Hoplites by Victor Davis Hanson (9780415098168)

Description - Hoplites by Victor Davis Hanson

There are numerous books on ancient Greek warfare which focus on tactical or strategic problems. This book, however, concentrates on the experiences of the soldiers who did the fighting, not on their generals, nor on logistics, tactics, or strategy, which were, after all, deliberately secondary considerations. In part one, The Men and their Equipment , three essays discuss the problems of wearing bronze arms and armour in battle conditions;asking, why was the spear alone the favoured weapon of attack? How were armoured corpses identified, stripped and returned? How did infantry maintain the great weight of the three-foot hoplite shield? Part two, The Environment of Battle, addresses the actual mechanics of phalanx advance and retreat, the atmospherics and role of battle music, and the place and activity of the hoplite general'. The final part, Hoplite Tradition and Practice , covers fortification in Greek battle and the peculiar absence of artillery siegecraft. The dedication of spoils - and the effect of such trophies on the soldiers themselves - is treated in detail, as is animal sacrifice in the graphic context of the battlefield.

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