Department of History

I am a historian of ancient Greece and Rome. I teach courses on a variety of subjects in ancient history, from introductory surveys to undergraduate and graduate-level seminars. My research has focused on questions of ancient Greek politics, warfare, and historiography, but most especially on Greek democracy. My first book, entitled The First Democracies, explores the emergence of the ancient form of popular government in numerous city-states in the Archaic Age of Greek history (800-480 BC). My second monograph, Democracy Beyond Athens, describes democracy’s expansion and character in the Classical Age (480-323 BC), and was published in 2011 by Cambridge University Press. Connections between ancient and modern forms of democracy, war, and imperialism have been an interest of mine as well, to which I have devoted a few articles. My current research project explores the consequences of Sparta’s unique military reputation in Classical Greece. I am also writing the ancient and early medieval portions of a new Western Civilization textbook.