Henry Graham Dakyns

Anabasis: The March of the Ten Thousand narrates Xenophon's service in Cyrus the Younger's bid for the Persian throne and the mercenaries' retreat from Cunaxa to the Black Sea. In lucid Attic prose, it blends battlefield reportage, logistics, and set speeches with ethnographic and geographic observation. Its third-person self-portrait, ritual markers, councils, and the cry 'Thalatta!' place it between memoir and historiography in the post-Peloponnesian War world.
An Athenian gentleman-soldier and pupil of Socrates, Xenophon joined at a friend's urging after consulting Apollo at Delphi. When the Greek generals were seized, he was elected to help lead the retreat. Experience of command, piety, and improvisation-later deepened in Spartan exile at Scillus-shapes the work's pragmatic tone and aligns it with his Hellenica, Cyropaedia, and Socratic writings on authority and self-discipline.
Essential for students of classical history, military studies, and leadership, this brisk, unfussy narrative rewards attention to tactics, morale, and persuasion. It suits courses on Greek prose and empire and general readers seeking an adventure whose intelligence matches its drama. With clean architecture and unshowy wisdom, Anabasis remains a guide to surviving crisis and finding a way home. Quickie Classics summarizes timeless works with precision, preserving the author's voice and keeping the prose clear, fast, and readable-distilled, never diluted.
Enriched Edition extras: Introduction · Synopsis · Historical Context · Author Biography · Brief Analysis · 4 Reflection Q&As · Editorial Footnotes.