The Landmark Arrian: The Campaigns of Alexander (Landmark Series)

Landmark's edition of Arrian's "Anabasis Alexandrou" (The Campaigns of Alexander) is absolutely fantastic. Each time I started to read it, I had a hard time putting it down. That Alexander did so much before turning 33 years old is just not believable. And furthermore, beyond the historical and political importance of Alexander, from a purely literary standpoint, the story of the expedition is always exciting and changing. Although there were many contemporaneous accounts made by people intimately involved with the expedition available to Arrian when he wrote, all these accounts have since disappeared. We are lucky to have Arrian's account. With respect to this particular edition of Arrian's account, the translation was new and extremely easy to read. The footnotes were excellent because they provided a continuous scholarly commentary. How many times do you make the effort to read all the footnotes, just to realize that you could have read the text twice as fast without missing anything important? Not here. This text has been the subject of much scholarly writing, and you get this information in the footnotes. More specifically, the footnotes very frequently bring in Plutarch's Alexander, Diodorus Siculus, and Quintus Curtius. Sometimes these notes provide new, additional information. Sometimes these footnotes provide conflicting information. Other times the notes address current day scholarly debate and research. Either way, you're left with a deeper appreciation of Arrian and the legend of Alexander. As with the other books in the Landmark series, there were frequent maps showing not only where the cities were, but also where they were in relation to other landmarks. Each chapter starts with an overview map of where the expedition went during that chapter in addition to more focused maps sprinkled frequently within each chapter. There are also maps in the beginning and the end of the book of all the locations mentioned, as well as maps of the whole expedition and the whole expedition mapped up against present-day political boarders. There are also pictures of what the geography and locations look like today as well as artifacts from the era. The 25-page intro by Paul Cartledge was good and the 2-6 page essays at the back of the book by various scholars, about 15 of them, were also very interesting, but not essential. But without a doubt, the star of the whole show was the excellent writing and research by Arrian, made accessible and appreciable by the translation and footnotes. Read the second introductory paragraph of Arrian's text and then smile. Arrian was a little full of himself, but he told the truth! My only regret about this edition was that it did not include a monograph by Arrian called the Indika, which described Nearkhos' parallel-to-Alexander's journey from the mouth of the Indus through the Persian Gulf by water. The Landmark edition frequently alludes to the Indika and could easily have included it. I'm not sure a good modern day translation of the Indika in English exists.

Rarely do books live up to the hype, but all the accolades you’ve read about this volume are correct. Arrian’s Anabasis Alexandrou rebranded here as “The Campaigns of Alexander” is a joy for the armchair historian. Arrian’s original text is punctuated throughout with: *Margin Notes (as to the timeline) *Footnotes by modern scholars as to the interpretations of Arrian’s turns of phrase (or corrections where Arrian got things wrong -especially needed when sizes of various armies are given. Arrian was prone to exaggerate the numbers) *Pictures. The drawing of the torsion catapult finally allowed me to wrap my head around this extremely important weapon. *Maps! OMG the maps are everywhere throughout the volume and are exceedingly helpful to pinpoint where the action was in the ancient world, and in what countries they would be in today. *Appendixes by modern historians covering a myriad of subjects to include but not limited to: the various campaigns; the composition of Alexander’s army; modern medical guestimates as to the cause of Alexander’s death; Greek notions of world geography; and the finances of Alexander’s Empire. As to Arrian’s narrative itself, even though it would be easy to dismiss a Greek historian living in the Roman Empire in the 2nd Century C.E thinking “Surely more modern takes on Alexander are more accurate”. However, counter intuitively, Arrian had in his lifetime access to first-hand accounts of Alexander’s campaigns that are no longer extant. While he quotes from many of them, the two most important are Ptolemy’s history of Alexander’s Campaigns, and Aristoboulos’s diary. Ptolemy being of course one of Alexander’s generals & successors; and Aristoboulos was an architect/engineer who accompanied Alexander’s army on its grand campaign/rampage across Asia. This gives Arrian's account a "you are there" feel not available anywhere else. Arrian’s writing is remarkably accessible even in this modern age. I’ve read books from the 18th century that are not nearly as easy to follow. While Arrian is an unapologetic admirer of Alexander and therefore glosses over many of his failings (such things as Alexander drinking to excess, pushing his campaign into India for no solid purpose, or the destruction of cities such as Thebes) these topics are more than addressed in the footnotes and appendices. If you want to retrace Alexander’s footsteps from the moment he inherited his crown until his death, THIS book has it all.

Arrian was a Greek philosopher and historian during the height of the Roman empire. He became a Roman citizen, served as consul, provincial governor, defended his province from invasion, and finally served as an archon (administrator) of Athens. His book on Alexander begins with the king's accession to the throne and ends with his death; the period in between is when he builds his empire and earns his legendary reputation. It's a military history, so it focuses mostly on military operations and tactics, battles, and Alexanders' skill as a leader. If this doesn't seem romantic, it's not. Alexander built his empire through war, and this is how he did it. There are some moments that show Alexander dealing with his subordinates, corresponding with his adversaries, or handling his army, but they are not your normal anecdotes; even the most colorful moments tie in with Alexander's military campaigns. When Alexander is not fighting, the book shows how he administered his empire after each new conquest. It's very interesting to see how he organized his empire, not just conquered it. It's important to understand than Arrian is one of only five sources on Alexander the Great that were written in ancient times. In other words, all modern historians draw their material from Arrian and the others. What sets Arrian apart is that he copied most of his information from memoirs written by Alexander's lieutenants, and he doesn't stray into any legends. The information Arrian makes use of focuses largely on the military aspect of the war, but it's also as authentic as it gets. This might not be the most romantic or glorious book, but it is the meat and potatoes of Alexander the Great. The Landmark edition is something else. You can't go ten pages without at least one map (usually several). There are pictures of artifacts, ruins, and natural scenery where Alexander traveled. The appendices really put the work into context and can stand alone as their own book; they offer professional analysis that might not occur to the casual reader. The introduction describes all the known sources on Alexander, which can help you further your reading. All in all, this book doesn't have everything on Alexander, but it is the single most informative book out there.

Full English language translation of complete original text - heavily annotated with (black & white) maps, charts, diagrams, photos, chronologies, glossary, index. Reasonably priced too. I have three others from this series - all super. Thanks to seller for quick, undamaged shipment of pristine book. abh

I'll have to update my review after reading the book, but as far as presentation goes, you can't beat it. A bit oversized in height and width, the book is also 500 pages thick and beautiful to look at. The cover is sturdy quality and the binding is very strong. The paper is nice and thick and a slight off white, while the printing quality is superb (for a paperback, but still excellent and easy on the eyes). The book is nicely illustrated and full of visual variety, the scholarship is well presented. Footnotes, side notes and appendices all easy to read and laid out spaciously. As much as I would love to have the hardback, this edition has won me over.

This is the third Landmark edition of a classical work that I have read, after Herodotus and Thycydides. I found it riveting and very instructive. (If "instructive" is a word with negative connotations for you, substitute "informative".) Arrian's history of Alexander's campaigns is probably least known to the general reader of the three, and many of us with vague memories of a freshman Civ course will remember perhaps two or three things about Alexander before our memories segue into Caesar et al. Let's see... the Gordian knot ... battles in Asia ... weeping because there are no more worlds to conquer ... Anything else worth remembering? Maybe not. Wrong. And this edition of Arrian will straighten you out. Sure, the battles are well illuminated, with the Landmark patent maps and illustrations. But this is not just military history. The editors want you to see how important Alexander to the spread of Greek language and culture into Asia Minor and Asia as far west as the Indus. There is a huge amount of helpful supporting information in the editors' notes and in the enthralling appendices. By the time you're done, Alexander will be a real person for you, and his major role in shaping our world will be very clear.

If you are interested in the history of Alexander the Great, then this is, in my opinion, the best single source. Arrian was an educated and accomplished military officer who served in the army of imperial Rome approximately 300 years after the time of Alexander. Though histories, myths, and legends were already in abundance, he set about to write a truly scholarly history based as nearly as possible on reliable sources. Arrian's history, translated into English, is set forth in full in this book. However, this book is more than a mere translation of an ancient work. The editor, James Romm, a modern scholar, in conjunction with numerous other scholars and experts, has interwoven extensive footnotes, maps, essays, appendices, and commentary which extend and bring into focus the picture of Alexander presented by Arrian. The extent and quality of the material provided in addition to the basic work of Arrian makes this essentially a one-of-a-kind book, a standard by which others are and will be judged, and hence the adjective "Landmark" is appropriate. Arrian's history standing alone might very well be the best available regarding Alexander; the additional matter provided by editor Romm and his fellows makes this a truly outstanding work.

Todo perfecto!