Tomes of the West

While the Persian army is defeated at Plataea, the Hellenic fleet shadows the Persian fleet across the Aegean in Ionia waiting for an opportunity to strike the death knell.

After Xerxes' hasty retreat from Greece, Mardonios remains with his army to bring the defiant Greeks to heel.

After the victories at Artemision, the Greek fleet falls back to the island of Salamis giving the Athenians time to evacuate before the Persians reach the cradle of democracy.

With the fall of Leonidas opening the pass of Thermopylae, the Athenians and the rest of the Greek fleet remain as the last bulwark against the rising tide of the Persian invasion.

At a narrow pass, 300 Spartans and their allies will stand against the inexorable horde of the King of Asia.

The Greeks send envoys to every corner of the Greek world to call for aid as Xerxes marches his forces slowly towards Hellas.

Xerxes ascends the throne and after putting down a rebellion in Egypt, assembles the greatest army the world as ever seen and marches to finally subdue the meddlesome Greeks. MUSIC CREDIT: Folk Round by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Source: http://incompetech.com/music/royalty-free/index.html?isrc=USUAN11003...

As the Persians try and consolidate their power after the revolt, King Darius decides it's finally time to enact his revenge on the Athenians for meddling in their affairs. MUSIC CREDTI: Folk Round by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Source: http://incompetech.com/music/royalty-free/index.html?isrc=USUAN1100357...

The Ionian revolt continues to blaze. As Histiaios' plan comes to fruition and he is released to deal with the rebels, Artaphrenes easily figures him out, forcing him to try carve out his own Kingdom amidst the chaos. MUSIC CREDIT: Folk Round by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Source: http://incompetech.com/mu...

Aristagoras, to save himself, ignites a revolt that engulfs the west of Asia, where free Greeks aid their kin, lighting the fires of vengeance in the halls of Susa.

Reeling from the Scythian campaign, Darius sets his sights on conquering the rest of Europe as a Tyrant's deputy tries his hand and forming his own empire. Music and Sound Credit: Folk Round by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Source: http://incompetech.com/music/royalty-free/index.html?isrc=USUAN1100357 Artist...

King Darius marches a vast army north to conquer the mighty Scythians in revenge for their invasion of Asia a century before.

Herodotus describes the strange land of Scythia, the great steppe with its nomadic horselords and fierce warriors before King Darius' invasion. Music and Sound Credit: Folk Round by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Source: http://incompetech.com/music/royalty-free/index.html?isrc=USUAN1100357 Artist: http://inc...

The Magians have usurped the Persian throne but seven nobles will conspire to win it back and crown a King among their own.

Cambyses, son of Cyrus, King of Persia, turns his attention to the west, crossing the great desert and invading Egypt.

The priests of Egypt recount their Pharaohs from Min to Amasis, the fated king tasked with withstanding the coming Persian invasion.

Herodotus steps foot in the ancient land of the Nile and describes the people and culture as it was in his time.

From the fall of Croesus to the blood-soaked plains east of the Caspian: Cyrus mocks the Ionian Greeks, turns proud Lydians into harp-strumming shopkeepers, and storms the walls of Babylon. Music and Sound Credit: Lord of the Land by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Source: http://incompetech.com/music/royalty-...

From scattered shepherds in the high Zagros to the ashes of Nineveh: the cunning rise of the Medes, the seven-ringed fortress of Ecbatana, and the birth of an empire. Fulfilling a prophecy and refusing to die, and a man fulfills his destiny and claims his throne. Music and Sound Credit: Folk Round by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommon...

The richest man who the Greeks ever knew meets the oracle that destroys him. Herodotus begins his Histories with Croesus of Lydia: golden rivers, a doomed prophecy, and the first great clash between East and West. The chapter that starts it all. Episode 1 MUSIC Folk Round by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Sou...

The very first history book ever written – read distilled as Herodotus wrote it 2,500 years ago. In 440 BC, a curious traveler from Halicarnassus set out to preserve “the great and marvelous deeds of both the Greeks and barbarians” before they vanished from memory. What he produced is The Histories: nine books that sweep from the palaces of Lydia and the pyramids of Egypt to the nomad horsemen of...

Welcome to Tomes of the West – an epic journey through 2,500 years of Western history, beginning with the father of history himself, Herodotus. From the dawn of recorded inquiry to the present day, we’ll journey the epic long road of ideas, battles, discoveries, and revolutions that shaped our civilization. Join us as we open the great books, dust off the ancient voices, and follow the story of th...