Chariot: From Chariot to Tank, the Astounding Rise and Fall of the Worlds First War Machine - Hardcover
Synopsis
s/ From Chariot to Tank, the Astounding Rise & Fall of the Worlds First War MachineThe chariot changed the face of ancient warfare. First in West Asia and Egypt, then in India and China, charioteers came to dominate the battlefield. In 1274 B.C. at Kadesh in present-day Syria - where the untried pharaoh Ramesses II was nearly defeated by the Hittites - some 5,000 chariots were deployed in battle.Its use as a war machine is graphically recounted in Indian epics and Chinese chronicles. Homer's Iliad tells of the attack on Troy by Greek heroes who rode in chariots. In 326 B.C. Alexander the Great faced charioteers in northern India, while in 55B.C., on a Kent beach, Julius Caesar was met by British chariots.Even though the chariot was the favourite conveyance of both gods and kings, there were risks when it was driven at high speed. It is more than possible that the boy pharoah Tutankhamun died from injuries sustained in a chariot accident.Because of the dangers involved, chariot racing attracted hundreds of thousands of spectators. So enthusiastic were they that the Roman Emperor Nero could not resist driving his own ten-horse chariot at the Olympic he fell out but still won the prize. Rivalry between groups of spectators at chariot races often ignited urban riots. In Constantinople, in 532 A.D., a three-day disturbance left 30,000 dead. Yet great charioteers like Porphyrius still emerged. He was a champion into his sixties, provoking the comment that "neither strength nor swift horses know how to win, but the brains if the charioteer."This unique book traces the rise and fall of the chariot right across the Old World, from Britain to Korea. Illustrated throughout and exploring the chariot's legacy - not least as depicted in Hollywood films - it provides a broad-ranging and fascinating view of the world's first revolutionary war machine.
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From the Publisher
Rich in historical anecdote and narrative, Chariot offers riveting descriptions of the military confrontations in which the deployment of chariots heavily influenced the outcome of battles and changed the fates of countries and empires. With nearly a hundred illustrations depicting the chariot's influence in warfare, and as a religious symbol of profound significance in sport, literature, and art throughout the ages, Chariot provides a broad-ranging and fascinating view of a machine that has exerted a monumental impact on our world.
About the Author
Arthur Cotterell’s previous books include The Minoan World; A Dictionary of World Mythology; The Penguin Encyclopedia of Classical Civilizations; The Pimlico Dictionary of Classical Civilizations; The Pimlico Dictionary of Classical Mythologies.
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