by Simon Elliott.
Hardback (6.5×9.5 inches). 186 pages. 2026.
Subtitle: And the Wars of Alexander the Great’s Successors
Demetrius The Besieger was the son of Antigonus Monophthalmus (“one-eyed” so to speak), who joined Alexander the Great on his invasion of Persia and became a governor in part of the Macedonian Empire. Demetrius later joined him and as a teenager, took part in the Successor battles, learning the art of war from his father.
Demetrius becomes quite good at commanding, especially as early reverses gained him experience in what not to do almost as much as victories taught what to do. He later earned his nickname Poliorcetes (besieger) primarily from his unsuccessful siege of Rhodes, but understanding and using siege engines and techniques brought him more successful city captures than failures.
Antigonus came within a victory or two of re-united the Macedon Empire under one leader, but the Successor Wars proved his undoing. Demetrius then tried his hand, but the battles lost outweighed victories gained.
Demetrius’ biography falls on pages 59 to 137. The rest of the book covers Greek hoplite and Macedonian pikemen and cavalry warfare (p1 to p27), the background to Philip and Alexander (p28 to p58), short bios of major commanders (p138 to p143), and recaps of Alexander the Great’s battles (p144-p169). Footnotes, bibliography, and the index follow.
I mention pages because if you are familiar with the well-trod history of Alexander the Great, this is half a book. If you are not, then this can serve as a valuable introduction to the period. The writing seems a bit simplistic, hence my comment about being a valuable introduction, but then again, I’ve read hundreds of books about Greek and Persian warfare over the decades. This is my first modern book dedicated to Demetrius proper and offers a fine overall profile in that middle section.
The book contains 20 color photos — and I couldn’t help but smile at the painted miniatures set up for a Successors tabletop battle. Of course the author gets a +1 for this nod to historical miniatures.
This book includes long excerpts about Demetrius’ sieges from ancient texts — not its finest prose — but at least thorough. I certainly understood Demetrius’ history a lot better after reading this biography.
Enjoyed it.
— Reviewed by Russ Lockwood
