Product Description

They are the moments when history was writ in blood; when armies determined the fate of empires and men became myths. They are the DECISIVE BATTLES OF THE ANCIENT WORLD. In a groundbreaking four-disc release, THE HISTORY CHANNEL® presents the 13 defining points of ancient warfare-moments that altered the course of history and shaped the modern world. DECISIVE BATTLES OF THE ANCIENT WORLD narrates a comprehensive account of the famed leaders that commanded victory and the brilliant military tactics that swayed destiny as it travels the globe to examine every aspect of these legendary encounters. Witness recreations of the crucial battles of Rome and beyond--from Cannae to Marathon to Thermopylae--and follow some of the greatest warriors of all time, including Hannibal, Spartacus, and Attila the Hun. DECISIVE BATTLES OF THE ANCIENT WORLD offers the ultimate survey of the colossal conflicts that determined the fate of the Western world. DVD Features: TBD Episodes: Atilla the Hun Birth of the Roman Empire Boudicca: Warrior Queen Cannae Crassus: Rich Man, Poor Man Gaugamela Gothic Invasion of Rome, The Hail Caesar! Herman the German Marathon Ramses II Spartacus Thermopylae

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #6467 in DVD
• Brand: A&E HOME ENT.
• Released on: 2006-11-28
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Box set, Color, DVD, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 3
• Dimensions: 1.00 pounds
• Running time: 380 minutes

Features

• They are the moments when history was writ in blood; when armies determined the fate of empires and men became myths. They are the DECISIVE BATTLES OF THE ANCIENT WORLD. In a groundbreaking four-disc release, THE HISTORY CHANNEL® presents the 13 defining points of ancient warfare-moments that altered the course of history and shaped the modern world. DECISIVE BATTLES OF THE ANCIENT WORLD narr

Customer Reviews

Simple...But Satisfying
Decisive Battles is a great collection for the average historian, its episodes last 20 minutes each and involve a retelling of the introduction, fighting and aftermath of major battles from The Persian Wars up to the fall of the Roman Empire.

It uses the game engine from Rome: Total War, this is a fresh tool for battle documentaries as they often use short glimpses of a small group of actors (often not resembling the characters they're supposed to be) involved in repetitous, choreographed melee. This gives some design to the armies and the scale allows for a greater clash and experience.

Included in the documentaries are historians familiar with the topics proving extra information and emphasis to the battles. They do seem restricted sometimes and edited for time, but they do add excitement as the story develops.

This will not satisfy some historians, but overall its an educational show with a short timeslot, its excellent for introductions to the battles for people who dont want to read the accounts from ancient sources. Great for kids as its not to violent, short and action packed.

Also Im Australian and was worried about the regional coding on the dvd, its absolutely no problem, dont let it deter you from buying what should be an addition to the dvd collection.

Very good series
When I saw this set advertised, I was very excited to get it. But when I read that the battles were presented using computer simulations, I was very skeptical. It just sounded so cheesy. Well, I bought the series and viewed with an open mind. I was pleasantly surprised. The simulations will fool no one, but they're good enough for their purpose--to show the ENTIRE battlefield, which in some cases will cover several miles, and not just a couple guys in hand-to-hand combat. You just can't get several thousand Greek and Roman, etc. reenactors together for this type of documentary. This format is a very good way of doing it.
What about the material itself? All is very good. The information is presented in a lively manner and is satisfying for the viewer. I learned a lot and have watched several episodes more than once. All in all, this is a good set and has set a trend for documentaries of the future. Get this if you are interested in the ancient world, warfare, or history in general. You won't be disappointed.

Great, yet brief intro to famous ancient battles
Using the pc game Rome:Total War's graphic engine Decisive Battles is better able to convey how battle played out than a few reenacters. On the other hand if you are familiar with the game as I was, the effect is slightly disappointing. As each episode is only about 22 minutes long there not much depth here, but I would still recommend this as a solid introduction to ancient battles.