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Quintus Curtius Rufus
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The History of Alexander Paperback – 1 January 1985

4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 122 ratings
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A compelling narrative of the life of the greatest conqueror of all time- Alexander the Great.

Alexander the Great (356-323 BC), who led the Macedonian army to victory in Egypt, Syria, Persia and India, was perhaps the most successful conqueror the world has ever seen. Yet although no other individual has attracted so much speculation across the centuries, Alexander himself remains an enigma. Curtius' History offers a great deal of information unobtainable from other sources of the time. A compelling narrative of a turbulent era, the work recounts events on a heroic scale, detailing court intrigue, stirring speeches and brutal battles - among them, those of Macedonia's great war with Persia, which was to culminate in Alexander's final triumph over King Darius and the defeat of an ancient and mighty empire. It also provides by far the most plausible and haunting portrait of Alexander we possess- a brilliantly realized image of a man ruined by constant good fortune in his youth.
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  1. Print length
    352 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Penguin
  4. Publication date
    1 January 1985
  5. Dimensions
    12.93 x 1.57 x 19.71 cm
  6. ISBN-10
    0140444122
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0140444124
  8. See all details
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About the Author

Quintus Curtius Rufus, the Roman historian, wrote the only life in Latin of Alexander the Great. The author's identity and the date of composition of the work have been the subject of great debate. However, the evidence of recent years suggests he was a soldier and politician who rose from obscurity to a senatorial role under Tiberius (AD 14-37). However, the fall of the emperor's chief minister, Sejanus, brought his political career temporarily to an end and he turned to writing.


John Yardley was born in 1942 and educated at St Andrews and Oxford Universities. He is now Professor of Classics at the University of Ottawa, Canada.

Waldemar Heckel is now a Professor at the University of Calgary, Canada. His books include The Last Days and Testament of Alexander the Great- A Prosopographic Study and The Marshals of Alexander's Empire.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Penguin; 1st edition (1 January 1985)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 352 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0140444122
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0140444124
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 12.93 x 1.57 x 19.71 cm
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 122 ratings

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Quintus Curtius Rufus

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4.6 out of 5 stars
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Johnstone52
5.0 out of 5 stars Happiness
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 5 March 2023
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My daughter needed this and she was very happy with it
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horse with no name
5.0 out of 5 stars to be taken with a Granicus of salt
Reviewed in the United States on 13 August 2016
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History has given us both shining heroes (Jesus, Socrates, Joan of Arc) and deep-dyed villains (Hitler, Stalin, Pol Pot), but perhaps most interesting are the morally ambiguous characters. Depending on your perspective, Alexander the Great was either an enlightened statesman and general or a drunken, power-mad sociopath. I suspect the truth is somewhere in between. Quintus Curtius Rufus, a Roman historian writing in the first century A.D., gives us perhaps the most rounded portrait of Alexander as a good man corrupted by success. Alexander's virtues were his own, his faults the result of his good fortune. Curtius is sometimes confused about names, dates, and places, and sometimes he plays fast and loose with the facts, but over all he wrote an exciting, fast-paced narrative full of gripping battle scenes, harrowing accounts of bravery and cruelty, and unforgettable characters. One feels that Curtius, living as he did during the time of the deranged Julio-Claudian emperors, uses Alexander's story to express truths about his own period that could not be openly stated. Most likely he wrote during the reign of Claudius, who in addition to being an alcoholic and a womanizer was also a sadist--all faults for which Curtius criticizes Alexander. He is especially troubled by Alexander's insistence on being worshipped as a god--this at a time when the emperor cult was in its early stages.
One gets the impression that Alexander was losing it at the end, becoming increasingly reckless while falling under the spell of the eunuch Bagoas. Unfortunately, "The History of Alexander" is incomplete. The first two books and the beginning of the sixth are missing, and the later books all have lacunae of increasing severity. The whole drama of Alexander's return to Babylon, the death of Hephaestion, and Alexander's own final illness and death is missing. The work ends with the onset of the wars that broke out over the disputed succession to Alexander's throne, resulting in the splintering of the Macedonian empire.
John Yardley has produced a readable translation with a helpful introduction and notes by Waldemar Heckel. Included are bibliography, list of abbreviations, appendices, maps, and an index to maps. Overall an exciting account of one of history's most legendary figures.
13 people found this helpful
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in India on 7 June 2016
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Mr. J. W. Robinson
5.0 out of 5 stars I'll soon know as much as anyone.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 8 January 2014
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One of the few sources of information on Alexander the Great. Much of the original work has been lost but what remains is important to an understanding of the man and his amazing life.
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Remigio Mariano
3.0 out of 5 stars Required reading
Reviewed in Canada on 26 July 2012
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This book is required reading to understand Alexander the Great and his personality. It gives a personal insight into the complex person that was Alexander the Great.
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