Roger Crowley

This history of Portugal's age of exploration and conquest taught me a great deal, in an eminently readable style.. The foresignt and persistance of Portugal's advance to the East was amazing, as was the power and wealth it achieved. In the fifteenth century, Portugal was tiny (about a million people - smaller than some Chinese cities of the day) and poor. Nonetheless, its rulers undertook a planned program of exploration and conquest to reach and in time control the trade of the East. The book is heavy on detail, particularly military detail, which at times gets repetitive. It also underlines the stunning brutality of these explorers and adventurers, who often sound rather like very Catholic Vikings. I would have liked a bit more of an overview, particularly of the retreat of Portugal's empire. Nonetheless, I enjoyed the book and would recommend it to anyone interested in colonialism.… (mere)

從東西教會結的樑子、各國事前事後的反應、雙方事前準備、拜占庭式邏輯、城防、武器到戰術等很順的講到結尾
算是相當易讀的書
當然如過事前知道附近地名的話，讀起來會更輕鬆

我原先知道這是大炮發威的一場戰役，且攻下的時間相當短(相較於圍城)
就以為土耳其打的挺輕鬆
原來是打到再不攻下來就要被逼退的程度了
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以簡轉繁的書籍之中，本書處理的接近完美
留意到的破綻是「借此」，讓我起疑心去查了一下譯者國籍
雖然字義上好像不算錯但台灣習慣上是用「藉此」
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如果有機會去土耳其
好想參觀聖索菲亞大教堂以及附近例如蘇萊曼清真寺的大型清真寺啊… (mere)