Early European Historians (Greek, Roman)

Title : EARLY EUROPEAN HISTORIANS (GREEK , ROMAN (Name (Institution

There existed various European historians of Roman and Greek origin some of whom are discussed under

Heredotus of Halicarnassus

Heredotus of Halicarnassus was a Greek Historian and he is regarded as the father of history . He lived in the 5th century BCE . He was famously known for writing The Histories . He mostly talked about Greco Persian Wars and stories about Mediterranean and Black Sea were he had traveled In his work he is believed to be among the honest since he accepted that

all what he wrote were information that he was been told

He was exiled from Halicarnassus by Lygdamis and went to live at Samos He later came to remove Lygdamis from power . He is believed to have lived in Athens , Thurii in South Italy . When he died he was buried either at Thurii or Macedonia

His works have being viewed by many as having contradictions , like the one he said that the Nile was as a result of snow melting in the south of Africa . This among others led to the other name of The Father of Lies . But other aspects of his writing are true like the Egyptian city of Heracleion and the recovery of Naucratis stela which has made him being respected of late

Xenophon

Xenophon is a Greek historian and was the son of Gryluss . Xenophon who admired Socrates was a soldier and mercenary . His famous writings are all about history of his time and life of Greece and also the saying of Socrates

He assisted Cyrus the Young in a war against his older brother Emperor Artaxerxes II of Persian . Cyrus the Young also employed mercenaries who lead the victory for Greece but lead to the death of Cyrus . After the death of Greek general Clearchus , he was elected as a leader and they fought their way back home under a journey titled Anabasis . He was later exiled and lived in Scillus near Olympia in Elis . His deportation was later revoked and he is believed that he died in either Corith or Athens

Thucydides

Thucydides is believed to have lived between c .460-c .395 . He was an Athenian general and a renowned historian . His work was that of History of the Peloponnesian War . He was exiled because he was not able to defend Amphipolis against commander Brasidas who was a Spartan during Archidamian War . He later wrote down this war under the title wars fought between Athens and Sparta . His writings were mostly about war and its mechanisms which he said would be used in many ages

His works are mostly objective but sometimes he had to hide from his personal judgment . A good example of this is his account of the plague at Athens in 429 which it slowly develops into a stunning story about moral corruption . His judgmental characteristic about cleon , Nicias and Pericles isn 't that much accurate . Also the dismissal of Megarian Decree as an idea or mere pretext for war...