And I wait in unconsciousness… and I know
Here, here I will die… here I am dying
(Sappho, Lesvos Island, 570—630 BC, translated by V. Krestovsky)
Greece and Asia Minor on the eve of the Peloponnesian War (431 BC). Numerous, relatively independent Greek colonies stand for Athens
But the testosterone-soaked, muscle-flexing allies now turn their gaze to each other. … In the First Peloponnesian, ancient Greek Civil War, Sparta prevailed. The country of aggressive ascetics seizes Athens, exhausted by struggle, and ends the century of its democracy with the accession of a militaristic oligarchy devoid of any creative principle. This is not at all pleasant to the freedom-loving Greek colonies on all sides of the Ecumene (the world mastered by mankind). Detachments of volunteers, grasping the oars, amicably rush to the metropolis. In the end, the troops of Thebes (a powerful polis somewhat north of Athens) and Athens, which are reborn in spite of the enemies, unite, and step by step, push the Dorians back to the southeast of the Peloponnesian peninsula. Here the Spartans, becoming, in their own way, a relic of the poor, but implacable warriors, century after century, turn into ordinary Greeks.
…Macedonia (northern part of the Balkan Peninsula), the Greek kingdom, before that, by the way, the former vassal of Persia rises and sets up its garrisons in all the major city-states of Greece.
The ruler of the now united Greece, the commander Alexander the Great, conquered Persia and part of the adjacent countries in 330 BC. e. Seven years later, this huge, but loose, like a jellyfish state disintegrates into Seleucia, Parthia and Egypt. Egypt is now ruled by the wise companion of Alexander Ptolemy, who becomes the new pharaoh and the founder of the dynasty of his name.
But quite soon, by historical standards, even more powerful western neighbor – Rome, will pay attention to sunny, even Great Greece…
Second Peloponnesian War (197—200 BC). Macedonia and Greece on the eve of their conquest by Great Rome. Under the sun of Hellas, phalanxes and long spears will lose to legions and short swords
Ancient China. Thirty-six centuries BC. This is the bottom of the world history known to us.
The first state covered by written sources is the semi-mythical Shang-Yin (1600 BC – 1046 BC). Difference from states, for example, European ones – both in ancient and modern China there are no temples dedicated to the great gods. Everywhere there are only home altars dedicated to deceased ancestors, a kind of technical points of contact with them. The Great Sky, in which the souls of ancestors and great rulers live, is not a personified deity, the giver of the meaning of life and the resonator of all your actions.
…After Shang slides into the abyss of corruption and debauchery, the whole kingdom is easily conquered by the army of the benevolent rebel general U-Wang. Now it is called Zhou, after the ruler of one of the provinces, Wu-Wang’s father.
The flowering of Confucianism and Taoism falls on the fourth century BC. Be that as it may, prosperous Zhou is divided into seven warring states – Qin, Wei, Zhao, Han, Qi, Yan, Chu.
Emperor Qin Shi Huang in a medieval Chinese painting
For two centuries BC. the legendary emperor of one of them, Qin Shi Huang, deprives all his neighbors of independence. The northern sections of the walls of the former kingdoms are joined together and henceforth form the Great Wall of China. The dictator massively destroys scientists in whom he sees the main reason for the changes in the beneficial Heavenly Order and burns every single book, as far as possible. However, shortly after the physical death of Qin Shi Huang, this whole «unchanging» order, together with the state and the Qin dynasty, disintegrated.
Ancient Rome
A pencil sketch of a living picture this time is as follows. Seven centuries BC – the foundation of the capital of the future Empire by the children of the vestal Rhea Sylvia and Mars itself, lovers of wolf milk, brothers Romulus and Remus. Two centuries BC – the royal period, seven active Roman kings.
Capitol Hill in Antiquity. Here, as well as on the nearby Palatine Hill, Romulus, a descendant of the Trojans, founded Rome. If his brother Rem had won the dispute, the new community, and then the huge state, would have been called «Remoria»
Then, following the progressive model of the Hellenes and in opposition to the barbarians, the Romans form a Republic – the «Common Cause». New strokes – the invasion of Gauls, the same geese not sleeping on the Capitol, a sword in the scales – «woe to the vanquished», a war with Great Greece, which settled in southern Italy, King Pyrrhus and catastrophic Pyrrhic victories.
First Punic War. Struggle with Carthage for the island of Sicily, the founding of a fleet modeled on a progressive Carthaginian ship washed ashore. The theater of military operations moves to Africa, where the Roman victories first entail euphoria, and then a serious defeat. The remnants of the army are evacuated by sea. But on the way back, almost the entire Republican fleet perishes in the storm.
World of the Punic Wars. The third party to the conflict is Great Greece. Now this state entity belongs to the entire south of Italy and part of Sicily.
The fighting moves to Sicily, where the troops of Carthage are commanded by the commander Hamilcar Barca. The forces of the parties are extremely depleted. Toward the end of the day, the Carthaginian fleet is severely defeated by the Romans who have learned to fight at sea. Carthage pays Rome a hefty indemnity and renounces Sicily.
Second Punic War. Two centuries BC. The commander Hamilcar Barka dies, leaving the world, or rather the war, three sons – Hannibal, Magon and Hasdrubal. Their goal is the same as that of their father – Rome must be destroyed.
Hannibal transports his troops to Italy across the icy Alps and, among other things, inflicts a cruel defeat on the Romans at Cannes. 60 thousand Romans die here. A year later, having pacified three quarters of Italy, Hannibal tries to take the city of Rome. Due to unpleasant omens for both sides, the assault will not take place. The Romans capture the Greek city of Syracuse, allied to Carthage. At the same time, the great scientist of antiquity, Archimedes, perishes. The 30,000th Roman Expeditionary Force under the command of Scipio Africanus sets foot on the land of Africa. The commander makes an alliance with the Libyan tribes and defeats the army of Carthage at Zama. Hannibal flees to the king of Antioch, in the south of modern Turkey. This commander more than once participates in battles against Rome and the second time he personally meets with Scipio. Then he moved to Armenia, which became independent from the Seleucids, where he supervised the construction of the capital near modern Yerevan. In Bithynia (northern Turkey), the local king, not wanting unnecessary complications, decides to extradite Hannibal to Rome. The Carthaginian general takes poison.
Sunset of Carthage. Medieval engraving
Fifty years of peace. Carthage pays indemnities, which seemed to the Romans themselves simply unaffordable. He is still rich and dangerous. Having violated the terms of the treaty, the Carthaginians rebuff the official ally of Rome, a certain Libyan tribe. The thought of Cato the Elder, «Carthage Dilindum Essay -“ Carthage must be destroyed», repeated at the Senate meeting, now acquires energy and flesh. The third Punic War begins. Legionnaires disembarking in Africa lay siege to the capital of the African and Asian empires. Three years later, the civilization