God's Generals

“Richard Gabriel drives his narrative with the desperate speed of a war-chariot, sometimes careening on one wheel so exciting is his story-telling, but masterfully never up-setting. This dean of military history does not preach, but the reader of God’s Generals will learn as much about our own world as about the deeds and times of the holy soldiers of whom Gabriel’s writes.”
—J.E. Lendon, author of Soldiers and Ghosts: A History of Battle in Classical Antiquity

“Religions may be peaceful, but their founders usually couldn’t be. Moses, leading some 25,000 migrants away from and then through hostile territory, was obliged to guard both rear and front constantly and to fight dissidents within, predators without, and dwellers resisting newcomers. Given his vision of the ummah, or worldwide Islamic community, Muhammad had to forge a military force to extend and protect it. Prolific military-historian Gabriel argues from scriptural explication, nonscriptural sources, and the insights of archaeology, cultural anthropology, and modern history that both leaders met their military challenge brilliantly. He does the same with the Buddha, who, despite the legend of his sequestered upbringing, was obliged by his family’s status to be a warrior in a very violent era and almost certainly conceived Buddhism in revulsion, powered by what is now called PTSD. As interesting as Gabriel’s martial portrayals of his subjects is the shaping contention that monotheism is particularly conducive to violence. Gabriel’s accessible style and scholarly propriety make this volume as convincing as it is eye opening.”
—Booklist

Praise for Richard A. Gabriel’s previous work:

On Scipio Africanus:
“A brilliant work of research and analysis from one of the country’s leading military historians. A comprehensive, original and important work of scholarship and military biography that is certain to become the definitive work.” —Steve Weingartner, editor of the Cantigny Military History Series and author of Chariots Like a Whirlwind

On Genghis Khan’s Greatest General: Subotai the Valiant:
“An extraordinarily fine description of the structure of the Mongol army . . . . Every officer who has command over other officers should hasten to purchase a copy of this extraordinary book.” —Journal of Military History

On Hannibal:
“Richard Gabriel’s Hannibal is a worthy successor to his books on Subotai, Muhammad, Scipio Africanus, Thutmose III, and Philip of Macedon. Informed equally by the author’s encyclopedic knowledge of antiquity and his own military background, Hannibal is a highly readable military biography.” —Keith Poulter, editor of Military Chronicles

“Richard Gabriel drives his narrative with the desperate speed of a war-chariot, sometimes careening on one wheel so exciting is his story-telling, but masterfully never up-setting. This dean of military history does not preach, but the reader of God’s Generals will learn as much about our own world as about the deeds and times of the holy soldiers of whom Gabriel’s writes.”
—J.E. Lendon, author of Soldiers and Ghosts: A History of Battle in Classical Antiquity

“Religions may be peaceful, but their founders usually couldn’t be. Moses, leading some 25,000 migrants away from and then through hostile territory, was obliged to guard both rear and front constantly and to fight dissidents within, predators without, and dwellers resisting newcomers. Given his vision of the ummah, or worldwide Islamic community, Muhammad had to forge a military force to extend and protect it. Prolific military-historian Gabriel argues from scriptural explication, nonscriptural sources, and the insights of archaeology, cultural anthropology, and modern history that both leaders met their military challenge brilliantly. He does the same with the Buddha, who, despite the legend of his sequestered upbringing, was obliged by his family’s status to be a warrior in a very violent era and almost certainly conceived Buddhism in revulsion, powered by what is now called PTSD. As interesting as Gabriel’s martial portrayals of his subjects is the shaping contention that monotheism is particularly conducive to violence. Gabriel’s accessible style and scholarly propriety make this volume as convincing as it is eye opening.”
—Booklist

Praise for Richard A. Gabriel’s previous work:

On Scipio Africanus:
“A brilliant work of research and analysis from one of the country’s leading military historians. A comprehensive, original and important work of scholarship and military biography that is certain to become the definitive work.” —Steve Weingartner, editor of the Cantigny Military History Series and author of Chariots Like a Whirlwind

On Genghis Khan’s Greatest General: Subotai the Valiant:
“An extraordinarily fine description of the structure of the Mongol army . . . . Every officer who has command over other officers should hasten to purchase a copy of this extraordinary book.” —Journal of Military History

On Hannibal:
“Richard Gabriel’s Hannibal is a worthy successor to his books on Subotai, Muhammad, Scipio Africanus, Thutmose III, and Philip of Macedon. Informed equally by the author’s encyclopedic knowledge of antiquity and his own military background, Hannibal is a highly readable military biography.” —Keith Poulter, editor of Military Chronicles