05-16-2013, 04:42 PM
As of 29 April, all the requirements of my MA in Greek and Roman Studies are complete. My final thesis topic was the revolt of Cyrus the Younger as an example of an Achaemenid land campaign. A copy is available at http://ucalgary.academia.edu/SeanManning but let me know if you want a separate PDF.
I chose this topic for a simple reason: Achaemenid army studies are neglected, and it is more useful to write about an important but neglected topic than to add another volume to the scholarship on a trendy one. In my humble opinion, it is unbalanced that there is more English and German scholarship on the mechanics of combat between two Classical Greek hoplite phalanxes than on the whole of Achaemenid army studies.
In my thesis I sought to do two things: to be specific and precise where writers not mainly interested in military history are vague, and to treat the Achaemenid army just like any other. After all, Xenophon sees Persian gentlemen as his professional peers, whose problems were moral not technical. I am especially proud of the discussion of exactly what territories Cyrus controlled in 401, and the discussion of Cyrus' courtiers. I do not talk about kit at all, since it isn't very important for army studies and since there are already books which discuss that.
The thesis consists of an introduction, a chapter on Darius II's Yauna war, an analysis of what peoples and revenues Cyrus controlled and how Cyrus raised his army, a chapter about how Cyrus' army moved and changed, and a brief conclusion. I hope that a thesis on Persian army studies will be of interest to some of the experts on Roman army studies here!
I chose this topic for a simple reason: Achaemenid army studies are neglected, and it is more useful to write about an important but neglected topic than to add another volume to the scholarship on a trendy one. In my humble opinion, it is unbalanced that there is more English and German scholarship on the mechanics of combat between two Classical Greek hoplite phalanxes than on the whole of Achaemenid army studies.
In my thesis I sought to do two things: to be specific and precise where writers not mainly interested in military history are vague, and to treat the Achaemenid army just like any other. After all, Xenophon sees Persian gentlemen as his professional peers, whose problems were moral not technical. I am especially proud of the discussion of exactly what territories Cyrus controlled in 401, and the discussion of Cyrus' courtiers. I do not talk about kit at all, since it isn't very important for army studies and since there are already books which discuss that.
The thesis consists of an introduction, a chapter on Darius II's Yauna war, an analysis of what peoples and revenues Cyrus controlled and how Cyrus raised his army, a chapter about how Cyrus' army moved and changed, and a brief conclusion. I hope that a thesis on Persian army studies will be of interest to some of the experts on Roman army studies here!
Nullis in verba
I have not checked this forum frequently since 2013, but I hope that these old posts have some value. I now have a blog on books, swords, and the curious things humans do with them.
I have not checked this forum frequently since 2013, but I hope that these old posts have some value. I now have a blog on books, swords, and the curious things humans do with them.