War in the Hellenistic World

Exploiting the abundant primary sources available, this book examines the diverse ways in which war shaped the Hellenistic world. An overview of war and society in the Hellenistic world. Highlights the interdependence of warfare and social phenomena. Covers a wide range of topics, including social conditions as causes of war, the role of professional warriors, the discourse of war in Hellenistic cities, the budget of war, the collective memory of war, and the aesthetics of war. Draws on the abundance of primary sources available.

List of Figures x List of Maps xi List of Abbreviations xiii Table of Important Events xvii Preface xxi 1 The Ubiquitous War 1 1.1. The Visibility of War 1.2. The Frequency of Wars 1.3. Reasons to Fight 2 Between Civic Duties and Oligarchic Aspirations: Devoted Citizens, Brave Generals, and Generous Benefactors 18 2.1. Fighting Against a Neighbor: A Privilege of the Polis 2.2. Warfare as a Citizen's Duty 2.3. City and Land: Structure and Hierarchy 2.4. The Defense of the City as the Stage of Civic Elites 2.5. Local Hero: The Statesman as a Military Leader 2.6. Euergetism in War and the Ideology of Inequality 2.7. From Individual Services to the Heredity of Leadership 3 The Age of War: Fighting Young Men 44 3.1. Restless Warriors 3.2. Training Fighters 3.3. Rituals for Young Warriors 4 The Interactive King: War and the Ideology of Hellenistic Monarchy 57 4.1. War and the Acceptance of Monarchical Rule 4.2. The King and His Army 4.3. The King and the City 4.4. The Wolf as a Sheep: Royal Peace-makers 4.5. War and Mortal Divinity 5 War as a Profession: Officers, Trainers, Doctors, Engineers 78 5.1. The Professionalization of Hellenistic Warfare: Definitions and Modifications 5.2. The Social Context of Mercenary Service 5.3. The Conditions of Service 5.4. Garrisons and Foreign Troops in Hellenistic Cities 5.5. Professional Ideals: Discipline, Solidarity, Masculinity 5.6. Professional Risks: Doctors and Patients 5.7. War as a Science: Trainers, Tacticians, and Inventors 6 The Gender of War: Masculine Warriors, Defenseless Women, and Beyond 102 6.1. War and Masculinity 6.2. In the Shadow of Soldiers: Women in Garrisons and Forts 6.3. Spectators, Judges, and Defenders: Women's Share of War 6.4. Anonymous Victims 7 The Cost and Profit of War: Economic Aspects of Hellenistic Warfare 115 7.1. The Budget of War: Fiscal Aspects of Hellenistic Warfare 7.2. War and Agriculture 7.3. The Economy of Booty 7.4. Winners and Losers: The Impact of War on the Hellenistic Economy 8 An Age of Miracles and Saviors: The Effects of Hellenistic Wars on Religion 143 8.1. Communicating with the Gods, Boasting to Mortals 8.2. War and Cult Transfer 8.3. Violence against Sanctuaries and the Discourse of War 8.4. War and the Supernatural 8.5. Pragmatism Versus Tradition: War and the Dynamics of Rituals 9 The Discourse of War 166 9.1. War Reflections 9.2. War Reveals the Character of Men and Groups 9.3. Naming Wars 9.4. Deciding and Justifying War 9.5. The Right of Conquest 9.6. Longing for Peace 10 Aesthetics of War 189 10.1. Images of Violence in Hellenistic Literature and Art 10.2. Blood is Beautiful: Realism and Subtlety in the Representation of Violence 10.3. The Beauty of the Unexpected: Peripeteia and the Paradoxon in Narratives of War 11 The Memory of War 214 11.1. The Memory of War: Individual, Collective, Cultural 11.2. War in Hellenistic Historiography 11.3. The Monumental Historiography of War 11.4. Oral Commemoration of War 11.5. Commemorative Anniversaries 11.6. War Monuments 11.7. Collective Identity and the Glorification of the Individual 12 Breaking Boundaries: How War Shaped the Hellenistic World 245 Bibliography 256 Name Index 282 Subject Index 293 Source Index 304