Not so much a history of battle in classical antiquity as why and how it developed as it did. Covers the millennium from the Age of Homer until Julian in Persia and Valens at Adrianople [300s A.D.] Author makes surprising leaps in his perceptions of the development of land warfare and psychology of the warriors. Apparently, it went slower at first, then picked up speed. Today it seems that fighting changes every time you turn around. The author intended this for the beginner to the very knowledgeable. It WAS readable but sometimes I felt there were too many details over my head. I'm assuming that "ghosts" in the title refers to the heroes of the Trojan War in the background as an inspiration. Recommended. ( )

"In the end, the soldiers did not overcome the ghosts of the past. In the end, it was the ghosts who won." It is with that epithet that Lendon passes judgement on the Roman military in this cultural history of the Greeks and Romans at war. After considering the ways that the epic example of Homer infused the competitive mentality of the Greeks, and influenced their style of war, Lendon then considers how this culture recombined with the Roman tradition of blending aggressive individual courage with disciplined social restraint. The ultimate result is that the Roman tradition of history as a series of exemplary stories that challenged the living to live up to the past led to the dead end of Julian's defeat at the hands of the Persians and the disaster of Adrianople The aggressive search for glory eventually destroying a military machine no longer easily reconstituted. If you are looking for an entertaining and informative survey of war in the Classical world you could do much worse. ( )

Outstanding work on the topic. This is not a survey although it covers both the Greeks and the Roman ways of battle. It is an insightful thought-experiment regarding the respective Greek and Roman manner of warfare. It is complete without being a regurgitation of standard war sources. Rather, it is a creative exploration of Greek and Roman evolutionary thinking on warfare. This is a very original work and a genuine contribution to the field of battle studies. It is not a summary or extensive discussion of battle minutiae, rather, it is a reasoned exploration of shifting thoughts on war from Greek and Roman sources. This is just as much cultural history as it is a story of techne and military application.

Lendon's work is along the same lines as Max Boot except for the ancient world. It is comprehensive yet presents an original point of view. He begins with a story of Vietnam and how the U.S. marines will not leave their dead behind even if the recovery of dead bodies leads to yet more dead bodies. The point is that the ritualized struggle of battle is as much cultural as it is technological and focused on battle.

He begins with Greece and the difficulty to obtaining a clearer idea of Greek battle. Homer is the obvious starting point but it is arguable how much can be gleaned from a part-mythological, part literary, and part fanciful account of Greek battle. A bit more reliably can be noted about the historical origins of the phalanx. Thereafter begins the great rivalry between Sparta and Athens. Lendon includes the peltasts, cavalry, and training as well so he incorporates the supplemental elements of Greek warfare.

Coupled with Warfare in the Classical World: War and the Ancient Civilisations of Greece and Rome (London, England), by John Gibson Warry, this is a potent combination to understand ancient warfare. The illustrations by SeungJung Kim in the volume are exceptional helpful. It appears as though historical sources were referenced and then imaginative but soundly based pictures resulted.

Another helpful volume would be Greece and Rome at War by Peter Connolly and of course the excellent illustrative series from Osprey, especially those written by N.V. Sekunda. Wars of the Ancient Greeks (Smithsonian History of Warfare) by Victor Davis Hanson is a useful counter to Lendon's cultural analysis especially given Hanson's thesis that there is an agrarian incentive to Greek warfare. On the Romans, Lendon can be supplemented with Roman Warfare by Adrian Goldsworthy and The Complete Roman Army, also by Goldsworthy. The Roman Imperial Army: Of the First and Second Centuries A.D. by Graham Webster should be mentioned here as well. Republican Roman Army 200-104 BC (Men-at-Arms) by Nick Sekunda also addresses Lendon's analysis of the manipular legion and should be consulted as well. The murkier earlier period is covered by Sekunda also in Early Roman Armies (Men-at-Arms). Corruption and the Decline of Rome by Ramsay MacMullen argues for the "barbarization" of Rome and its institutions by the late Empire as well as advancing an argument about the size of Roman armies by the 4th century.