The cradle of western civilisation, the ancient Greek world, consisted of a series of independent city states some of which, such as Athens and Sparta, became major world powers. This authoritative volume by Nicholas Sekunda covers Greek warfare in the Classical Period, which stretches from the Greek victories over the Persian Empire to the death of Alexander the Great at the end of the 4th century. The book includes such famous battles such as Marathon, Thermopylae and Salamis and offers a detailed account of Greek military dress during this period, supported by 12 full colour plates by Angus McBride.

Nicholas Sekunda was born in 1953. After studying Ancient History and Archaeology at Manchester University, he went on to take his PhD in 1981. He has taken part in archaeological excavations in Poland, Iran and Greece, and participated in a research project on ancient Persian warfare for the British institute of Persian Studies. He has published numerous books and academic articles, and is currently teaching at the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnology in Torun, Poland.