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Marathon: How One Battle Changed Western Civilization
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Author
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Richard A. Billows.
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Publisher
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Overlook
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Format
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hardcover
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Product Dimensions
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9.4
x
6.6
x
1.1
inches
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ISBN
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9781590201688
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Pages/Publication Date
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304/2010
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Daedalus Item Code
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22297
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This item is not available.
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Description
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In 490 BC, as 10,000 Athenians faced an invading Persian military force of more than 25,000 on the plains near Marathon, Greek victory appeared impossible. And yet, after several days spent in a wary standoff, the heavily armored Greek hoplites moved to attack, resisting Persian arrows and winning a crushing victory. The hoplites then marched quickly back to Athens to protect the vulnerable harbor from the Persian navy. Had they failed, notes Richard Billows, the Classical period of ancient Greece—which heavily influenced Roman civilization, and later Western civilization—may never have happened. Here he captures the drama of that day 2500 years ago, and considers its ramifications throughout Western history. "Their victory, explainable as the result of a risky battle plan, the combat tactics of the phalanx, and the courage of citizens with everything on the line, soon acquired significance for the ancients, in the nature of admiration for Athenian martial excellence. Marathon's reputation as a historical salvation of the cradle of Western civilization developed in modern times; under scholastic challenge, it is a status Billows stoutly defends in this stirring history."—Booklist
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