Much is owed, not only to Herodotus’ own account of late fifth-century Greece, but to the rich legacy that he bestowed on the future. It is from Herodotus and his fellow authors that archaeology has been able to classify and better understand findings and excavation sites. In the last three, the subject is the vengeance of the Persian ruler Xerxes who desires to avenge the Persian defeat at the Battle of Marathon and finally annex Greece into his empire, with very little success.Īlthough his accounts may not have all been historically factual, they do provide readers with a look into the various historical situations at the time. In the first six books, he recounts the growth of the Persian Empire, including the fall of the Lydian king Croesus at the hands of Cyrus, the founder of the Persian Empire.
Herodotus maintains a very unique objective perspective during his retelling. His best work was divided into nine books and each book was named for a muse, Cloi being the first and the historian muse. Filled with digressions and seemingly insignificant tales such as that of Kleobis and Biton, Herodotus includes a complete story with as much information as he can gather. He explicitly states in his introduction that he wishes to preserve the events in order for the Greeks and the barbarians to receive their due. He is remembered as being arguably the very first historian ever. Herodotus is most well known for his historical accounts. He was buried either in Thurii or in Pella, which is in the Macedonian region. He spent time in Athens and even joined the colony of Thurii. It is believed that he was exiled from Halicanassus by the tyrant Lygdamis and lived in Samos until he returned to assist the removal of his foe. Gathering from his own works and accounts of his travels, Herodotus must have come from a relatively wealthy family. He is revered for his honesty as he explains in his writing that he is not sure of the veracity of the supposed events and scenes that occurred but is only writing down what he gathers from his numerous travels through the Greek world.
Herodotus is undoubtedly the “Father of History.” Born in Halicarnassus in Ionia in the 5th century B.C., he wrote “The Histories.” In this text are found his “inquiries” which later became to modern scholars to mean “facts of history.” He is best known for recounting, very objectively, the Greco-Persian wars of the late 5th century.
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