Much has already been written on warfare in ancient Greece, yet there
are a number of factors that nevertheless warrant the publication of
another book on this topic.
Firstly, this book provides a detailed, diachronic treatment of a
dynamic and formative period of Greek history: from the Mycenaean Bronze
Age down to the Persian Wars. Secondly, it offers an up-to-date and
detailed treatment of the archaeological evidence in addition to the
ancient texts. Thirdly, it places the military developments into their
proper cultural and historical contexts: warfare was not merely an
activity that ancient peoples frequently engaged in, but served a much
broader function as a constituent element of their cultural
identities.
Using the Homeric epics as a guide, the reader is presented with a
cultural history of warriors and warfare in early Greece: from the
chariot-borne soldiers of the Mycenaean palaces to the seaborne raiders
of women and cattle of the Dark Age; from the men of bronze who helped
liberate Egypt from the Assyrian yoke down to the Battles of Thermopylae
and Salamis. Along the way, a number of detailed issues are considered,
including the proper place of the Greek hoplite in the history of the
Eastern Mediterranean, the possible origins of the Argive shield,
developments in naval warfare, and the activities of Greek
mercenaries.
Henchmen of Ares is an expanded and revised version of the doctoral
dissertation on Early Greek warfare by Mediterranean archaeologist Josho
Brouwers, editor of Ancient Warfare magazine. It has been completely
restructured and reworked to make the text accessible to a general
audience, while also offering a detailed treatment of the relevant
sources and a further reading section for more serious students and
specialists alike.
