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"...a monumental work of reclamation and revival...The Golden Thread comes as a history, an argument, a treasure hoard." —The Wall Street Journal
A sweeping, resource-rich history of the ancient world and Christendom—designed for students and lifelong learners alike, and faithful to the enduring legacy of the Western tradition. This is Volume I of a two-part series tracing the story of Western civilization from antiquity to the modern age.
The Western Tradition from Antiquity to 1500
Where do the threads that form the Western tradition originate, and how were they woven together? What are the sources of our modern ideas about science, freedom, equality, law, good government, and virtue? These are the questions explored in The Golden Thread, Volume I, Part 1: The Ancient World, written by James Hankins.
Hankins begins with the seminal culture of the classical Greeks, deeply explicating their ideals of citizenship, government, honor, war, and poetry. He charts the rise of philosophy and the Hellenization of the east following the conquests of Alexander the Great. He covers the legends and founding mythology of early Rome and the Roman political order and culture, as well as its conquest of the Mediterranean, all while focusing on the central figures and events – from Caesar’s conquest of Gaul and Augustus’s Pax Romana through the startling rise of Christianity and the political, social, and spiritual recalibration that followed, culminating in Constantine’s conversion.
While telling this grand story, Hankins examines how the foundations were laid for the West’s political and economic dominance in the modern era, illuminating the deep roots of the ideas, arts, and institutions that continue to shape our world. Replete with lavish classical art, alongside original maps, and the letters, speeches, and quotes of the most important figures of each era, this volume masterfully weaves a vibrant tapestry of the West’s ancient past.
The Golden Thread is a two-volume history of the Western tradition. Volume I is authored by James Hankins; Volume II, covering the modern and contemporary West, is authored by Allen C. Guelzo.
Allen C. Guelzo is the Thomas W. Smith Distinguished Research Scholar in the James Madison Program at Princeton University. He is the best-selling author, most recently, of Our Ancient Faith: Lincoln, Democracy, and the American Experiment. He is a three-time winner of the Lincoln Prize.
James Hankins is Professor of History at Harvard University, where he teaches Western intellectual history, the history of the classical tradition, and the history of the Italian Renaissance. His prize-winning book, Virtue Politics: Soulcraft and Statecraft in Renaissance Italy, was published by the Belknap Press of Harvard University in 2019.