The history of the ancient world : from the earliest accounts to the fall of Rome

Summary: The first volume in a new series that tells the stories of all peoples, connecting historical events from Europe to the Middle East to the far coast of China, while still giving weight to the characteristics of each country. Historian Bauer provides both sweeping scope and attention to the individual lives that give flesh to abstract assertions about human history. Dozens of maps provide a geography of great events, while timelines give the reader an ongoing sense of the passage of years and cultural interconnection. This narrative history employs the methods of "history from beneath"--Literature, epic traditions, private letters and accounts--to connect kings and leaders with the lives of those they ruled. The result is a tapestry of human behavior from which we may draw conclusions about the direction of world events and the causes behind them.--From publisher description.

Record details

ISBN: 039305974X
ISBN: 9780393059748
Physical Description: print
xxvii, 868 pages : illustrations, maps ; 25 cm
Edition: 1st ed.
Publisher: New York : W.W. Norton, ©2007.

Content descriptions

Bibliography, etc. Note:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 779-829) and index.

Formatted Contents Note:

The origin of kingship -- The earliest story -- The rise of aristocracy -- The creation of empire -- The age of iron -- The philosopher king -- The first written records -- The first war chronicles -- The first civil war -- The first epic hero -- The first victory over death -- The first reformer -- The first military dictator -- The first planned cities -- The first collapse of empire -- The first barbarian invasions -- The first monotheist -- The first environmental disaster -- The battle for reunification -- The Mesopotamian mixing bowl -- The overthrow of the Xia -- Hammurabi's empire -- The Hyksos seize Egypt -- King Minos of Crete -- The Harappan disintegration -- The rise of the Hittites -- Ahmose expels the Hyksos -- Usurpation and revenge -- The three-way contest -- The shifting capitals of the Shang -- The Mycenaeans of Greece -- Struggle of the gods -- Wars and marriages -- The greatest battle in very ancient times -- The battle for Troy -- The first historical king of China -- The Rig Veda -- The wheel turns again -- The end of the new kingdom -- The dark age of Greece -- The dark age of Mesopotamia -- The fall of the Shang.