Thucydides, The History of the Peloponnesian War

Thucydides’s History is a unique account by a contemporary of the world-changing war between Athens (and its allies) and Sparta (and its allies), that lasted from 431 to 404 BCE. Many scholars and others consider Thucydides to have been the greatest historian ever, for his impartiality, his rigorous gathering and sifting of evidence, his analysis of causes and effects, and for the objectivity and clarity of his account. Thucydides’s achievement still astonishes readers, and this translation, along with the introduction and notes by Polly Low, makes him accessible to a new generation of readers.