It is Ferrill's thesis that in the period before Alexander there were two independent lines of military development - a Near Eastern one culminating in the expert integration of cavalry, skirmishers, and light infantry and a Greek one based on heavy infantry. When Philip and Alexander blended the two traditions in their crack Macedonian army, the result was a style of warfare that continued, despite technological changes, down to Napoleon.

This newly revised edition presents detailed and copiously illustrated accounts of all the major battles on land and sea up to the fourth century B.C., analyzes weapons from the sling to the catapult, and discusses ancient strategy and tactics, making this a book for armchair historians everywhere.