Claude Mossé

Between becoming king of Macedonia in 336 BC and his death in 323, Alexander the Great conquered not only the Greek city states but also Persia and as far east as the Punjab in India, as far south as Egypt. Claude Mosse describes the progress of Alexander's career in the first part of her book, while the second examines the effects of his conquests on the history of the ancient, medieval and modern world. Central to the book is the myth of Alexander and how the image of Alexander was created and evolved over the centuries. From the illustrious son of Zeus down to the absolute monarch idealised by Louis XIV, from the valiant knight of the crusaders to the Moslem philosopher-king, the author reveals the gamut of contrasts that make up the legend of this extraordinary hero of history and myth.

Between becoming king of Macedonia in 336 BC and his death in 323, Alexander the Great conquered not only the Greek city states but also Persia and as far east as the Punjab in India, as far south as Egypt. Claude Mosse describes the progress of Alexander's career in the first part of her book, while the second examines the effects of his conquests on the history of the ancient, medieval and modern world. Central to the book is the myth of Alexander and how the image of Alexander was created and evolved over the centuries. From the illustrious son of Zeus down to the absolute monarch idealised by Louis XIV, from the valiant knight of the crusaders to the Moslem philosopher-king, the author reveals the gamut of contrasts that make up the legend of this extraordinary hero of history and myth.

Athens has, at different times and from different points of view, been cited as a model of moderate democracy and triumphant humanism, or, on the contrary, as an illustration of the disorders due to demagoguery and misguided imperialism. Professor Mossé looks beyond these judgments to discuss the exceptional destiny of Athens – a city which for two centuries dominated the Eastern Mediterranean world, but then faded from the political scene when Rome extended its control over the whole Mediterranean. The history of Athenian democracy does not end in 404 BC, as is sometimes thought, when the city capitulated to Sparta at the end of its Golden Age. Athens in Decline, first published in 1973, demonstrates how the city experienced another seventy-five years of greatness, and survived, more or less curtailed, under Macedonian domination. She examines the reasons for the final collapse and follows the stages of a decline which was not wholly without grandeur.

Athens has, at different times and from different points of view, been cited as a model of moderate democracy and triumphant humanism, or, on the contrary, as an illustration of the disorders due to demagoguery and misguided imperialism. Professor Mossé looks beyond these judgments to discuss the exceptional destiny of Athens – a city which for two centuries dominated the Eastern Mediterranean world, but then faded from the political scene when Rome extended its control over the whole Mediterranean. The history of Athenian democracy does not end in 404 BC, as is sometimes thought, when the city capitulated to Sparta at the end of its Golden Age. Athens in Decline, first published in 1973, demonstrates how the city experienced another seventy-five years of greatness, and survived, more or less curtailed, under Macedonian domination. She examines the reasons for the final collapse and follows the stages of a decline which was not wholly without grandeur.