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The Tyrants of Syracuse: War in Ancient Sicily: Volume I - 480-367 BC Paperback – November 23, 2020

by Jeff Champion (Author)
4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 47 ratings
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This is the story of one of the most important classical cities, Syracuse, and its struggles (both internal and external) for freedom and survival.

This is the story of one of the most important classical cities, Syracuse, and its struggles (both internal and external) for freedom and survival. Situated at the heart of the Mediterranean, Syracuse was caught in the middle as Carthage, Pyrrhus of Epirus, Athens, and then Rome battled to gain control of Sicily.

The threat of expansionist enemies on all sides made for a tumultuous situation within the city, resulting in repeated coups that threw up a series of remarkable tyrants, such as Gelon, Timoleon, and Dionysius. In this first volume, Jeff Champion traces the course of Syracuse's wars under the tyrants from the Battle of Himera (480 BC) against the Carthaginians down to the death of Dionysius I (367 BC), whose reign proved to be the high tide of the city's power and influence. One of the highlights along the way is the city's heroic resistance to, and eventual decisive defeat of, the Athenian expeditionary force that besieged them for over two years (415-413BC), an event with massive ramifications for the Greek world. This is the eventful life story of one of the forgotten major powers of the ancient Mediterranean world.
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  1. Book 1 of 2
    The Tyrants of Syracuse
  2. Print length
    272 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Publisher
    Pen and Sword Military
  5. Publication date
    November 23, 2020
  6. Dimensions
    6 x 0.75 x 9 inches
  7. ISBN-10
    1526784270
  8. ISBN-13
    978-1526784278
  9. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“…written in an engaging manner by an author who is clearly very knowledgeable of ancient history and society, and who presents a thorough source based account of this subject.”
Ancient Warfare

...a lively look at the city and its string of tyrannoi", a word only poorly translated as "tyrants"...a rich work...a must read for anyone interested in ancient history."
The NYMAS Review

About the Author

Jeff Champion is a Customs and Excise officer in Australia. He has written numerous articles on Hellenistic warfare for specialist journals such as Slingshot, the journal of the Society of Ancients.

His first book, Pyrrhus of Epirus, was published by Pen & Sword in 2009 and received very good reviews.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Pen and Sword Military (November 23, 2020)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 272 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1526784270
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1526784278
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.75 x 9 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 47 ratings

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Jeff Champion

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Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
47 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Truth teller
5.0 out of 5 stars Superior narrative about a complicated history
Reviewed in the United States on May 21, 2013
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The author has written IMHO he best popularized version of a complicated history about the ancient western Mediterranean Greeks. The writing style is excellent and reads better than the older, specialist oriented monographs. Champion's description is the best account of the political and military events of ancient Syracuse and ancient Sicily. Champion's account of the personalities involved in the imbroglios are also the best I have ever read. The maps cover the important battles and are uncomplicated and easy to understand. Previously I read the author's comparable work on Pyrrus of Epirus and anxiously await the follow-up volume about the tyrants in Syracuse. Champion's books are in some ways better than Michael Grant and other related authors.
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Decolliber
4.0 out of 5 stars Remarkably absorbing descriptive history
Reviewed in the United States on May 23, 2017
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Having a passing familiarity with ancient history, but knowing nothing very specific about Sicily (other than Thucydides' account of the siege of Syracuse), I found this book fascinating. Almost finished vol. 1 and looking forward to vol. 2 (and will then look at his other books). Unlike a lot of contemporary analyses of the ancient world, this book makes no claim to be offering new insights. The author just tells the story, with refreshingly clear prose. There are no annoying asides, making analogies with contemporary politics (Mary Beard take note), and no speculation about conversations or the mental processes of the major protagonists. If a well told factual account is what you want, you will not be disappointed.
One criticism: the map of Sicily is blurry (on a Kindle) and has too little detail. I had to pull up the Barrington "Atlas of the Greek and Roman World" on my iPad to locate many of the place names. Battle maps were very helpful.
Note that the author works at the Australian Dept. of Customs and Excise. I worked as a clerk in that department for several summers when I was a teenager. So boring and and so little to do. No wonder that the author took to writing history. I would bet that he does most of his writing at work. A fine English tradition.
8 people found this helpful
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Arthur Turney
5.0 out of 5 stars Everything you wanted to know about the Greeks of Syracuse (part one)
Reviewed in the United States on February 10, 2019
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This book is very accessibly written and pulls together all the sources on the Greeks of Syracuse, from conflicts with the Carthaginians to repulsing the great Athenian invasion and it's after math. Syracuse for most of it's free Greek history was governed by tyrants who often ruled through mercenaries and mayhem, as Mr Champion makes clear.
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John Padalis
4.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable Reading
Reviewed in the United States on October 10, 2014
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As someone who reads history only as a hobby, I really enjoyed this book. The author does a good job explaining the who and the what from the points of view of multiple sources and gives an adequate background of all the of the players, factions, and events, which is a major accomplishment given the scope of the work. He is also able to "tell the story" in a way that avoids the monotonous listing of dates and events and keeps the reader interested. My only criticisms are the lack of complete editing, many typos made it to print, and the weak continuity coming in and out of the necessary digressions.
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Michael Herndon
5.0 out of 5 stars Must read for the "Roman reader"!
Reviewed in the United States on May 30, 2017
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Excellent account of the struggle for control of Sicily. Covers the various wars between the Greek city states, but especially the struggle against Carthage. Great biographical information on the various Greek Tyrants & on the Carthaginian leaders. I couldn't put the book down! It answered a lot of my questions about Sicily before it's conquest by the Romans.
2 people found this helpful
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Konrad
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Narrative
Reviewed in the United States on June 12, 2017
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Using a mixture of storytelling and factual narrative, Jeff Champion succeeds in telling the epic story of the early Sicilian tyrants succinctly.
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BlueBoy
4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent
Reviewed in the United States on March 3, 2019
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Very interesting and easy to follow. Would recommend to ancient history buffs and beginners alike. Five more words as required.
2 people found this helpful
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History Fan
5.0 out of 5 stars What Historical Writing Should Be
Reviewed in the United States on May 4, 2016
Having now read both volumes I can say that the set is a must-read for those who are interested in ancient history and an very interesting read for anyone else. Champion deals with the the many gaps and conflicts in his sources honestly and carefully. Footnotes are plentiful so it is easy to get back to his source material if there is anything the reader would like to investigate further. The characters and conflicts he describes really come alive. His writing even conveys an element of suspense. I found myself reading after I should have turned out the lights or started dinner because I needed to know how a particular siege or political alignment would end.
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Maurizio d'Agostino
4.0 out of 5 stars Più completo di quanto dica il titolo!
Reviewed in Italy on March 24, 2016
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Ottima analisi storica a tutto tondo su un secolo di storia greco-punica. Nonostante il titolo sia centrato sull'aspetto militare, nel volume si ritrova un'attenzione a tutti gli aspetti dello sviluppo del regime tirannico nelle città greche di Sicilia e in particolare nella più potente fra queste,vale a dire Siracusa. La scrittura è scorrevole e nient'affatto noiosa e vediamo scorrere sul palcoscenico personaggi di dimensioni degne di una tragedia,da Gelone celebrato come il fautore di 60 anni di prosperità, a Dionisio il vecchio che sfiora (?) la follia paranoica.Atene,Sparta, la guerra del Peloponneso, Cartagine,sono i poli intorno a cui ruotano le vicende di questo primo volume. Una buona bibligrafia completa il volume. Unico piccolo difetto è la scarsità delle mappe e delle cartine delle battaglie, nonche il fatto che essendo raccolte tutte all'inizio la loro consultazione durante la lettura diventa un po' macchinosa. Difetto veniale di un'altrimenti interessantissimo volume
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J. Delannoie
5.0 out of 5 stars best history ever read
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 28, 2012
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I am an enthusiast of military history and read it as my favourite form of literature. I am interested in the details of the battles as I am keen to understand the challenges that the protagonists faced. The two volumes in the series Tyrants of Syracuse don't score the highest marks in this regard - I have read books with greater battle detail - but I was amazed at how deeply Jeff Champion managed to draw me into the condition of life during this period. No sooner had I finished the first book than I bought the second. And when that was read there was a sense of wanting more, and one of reflection. Jeff Champion does not sensationalise. His approach is rational and I sometimes had to force myself to read his analysis of the historical sources. Thucydides writes about the Peloponesian War in an at times almost contemporary journalistic manner and with deep humanity, bringing the subject very close to home. Jeff Champion does not offer his personal views, but he certainly managed to present an at times uncomfortably intimate and raw view of life in Sicily between 480 and 211 BC. He writes about the leaders of high-profile, but the lot and life of all people affected by their leadership simmers just below the surface. One does not expect to be touched so deeply by writing of this nature and that is its greatest strength for me.
Saying that, I fail to give credit to the books' focus on the political systems of the time. Although the lives of so many tyrants (and thankfully a few rulers with redeeming qualities) are described, it is the forays into the fickle nature of democracy that puzzled and fascinated most, and the parallels one finds in our own environment.
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Martinus
4.0 out of 5 stars A Very Good History Book
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 3, 2023
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Well written, informative and a subject and historical period that I am interested in.
I would recommend this book.
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Martyn J. Fogg
5.0 out of 5 stars First book of a good duo.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 7, 2019
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The story of Syracuse and the endless fighting between Greeks, Sicels, and Carthaginians for the control of Sicily. Another aspect to Greek ancient history of which I knew little before reading this.
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Philip Roger Bull
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent read
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 23, 2013
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I found this book to be highly readable and the subject matter fascinating. Well worth reading for anyone with an interest in ancient and/or military history.
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