Dreadnought
Deity
I have decided to make a collection of articles about the history of warfare in the world. Please PM me if you wish to use these for school or something. the first articles may be a little 'bad' because they are my first, but I'll get better...hopefully...
First article is....
________________________________________________
Part I
The Trojan War
---Arms and Armor
The time of this conflict is in the Bronze Age, so most of the armor and weapons are made of bronze. Iron was not used for weapons yet, although iron arrowheads were a possibility. Homer describes some of the commander’s armor as gold, but this may be unreliable. The breastplate would have been bronze, and most of the lesser troops would not use one. A bronze or leather helm may have been worn, as Homer tells of Menelaus choking Paris with his helm’s strap. The main armament would have been a spear, about the same length than the phalanx spear, even though Hector’s spear was recorded as being over 15ft long. It was more for throwing than thrusting. Swords would have also been used, and were used for slashing. A shield, if used, would have been multiple levels of hide and a top bronze level. Ajax’s shield is recorded as holding back Hector’s spear thrust with the final level of the hide. The arms, armor and shield for leaders was of much greater quality than a normal soldier, and a leader was greatly feared by the lesser troops. Also, when a leader died, the soldiers around would fight over the armor and arms. Although bows would have been used, they were not very powerful. The bows were two horns connected at the base.
Chariots were used mainly as transportation for the leader to get to the battle. They were pulled by two horses, and were not the fancy ones Homer described. There were usually two men in it – the leader and a driver. When the battle was reached, the chariot would remain away from the fighting. Even so, Homer tells of many charioteers killed. After the battle the leader simply remounted and rode back to his lines. However, there were several instances of chariots in the thick of battle, running men over and creating chaos.
---Tactics
The Iliad says that after Greece defeated one of Troy’s main allies, they besieged the city. It seems that they didn’t cut off the supplies to the city, like in medieval cities. In fact, the Greeks build a small fortress of their own on the shore so their ships would not be destroyed. When Achilles withdrew from the fighting, the Greeks were forced to the defensive.
When a leader arrived at the battle, he would dismount from the chariot and search for an enemy leader, taking 1-2 spears. Normally the enemy soldiers were run away from this threat, and the leader would not be molested. When he reached an enemy leader, he would toss his spears, and would brace for the opponent’s toss. Finally, both would engage with swords. This conflict would often decide the battle, for when their leader died the soldiers would flee.
The lesser ranked soldiery would advance to the battle in good order, but when the battle began the battle would become chaotic. The phalanx was used, but not like it would be 1000 years later. The elite like Achilles’ Myrmidons and Troy’s Thracian mercenaries, were always a major force in the battle, and were put in the center of the formation. Although in the Iliad there are many descriptions of arrows during the battle, the bow was secondary to the spear. But archery was very important during the war. Achilles and Paris met their end from an arrow.
After 10 years the leaders of the Greeks began to argue on how they should end the war. Achilles voted to an all-out assault, but died attacking the South Gate. Odysseus they conceived the plan with the Trojan Horse, and that ultimately won the day.
The ships of the Iliad were small craft. They were made to be easily made, beached, and launched. They used a single sail, and had no lower deck. The rowers would have been the soldier’s themselves. The size of the ships must have been different; for example, Achilles sailed for Troy with 50 ships with 50 men each, while other ships had as many as 120 men. Although there was no naval battle, there would have been around some Homeric era war. There is no proof of any Trojan navy.
---Fortifications
There is archaeological information of many “Troys” on the site of Troy. One of them, around the time of the Trojan War, was destroyed by fire and violence. Another one was supposedly destroyed by Poseidon and Heracles with a earthquake, and there’s evidence of that too.
The excavation shows a large wall made from big stones piled on top of each other, with smaller rocks filling in open places. The gates were the heaviest fortified, for an attack on a city would be at the gate.
---Commandos
Odysseus and Diomedes, when learning of the arrival of the Thracians, decided to investigate further. They ran into a Trojan spy, Dolom, and question then killed him. Dolom told them about the the location of the Thracians. The two then entered the camp and slayed the Thracian King, forcing the Thracians back home. This is one of the first recorded, if not the first, of this type of mission in history.
Map of Troy and Greece.
---Sources
The Iliad – Homer
Warfare in the Classical World – John Warry
First article is....
________________________________________________
Part I
The Trojan War
---Arms and Armor
The time of this conflict is in the Bronze Age, so most of the armor and weapons are made of bronze. Iron was not used for weapons yet, although iron arrowheads were a possibility. Homer describes some of the commander’s armor as gold, but this may be unreliable. The breastplate would have been bronze, and most of the lesser troops would not use one. A bronze or leather helm may have been worn, as Homer tells of Menelaus choking Paris with his helm’s strap. The main armament would have been a spear, about the same length than the phalanx spear, even though Hector’s spear was recorded as being over 15ft long. It was more for throwing than thrusting. Swords would have also been used, and were used for slashing. A shield, if used, would have been multiple levels of hide and a top bronze level. Ajax’s shield is recorded as holding back Hector’s spear thrust with the final level of the hide. The arms, armor and shield for leaders was of much greater quality than a normal soldier, and a leader was greatly feared by the lesser troops. Also, when a leader died, the soldiers around would fight over the armor and arms. Although bows would have been used, they were not very powerful. The bows were two horns connected at the base.
Chariots were used mainly as transportation for the leader to get to the battle. They were pulled by two horses, and were not the fancy ones Homer described. There were usually two men in it – the leader and a driver. When the battle was reached, the chariot would remain away from the fighting. Even so, Homer tells of many charioteers killed. After the battle the leader simply remounted and rode back to his lines. However, there were several instances of chariots in the thick of battle, running men over and creating chaos.
---Tactics
The Iliad says that after Greece defeated one of Troy’s main allies, they besieged the city. It seems that they didn’t cut off the supplies to the city, like in medieval cities. In fact, the Greeks build a small fortress of their own on the shore so their ships would not be destroyed. When Achilles withdrew from the fighting, the Greeks were forced to the defensive.
When a leader arrived at the battle, he would dismount from the chariot and search for an enemy leader, taking 1-2 spears. Normally the enemy soldiers were run away from this threat, and the leader would not be molested. When he reached an enemy leader, he would toss his spears, and would brace for the opponent’s toss. Finally, both would engage with swords. This conflict would often decide the battle, for when their leader died the soldiers would flee.
The lesser ranked soldiery would advance to the battle in good order, but when the battle began the battle would become chaotic. The phalanx was used, but not like it would be 1000 years later. The elite like Achilles’ Myrmidons and Troy’s Thracian mercenaries, were always a major force in the battle, and were put in the center of the formation. Although in the Iliad there are many descriptions of arrows during the battle, the bow was secondary to the spear. But archery was very important during the war. Achilles and Paris met their end from an arrow.
After 10 years the leaders of the Greeks began to argue on how they should end the war. Achilles voted to an all-out assault, but died attacking the South Gate. Odysseus they conceived the plan with the Trojan Horse, and that ultimately won the day.
The ships of the Iliad were small craft. They were made to be easily made, beached, and launched. They used a single sail, and had no lower deck. The rowers would have been the soldier’s themselves. The size of the ships must have been different; for example, Achilles sailed for Troy with 50 ships with 50 men each, while other ships had as many as 120 men. Although there was no naval battle, there would have been around some Homeric era war. There is no proof of any Trojan navy.
---Fortifications
There is archaeological information of many “Troys” on the site of Troy. One of them, around the time of the Trojan War, was destroyed by fire and violence. Another one was supposedly destroyed by Poseidon and Heracles with a earthquake, and there’s evidence of that too.
The excavation shows a large wall made from big stones piled on top of each other, with smaller rocks filling in open places. The gates were the heaviest fortified, for an attack on a city would be at the gate.
---Commandos
Odysseus and Diomedes, when learning of the arrival of the Thracians, decided to investigate further. They ran into a Trojan spy, Dolom, and question then killed him. Dolom told them about the the location of the Thracians. The two then entered the camp and slayed the Thracian King, forcing the Thracians back home. This is one of the first recorded, if not the first, of this type of mission in history.
Map of Troy and Greece.
---Sources
The Iliad – Homer
Warfare in the Classical World – John Warry
