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The Thracians 700 BC-AD 46 (Men-at-Arms) | 
 enlarge | Author: Christopher Webber
Creator: Angus Mcbride
Publisher: Osprey Publishing
Category: Book
List Price: $17.95
Buy New: $10.56
You Save: $7.39 (41%)
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Avg. Customer Rating:  6 reviews
Sales Rank: 240460
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 48
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.4
Dimensions (in): 9.5 x 7.1 x 0.2
ISBN: 1841763292
Dewey Decimal Number: 930
EAN: 9781841763293
ASIN: 1841763292
Publication Date: September 25, 2001
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
Throughout the three centuries before Christ many hundreds of thousands of Thracians, in more than 40 tribes, occupied the area between northern Greece, southern Russia and north-west Turkey. Skilled horsemen, masters of light infantry fighting in broken terrain, and renowned for their ferocity, the Thracians were feared by even the greatest of their contemporaries, who were eager to employ them as mercenaries. After surviving invasions by the Persians, Greeks, Macedonians and Celts, the Thracians were finally conquered by Rome in AD 46. This concise but lavishly illustrated study of their history and material culture includes the results of the latest archaeological research, notably some remarkable tomb paintings.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 1 more reviews...
Thracian Warriors March 31, 2007
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
Excellent introduction to an overlooked people. Masters of all major troop types except heavy infantry, the Thracians were one of Europe's most aggressive warrior peoples, and their mercenary armies got caught up in Classical politics time and again. This book also does a good job of portraying the substantial material wealth of this people. The plates alone are worth the money, being by Angus McBride.
Useful work about an interesting people. January 22, 2006
6 out of 6 found this review helpful
This is a good, accessible summary work about the Thracians. It packs a lot into a small package. The plates capture a good range of settings and styles.
On the negative side: I have to agree with the other reviewer about the author quoting negative contemporary stereotypes of Thracians as if they were established fact. As the other reviewer noted, the Thracians did not leave behind written accounts to counterbalance. However, the author would have been better served to point this out to more casual readers.
I will recommend this work enthusiastically, with the caution above about relying too heavily on quotes of other cultures about Thrace.
 One of their better efforts July 30, 2005
2 out of 5 found this review helpful
A great book about an overlooked people who were great fighters! There is an added bonus as Mr. McBride did the illustrations. Well done!
A good introduction to the Thracians June 8, 2005
"The Thracians 700 BC - AD 46" by Christopher Webber primarily focuses on historical mentions of this group of ancient people by their contemporary Greek and Roman authors. The book also discusses Thracian armor, weapons, clothing, and tactics, but not as in depth. Although I did learn about this ancient group of people, I found parts confusing because there were mentions of other peoples I am unfamiliar with and they were not explained. This book can add to one's knowledge of ancient people and I would recommend it to those that read the Osprey volumes on the Sarmatians or Scythians.
 ...they were of great height, with glitering shields... February 12, 2005
3 out of 5 found this review helpful
First of all, I have to commend Osprey for issuing this title before they tackled such better known peoples of antiquity as the Etruscans, the Phoenicians and the Hitites. I am sure the publishing of this booklet was due to the great success of the "Thracian Gold" travelling exhibition. It is still a welcome addition of starter kits for anyone interested in military history.
Cristopher Webber's text contains some interesting portions on the dress, armour and tactics of this people - something very difficult to find in a compiled form elsewhere. His historical outline, though, suffers from the same biased attitude that most of the historical sources are soaked in. The ancient Greek and Roman writers considered all non-Greek or non-Roman peoples as "barbarian" (one only has to read their descriptions of the Celts) and their lopsided descriptions of those peoples can hardly be taken at face value - especially if the nation in question had no written language. As a comparison, Osprey's Elite Series "The Huns and the Nomad People" is so much more objective in its treatment of its subject! It is surprising to me that Webber would not incorporate a little critical analysis of the ancient writers, apart from him ommitting such facts as the Thracian origins of Spartacus and the Roman Emperor Maximinus Thrax. I believe a "chronological outline", like some other Osprey titles, would have been more appropriate. For a more detailed information on the history I suggest other books, like Alexander Fol's "Ancient Thrace" - unfortunately a very difficult book to find (I bought mine in Bulgaria).
Angus McBride's illustrations are, of course, some of the best in the Osprey line-up. One thing I cannot understand is why he almost always have to depict the figures in a battle scene, making it difficult to exhibit more detail. I have always assumed that the color plates are an illustration rather than art work (although this doesn't mean they can't be artistic). Once again I would have to refer you to his splendid plate A in the Osprey's "The Greeks". Of course, my last gripe is that this format only allows for a maximum of 3-4 figures per plate - a far cry from the wealth of information in other Osprey titles.
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