The following were the most viewed essays of those published here in 2023. They are listed in declining order, based on the number of views. There are some surprises here. If you haven’t had a chance to read some of them, now would be a good time to take a look:
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We recently discussed some words spoken by the Greek mercenary general Charidamus to the Persian king Darius III on the eve of the Battle of Issus in 333 B.C. But we discussed only a small part of his speech. His complete comments are worthy of our meticulous consideration.
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There is an anecdote told about the prelude to the Battle of Issus in 333 B.C. This momentous contest, which involved the armies of Alexander the Great and Darius III of Persia, was to decide the fate of Asia.
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Sometimes the game is fixed against you. In fact, sometimes what appears to be a level playing field turns out to be a rigged game. What can be done in such situations? How does a man maintain his honor and dignity? We discuss.
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In the 1340s the Italian scholar Petrarch composed a long letter to the poet Homer. He enjoyed these imaginary exercises in which he could “communicate” with some of the great literary figures of the past; there exist letters to Cicero, Livy, and some other ancient writers.
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In the early years of the American Revolutionary War, there existed a loose association of military men who lacked faith in George Washington’s ability to lead the Continental Army, and who were convinced he should be replaced. Although Washington’s position was never seriously in jeopardy, these undercurrents of discontent eventually broke through the surface, taking the form of a bizarre duel between partisans of both sides.
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The island of Cerigo, modernly called Kythira, is situated off one of the southern-jutting fingers of the Greek peninsula. Greece’s rocky shores have without doubt claimed more than their fair share of shipwrecks; and in 1807, near the end of the Napoleonic wars, they became the scene of a terrible tale of maritime suffering and survival, which we will now relate.
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In this podcast, I offer a short selection of Latin readings from Cornelius Nepos, Cicero, and Sallust, at the request of a follower on Twitter (@DingoStar64).
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The Soviet defector and writer Victor Suvorov published a book in 1987 called Spetsnaz: The Inside Story of the Soviet Special Forces. Suvorov, whose real name is Vladimir Bogdanovich Rezun, was himself a Spetsnaz veteran and a Soviet intelligence officer. I enjoyed his book Inside the Soviet Army as well; and he has written other volumes which I have not yet had the opportunity to examine.
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We’re pleased to announce that the audiobook of the new translation of Cicero’s On the Nature of the Gods is now available on Amazon’s Audible. To take a look at it, and hear a audio sample, you can click here. Audiobooks add a whole new dimension to the learning experience. The translation is available in four different formats: Kindle, paperback, hardcover, and now audiobook.
If you have questions, please email me at qcurtius@gmail.com.
Quintus Curtius 
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