From Sumer to Rome: The Military Capabilities of Ancient Armies

(Hardback)

Publishing Details

Classifications

Physical Properties

Description

This in-depth work demonstrates that ancient battles rivaled those of the modern period in size, complexity, and lethality. The organization of armies of the ancient world, their performance, their military operations, and their ability to raise the art of warfare to towering heights are the focus of this carefully documented volume. An examination is made of all the major military establishments of the Bronze and Iron Ages. Pertinent evidence is gathered from a number of disciplines and integrated into a coherent whole. Corroborative evidence is drawn from modern analysis when accepting or rejecting the claims of ancient writers. Where that was lacking, the authors conducted empirical studies of ancient weapons, which led to a better understanding of how ancient battles were really fought. The book concludes with description and analysis of the armies of the ancient world placed in a modern perspective. From Sumer to Rome provides a detailed portrait of the world's earliest military establishments. A number of military innovations and developments that came to fruition in the Iron Age and that remained are traced. An empirical analysis of all the major weapons of the ancient armies is made. The factors that played dominant roles in outcomes are explored and thorough analysis of military medical care systems is provided. This book will be an excellent addition to the libraries of military historians, students of ancient warfare and weaponry, and the general reader.

Reviews

"This is a fascinating book shedding new light on the killing power of early weapons and on the sophistication of ancient warfare. It also contains a stimulating section on the wounds caused by individual weapons, on the treatment of those wounds, and on the effect of disease in ancient armies. Although the book deals with the military history of the ancient Mediterranean, it treats many topics that are crucial for the study of military history down to modern times. All military historians will find this book useful. It is a welcome and important contribution to the history of warfare."-Arther Ferrill Professor of History University of Washington

Author Bio

RICHARD A. GABRIEL is a military historian, adjunct professor of Ethics and Humanities at Daniel Webster College, and a former Army intelligence officer. He is the author of 24 books, including the Greenwood Press publications The Culture of War: Invention and Early Development (1990), The Painful Field: The Psychiatric Dimension of Modern War (1988), and To Serve With Honor: A Treatise on Military Ethics and the Way of the Soldier (1982). KAREN S. METZ is an academic librarian and a former medical librarian. She is the author of Information Sources in Power Engineering: A Guide to Energy Resources and Technology (Greenwood Press, 1975).