Written four hundred years before the birth of Christ, this detailed contemporary account of the struggle between Athens and Sparta stands an excellent chance of fulfilling the author's ambitious claim that the work 'was done to last ...

Thucydides's classic chronicle of the war between Athens and Sparta from 431 to 404 B.C. persists as one of the most brilliant histories of all time. This watershed event concerns not only military prowess, but also perennial conflict...