Mercenaries of the Ancient World

by Serge Yalichev

Book Overview

With a blend of narrative and analysis, this book explores the extent to which mercenaries have been used, from Sumer to Rome, and the reasons governments hired them when they could conscript native... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 009475750X
• ISBN13: 9780094757509
• Release Date: January 1997
• Publisher: Constable & Robinson
• Length: 316 Pages
• Weight: 1.15 lbs.

Customer Reviews

The Fine Work of the Expert

This piece describes, throught great detail, the lives and uses of mercenaries right up to Roman times. Although it is of a serious nature, this work of written art has many puns, historian's jokes and more than enough wordplay filtered in within the facts of relevance. Serge Yalichev truly has put much time and effort into this work, and I look forward with much anticipation to the sequel. Good luck, and I hope this is even better.

Yalichev Sensei

I must admit, I am not really qualified to comment on a book on historical battles and significant figures. I'm only 14! Mr. Yalichev has been my Japanese teacher and Mentor for three years, I only found out about this book mid last year. I spent every night for two weeks reading my teachers fine work, noting the humor along the way. He gives exceptional yet understandable acounts of the ancient wartime greats. It may seen a bit slow at first, but it really catches your interest after the first few pages. The highest recomandation for this book, and look out for the sequel early next year.

Informative Account of the Role of Mercenaries

This is a very interesting account of the role of mercenaries in the Ancient World. The author, Serge Yalichev, offers a look into the role of the mercenary during the campaigns of the Persians, the Peloponnesian wars, and the rise & fall of Rome. He covers the multitude of battles fought on land and sea during these periods. The author tells his story well of these men and why they fought for other countries outside of their own. In over 290 pages the narrative flows along giving you accounts of great battles fought by these men and their master clients. I particularly enjoyed reading about the Spartans and the 'Ten Thousand'. This is good book, not too in-depth but well researched and with enough detail to satisfy most readers. I am sure that it will spark an interest in most people and anyone who enjoys good history should enjoy this book.