Xenophon's Hellenica is a Classical Greek historical narrative divided into seven books that describe Greco-Persian history in the years BCE 411-362. The first two books narrate the final years of the Peloponnesian War from the exact moment in time at which Thucydides' history ends. The remaining books, three to seven, focus primarily on the Spartans military and political machinations as the dominant city-state in Greece after the Pelopessenian wars end. The Hellenica also covers the rise of Thebes as a major military power, and the brief period known as the Theban hegemony.
Many consider this a very personal work, written by Xenophon in retirement on his Spartan estate, intended primarily for circulation among his friends, for people who knew the main protagonists and events, often because they had participated in them. It is one of the principal sources for the final seven years of the Peloponnesian War not covered by Thucydides, and the war's aftermath.
This case laminate collector's edition includes a Victorian inspired dust-jacket.
Author Biography:
Xenophon of Athens (c. 431 BC - 354 BC) was an ancient Greek philosopher, historian, soldier, mercenary, and student of Socrates. As a soldier, Xenophon became commander of the Ten Thousand at about 30, with noted military historian Theodore Ayrault Dodge saying of him, "the centuries since have devised nothing to surpass the genius of this warrior." He established the precedent for many logistical operations and was among the first to use flanking maneuvers, feints and attacks in depth. He was among the greatest commanders of antiquity. As a historian, Xenophon is known for recording the history of his time, the late-5th and early-4th centuries BC, in such works as the Hellenica, which covered the final seven years and the aftermath of the Peloponnesian War (431-404 BC), thus representing a thematic continuation of Thucydides' History of the Peloponnesian War. As one of the Ten Thousand (Greek mercenaries), Xenophon participated in Cyrus the Younger's failed campaign to claim the Persian throne from his brother Artaxerxes II of Persia. He recounted the events in Anabasis, his most notable history. Like Plato, Xenophon is an authority on Socrates, about whom he wrote several books of dialogues (the Memorabilia) and an Apology of Socrates to the Jury, which recounts the philosopher's trial in 399 BC. Despite being born an Athenian citizen, Xenophon was also associated with Sparta, the traditional enemy of Athens. His pro-oligarchic politics, military service under Spartan generals in the Persian campaign and elsewhere, and his friendship with King Agesilaus II endeared Xenophon to the Spartans. Some of his works have a pro-Spartan bias, especially the royal biography Agesilaus and the Constitution of the Spartans. Xenophon's works span several genres and are written in plain-language Attic Greek, for which reason they serve as translation exercises for contemporary students of the Ancient Greek language. In the Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers, Diogenes La�rtius observed that, as a writer, Xenophon of Athens was known as the "Attic Muse," for the sweetness of his diction.
