Examines the series of wars between the Greeks and the Persian Empire, including coverage of the people, societies, and cultures that produced them.

Background to war: The coming of the Persians9 -- Warring sides: Persia, Sparta and Athens 19 -- Outbreak: Dareios sends an expedition to Greece 30 -- Fighting: Xerxes' invasion of Greece 40 -- Portrait of a soldier: Aristodemos the Spartan 75 -- World around war: Persian Architecture 80 -- Portraits of civilians: Demokedes and Demaratos 83 -- How the wars ended: The Greeks attack the Persian Empire 88 -- Conclusion and consequences: The Peloponnesian War 90.