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Makhaira (μάχαιρα, also transliterated machaira or machaera; an Ancient Greek word, <PIE *magh-, "to fight") is a term used by modern scholars to describe a type of ancient bladed weapon, generally a large knife with a slight backwards curve. In period texts, μάχαιρα has a variety of meanings, and can refer to virtually any knife or sword, even a surgeon's scalpel, but in a martial context it frequently does seem to refer to a type of one-edged, curved sword.^[1] Modern scholars distinguish the makhaira from the kopis (an ancient term of similar meaning) based on the direction of the blade curvature.^[2]

These weapons were of various sizes and shapes, being regional, and not exclusively Greek. Greek art shows the Lacedaemonian and Persian armies employing curved weapons, but Persian records show that their primary infantry sword was straight, similar to the Greek xiphos (cf. acinaces).

While Xenophon states that xiphos was more conventional among Greek armies of his time, he recommended the makhaira for cavalry, "μάχαιράν μεν μάλλον ἡ ξίφος ἐπαίνουμεν" (Xenophon, 12:11). His reasoning concurs with the general practice of arming cavalry with curved swords through the ages. Greek art along with Xenophon's further commentary suggests that the sword he intended for the cavalry was wider than the more modern sabre; more akin to the falchion.

The Koine of the New Testament uses the word makhaira to refer to a sword generically, not making any particular distinction between native blades and the gladius of the Roman soldier. This ambiguity appears to have contributed to the apocryphal malchus, a supposedly short curved sword used by Peter to cut off the ear of a slave named Malchus during the arrest of Jesus. While such a weapon clearly is a makhaira by ancient definition, the imprecise nature of the word as used in the New Testament cannot provide any conclusive answer.

Makhaira entered classical Latin as machaera, "a sword".

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An illustration showing a kopis with a hook-like hilt. Contemporary representations often show the kopis being wound back over the shoulder in preparation for a powerful downward swing.

The kopis is an ancient single-edged sword with a heavy forward-curving blade, designed for delivering strong cleaving blows. Some scholars feel this was developed from the Cannan/Egyptian khopesh. In turn, it is often compared to the shorter Nepalese kukri and the Iberian falcata and may be their predecessor. The word itself is the Greek feminine singular noun derived from the verb κόπτω (koptô), meaning "to cut." The difference in meaning between kopis and makhaira (another Greek word of similar meaning) is not entirely clear in ancient texts,^[1] but modern specialists tend to use both terms referred to a class of curved weapons, the only real difference being the direction of the blade curvature.^[2]

Though kopis is a Greek word, the ancient Greeks did not often use curved blades in warfare, preferring rather the straight, more martially versatile xiphos. Xenophon however recommended using the curved makhaira for cavalry in On Horsemanship 12:11.

Greek art shows Persian soldiers wielding the kopis or an axe rather than the straight-bladed Persian akinakes.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

The xiphos (ξίφος) is a double-edged, single-hand sword used by the ancient Greeks. It was a primary battlefield weapon for the Greek armies along with the spear or javelin. The blade was around 60 cm long, and is the "forefather" to the Roman gladius. It was used as a stabbing sword after they had either thrown or broken their spear.

The straight, double-edged design of the xiphos lends it the same overall martial versatility found in the swords used by infantry until the firearm supplanted the sword on the battlefield. Its design lent itself to cutting and thrusting.

Because of the nature of mounted combat, Xenophon recommended using the curved makhaira for cavalry in On Horsemanship 12:11.

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The sarissa (or sarisa) was a 3 to 7 meter (13-21 feet) long double pointed pike used in the Macedonian phalanx. It was very heavy for a spear, weighing over 5 kg (12 pounds). It had a short iron head shaped like a leaf and a bronze shoe that would allow it to be anchored to the ground to stop charges by enemy soldiers. Its great length was an asset against hoplites and other soldiers bearing smaller weapons, because they had to get past the sarissa to engage the phalangites.

The tight formation of the phalanx created a "wall of pikes", and the pike was sufficiently long that there were fully five rows of pikes in front of the front rank of men—even if an enemy got past the first row, there were still four more to stop him. The back rows bore their pikes angled upwards in readiness, which served the additional purpose to deflect incoming arrows. The Macedonian phalanx was considered all but invulnerable from the front, except against another such phalanx; the only way it was ever generally defeated was by breaking its formation or outflanking it.

The invention of the sarissa is credited to Philip, father of the celebrated Macedonian king, Alexander the Great. Philip drilled his hitherto demoralized men to use these formidable pikes with two hands. The new tactic was unstoppable, and by the end of Philip's reign the previously fragile Macedonian kingdom controlled the whole of Greece, Epirus and Thrace.

His son Alexander used the new tactic across Asia, conquering Egypt, Persia and the Pauravas (northwest India), victorious all the way. The sarissa-wielding phalanxes were vital in every early battle, including the pivotal battle of Gaugamela where the Persian king's scythe chariots were utterly destroyed by the phalanx, supported by the combined use of companion cavalry and peltasts (javelineers). Alexander gradually reduced the importance of the Phalanx, and the sarissa, as he modified his combined use of arms, and incorporated 'asian' weapons and troops. The sarissa however, remained the backbone for every subsequent Hellenistic army, but lack of training and too great a reliance on the Phalanx instead of the combined use of arms (Alexander's and Philip's great contributions) led to the final defeat of Macedon by the Romans.

Sarissa is also the name of a Greek heavy metal band from Thessaloniki, established in 1985 and still active as of 2004. (homepage)

 

Hoplite

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A hoplite armed with a spear.

Warfare in Ancient Greece centered mainly around heavy infantrymen called hoplites. The word hoplite (Greek ὁπλίτης, hoplitēs) derives from hoplon (ὅπλον, plural hopla, ὅπλα) meaning an item of armour or equiment and consequently the entire equipment of the hoplite (but not specifically the circular shield, which is sometimes incorrectly referred to as a hoplon, though it was in fact called an aspis). These soldiers probably first appeared in the late 8th century BC. These were a citizen-militia, and so were armed as spearmen, which are relatively easy to equip and maintain; mainly they represented the middle class, who could afford the cost of the armaments. Almost all the famous men of ancient Greece, even the philosophers and playwrights, fought as hoplites at some point in their lives.

Since the hoplites were a militia force and did not receive permanent wages, campaigns were short and mainly confined to the summer. Armies marched directly to their target. There the defenders could hide behind city walls, in which case the attackers generally had to content themselves with ravaging the countryside as siegecraft was undeveloped, or meet them on the field. Battles were usually set piece and intended to be decisive. Both forces lined up on a level field, usually in a rough phalanx formation around eight ranks deep (though this varied). Other troops were less important; cavalry generally protected the flanks, when present at all, and both light infantry and missile troops were negligible.

Hoplites generally armed themselves immediately before battle, since the equipment was so heavy. Each man provided his own gear so it was fairly non-uniform, and often friendly troops would fail to recognise one another. A hoplite typically had a breastplate, a bronze helmet with cheekplates, as well as greaves and other armor, plus a bowl-shaped wooden shield called an aspis which was around 1 metre across. The primary weapon was a spear, around 2.7 metres in length; as this frequently broke upon charging and was unwieldy for close combat, hoplites also carried a smaller 60 cm thrusting sword called a xiphos. The total cost of the hoplon was roughly equivalent to a middle-sized car in our time.

By contrast, other contemporary infantry tended to wear relatively light armor, and were armed with shorter spears, javelins, or bows. Shields were usually smaller, or else were large enough to cover the full body and rested on the ground. The middle-sized shield of the hoplite was made possible in part by the shape, which allowed it to be supported on the shoulder. In formation the shields were locked together so that each defended the left side of the soldier carrying it and the right side of his neighbor. While the general assumption is that the spear was gripped overhand, others have argued that it was held underarm. [1]

The strength of hoplites was in shock combat. The two armies would literally run into each other in hopes of breaking or encircling the enemy line. Failing that, things degenerated into a pushing match, with the men in back trying to force the front lines through those of the enemy. Battles rarely lasted more than an hour or so. Once one of the lines broke, the troops would generally drop their equipment and flee from the field, usually without being pursued. Casualties were slight compared to later battles, rarely amounting to more than 5% of the losing side, but the slain often included the most influential citizens and generals who led from the front. Thus the whole war was usually decided by a single field battle; victory was enforced by ransoming the fallen back to the defeated, called the "custom of the Greeks".

The rise and fall of hoplite warfare was intimately connected to the rise and fall of the city-state. During the Persian Wars, hoplites were forced to run at archers, and during the Peloponnesian War light troops such as peltasts became increasingly common. As a result, they began wearing less armor, carrying shorter swords, and in general adapting for greater mobility. However, hoplite warfare was in decline; there were three major battles in the Peloponnesian War, and none proved decisive. Instead there was increased reliance on navies, skirmishers, mercenaries, city walls, siege engines, and non-set piece tactics. These reforms made wars of attrition possible and greatly increased the casualties of battle. Many of them were combined by the brilliant general Epaminondas, whose tactics formed the basis for the Macedonian phalanx of Philip II of Macedon, used as a back-up to his cavalry. These forces defeated the last major hoplite army, even then fairly reactionary, at the Battle of Chaeronea (338 BC), after which Greece became part of the Macedonian empire.

Hoplite-style warfare was also practiced around the Mediterranean basin. Of particular note, the Etruscans usually fought with such militias, a practice they adopted from the Greek colonies. From this sort of warfare developed the Roman legion that was to dominate western military history for hundreds of years.

 

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

A peltast was a type of light infantry in Ancient Greece who often served as skirmishers. Peltasts carried a crescent-shaped wicker shield called pelte (latin: peltarion) as their only protection, hence their name. Their weapons consisted of several javelins, often with throwing straps to increase standoff power. In the Archaic period the Greek martial tradition had been focused almost exclusively on the heavy infantry or hoplites. Peltast became gradually more important in Greek warfare, in particular during the Peloponnesian War. The Athenian general Iphicrates destroyed a Spartan phalanx using mostly peltasts, although the use of the word peltast in Greek accounts about him is widely disputed, with some authorities saying that his "peltasts" were lightly-armored hoplites carrying the pelte shield in conjunction with longer spears--a combination that has been interpreted as a direct ancestor to the Macedonian phalanx.

Peltasts couldn't afford the panoply of a hoplite and were recruited from the poorer strata of society. Usually they were mercenaries. They made up the largest part of the forces of the Aetolian League and Achaean League.

Peltasts were reputedly Thracian in origin. On vases and other images they are generally depicted with the costume of Thrace. However, many of them were probably poorer soldiers from other parts of Greece.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Toxotai (singular Toxotes) mean archers in Old Greek. The Greek archer armed with short Greek bow (but the Cretans had long bezoarhorn-bow) and a short sword. They carried little pelte (or pelta) shield.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

A Macedonian phalanx, as portrayed in the Rome: Total War computer game. Note that holding the sarissa with one hand as shown here is essentially impossible; however, the shield may have been strapped on to the wrist to free up both hands.

A phalanx (plural phalanxes or phalanges) is a rectangular mass formation, usually composed entirely of heavy infantry armed with spears, pikes, or similar weapons. The phalanx is a hallmark of Hellenistic or ancient Greek warfare; indeed, the word phalanx is derived from the Greek word phalangos, meaning finger.

Origins

The earliest know depiction of a phalanx-like formation occurs in a Sumerian stele. In this particular instance the troops seem to have been equipped with spears, helmets, and large shields covering the whole body. Egyptian infantry were also known to have employed similar formations. However, historians have not arrived at a consensus regarding the relationship between the Greek formation and these antecessors; the principles of shield wall and spear hedge were almost universally known among the armies of major civilizations throughout history, and as such it is impossible to reject the possibility that the similarities were due to convergent evolution instead of actual diffusion.

Some historians and authorities date the formation of the hoplite phalanx of ancient Greece to the eighth century BC in Sparta, though this is being revised as it is more likely that the formation was devised in the seventh century BC after the introduction of the Hoplon shield by the city of Argos, after the introduction of which the formation would have been made possible.

Operation

The hoplite phalanx was a formation in which the hoplites would line up in lines, no less than four deep, in very close order. In this formation, the hoplites would lock their shields together, while the first few ranks of soldiers would project their spears out over the first rank of shields, thus allowing for the first three or so ranks of spearmen to engage their spears against the enemy. Therefore, one might say that the phalanx was essentially a formation in which the hoplites created a mass spear and shield wall. The effectiveness of the phalanx depended upon how well the hoplites could maintain this formation while in combat, especially when engaged against another phalanx.

When in combat, the whole formation would consistently press forward trying to break the enemy formation; thus when two phalanx formations engaged, the struggle essentially became a pushing match, in which, as a rule, the deeper phalanx would almost always win, with very few recorded exceptions. At the Battle of Leuctra (371 B.C.) the Thebans under Epaminondas took this idea to extremes, thinning out their right and center in order to put a massive 50-rank deep phalanx on their left. This formation, known as the oblique phalanx, allowed the Thebans to turn the Spartan right flank even as the Spartans pushed back the right and center of the Theban line. The Spartans were defeated, shattering the myth of Sparta's invicibility in land warfare.

The Macedonian phalanx is an important variant of the basic Greek formation. Based on the reforms of Iphicrates and Epaminondas, the soldiers in this new phalanx (phalangites) carried long pikes called sarissa that were more than twice as long as the hoplites' xyston; as these pikes had to be held in two hands, they adopted the smaller pelte shield instead of the traditional aspis ( better known in modern times as the hoplon) and strapped it to the forearm, thereby freeing the left hand to help bear the weight of the pike. Their longer pikes allowed more ranks to project the heads of their weapons beyond the front of the formations. At the same time, the weight and coverage of their armor was lessened in order to reduce the expense of equipping them.

As a result of these developments both Philip II of Macedon and his son Alexander the Great were able to raise an army of competent, well-drilled infantry at a much lower cost (in terms of both time and money) than the Greek city-states to the south. Even though the longer weapons of the Macedonian phalanx also meant that their formation was less flexible than that of the Greeks, it was not seen as a great disadvantage since the phalanx was meant to serve only as a part of a combined-arms force that also included a variety of skirmishers and mounted troops, most notably the prodromoi scouts and the famous Companion cavalry. The Macedonian phalanx generally worked to pin the center of the enemy line while the Companions attacked the flanks and the light infantry hovered around to cover the phalanx's immediate flanks and plug any gaps in the line caused by advancing through difficult terrain.

The natural tendency during battle would be to drift towards the right side. This is because the individual hoplites carried their shields on their left arm. Battles were won when the exposed right side (carrying spears) could overpower the opposing army's left side (carrying shields).

Demise

While the phalanx formation was formidable, and nearly indestructible from the front, the formation was very slow when maneuvering, and could not, of itself, protect its flanks, nor its rear, because it was a terribly slow moving formation and when once engaged, could not disengage, or remaneuver itself. Therefore, when the Phalanx was flanked (attacked from either the left or right side) it was rendered nearly defenseless. We see this at the battle of Pydna in which the Macedonian phalanx, when engaged against the Roman infantry, was destroyed once it was outflanked by cavalry, simply because it could not defend itself from such an attack.

Another weakness the phalanx faced was light missile troops such as archers or slingers. These troops could stay a safe distance from the phalanx while at the same time subjecting it to missile fire, thus forcing it to either surrender, or retreat. We see this at the battle of Lechaeum, where an Athenian army led by Iphicrates, consisting of light missile troops armed with javelins and bows, succeded in routing an entire Spartan mora (a Spartan unit numbering anywhere from five to nine hundred hoplites).

It is due to the two above enumerated weakness that after the Peloponnesian War the phalanx did not perform very well unless included as part of a combined-arms force. When the phalanx was employed without cavalry and/or light infantry support, it was easy prey to the more flexible Roman legion, and it went out of fashion after the battle of Pydna in the year 168 BC, after which Macedonia and Hellas were made Roman provinces. Some legends (with little to no historical support) state that a Spartan phalanx drove off marauding Visigoths after the Battle of Adrianople.

Revival

The phalanx never quite died out; it formed an important part of the skoutatoi formations in the later phases of the Eastern Roman Empire, and later on it enjoyed a major revival in the form of the Scottish Schiltron and Swiss pike square (see also Landsknecht). The Swiss phalanx was a much narrower formation than the hoplite phalanx, usually no more than 20 or 30 men wide but considerably deeper. The Swiss phalanx had great success - particularly against French cavalry - for almost a half century, but their ascendancy came to an end with the Swiss defeat in the battle of Marignano. It was replaced by the Spanish tercio, which combined the solidity of the phalanx with the flexibility and firepower of attached musket formations.