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The Achaemenid Empire founded by Cyrus the Great was one of the major military powers of Antiquity, conquering vast territories that straddled three continents. Its large and varied population supplied a dazzling array of troop types, producing a versatile war machine that campaigned from India to Egypt. These were the armies that drank rivers dry as they invaded Greece and, at the Empire’s zenith, defeated the Spartans at Thermopylae and torched Athens. They continued to evolve but proved unable to cope with Alexander the Great’s Macedonians.  The author outlines the major campaigns fought by the Persians from Cyrus the Great to the conquest by Alexander. 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The text is complemented by a colourful mix of photos of reenactors and specially-commissioned artworks.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"- \/ - \/ -","offer_id":51597810270481,"sku":"","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ GARDNERS","offer_id":51597810368785,"sku":"NGR9781036112875","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"US \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":52627968426257,"sku":"NIN9781036112875","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/103611287X.jpg?v=1750709426"},{"product_id":"armies-of-the-steppe-nomads-3761227-book-gabriele-esposito-9781399037778","title":"Armies of the Steppe Nomads, 3761227","description":"Gabriele Esposito presents an overview of the history, organization and equipment of the military forces deployed by the nomadic peoples of the Eurasian steppes during the period from the appearance of the Huns in Eastern Europe to the death of Genghis Khan. Each chapter is devoted to a different group that played a prominent military role during Antiquity and the Middle Ages. Starting with the Huns of Attila, whose migration was one of the key factors behind the fall of the Roman Empire, he moves on to the Avars, who established a large state in Eastern Europe that contested with Charlemagne's Frankish Empire. Chapter three covers the Magyars, who terrorized most of Europe during the tenth century before creating the Kingdom of Hungary. Next are the Bulgars, who became the worst enemies of the Byzantine Empire in the Balkans but also created a flourishing state in the Volga region of Russia. The Khazars and the Alans share a chapter, as do the Pechenegs and Cumans-Kipchaks, while the Turks merit a dedicated chapter. Last but not least are the Mongols, who are traced from the unification of their tribes to the death of the great Genghis Khan.By describing the military organization, weapons and tactics of these nomadic peoples the author shows how they dominated the battlefields of the world for almost 1,000 years thanks to their superior capabilities. He also discusses how they interacted with other civilizations and how the latter learned a lot from them, especially militarily. Without the existence of the warlike nomadic peoples of the Eurasian steppes, the history of the world would have been very different.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"- \/ - \/ -","offer_id":51627989631249,"sku":"","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ GARDNERS","offer_id":51627989795089,"sku":"NGR9781399037778","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"GB \/ GOOD \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":52718627914001,"sku":"GOR014596100","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"GB \/ VERY_GOOD \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":52720197304593,"sku":"GOR014597361","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/1399037773.jpg?v=1751209107"},{"product_id":"armies-of-the-hundred-years-war-13371453-book-gabriele-esposito-9781399037822","title":"Armies of the Hundred Years' War 13371453","description":"The Hundred Years' War is one of the most famous conflicts in British history, featuring such renowned battles as Crecy, Poitiers and Agincourt. It is a period littered with such legendary names as the Black Prince, Henry V and Joan of Arc, and a fascinating one for the development of warfare, weapons and armour.\n\nGabriele Esposito puts the conflict in context with an overview of earlier Anglo-French conflicts and the roots of the dispute between the Plantagenet and Valois dynasties. He then devotes several chapters to giving a concise overview of the dramatic events of the war, before moving on to describe in detail the organization, tactics, weapons, armour and equipment of all the varied forces. Those drawn in by various alliances, such as Scottish, Spanish and Burgundian troops are not forgotten. \n\nHe shows the evolution of warfare across the period, from the early dominance of the longbowmen over the French knights to the increasing importance of artillery in the Valois recovery. As usual for The Armies of the Past series, Gabriele Esposito’s informative text is lavishly illustrated with colour photographs of replica weapons, armour and clothing in use.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"- \/ - \/ -","offer_id":51631082144017,"sku":"","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ GARDNERS","offer_id":51631082373393,"sku":"NGR9781399037822","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"US \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":51750095814929,"sku":"NIN9781399037822","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/139903782X.jpg?v=1751420931"},{"product_id":"armies-of-the-byzantine-empire-395-1204-book-gabriele-esposito-9781036112929","title":"Armies of the Byzantine Empire, 395-1204","description":"The Byzantine Empire originated in AD 395 from the definitive subdivision of the Roman Empire into two distinct political entities: the Western Empire and the Eastern Empire. While the Western Empire disappeared in 476, due to Germanic invasions, the Eastern Empire endured for centuries. During Justinian’s reign (527-565) a good portion of the western territories were reconquered for a time and the Empire retained a distinctive ‘Roman’ nature at least until the reign of Heraclius (610-641). But during his reign, the Eastern Empire came under attack from the expanding Muslim Arabs, losing a much of its original Eastern territories. With Imperial power weakened and restricted largely to the Balkans and Anatolia, the ‘Roman’ nature of the Eastern Empire became progressively more Greek and transformed into what we know as ‘the Byzantine Empire’ (though they called themselves Romans to the end).\n\nDespite being surrounded by enemies, the Byzantines defended their remaining domains for a further half a millenium, their territories expanding and contracting with fluctuating fortunes. This tenacious survival was largely due to the ability of their military to adapt (as Roman armies always had) to emerging threats from a wide variety of enemies. The Byzantine Empire collapsed only in 1204, when attacked by forces of the Fourth Crusade, its ostensible allies. In addition to presenting an overview and analysis of the various campaigns of the period, Gabriele Esposito provides a complete review of Byzantine military organization, weapons, tactics and equipment. The clear text is lavishly illustrated with dozen of colour photographs of replica arms, armour and costume in use.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"- \/ - \/ -","offer_id":51692825051409,"sku":"","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ GARDNERS","offer_id":51692825968913,"sku":"NGR9781036112929","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"US \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":53654235742481,"sku":"NIN9781036112929","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/1036112926.jpg?v=1751399846"},{"product_id":"armies-of-the-roman-civil-wars-and-slave-revolts-135-bcad-69-book-gabriele-esposito-9781036123307","title":"Armies of the Roman Civil Wars and Slave Revolts, 135 BC–AD 69","description":"The year 135 BC saw the outbreak of the so-called ‘First Servile War’, which proved to be just the first of a series of conflicts that ravaged the Roman Republic during the following century and changed forever the institutions of the Roman state. This bloody and violent period of civil wars and recurrent slave revolts (most famously that of Spartacus) saw the ascendancy of many famous generals who obtained great military victories, including: Marius, Sulla, Crassus, Pompey, Julius Caesar, Mark Antony and Octavian. They fought for complete dominance over Rome but, at the same time, conducted a series of imperialist campaigns that greatly expanded the territorial extension of the Roman Republic. In discussing these campaigns of conquest, the author shows how they were strongly linked with the civil conflicts and how the events that started in 135 BC progressively led to the birth of the Roman Empire under Octavian (Augustus).\n\nThe author also describes the only civil war taking place during the Early Empire, i.e. that of AD 69 (‘The Year of the Four Emperors’) before providing a detailed description of the organization and equipment of the varied military forces that took part in the Roman civil wars during this crucial period, outlining crucial developments across the period. As usual for the Armies of the Past series, there are dozens of colour photos depicting replica arms, armour and dress in use.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ GARDNERS","offer_id":52493305872657,"sku":"NGR9781036123307","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/9781036123307.jpg?v=1782844886"},{"product_id":"armies-of-the-wars-of-the-roses-book-gabriele-esposito-9781036123055","title":"Armies of the Wars of the Roses","description":"Gabriele Esposito offers a clear, concise overview of the Wars of the Roses, the complex series of civil wars that ravaged the Kingdom of England for three decades, from 1455 to 1487. Stemming from a rivalry between two cadet branches of the Plantagenet dynasty, the houses of York and Lancaster, which went back at least to 1377 (when Edward III’s death brought the 10 year old Richard II to the throne), open war began in 1455 with the First Battle of St Albans, a Yorkist victory over the forces of King Henry VI. The following decades were bloody and turbulent with recurrent fighting, culminating in Henry Tudor’s decisive victories at Bosworth in 1485 and (by then as Henry VII) at Stoke Field in 1487.\n\nThe author traces the convoluted course of this large-scale conflict, which involved not only England and Wales but also several other countries of Europe. Scotland and Ireland were directly affected by them, as well as the Kingdom of France (which played a prominent role in the final victory of Henry Tudor) and the Duchy of Burgundy (which supported the House of York). He describes and analyses in detail the organization and equipment of the various military contingents that took part in these wars, from the heavily-armoured men-at-arms to the celebrated longbowmen and not forgetting the various foreign mercenaries and allied contingents. As usual for the Armies of the Past series, there are dozens of full colour photographs of replica weapons, armour and costumes in use to illustrate the various types of troops.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"- \/ - \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":52606185472273,"sku":null,"price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ GARDNERS","offer_id":52606186455313,"sku":"NGR9781036123055","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/9781036123055.jpg?v=1769508379"}],"url":"https:\/\/www.worldofbooks.com\/collections\/armies-of-the-past-ser-book-series.oembed?page=2","provider":"World of Books ","version":"1.0","type":"link"}