Thermopylae: The Battle For The West Summary and Reviews

Thermopylae: The Battle For The West
by Ernle Bradford

Thermopylae: The Battle For The West
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Book Summary Information

Author: Ernle Bradford
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2004-03
ISBN: 0306813602
Number of pages: 256
Publisher: Da Capo Press

Book Reviews of Thermopylae: The Battle For The West

Book Review: A Passing Reference to the Famous Battle
Summary: 4 Stars

If you are looking for an in-depth analysis of the Battle of Thermopylae, this is not the book you want. "Thermopylae, The Battle for the West" is instead a good, concise recap of the Greco-Persian War. Though this book is titled improperly, it is still an engaging reference for the entire war, and would serve as a good introduction for the student who is learning about the Greco-Persian War for the first time.

Ernle Bradford provides some interpretations that seem perfectly reasonable in light of his sources, specifically Herodotus and Plutarch. He weaves through Herodotus' innate bias to remove the tyrant and barbarian images from Xerxes and the Persians. Bradford also provides more plausible figures for the sizes of the various armies and navies by pointing out possible mistranslations of Herodotus, and by showing the limits of the landscape in providing food and water for large armies-in other words, Xerxes "million" man army would have been too large to feed; the actual figure is probably closer to 100,000.

The text reads well-not dry-and Bradford constructs his chapters in such a way that each builds satisfyingly upon the last until the epic Battle of Plataea and the final defeat of the Persians. Annoyingly though, he makes constant references to World War II and the oratory of Winston Churchill. A much more accurate historical analogy is probably the Texas Revolution and the Battle of the Alamo.

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