A universal history in forty books, from mythological times to Caesar's Gallic War. Only fifteen books survive complete, but they preserve invaluable information from lost historians — especially on Sicily, Egypt, and Alexander's successors.
Start ReadingThe theology and mythology of Egypt and the origins of civilisation, drawing on Hecataeus of Abdera. A fascinating window into Greek understanding of Egyptian religion and culture.
The geography and customs of India, Scythia, and Arabia, blending ethnography with fabulous travellers' tales. Includes accounts of the Amazons and Atlantis.
The mythology and geography of Ethiopia and Libya, and the legends of the Amazons of Africa. The origins of Dionysus and other gods.
The myths of the Greek heroes: Heracles, the Argonauts, Theseus, and the Seven against Thebes. A systematic compendium of Greek heroic mythology.
The islands of the Mediterranean — Sicily, Sardinia, Britain — and their mythological associations. The history of Rhodes and Crete.
The gods and religious customs of the Greeks, including rationalising interpretations of mythology. Known from fragments preserved by Eusebius.
Fragments survive in Eusebius's Praeparatio Evangelica.
Excerpta Constantiniana; Eusebius, Praeparatio Evangelica 2.2.59; fragments on mythology and theology
The Trojan War and its aftermath, from the fall of Troy through the Returns of the Greek heroes — a historical rationalisation of the epic cycle.
Brief fragments only.
Excerpta Constantiniana (De Sententiis, De Virtutibus); Eusebius; fragments on legendary history
Early Greek history from the Returns through the founding of the great colonies, including the first Olympic games and the Lycurgan constitution at Sparta.
Brief fragments only.
Excerpta Constantiniana; fragments on Sicilian tyrannies and western Greek foundations
The rise of the Greek tyrants: Cypselus at Corinth, Polycrates at Samos, the Peisistratids at Athens. The growth of Persian power under Cyrus the Great.
Brief fragments survive in later excerpts.
Excerpta Constantiniana; fragments on eastern Mediterranean events and Persian expansion
The Persian Wars from Darius's Scythian expedition through Marathon, covering ground parallel to Herodotus but from a Sicilian perspective.
Almost entirely lost. Would have offered a valuable alternative to Herodotus.
Excerpta Constantiniana; fragments on the period of the Persian Wars
Xerxes' invasion of Greece: Thermopylae, Salamis, and Plataea. Simultaneously, Gelon's victory over Carthage at Himera — Diodorus gives equal weight to Sicilian events.
The Athenian empire at its height: the rise of Pericles, the building of the Parthenon, and the outbreak of the Peloponnesian War.
The Sicilian Expedition and its catastrophe, the oligarchic revolution at Athens, and the recall of Alcibiades. Sicily takes centre stage.
The fall of Athens, the Thirty Tyrants, and the rise of Dionysius I at Syracuse — the most powerful Greek ruler of his age. Diodorus writes with special authority on Sicilian affairs.
The Spartan hegemony, the liberation of Thebes by Epaminondas, and the battle of Leuctra that shattered Spartan power forever.
The rise of Philip II of Macedon and the Third Sacred War. Diodorus provides our most continuous narrative of Philip's transformation of Macedon into the dominant Greek power.
Alexander the Great — from his accession through the conquest of Persia to his death in Babylon. Diodorus's narrative, drawing on Cleitarchus, is one of our five surviving accounts of Alexander.
The death of Alexander and the Wars of the Successors begin. Perdiccas, Antipater, and Ptolemy compete for Alexander's empire. The funeral procession. The first partition.
Eumenes, Antigonus, and the escalating wars. The struggle for Babylon, the siege of Nora, and the death of Antipater. The empire fragments further.
Antigonus rises to dominance. The siege of Rhodes, the liberation of Greek cities, and the battle of Ipsus (301 BC), which finally shatters the unity of Alexander's world.
The wars of the Diadochi continue: Demetrius Poliorcetes and his spectacular sieges, Pyrrhus's adventures, and the consolidation of the Hellenistic kingdoms.
Substantial fragments survive in Byzantine excerpts (Constantinian Excerpta).
Excerpta Constantiniana (De Sententiis, De Legationibus, De Virtutibus); fragments on Pyrrhus and Agathocles
The outbreak of the First Punic War and the early clashes between Rome and Carthage in Sicily — events Diodorus, as a Sicilian, would have treated with particular knowledge and feeling.
Fragments survive in the Constantinian excerpts.
Excerpta Constantiniana; fragments on the First Punic War
The First Punic War at sea: Rome's extraordinary naval programme and the great battles of Mylae and Ecnomus, and the disastrous African expedition of Regulus.
Fragments only.
Excerpta Constantiniana; fragments on the First Punic War
Hiero II of Syracuse and the final years of the First Punic War. Hamilcar Barca in Sicily and the mercenary revolt at Carthage.
Fragments survive.
Excerpta Constantiniana; fragments on the period between the Punic Wars
The Carthaginian conquest of Spain under the Barcid dynasty: Hamilcar, Hasdrubal, and the young Hannibal. Rome's first interventions across the Adriatic.
Fragments only.
Excerpta Constantiniana; fragments on the period between the Punic Wars
Hannibal crosses the Alps and shatters Rome at the Trebia, Lake Trasimene, and Cannae. The greatest military catastrophe in Roman history.
Fragments survive, supplementing Polybius and Livy.
Excerpta Constantiniana; fragments on the Second Punic War and Hannibal
The war in Italy after Cannae: Fabius's delaying strategy, the defection of Capua, and the siege of Syracuse where Archimedes turned his genius to the defence of the city.
Fragments only. Diodorus's account of the siege of Syracuse — his own city's region — would have been particularly valuable.
Excerpta Constantiniana; fragments on the Second Punic War and Hannibal
Scipio's campaigns in Spain and the fall of Syracuse. The Punic War turns slowly in Rome's favour.
Brief fragments only.
Excerpta Constantiniana; fragments on the Second Punic War and Hannibal
The climax of the Second Punic War: Scipio's invasion of Africa, the recall of Hannibal, and the battle of Zama that ended Carthage's power.
Fragments survive.
Excerpta Constantiniana; fragments on the Second Punic War and Hannibal
Rome turns east: the Second Macedonian War against Philip V, culminating in the battle of Cynoscephalae and Flamininus's dramatic declaration of Greek freedom at the Isthmian Games.
Fragments in the Constantinian excerpts.
Excerpta Constantiniana; fragments on Roman eastern expansion
The war with Antiochus III and Rome's decisive intervention in the eastern Mediterranean. The battle of Magnesia establishes Roman supremacy over the Hellenistic world.
Fragments survive.
Excerpta Constantiniana; fragments on Roman eastern expansion
The Third Macedonian War: Perseus's defeat at Pydna and the end of the Antigonid dynasty. Rome dismembers the Macedonian kingdom.
Substantial fragments survive.
Excerpta Constantiniana; fragments on the Third Punic War period
The destruction of Carthage and Corinth in 146 BC — the annus horribilis that marks Rome's transformation from republic to empire in all but name.
Fragments survive. The simultaneous destruction of these two great cities was a turning point that ancient historians understood with terrible clarity.
Excerpta Constantiniana; Photius, Bibliotheca cod. 244; fragments on 146 BC
The Slave Wars in Sicily — the first great servile revolt under Eunus, which convulsed Diodorus's homeland. He is our primary source even from fragments.
Substantial fragments survive. Diodorus's account of the Sicilian slave revolts is among his most important and most personal surviving material.
Substantial fragments in Excerpta Constantiniana; Photius. Key source for the Sicilian slave revolts
The Jugurthine War and the rise of Marius. The Second Sicilian Slave War erupts, another catastrophe close to Diodorus's heart.
Fragments survive, important for the slave war narrative.
Excerpta Constantiniana; Photius; fragments on the Jugurthine period
The Social War and the first march on Rome by Sulla. The Italian allies' demand for citizenship tears the Republic apart.
Fragments in the Constantinian excerpts.
Excerpta Constantiniana; Photius; fragments on the late Republic
The First Mithridatic War: Mithridates's massacre of 80,000 Romans in Asia Minor, Sulla's siege of Athens, and the sack of Delphi.
Fragments survive.
Excerpta Constantiniana; Photius; fragments on the late Republic
Sulla's civil war, the proscriptions, and his dictatorship. The Republic drowns in the blood of its own citizens.
Brief fragments.
Few fragments; Excerpta Constantiniana
The post-Sullan Republic: Sertorius in Spain, the revolt of Spartacus, and the rise of Pompey. Rome stumbles from crisis to crisis.
Brief fragments.
Few fragments; Excerpta Constantiniana
The final book, covering events down to approximately 60 BC and Caesar's first consulship. The end of Diodorus's forty-book universal history.
Very few fragments survive.
Very few fragments; Excerpta Constantiniana