This resulted in the left flank usually breaking formation first, and so this was the flank a competent commander would attack with priority, and he would, therefore, ensure he had his best troops on his own right flank. This, interestingly, meant that the phalanx often moved forward at a slight angle to the right as men sought to keep behind the shield of their neighbour.
Hoplites were organised into regiments or lokhoi (several hundred men strong), and they fought in ranks eight or more men deep (known as a phalanx), and standing close together, half of the shield of one man protected his neighbour on his left side. Mark Cartwright (CC BY-NC-SA) Hoplite Phalanx
In addition, the bronze cuirass and shield of the hoplite - taken, for example, as booty after a military campaign - were often dedicated at sacred sites across ancient Greece from Delphi to Delos. Precisely because all of this equipment amounted to quite an investment, being a hoplite also indicated that the individual had a certain status in wider Greek society.
#Hoplite shield transfers warlord professional
the well-trained and professional Spartans). Fully armoured then, the hoplite was required to carry some 20 kg of equipment and so good physical training must have given one side a strong advantage (e.g. Surviving examples of breastplates and helmets also display engraved decoration. Shields often carried particular designs - the most famous being the inverted V-shape of Spartan hoplites - and emblems - particularly popular was the gorgon from Greek mythology with its association with changing the onlooker into stone. This was made of wood or stiff leather, faced with bronze, and was held with the left arm placed through a central band ( porpax) and gripped via a strap ( antilabe) attached to the shield rim. The hoplite carried a large circular shield ( hoplon or aspis) some 80 cm (30 in.) in diameter and weighing as much as 8 kg. A corselet or breastplate ( thorax) of bronze or leather (later reduced to a laminated linen vest to save weight - a linothorax), bronze greaves ( knemides) to protect the shins, and sometimes arm-guards were also worn. Protection was provided by a leather-lined bronze helmet which could vary in design, was often crested, and protected the head, neck, and face. No doubt many hoplites also carried a dagger ( encheiridion) as extra insurance. The sword was also of iron with a straight or sometimes curved blade ( machaira or kopis) no more than 60 cm in length. The spear measured on average 2.5 metres (8 ft.) in length and was fitted with a bronze or iron blade and a four-sided end spike ( sauroter). The principal weapons of a hoplite infantryman were a long ash wood spear ( doru) and a short sword ( xiphos). The principal weapons of Greek hoplites were a long ash wood spear ( doru) & a short sword ( xiphos). Sparta, where all male citizens over 20 were members of a permanent professional army, was the notable exception to this approach of only calling up an army when absolutely needed and, consequently, their hoplites were famed for their military prowess. The most famous of these was the Sacred Band of Thebes, a unit composed of 150 pairs of male lovers who swore to defend their partner to the death. Other cities across ancient Greece followed a similar policy which meant that hoplites were not professional soldiers and often lacked sufficient military training, although some states did maintain a small elite professional unit, the epilektoi. A hoplite (from ta hopla meaning tool or equipment) was the most common type of heavily armed foot-soldier in ancient Greece from the 7th to 4th centuries BCE, and most ordinary citizens of Greek city-states with sufficient means were expected to equip and make themselves available for the role when necessary.Īthens had a system of compulsory military service for 18-20-year-olds, but during a war, all male citizens up to the age of 60 could be called up to the armed forces.
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