Battles of the Ancient World

This seminar surveys many of the famed ancient battles in the eastern Mediterranean. It ranges from ancient Egypt and Assyria to the end of antiquity when Greeks and Romans fought for domination. It explores their tactics, strategies, and weapons. Importantly, this course examines why these battles proved to be important inflection points in world history.

Richard Lobban, Ph.D., professor emeritus of anthropology and African studies at Rhode Island College, serves as adjunct professor of African studies at the Naval War College. He has a master’s degree from Temple University and a Ph.D. from Northwestern University and has taught at the American University in Cairo, Tufts University, and Dartmouth College among others. He has conducted field research in Tunis and Egypt and has been excavating a temple in Sudan for ten years. Dr. Lobban is widely published in his areas of expertise: urban and complex societies, informal sector economy, gender, ethnicity, race, and class, especially in the Middle East. He often serves as a subject matter expert and court-appointed expert witness in political asylum cases for refugees from Africa and the Middle East. A proclaimed Yoruba Elder, he and his wife are both active beekeepers, enjoying honey, making beeswax candles, and lecturing on ancient and modern beekeeping in Africa.