Ancient warfare: Encyclopedia II - Ancient warfare - Cultures

Ancient warfare - Cultures

Ancient warfare - Chinese

Ancient China during the Shang Dynasty was a Bronze Age society based on chariot armies. Archaeological study of Shang sites at Anyang have revealed extensive examples of chariots and bronze weapons. The overthrow of the Shang by the Zhou saw the creation of a feudal social order, resting militarily on a class of aristocratic chariot warriors (士).

In the Spring and Autumn Period, warfare increased exponentially. Zuo zhuan describes the wars and battles among the feudal lords during the period. Warfare continued to be stylised and ceremonial even as it grew more violent and decisive. The concept of military hegemon (霸) and his "way of force" (霸道) came to dominate Chinese society.

Warfare became more intense, ruthless and much more decisive during the Warring States Period, in which great social and political change was accompanied by the end of the system of chariot warfare and the adoption of mass infantry armies. Cavalry was also introduced from the northern frontier, despite the cultural challenge it posed for robe-wearing Chinese men. Military strategy shifted toward an emphasis on deception, intelligence and stratagems as codified in Sun Tzu's Art of War.

Ancient warfare - Persian

Ancient Persia first emerged as a major military power under Cyrus the Great. It's form of warfare was based on massed infantry in light armor to pin the enemy force whilst cavalry deal the killing blow. Cavalry was used in huge numbers and was often heavily armored. Chariots were used in the early days but during the later days of the Persian Empire they were surpassed by horsemen. During the Persian Empire's height, they even possessed War elephants from North Africa and distant India. The elite of the Persian Army were the famous Persian Immortals, a 10,000 strong unit of professional soldiers armed with a spear, a sword and a bow. Archers also formed a major component of the Persian Army

Tactics were simple, Persian commanders simply overrun the enemy with massive amounts of infantry and cavalry, from the rear they would rain arrows down the foes in massive volleys. It was said that a Persian arrow volley would blot out the sun. The reason for these massive numbers, were to inspire 'shock and awe'. Hundreds of thousands of soldiers would discourage an enemy and make their surrender almost guaranteed. If the enemy did not surrender, the Persian commander would send in the first wave, which was almost always enough in number to overwhelm any force. If that failed, they sent in the second wave, more troops of higher quality. If that too was unsuccessful, the final wave was sent, spearheaded by the infamous Immortals. These tactics were greatly successful in the Middle East, but when the Persians started to push into the west, against the Greeks. They were slaughted by the better trained, heavier armored, Hoplites

Ancient warfare - Egyptian

Early Egyptian warfare relied heavily on chariots as their main battlefield weapon. The relative isolation of the Nile valley allowed Egyptian pharaohs the time and wealth needed to breed horses in large numbers, a prerequisite to the heavy use of chariots. The flat and open land of Egypt also provided good conditions for wheeled vehicles.

Within the Nile valley itself ships and barges were important military elements along side chariots. Dominating the river often proved necessary for prosecuting sieges.

After Alexander the Great, Egypt was heavily Hellenized and the main military force became the infantry phalanx.

Ancient warfare - Germanic

Historical records of the Germanic tribes east of the Rhine and west of the Danube do not begin until quite late in the ancient period, so only the period after 100 BC can be examined. What is clear is that the Germanic idea of warfare was quite different from the pitched battles fought by Rome and Greece. Instead the Germanic tribes focused on small or large raids.

The purpose of these was generally not to gain territory, but rather to capture resources and secure prestige. These raids were conducted by irregular troops, often formed along family or village lines, in groups of 10 to about 1,000. Leaders of unusual personal magnetism could gather more soldiers for longer periods, but there was no systematic method of gathering and training men, so the death of a charismatic leader could mean the destruction of an army. "Armies" also often consisted of more than 50 percent noncombatants, as a displaced people would travel in large groups of soldiers, the elderly, women, and children.

Large bodies of troops, while figuring prominently in the history books, were the exception rather than the rule of ancient warfare. Thus A typical Germanic force might consist of 100 men with the sole goal of raiding a nearby Germanic or foreign village. According to Roman sources, when the Germanic Tribes did fight pitched battles, the infantry often adopted wedge formations, each wedge being lead by a clan head.

Ancient warfare - Greek

The general trend of Greek military technology and tactics was dominated by reliance on citizen farmers who could only go to war when they were not needed in the fields. These soldiers organized themselves in to a phalanx, a dense body of armoured men armed with spears and protected by interlocking shields.

Despite the fact that most Greek cities were well fortified and Greek technology was not up to the task of breaching these fortifications by force, most land battles were pitched ones fought on open ground. This was because of the limited period of service Greek soldiers could offer before they needed to return to their farms. To draw out a city's defenders, its fields would be threatened with destruction, threatening the defenders with starvation in the winter if they did not surrender or accept battle.

This pattern of warfare was broken during the Peloponnesian War, when Athens' command of the sea allowed the city to ignore the destruction of the Athenian crops by Sparta and her allies by shipping grain into the city from the Crimea. This led to a warfare style in which both sides were forced to engage in repeated raids over several years without reaching a settlement. It also made sea battle a vital part of warfare. Greek naval battles were fought between triremes -- ships with long oars which engaged the enemy by ramming and boarding actions.

The third and last style of Greek warfare was advanced by Alexander the Great. He was able to muster large bodies of men for long periods of time for his campaigns against Persia. Cavalry also played an important role in Alexander's style of warfare, especially his Companions, an elite formation.

Ancient warfare - Indus Valley

As far as is known, the Indus Valley Civilization was rather more peaceful than its contemporaries. Virtually nothing is known about its military.

Ancient warfare - Japanese

The early Yamato period had seen a continual engagement in Korean Peninsula until Japan finally withdrew, along with the remaining forces of the Baekje Kingdom. Several battles occurred in these periods as the Emperor's succession gained importance. By the Nara period, Honshu was completely under the control of the Yamato clan. Near the end of the Heian period, samurai became a powerful political force, thus starting the feudal period.

Ancient warfare - Roman

The Roman army was the world's first professional army. It had its origins in the citizen army of the Republic, which was staffed by citizens serving mandatory duty for Rome. The reforms of Marius around 100 BC turned the army into a professional structure, still largely filled by citizens, but citizens who served continuously for 25 years before being discharged.

The Romans were also noted for making use of auxiliary troops, non-Romans who served with the legions and filled roles that the traditional Roman military could not fill effectively, such as light skirmish troops and heavy cavalry. Later in the Empire, these auxiliary troops, along with foreign mercenaries, became the core of the Roman military. By the late Empire, tribes such as the Visigoths were bribed to serve as mercenaries.

The Roman navy was traditionally considered unimportant. Most of Rome's battles occurred on land, especially when the Empire was at its height and all the land around the Mediterranean was controlled by Rome.

But there were notable exceptions. The First Punic War, a pivotal war between Rome and Carthage in the 3rd century BC, was largely a naval conflict. And the naval Battle of Actium established the Roman empire under Augustus.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Cultures", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki