The Histories Companion
Your guide to Herodotus, Thucydides and Xenophon
The Histories Companion introduces students to three of history’s most influential early historians: Herodotus, the “Father of History”, and his inquiries into the origins of the Greco-Persian Wars; Thucydides’ History of the Peloponnesian War and its forays into the earliest expressions of political philosophy; and Xenophon’s Anabasis, the famous account of the march of ten thousand Greek soldiers home through enemy territory. Designed to be paired with the Old Western Culture lectures and the Reader, with both schedules, questions at four levels for every lesson, commonplace starters, and the Digressios.
A companion to the books, not a textbook
It stays close to the texts, adds no busywork, and is built for delight. The lectures remain the backbone of the course; the Companion is what you hold while you watch and read.
I · Schedules
Honors and Essentials, day by day, for the nine weeks of the unit.
II · Questions
Grammar, Logic, Rhetoric and Discussion questions for every lesson, with commonplace starters.
III · Digressios
Sixteen kinds of rabbit trail: Pictura, Musica, Geographia, Mythologia, Trivia and more.
The art, music and videos, free
The music, videos and art the Companion points to are free in the Roman Roads app, for everyone. Each lesson’s Digressios open onto them.
Questions
Companion or workbook?
Both work with the lectures. The Workbook (PDF included with the main curriculum; printed edition available as add-on) holds the questions for every lecture and reading with an answer key. The Companion is the fuller book: schedules, more questions at four levels, and the Digressios. Use it beside the workbook or in its place.
Is it consumable?
Not in the sense of a workbook you write in and use up; though we encourage students to own their own copy and write in the margins.
For a school or co-op?
Yes. Students watch the lectures at home and bring the Companion to class for discussion and reading aloud, or a teacher lectures live from it. Ask us about school pricing.
When does it ship?
It is in production. We ship it the week it is printed; your order is a pre-order until then.