The Western Way of War

Infantry Battle in Classical Greece

Victor Davis Hanson

• Publisher: University of California Press
• Year: 2009
• Print ISBN: 9780520260092
• eBook ISBN: 9780520944107
• Edition: 2
• Topic: History
• Subtopic: Ancient History
• Index: History

The Greeks of the classical age invented not only the central idea of Western politics—that the power of state should be guided by a majority of its citizens—but also the central act of Western warfare, the decisive infantry battle. Instead of ambush, skirmish, or combat between individual heroes, the Greeks of the fifth century B.C. devised a ferocious, brief, and destructive head-on clash between armed men of all ages. In this bold, original study, Victor Davis Hanson shows how this brutal enterprise was dedicated to the same outcome as consensual government—an unequivocal, instant resolution to dispute. Linking this new style of fighting to the rise of constitutional government, Hanson raises new issues and questions old assumptions about the history of war. A new preface addresses recent scholarship on Greek warfare.

Table of contents

• Contents
• Introduction
• Preface
• Preface to the 2009 Edition
• Chronological Table
• I: The Greeks and Modern Warfare
• II: The Ordeal of the Hoplite
• III: The Triumph of Will
• IV: Battle!
• V: Aftermath
• Abbreviations of Ancient Authors and their Works Used in this Book
• Select Bibliography
• Supplementary Bibliography
• Index
• Index Locorum