The Corinthian War, 395–387 BC: The Twilight of Sparta's Empire Hardcover – March 31, 2024

Accessible enough for newcomers to ancient Greek history, it dives deep with strong research, providing a nuanced look at this pivotal conflict. Smith's analysis sheds light on the war's lasting impact on the Greek world, making this book a valuable resource for anyone interested in this period.

143 pages of text/b&w figures/4 battle maps; 2 page Chronology; 4 full page maps; 2 page Glossary; 18 page Introduction; 13 pages of end notes (almost all citations); 2+ page Character List; and 3 page Bibliography. The book is a worthy exploration of what happened after the Peloponnesian [aka "Attic" to Spartaphiles] War. It addresses Spartan imperial overstretch due to its conflicting political impulses and the responses of the other major Greek polities and Persia. The book addresses Spartan, Athenian, Theban, Corinthian, and Persian internal and external political/military activities. The battles of Haliartus, Nemea, Cnidus, Coronea, and Lechaeum are described. It is a very good development of the activities of the time, but there are a multitude of Greek names to keep straight over the narrative and it is very beneficial to go slowly enough throughout the text to keep the roles of the different players clear.

Well written great book, only suggestion would be to break up the copy a little more, at times it got a little wordy.

The Spartan Empire is something that's always fascinated me, and this book absolutely delivers on its promise to analyze important historical events like the Corinthian War. I highly recommend it.