also gives one a good understanding for what military technology was available to Alexander at the time. It also focuses on the enemies of Alexander and their military strengths and developments. Theodore Dodge is a military historian and thus he does not go into the culture of both greece and Persia as much as I would have like him to. It is amazing how his work can still remain an authority after 100 years since its first publication. This shows what a great book it is and what an objective writer Theodore Dodge truly is. I have also read Hannibal and Caesar by the same author, and I find them equally great.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Spendid Classic, August 1, 2005
Its good to see the works of Dodge in print again. His six volumes chronicling the history and development of warfare were classics of their kind. Written in the 1880s, these books still have a lot to say about this subject. Granted some of the information on the organiaztion and tactics of ancient armies may be somewhat dated. Also Dodge's somewhat jaundiced view toward Asian non-western armies may seem a bit out of date in these hyper-politically correct times, but his opinions are always insightful and interesting.
What makes this history of Alexander different is the background development of ancient warfare leading up to his time, as well as the purely military analysis. The reader gets a first-rate discussion of military development and innovation before his time which places the Macedonian army and Alexander in greater perspective. You won't find this kind of depth in many other histories on Alexander. Other than JFC Fuller's analysis on Alexander's generalship, there are precious few works that devote much time to this most important aspect of his life. Whatever else Alexander was, and he was, and remains many different things to different people, he was, first and foremost, a great military genius. This is what we should remember him most for. Many more recent works often forget this important aspect, and place too much emphasis on his character. Many biographers try to read too much into his actions, and have their own agendas to pursue in discussing Alexander's actions. This must have been so in Dodges day as well as he often comments on this tendency.
One of the great things about Dodge is his often candid and frank observations. His writing style is also smooth and elegant. Too bad more historians today don't have this style of elegance anymore. Dodge avoids most of the controversial aspects surrounding Alexander's life, although he will often mention them in passing and offer a brief opinion. The reader is constantly reminded that this is a military analysis of the great Macedonian, not a biographical one. While Dodge's view is decidely pro-Alexander, he does acknowledge some of the darker aspects of his character. The reader is left to make his own judgement about these matters. Like Arrian, Dodge tries to stick to the matter at hand, and throughout maintains a solid and consistent narrative. The maps and diagrams provided may seem inadequate by today's standards, but they are numerous and very helpful in trying to understand Alexander's battles and campaigns. More works on Alexander should have maps like this.
Dodge provides a fine military narrative of Alexander. You won't find any mention of the deviant sides of his character, which is so popular today. For those aspects the reader should turn to the fanciful works of Mary Renault who freely discusses such things. Dodge's work is an excellent companion to any modern day biography of Alexander. You won't find any better discussion of the military aspects of his life than in these pages. Highly recommended for all interested in ancient warfare and the development of military conflict in general.
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