Alexander the great in afghanistan volume 47 by frank l. Into the land of bones alexander the great in afghanistan, with a new preface. The book is good for anyone wanting to understand the first successful conquest of afghanistan and those looking to gain some context to help draw some similarities with current western policy. Professor holt has written a superb book about alexander the greats sojourn in what we now call afghanistan. Into the land of bones is a short book, about 160 pages, with a polished writing style that is delightful to read. Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read alexander the great. Bush called the first war of the twentyfirst century actually began more than 2,300 years ago when alexander the great led his army into what is now a sprawling ruin in northern afghanistan. Like many other military superpowers would after him, from the british empire to russia to nato, alexander waltzed into afghanistan with all the confidence in the world, but he left. Alexander s campaign in afghanistan has become a mere footnote in his legacyperhaps because it was the region where the great warlord saw the least success.
The celebrated macedonian king has been one of the most enduring figures in history. Whether it is the great battle on the plain of gaugamela or alexander s counterinsurgency campaign in bactria and sogdiana, these events seem distant and almost mythical to a modern audience. It is unlikely that he would have written this incisive and careful gem if we had not been attacked by fanatical murderers who were based there. It offers an account of alexander s wars in central asia that supersedes holts own alexander the great and bactria. Recounting the plight of the most powerful leader of the time as he led the most sophisticated army of its day into the. I was familiar with this episode in history before i first visited afghanistan, though my knowledge grew as i walked the ground. He does not lay out a point he tries to prove throughout the rest of the book. Jan 01, 2005 a slight book, appendix, notes, bibliography and index, only 164 pages of text.
The most influential account of the career of alexander the great was penned by cleitarchus in the decades after alexander s death. Sep 27, 2011 in 330bc, alexander the great marched through the area of central asia that is now afghanistan, meeting little opposition. Aug 22, 20 what this book does is time travels more than 2300 years into history straight to the times of alexander the great and chronicles his defeat at the hands of the afghans the british were not the first to taste defeat, nor the first to stand humbled against the raw brute power of their poor but extremely smartass foes. Holt vividly recounts alexanders invasion of ancient bactria, situating in a broader historical perspective americas war in afghanistan.
Some of the invaders in the history of afghanistan include the maurya empire, the greek empire of alexander the great of macedon, rashidun caliphate, the mongol empire led by genghis khan, the timurid empire of timur, the mughal empire, various persian empires, the sikh empire, the british. Greek, arab, mongol, and tartar, and, in more recent times, british, russian, and american. Traces of alexander the great phil halton literary. For me the book was personally meaningful in that one of the many actors on this crowded stage was sir william mcnaughtonmy grandfather nine generations past. Holt follows alexanders historical, archaeological, and numismatic legacy back and forth between ancient bactria and. As a mercenary, he voyages through alexander the greats empire to join the army. The book is good for anyone wanting to understand the first successful conquest of afghanistan and those looking to gain some context to help. Oct, 2011 alexander then conciliated all the other warlords of afghanistan.
His memoir, travels into bokhara, was a bestseller when it was first published in 1835. Captain sir alexander burnes kt frs 16 may 1805 2 november 1841 was a scottish explorer and diplomat associated with the great game. Jul 11, 2005 in this vivid, meticulously researched, and elegantly narrated book, frank l. In this vivid, meticulously researched, and elegantly narrated book. This book offers a strategic analysis of one of the most outstanding military careers in history, identifying the most pertinent strategic lessons from the camp. He was nicknamed bokhara burnes for his role in establishing contact with and exploring bukhara, which made his name. Alexander the great in afghanistan from the worlds largest community of readers. Alexanders policies are explored here as well as some of the history of conquering these lands. It brings the results of scholarship to a larger public. Find all the books, read about the author, and more. The virtues of war, about alexander the great 2004, isbn 0385500998 and the afghan campaign, about alexander the great s conquests in afghanistan 2006, isbn 038551641x by steven pressfield.
Into the land of bones is a short book, about 160 pages, with a polished writing style that is. It is the story of alexander the great s invasion of the afghan kingdoms the afghanistan of today in 330 bc through the eyes of matthias in greek, a young soldier from macedonia, who narrates the adventures of. The commanders of the coalition forces in afghanistan should be under orders to read it. With his image found on greek coins as far east as afghanistan, the reach of alexander the great was mighty and this novel explains more on that reach and what made his 32 year lifespan so powerful. Find out about the lasting legacy of alexander the great in afghanistan today. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. Alexander the great in afghanistan volume 47 paperback october 3, 2012.
Nov 11, 2015 alexander the great in afghanistan leaving a wake of dead, both friend and foe, alexander the great pursued his dream of conquest and empire on the northeast frontier. Now, preserved from the only perils that i feared, i am beset by threats that should never have appeared. The book is very well written and provides a decent historical account of alexanders troubles in afghanistan. Most of the surviving ancient texts on alexander were based upon his work, but every copy of the original was destroyed in antiquity. The commanders of the coalition forces in afghanistan should be under orders to. With a series of illustrative photos inside there are details of alexander the great conquering of india as well as his ongoing supremacy. Sep 19, 2020 alexander the great is a book published by demi and designed for young readers.
Taking a twist on his first traditional biography on alexander the great, this biography explores more the impact that alexander the great had on history as well as the shaping of a civilization. It was directed by oliver stone and starred colin farrell. Sep 26, 2012 the book is very well written and provides a decent historical account of alexanders troubles in afghanistan. Afghanistan is a mountainous landlocked country at the crossroads of central and south southern asia. Who are we to surge 30,000 more troops into the graveyard of the great. Into the land of bones alexander the great in afghanistan. He was born in pella in 356 bc and succeeded his father philip ii to the throne at the age of 20. A journey to the pagan kalash people of pakistan in 2010 i and a friend, adam sulkowski, made a journey to the snowcapped hindu kush in search of this ancient european pagan people living in an unstable muslim country.
The baddest conquerers in ancient history from alexander the great to ghengis khan all crashed on the rocky island of afghanistan. Alexander is a 2004 epic historical drama film based on the life of the ancient macedonian general and king alexander the great. It is the story of alexander the great s invasion of the afghan kingdoms the afghanistan of today in 330 bc through the eyes of matthias in greek, a young soldier from macedonia, who narrates the adventures of the macedonian army against the eastern warriors. Holt follows alexander s historical, archaeological, and numismatic legacy back and forth between ancient bactria and modern afghanistan. However, at the time of writing war rages in modern iraq the site of gaugamela and afghanistan the area alexander knew as bactria and sogdiana. Now the entire book is being revived in an exciting reconstruction based upon an.
Explicitly echoing afghanistans tragic recent history, holt explores the difficulties alexander the great encountered when he marched into the country, whose ancient name was bactria. Feb 21, 2014 the lost children of alexander the great. He was taught by aristotle but had famous runins with other philosophers. Something i began to wonder, however, was continue reading traces of alexander the great. By 330 bc, that army is struggling to subdue the tribes of afghanistan. Apr 28, 2009 for over 2,500 years, the forbidding territory of afghanistan has served as a vital crossroads for armies and has witnessed historyshaping clashes between civilizations. More than a millennium later, the mongol leader genghis khan also brushed.
The most influential account of the career of alexander the great was penned by cleitarchus in the decades after alexanders death. Alexander the great in afghanistan warfare history network. Even more important, it brings the results of scholarship to a larger public. Like subsequent british, russian, and, now, american and allied armies, the macedonian wunderking discovered in 329 b. Oct 10, 2010 alexander the great is the biggest general not only by military point of view as with a small army but well equipped and organized and with a capable general stuff of generals to assist him, managed to conquer and abolish the biggest empire of the known world at that time but also spread the greek culture to the east and created the hellenistic culture which had the well known impact in all. The socalled first war of the twentyfirst century actually began more than 2,300 years ago. The lasting legacy of alexander the great in afghanistan. Dec 02, 2009 fine books by steven pressfield and frank holt have recently examined alexander s afghan war a conflict, as some say, that was the original quagmire. Into the land of bones, alexander the great in afghanistan. In this vivid, meticulously researched, and elegantly narrated book, frank l. And alexander was one of the greatest generals in human history. Alexander the great ebook written by philip freeman. Its primary mission is to reconstruct alexander the great s three years of trying to subdue unruly, fractious and tough tribes in the region then known as bactria, now approximating the borders of afghanistan. The films original screenplay derived in part from the book alexander the great, published in 1973 by the university of oxford historian robin lane fox.
Apr 17, 2019 afghanistan has suffered from many invasions over the millennia, but perhaps the most famous of them all is that of alexander the great and his armies. The most influential account of the career of alexander. In the first authoritative biography of alexander the great written for a general audience in a generation, classicist and historian philip freeman tells the remarkable life of the great conqueror. For those of us with this most cursory of knowledge, steven tanners new book afghanistan. A historian, even an ancient historian, can contribute something important, and holts book is compulsory reading for anyone who tries to understand the events in. In this vivid, meticulously researched, and elegantly narrated book, frank. Alexander the great the greatest leader of all time. A military history from alexander the great to the. Accounts of alexanders invasion of ancient bactria read eerily like news from our own day. But it tells an interesting story, so far as it is knownthe story of alexander the greats campaigns in what is now afghanistan.
Andrew chugg author visit amazons andrew chugg page. Crossroads of the ancient world is at the british museum until 3 july 2011. Alexander gets tied to ideas related to the great game, the world of espionage between the british empire and russia in the 19th century. His firstborn son and heir to his great empire would be an afghan and alexander made the afghans full partners in his great new world. Alexander the great in afghanistan quotes by andrew chugg. Holt vividly recounts alexanders invasion of ancient bactria, situating in a broader historical. Accounts of alexander s invasion of ancient bactria read eerily like news from our own day. Alexander the great in afghanistan a reconstruction of cleitarchus book 3 kindle edition by andrew chugg author visit amazons andrew chugg page. It is the story of alexander the great s invasion of the afghan kingdoms the afghanistan of today in 330 bc through. Although small in size, into the land of bones is a great book. The problem is that there is rather little knownnot much more than is contained in the ancient biographies of alexander. Oct 06, 2006 into the land of bones alexander the great in afghanistan hellenistic culture and society. This is an unique book that studies alexander the greats campaign in the area of presentday afghanistan and compares it to what britian and the us later did in. The afghan campaign by steven pressfield audiobook.
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