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Xenophon
Xenophon of Athens (; grc, Ξενοφῶν ; – probably 355 or 354 BC) was a Greek military leader, philosopher, and historian, born in Athens. At the age of 30, Xenophon was elected commander of one of the biggest Greek mercenary armies of the Achaemenid Empire, the Ten Thousand, that marched on and came close to capturing Babylon in 401 BC. As the military historian Theodore Ayrault Dodge wrote, "the centuries since have devised nothing to surpass the genius of this warrior". Xenophon established precedents for many logistical operations, and was among the first to describe strategic flanking maneuvers and feints in combat. Xenophon's '' Anabasis'' recounts his adventures with the Ten Thousand while in the service of Cyrus the Younger, Cyrus's failed campaign to claim the Persian throne from Artaxerxes II of Persia, and the return of Greek mercenaries after Cyrus's death in the Battle of Cunaxa. '' Anabasis'' is a unique first-hand, humble, and self-reflective acco ...
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Ξενοφῶν
Xenophon of Athens (; grc, Ξενοφῶν ; – probably 355 or 354 BC) was a Greek military leader, philosopher, and historian, born in Athens. At the age of 30, Xenophon was elected commander of one of the biggest Greek mercenary armies of the Achaemenid Empire, the Ten Thousand, that marched on and came close to capturing Babylon in 401 BC. As the military historian Theodore Ayrault Dodge wrote, "the centuries since have devised nothing to surpass the genius of this warrior". Xenophon established precedents for many logistical operations, and was among the first to describe strategic flanking maneuvers and feints in combat. Xenophon's ''Anabasis'' recounts his adventures with the Ten Thousand while in the service of Cyrus the Younger, Cyrus's failed campaign to claim the Persian throne from Artaxerxes II of Persia, and the return of Greek mercenaries after Cyrus's death in the Battle of Cunaxa. ''Anabasis'' is a unique first-hand, humble, and self-reflective account of a ...
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Anabasis (Xenophon)
''Anabasis'' (; grc-gre, Ἀνάβασις ; an "expedition up from") is the most famous work of the Ancient Greek professional soldier and writer Xenophon. It narrates the expedition of a large army of Greek mercenaries hired by Cyrus the Younger to help him seize the throne of Persia from his brother, Artaxerxes II, in 401 BC. The seven books making up the ''Anabasis'' were composed circa 370 BC. Though as an Ancient Greek vocabulary word, ''ᾰ̓νᾰ́βᾰσῐς'' means "embarkation", "ascent" or "mounting up", the title ''Anabasis'' is rendered in translation as ''The March Up Country'' or as ''The March of the Ten Thousand''. The narration of the army's journey across Asia Minor and Mesopotamia is Xenophon's best known work, and "one of the great adventures in human history". Authorship Xenophon, in his ''Hellenica'', did not cover the retreat of Cyrus but instead referred the reader to the ''Anabasis'' by "Themistogenes of Syracuse"—the tenth-century Suda also des ...
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Ten Thousand
The Ten Thousand ( grc, οἱ Μύριοι, ''oi Myrioi'') were a force of mercenary units, mainly Greeks, employed by Cyrus the Younger to attempt to wrest the throne of the Persian Empire from his brother, Artaxerxes II. Their march to the Battle of Cunaxa and back to Greece (401–399 BC) was recorded by Xenophon, one of their leaders, in his work '' Anabasis''. Campaign Between 401 and 399 BC, the Ten Thousand marched across Anatolia, fought the Battle of Cunaxa, and then marched back to Greece. Xenophon stated in '' Anabasis'' that the Greek heavy troops routed their opposition twice at Cunaxa at the cost of only one Greek soldier wounded. Only after the battle did they hear that Cyrus had been killed, making their victory irrelevant and the expedition a failure. The Ten Thousand found themselves far from home with no food, no employer, and no reliable allies. They offered to make their Persian ally Ariaeus king, but he refused on the grounds that he was not of royal bl ...
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Memorabilia (Xenophon)
''Memorabilia'' (original title in grc, Ἀπομνημονεύματα, Apomnemoneumata) is a collection of Socratic dialogues by Xenophon, a student of Socrates. The lengthiest and most famous of Xenophon's Socratic writings, the ''Memorabilia'' is essentially an apologia (defense) of Socrates, differing from both Xenophon's ''Apology of Socrates to the Jury'' and Plato's ''Apology'' mainly in that the Apologies present Socrates as defending himself before the jury, whereas the former presents Xenophon's own defense of Socrates, offering edifying examples of Socrates' conversations and activities along with occasional commentary from Xenophon. Title Memorabilia is also known by its Latin title ''Commentarii'' and a variety of English translations (Recollections, Memoirs, Conversations of Socrates, etc.). Date of composition The ''Memorabilia'' was probably completed after 371 BC, as one passage (III.5) appears to assume the military situation after the Spartan defeat at ...
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Symposium (Xenophon)
The ''Symposium'' ( grc-gre, Συμπόσιον) is a Socratic dialogue written by Xenophon in the late 360s B.C. In it, Socrates and a few of his companions attend a symposium (a lighthearted dinner party at which Greek aristocrats could have discussions and enjoy entertainment) hosted by Kallias for the young man Autolykos. Xenophon claims that he was present at the symposium, although this is disputed because he would have been too young to attend. The dramatic date for the ''Symposium'' is 422 B.C. Entertainment at the dinner is provided by the Syracusan and his three performers. Their feats of skill thrill the attendants and serve as points of conversation throughout the dialogue. Much of the discussion centers on what each guest is most proud of. All their answers are playful or paradoxical: Socrates, for one, prides himself on his knowledge of the art of match-making. Major themes of the work include beauty and desire, wisdom, virtue, and laughter which is evoked by ...
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Constitution Of The Lacedaemonians
The ''Lacedaemonion Politeia'' ( grc-gre, Λακεδαιμονίων Πολιτεία), known in English as the ''Polity'', ''Constitution'', or ''Republic of the Lacedaemonians'', or the ''Spartan Constitution'',Hall 204.Marincola 349.Lipka 9: "Both arguments carry all the more weight since the ''SC'' is the only surviving Spartan constitution". is a treatise attributed to the Ancient Greece, ancient Greek historian Xenophon, describing the institutions, customs, and practices of the ancient Spartans.Proietti 44–58.Xenophon, ''Hellenica'' 73–74. The work examines the reasons for Sparta's power and renown, despite the city state, city state's sparse population. There are fifteen chapters: the first thirteen enumerate the practices and institutions that made Sparta great; the last two describe Sparta's decline and the survival of its monarchy. The ''Polity'' dates to the period between 387 and 375 BC, and is the only contemporary account of the Spartan political system which ...
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Apology (Xenophon)
The ''Apology of Socrates to the Jury'' ( grc-gre, Ἀπολογία Σωκράτους πρὸς τοὺς Δικαστάς}), by Xenophon of Athens, is a Socratic dialogue about the legal defence that the philosopher Socrates presented at his trial for the moral corruption of Athenian youth; and for ''asebeia'' (impiety) against the pantheon of Athens; judged guilty, Socrates was sentenced to death. Xenophon’s literary rendition of the defence of Socrates evinces the philosopher’s ethical opinion about a sentence of death: that it is better to die before the onset of senility than to escape death by humbling oneself to an unjust persecution. The other extant primary source about the persons and events of the Trial of Socrates (399 BC) is the '' Apology of Socrates'', by Plato. History The ''Apology of Socrates to the Jury'' is Xenophon’s literary contribution to the many apologia written to explain the trial of Socrates (399 BC) to the Athenian public. Each book was i ...
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Cyropaedia
The ''Cyropaedia'', sometimes spelled ''Cyropedia'', is a partly fictional biography of Cyrus the Great, the founder of Persia's Achaemenid Empire. It was written around 370 BC by Xenophon, the Athenian-born soldier, historian, and student of Socrates. The Latinized title ''Cyropaedia'' derives from the Greek ''Kúrou paideía'' (), meaning "The Education of Cyrus". Aspects of it would become a model for medieval writers of the genre mirrors for princes. In turn, the ''Cyropaedia'' strongly influenced the most well-known but atypical of these, Machiavelli's ''The Prince'', which affected the rejection of medieval political thinking and development of modern politics. Format In substance, the ''Cyropaedia'' is a narrative describing the education of the ideal ruler. It has been interpreted as an early novel, a biography, and a manifesto on leadership. The work is intended to communicate political and moral instruction to its audience, most of whom would have been Athenian elite ...
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Education Of Cyrus
The ''Cyropaedia'', sometimes spelled ''Cyropedia'', is a partly fictional biography of Cyrus the Great, the founder of Persia's Achaemenid Empire. It was written around 370 BC by Xenophon, the Athenian-born soldier, historian, and student of Socrates. The Latinized title ''Cyropaedia'' derives from the Greek ''Kúrou paideía'' (), meaning "The Education of Cyrus". Aspects of it would become a model for medieval writers of the genre mirrors for princes. In turn, the ''Cyropaedia'' strongly influenced the most well-known but atypical of these, Machiavelli's '' The Prince'', which affected the rejection of medieval political thinking and development of modern politics. Format In substance, the ''Cyropaedia'' is a narrative describing the education of the ideal ruler. It has been interpreted as an early novel, a biography, and a manifesto on leadership. The work is intended to communicate political and moral instruction to its audience, most of whom would have been Athenian el ...
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Socrates
Socrates (; ; –399 BC) was a Greek philosopher from Athens who is credited as the founder of Western philosophy and among the first moral philosophers of the ethical tradition of thought. An enigmatic figure, Socrates authored no texts and is known mainly through the posthumous accounts of classical writers, particularly his students Plato and Xenophon. These accounts are written as dialogues, in which Socrates and his interlocutors examine a subject in the style of question and answer; they gave rise to the Socratic dialogue literary genre. Contradictory accounts of Socrates make a reconstruction of his philosophy nearly impossible, a situation known as the Socratic problem. Socrates was a polarizing figure in Athenian society. In 399 BC, he was accused of impiety and corrupting the youth. After a trial that lasted a day, he was sentenced to death. He spent his last day in prison, refusing offers to help him escape. Plato's dialogues are among the most ...
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Hellenica
''Hellenica'' ( grc, Ἑλληνικά) simply means writings on Greek (Hellenic) subjects. Several histories of 4th-century Greece, written in the mould of Thucydides or straying from it, have borne the conventional Latin title ''Hellenica''. The surviving ''Hellenica'' is an important work of the Ancient Greek writer Xenophon and one of the principal sources for the last seven years of the Peloponnesian War not covered by Thucydides, as well as the war's aftermath. Xenophon's ''Hellenica'' Many consider this a very personal work, written by Xenophon in retirement on his Spartan estate, intended primarily for circulation among his friends, for people who knew the main protagonists and events, often because they had participated in them. Xenophon's account starts in 411 BC, the year where Thucydides breaks off, and ends in 362 BC, the year of the Battle of Mantineia. There is virtually no transition between the two works, to the extent that the opening words of ''Hellenica'' ...
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Cyrus The Younger
Cyrus the Younger ( peo, 𐎤𐎢𐎽𐎢𐏁 ''Kūruš''; grc-gre, Κῦρος ; died 401 BC) was an Achaemenid prince and general. He ruled as satrap of Lydia and Ionia from 408 to 401 BC. Son of Darius II and Parysatis, he died in 401 BC in battle during a failed attempt to oust his elder brother, Artaxerxes II, from the Persian throne. The history of Cyrus and of the retreat of his Greek mercenaries is told by Xenophon in his '' Anabasis''. Another account, probably from Sophaenetus of Stymphalus, was used by Ephorus. Further information is contained in the excerpts from Artaxerxes II's physician, Ctesias, by Photius; ''Plutarch’s Lives'' of Artaxerxes II and Lysander; and Thucydides' ''History of Peloponnesian War''. These are the only early sources of information on Cyrus the Younger. Biography According to Xenophon, Cyrus the Younger was born after the accession of his father in 424 BC. He had an elder brother, Arsicas (whose name changed to Artaxerxes II when ...
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