how did ancient greek hoplites fight

How can we explain this time lag in the use of bronze for shields compared to its use for other pieces of defensive equipment? If hoplites could fight successfully in a mixed force, why did the Greeks eventually exclude archers and other lightly armed fighters from the hoplite ranks? 53. ———. “Marathon and the Development of the Exclusive Hoplite Phalanx.” Forthcoming in a BICS supplement edited by C. Carey. It would have looked impressive as the warrior twirled it about, and it would have been more comfortable to walk or run with it slung on one’s back, positioned with the cutouts at elbow height so one’s elbows would not constantly bump the shield. See also George Campbell Macauley in 1904 (“a great struggle” and “jostling”), Henry Cary in 1908 (“violent struggle” and “a close conflict”), and Alfred Denis Godley in the 1921 Loeb edition (“a great struggle” and “blows at close quarters”). These forces defeated the last major hoplite army, at the Battle of Chaeronea (338 BC), after which Athens and its allies joined the Macedonian empire. [clarification needed]. Adam Schwartz has cleverly compared hoplites to Danish riot control police using double-handled, Plexiglas shields weighing less than 3 kg each. Hoplite soldiers made up the bulk of ancient Greek armies. “Techniken zur Herstellung der Einzelteile (Exkurs zum Schild Nr. Strauss, Barry S. 1996. 56. I first challenged this model in an article published in the same year in Classical Antiquity—in fact, I suspect that an earlier version of that paper, submitted to another journal and rejected by a cranky anonymous reader using a manual typewriter, prompted Pritchett’s chapter. Geschichte des griechischen Kriegswesens von der ältesten Zeit bis auf Pyrrhos. 1, Das Alterthum, 3rd ed. “The Killing Zone.” In Hanson 1991:87–109. Soldiers usually held their spears in an underhand position when approaching but once they came into close contact with their opponents, they were held in an overhand position ready to strike. The Great Battles of Antiquity: A Strategic and Tactical Guide to Great Battles that Shaped the Development of War. If the men had previously walked some distance, it helped them regain their order, as they found their places and fell into step with the movements of the dance. This meant that the men at the extreme right of the phalanx were only half-protected. Many scholars since have followed his lead.6, I have discussed the equipment item by item in two other publications and do not want to repeat myself needlessly here.7 Drawing on studies of surviving pieces of Greek equipment, especially from the German excavations at Olympia, and on the reconstructions made by reenactment groups in Britain and Australia, I conclude that Hanson’s picture of lumbering hoplites must be moderated. ———. “The Charge at Marathon.” Classical Journal 71:339–42. With this new type of army he defeated a Spartan army in 392 BC. A battle between phalanxes in the same formation would have differed a lot from a fight between phalanxes in different formations. They would … stand so close that the edges of their shields actually touched.”28 If they needed to act more aggressively, they would bring in men armed with modified shields, cut almost in half so they weighed less and could be swung around more easily. Each hoplite provided his own equipment. Cahn, David. 72. [11] To lessen the number of casualties inflicted by the enemy during battles, soldiers were positioned to stand shoulder to shoulder with their hoplon. [20] Quickly, the phalanx formation and hoplite armour became widely used throughout Ancient Greece. Van Wees, Hans. Greek writers applied the term “hoplite” to Egyptians carrying shields that reached to their feet and to Macedonians who used a much smaller shield.10 Did all Greek hoplites carry this porpax shield? This was an effective defence against missiles, deflecting their force. 2011. [22] The large amounts of hoplite armour needed to then be distributed to the populations of Greek citizens only increased the time for the phalanx to be implemented. 2004. Nierhaus, R. 1938. Washington, D.C.: Combat Forces Press. Archaeology and the Emergence of Greece. [M]ost wars involved only an hour or more of pitched battle…. 1995. 1879. 1999. Berkeley: University of California Press. Delbrück, for instance, wrote that, In such a phalanx two ranks at most can participate in the actual combat, with the second rank stepping into the holes of the first at the moment of contact. The old argument that a piper proves hoplites and only hoplites marching in step is invalid. Note, too, that the Lakedaimonians’ use of pipers was exceptional, was worthy of remark: Thucydides 5.70, Athenaios Deipnosophistai 14.624D; Pausanias 3.17.5; Polyainos Stratagems 1.10. When a battle started, the soldiers ran towards each other independently and … Hans van Wees. “Hoplite Weapons and Offensive Arms.” In Hanson 1991:15–37. The deeper phalanx will defeat the more shallow one, even if on both sides exactly the same number of combatants actually manage to use their weapons.56, By “physical pressure,” Delbrück does not mean shoving, as he makes clear on the next page. 19. Important recent advocates of this view include Lazenby 1991: 87–109; Luginbill 1994; Raaflaub 1999: 132–33; Eccheverría Rey 2011: 64–65. The linothorax was the most popular type armour worn by the hoplites, since it was cost-effective and provided decent protection. 2004. [4] The hoplites were primarily represented by free citizens – propertied farmers and artisans – who were able to afford a linen armour or a bronze armour suit and weapons (estimated at a third to a half of its able-bodied adult male population). ———. “Symbol and Story in Geometric Art.” In Ancient Greek Art and Iconography, ed. In battle, opposing phalanxes would exploit this weakness by attempting to overlap the enemy's right flank. ———. For hoplites outside the phalanx, see Rawlings 2000. Oxford: Clarendon Press. Carey, Christopher, and Michael Edwards, eds. Perhaps the first men to carry the new shield were not wealthy aristocrats, but poorer men who wanted the superior protection a large, round shield provided a man who could not afford expensive body armor. As for the rest, hoplite battles did not decide wars instantaneously. [23] Rapid Adoptionists propose that the double grip, hoplon shield that was required for the phalanx formation was so constricting in mobility that once it was introduced, dark age, free flowing warfare was inadequate to fight against the hoplites only escalating the speed of the transition. For example, Herodotus refers to Miltiades pushing the Apsinthians away by walling off the neck of the Chersonesos (6.37.1) and speaks of the Greeks pushing the Persians back in reference to Xerxes’ invasion as a whole (8.3.2). Though he was inspired by Keegan, Hanson argues that Greek hoplites crashed into each other. These battles were usually short and required a high degree of discipline. Anderson, J. K. 1970. Hans van Wees. Grundy, G. B. In poplar or willow, these shields would weigh about a third less. “Hoplite shield,” at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZbPSvJt3ER0&feature=player_embedded#at=13. Based on his own experience exercising with replicas and his examination of spears in Greek art, Allen Pittman has argued that Greek spears were thinner than the one inch (25 mm) both scholars and reenactors have generally accepted; he suggests that 18 mm is a realistic estimate (2007: 66–69). The porpax shield first appears in vase painting in the early seventh century, or even the late eighth if a round shield with a figured shield device proves a shield intended to be held right side up (that is, a double-grip shield). Engagements between various city-states of Greece would be particularly useful after many hoplites had buy! Fight naked, nor did anyone else in Classical Greece to Republican Rome, 500–167.. 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