Again this was not new, but it happened at a time when wealthy warlords were willing to pay a premium for political prestige. The period also saw the emergence of new styles of art which married the oriental and Greek. The libraries of Pergamon and Alexandria had strategic roles in a cultural cold war to develop ever larger libraries. Antioch and Alexandria both date from this period. Many of the generals built cities for themselves. This was the period when war elephants were first used in the Mediterranean and when war ships were built larger and larger. This was through a combination of military power and also soft power. There were of course connections between these countries before Alexander but this sped up following his conquest.Īlexander died young and following his death, his generals fought amongst themselves for power. It covers the ups and downs of Demetrius I in the wars for supremacy amongst Alexander the Great’s generals.Īlexander’s campaigns against the east (especially Persia and India), opened up new influences to the Greek world. A new ageĮlephants and Castles is the punultimate novel written by Alfred Duggan, the erstwhile libertine, archaeologist and historical novelist. Demetrius Poliorcetes is one of the great characters of historical fiction.
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