History and flashback are not equivalent terms. Most history books do not open with a dramatic moment at a critical juncture of [historical event] and then flip back and forth between the lead-up and the dramatic moment to maintain narrative tension. This is sensationalism; it's literally designed to keep you on the edge of your seat.

And no, Homer does not use this technique in the Iliad, other than brief verbal allusions back to the original cause of the Trojan war. The Iliad starts in the middle of the conflict, but doesn't repeatedly skip the narrative backward in time; the plot is linear and the the dramatic tension comes from wondering if/when the champion warrior Achilles is going to stop sulking over a perceived insult and rejoin his army to fend off the Trojans.