more then a long line as it were and carieth neither Thicknes nor breadth but in respect of the Phalange the depth whereof is measured by the file And in the fourth the twelfth and fourtenth chapters hee termeth the depth of the Phalange it self Thicknes Pachos alone with out adding Bathos shewing thereby that Pachos also signifieth the dimension of the Phalange from the front to the reare But where some are of opinion that Platos breadth ought to bee read in those places in stede of Pachos Thicknes they perswade mee not to bee of theire mind For Aelian himself giveth an Attenuation or Thinning which hee calleth Liptysmos to the Phalange and that cannot bee vnderstood vnlesse there were in it a kind of Thicknes before And to make it more plaine hee saith that this Leptysmos is when the depth of the Phalange is gathered vp and from sixteen men it becometh a lesse number So that the Thicknes of the Phalange is the full sixteen which is also the depth and making of it Thinner is to lessen the depth To a Place Platos is fittly attributed a Place being onely superficies which consisteth of longitude and latitude So Poliaenus speaking of a valley wherein an ambush was layde to entrap Alexander saith the length stretched farre out but the breadth Platos was narrowed to foure furlongs The name of Platos is likewise given to a place by Polybius But to say the truth Platos in a Phalange rather signifieth the length then the depth as appeareth by Aelian after in the foure and fourty chapter And Leo calleth the front of the Phalange Platos and when hee would haue the front enlarged or doubled hee giveth this word of direction Plátynon pròs tà amphâ—tera mere enlarge the front on both sides 4 The right wing That which in the English toung is called a wing is termed in Greeke Keras a horne Wee in our warres of auncient time divided our armies into three parts The vantgarde the battaile and the reare-warde and when wee came to fight set them for the most parte in an even front the battaile in the middest on the right hand the vant-garde which was called the right-wing on the left the reare-warde which was called the left-wing Properly enough for our embattailing For the battaile is as it were the body and the vant-garde and reare-warde are the wings which in a manner sticke out from the body and whereby the body is supported that that wee call wings the Graecians and Romans called horns in the battaile The word Keras signifieth a point bearing out from the height or ends of any thing It is vsed for the toppe of Rocks and for promontories and such like And in a Phalange it properly signifieth the two points the right and the left of the winges The English worde wing I am faine to retaine because it is familiar and in vse Aelian heere will haue the wings to stretche out from the middle section to either point the right and left of the Phalange vnder which appellation must fall to the right wing the whole space that beginneth at the middle intervall and runneth along to the corner of the battaile on the right hand to the left all that is comprehended betwixt the same space and the left corner of the battaile 5 Thâ— twâ—â—fould section In Greeke it is named Dichotomia because it parteth and divideth the Phalange into two even parts beginning at the front and stretching out to the reare And Aelian in the tenth chapter of this book nameth it Apotome But heere hee speaketh of no more intervalls or partitions of the Phalange then of this one in the midst I would thinke there should bee more Onosander saith let there bee certaine intervalls in your battaile that if your enemy advance your light-armed after they haue spent theire missiue weapons and before the Phalanges joyne may retire leasurely in the intervalls and without disorder come behinde to the reare For it is not safe for them in retiring to fetch a compasse about the whole armie or to turne in againe on the outside of the winge For the enemy hasting to come to hands would easily prevent and intercept them in the middest so that they neither should bee able to breake through the armed already closed for fight and falling vpon theire owne weapons they must needes disorder theire owne people every man after other seeking to finde a way through them to escape the danger hee is in Thus much Onosander from whom wee may learne both that theire ought to bee more sections in the Phalange then one and that the institution of them had this cheefe end to receiue the light-armed in theire spaces after they had skirmished with the enemy and were by them forced to retire I may adde that Aelian placing the light-armed in the reare of the Phalange if you giue but one section vnto it it will be as hard for them to advance and sâ—rue before the front as it will bee to retreat after theire service done It seemeth that Leo giveth three intervalls to the Phalange of the auncient Tacticks Hee saith they opposed the bodies of the armed against the enemy and divided them into foure parts the right and left and the middle-middle-right and middle-left parte Making so many parts the parts must bee distinguished as I collect by intervalls which ought to bee one after the first body of the right-right-wing another after the second which is the middle section the third after the third And this Third section is bounded with the fourth body which maketh the point of the left-wing For if the Phalange were whole and entire without more intervalls then one how could there bee foure parts For esteeming them by Phalangarchies without leauing spaces betweene it could not bee saide there were but foure parts of the Phalange considering that as well the Merarchies Chiliarchies Pentecosiarchies Syntagmataes are parts of it as the Phalangarchies But being distinguished by partition of intervalls the foure Phalangarchies become foure parts namely the right left middle-right and middle-left as Leo heere termeth them The same Leo speaketh after more plainely enioyning his generall to seperate and disioyne Diachorizein the whole number of his armie into foure parts For as Choris signifieth a part or severed so Diachorizo being derived from it signifieth to put asunder or sette a part Suidas is yet a little more cleare A Phalangarchie saith he is two Merarchies of foure thowsand and ninty six men This as some saye is the section Apotome of the wing as other it is a Meros Of auncient time it was called Strategia and the commander Strategos but nowe hee is termed Phalangarcha Suidas maketh the wing to haue a partition or section and saith some call a Phalangarchie by the name of this section Before wee heard out of Aelian that the wing right or left did stretche out from the middle section to the outward most point of the battaile on either
the Spaniardes being all armed and set in order shewed theire battail about a mile from the Roman campe The Ansetans were in the middest the Illergetes held the right winge other obscure people of Spaine the left Betwixt the wings and the middle parte they left broade intervalls to giue passage to theire horse when time should bee to send them through to charge The Romans Embattailed after theire wonted manner Onely then imitated the enemy in leaving open waies for the horse betwixt the legions Lentulus imagining that partye and none other should haue vse of theire horse that first possessed these intervalls of the adverse battaile commaunded Cornelius the Tribune to giue direction to the horsemen presently to charge through the foote on both sides came to blowes and the fight was hard when the Roman horsemen passing through the Spaces and falling vpon the middest of theire enemies at once disordered the battaile of foote and shut â—p the wayes against the Spanish horse by which meanes after noe long fight the enemy was vtterly defeated Where Livy saith the Romans embattailed after theire wonted manner his meaning is they ordered them selues in Maniples or Battallions as wee now terme them for that was theire woont But when hee addeth they imitated the enemy in leaving open waies for the horse betwixt the legions Wee must vnderstand that a legion was thus embattailed First they divided theire legion in to thirty Maniples ten of the Hastati ten of the Principes and ten of the Triarij The ten maniples of the Hastati they set first in an even front leaving soe much distance or voide grounde betwixt every Maniple as a Maniple it self tooke vp in standing At a reasonable space behinde were the Principes placed in as many maniples but soe that theire maniples stoode directly behinde the voide spaces of the Hastati And against the bodies of the hastati they left likewise spaces in the Principes to the end the Hastati being overlaid might retire within those spaces or else themselues might advance against the enemy through the intervalls of the Hastati Lastly at a larger distance behinde these were the Triarij set and divided with spaces betwixt euery maniple which spaces were great enough to receaue the Principes in case they retired also Now the Horse being ordered in the reare after the Triarij if from thence they had gon to charge the Enemies front through the spaces of the Triarij they must of necessity haue fallen vpon the Maniples of the Principes whoe were set directly against the intervalls or spaces To giue therefore free passage to theire horse the Roman Generals removed the maniples of the Principes from theire ordinarie place and bestowed them in a right line after the maniples of the Hastati and made an open lane as it were from the reare of theire battell to the front So that nothing hindred the horse but they might freely fly vp to and fall vppon the enemies front And yet I take not Aelians meaning to be that the Horse set in the reare should during the time of the fight still remaine there For soe would noe great service bee had of them But hee placed them there the rather to avoyde confusion in ordering the foote And that after theire embatteling they might bee led from thence to any place front or flanke or wheresoever they might yeeld most vse For in the fifteenth and twentith chapter he would haue both light-armed and horse soe placed that they might answer all attempts of the enemy And in his caution following hee saith if occasion require both horse and light-armed may bee otherwise placed That they were vsually placed in the wings I haue before shewed The examples declare they were placed in the reare sometimes Of placing in the front there are also examples The Lacedaemonians at the battaile of Leuctra against the Thebans placed theire horse before their Phalange and tried their fortune with â—hem and were beaten before the foote ioyned The Persians at the River Granicus esteeming theire Horse to bee theire chiefest strength opposed them vpon the bancks against Alexander that was to passe over and embattailled their foote behinde the horse And Alexander encountered them first with his Horse before his foote could get over One example more I will adde to shewe the reason why Horse are sometimes placed before the front of the Phalange of foote Eumenes being to fight against Craterus and Neoptolemus both greate generalls that had served vnder Alexander in all his warrs ordered the fight thus Because hee vnder-stood that theire Army confisted of twenty thowsand foote the most parte Macedonians renowmed for theire valour and skill in fight In whom they set theire greatest trust and of more then two thowsand horse and knewe his owne foote albeit they were as many in number yet all to bee ramasses of diuerse kinds of people and that his owne horse were fiue thowsand with exceeded the enimy both in number and valor hee determined to hasard the battaile vpon his horse before the two Phalanges of foote should come together Advancing therefore with his horse farre before his foote hee tooke the right wing himselfe and gaue the left to two strangers to Pharnabarus a Persian the sonne of Artabazus and to Phenix a Tenedian Craterus stood in the right wing of his owne horse and placed Neoptolemus on the left And seeing the enemies horse comming forward with greate fury charged them first and fought brauely But his horse failing vnder him hee fell to grounde and it being not knowne whoe hee was by reason of the medly and throng of those that gaue backe and fled hee was trampled vnder foote and ended his life after a strange manner By his death the enemy tooke courage and encompassing theire adversaries on all sides made a great slaughter and the right wing after this manner with might overpressed and put to the worst was faine to fly for succour to the Phalange of foote In the left winge Neoptolemus stoode directly against Eumenes and the mutuall sight of eche bredde a greate emulation betwixt the generalls and a fervent desire to come to hands And being easely knowne both by theire horse and other marks they flewe one vpon another and out of theire single fight made away to a consequent victorie And first they assailed one another with swords and after fell into an vnlooked for and wonderfull Monomachy for being transported with anger and mutuall hatred quitting the raines of theire bridles with theire left hands they eache seazed and tooke hold vpon the body of other which hapening and the horse continuing theire careare and springing from vnder them they both fell to the grounde neither of them could wel arise by reason of the suddaine violent fall and of the heavines of theire armor Yet Eumenes got vp first and prevented Neoptolemus stricking him on the ham The wounde was wide and his strength of footing thereby failed
Metabole For Metabole is the conuersion of euery mans face particularly to the place which was behinde his backe And the same that Metabole is in ech seuerall Souldier the same is Perispasmos or wheeling about in the whole battaile There are 4 two kinds of Metabole the one from the enemie the other to the enemie Metabole is defined to be a changing of euery mans face in particular from the front to the reare or contrariwise Turning about from the enemie is when the Souldier turneth his face twice towards the Pike To the enemy when hee turneth twice towards the Target Notes FOure kinde of Motions are set downe by Aelian whereby vpon any occasion the battaile may be somewhat changed Turning of faces countermarch wheeling and doubling whereof the first may be vsed in what order soeuer your battaile standeth the second onely in open order the third â—n close order only the fourth either in close or open order Clisis or turning of faces whereof this Chapter intreateth albeit it may bee brought in also in open Order Yet is it not don for the most part but in close order and then especially when none of the other motions haue place The Graecians alwaies coueted to bring their file Leaders that is their best men to fight In open Order they chose to countermarch In close Order hauing place to wheele their battaile about and so turne the face of it against the enemy If they could doe neither of these they came to the last remedy which was turning of faces of euery particular man in the battaile 1 Clisis or turning of faces This motion is of lesse paines then any other but of no lesse importance or necessitie In the rest the Phalange changeth the place or the forme In this it holdeth both and yet is ready for any attempt of the enemy Onely euery Souldier in particular turneth his countenance to the right or left hand as he is commanded To turne his face to the Pike is to turne to the right hand because that hand bore the pike to turne to the Target is to turne to the left hand because the Macedonians caried their targets on their left shoulder For the vse of this turning of Faces Aelian saith It hath place when the enemie sheweth himselfe in flanke 2 To incompasse our wings Clisis is no more then bearing faces to the right or left hand that is to our wings When then we finde our enemies to incompasse our right wing wee turne our faces and weapons that way to receiue him to the left when he commeth to charge vs on that side If on both sides then turne wee the faces of our Phalange halfe to the right halfe to the left hand which is the Antistomus Phalange whereof Aelian speaketh hereafter Briefely there is almost none of the marching Phalanges which are afterward discribed but it hath neede of this motion Besides if vpon any occasion the Phalange be to moue from any of the flanks you are only to command Turning of faces to that flanke and then to lead on I will giue an example or two Alexander at Arbela hauing imbattailed his armie to fight with Darius had intelligence that Darius had strowed the ground betwixt the two armies with Calthropes He commanded therefore the right wing which himselfe led to turne faces to the right hand and follow him to the end to go round about and auoide the places that were sowed with Calthropes Darius marching against him to the left hand disioyned his troupes of horse and Alexander taking the aduantage and giuing in quickly betwixt the spaces put Darius to flight If Alexander had marched on with the right front he had fallen vpon the Calthropes To auoide them be vsed the benefit of this motion and turning faces to the right hand he led on vntill hee had passed the danger and then turning againe to the first posture went to charge and defeated the enemie An other example is in Polybius who describing the battaile betwixt Machanidas the Lacedemonian Tyrant and Philopoemen the Achaean Generall telleth that Machanidas hauing in the left wing put the Achaean mercenaries to flight followed hard the chase Philopoemen as long as there was hope indeuoured by all meanes to stay his men when he saw them vtterly defeated hee hasted to the right wing and perceiuing the enemie busie in chase and the place voide where the fight had beene commanding the first Merarchies to turne their faces to the right hand hee led them on with high speede not yet breaking the order of their imbattailing And quickly seazing vpon the forsaken ground hee both cut betwixt them that gaue chase and home and withall got the aduantage of the vpper ground against the left wing of the armed Whereby hee obteined the victory If Philopoemen had in this action vsed wheeling of his battaile which onely was the other motion which would haue serued his turne besides the troublesomenesse of the winding about he should haue beene forced to haue vsed two wheelings and so failed of the câ—lerity which was at that time requisite Faces were turned in a trice and he made himselfe Master of the ground hee desired before hee could haue wheeled once his battaile 3 Two turnings of the Souldiers face Clisis or turning faces to the right or left hand consisteth of one turning and moueth no further then the side If the motion be to the reare it hath two turnings and is called Metabole which is defined to bee a changing of euery mans face in particular from the front to the reare or contrariwise And as wheeling of the whole body carieth about the fronts of the battaile to the reare So doth Metabole turne the face of euery particular Souldier and maketh him looke from the front to the reare The word properly signifieth a change which happeneth herein when the souldiers are changed from the front to the reare or contrariwise The vse of Metabole is principally to resist the enemy that giues on vpon the reare So Pyrrhus being entred the Citie Argos with a few and ouerpressed with multitude retired by little and little and defended himselfe often turning his and his souldiers faces against the enemy So the armie of Cyrus the elder retiring from the walles of Babylon often turned about their faces to the left hand and waited their enemie who were reported to be on foote and ready to come and charge them And if the enemy assault both the front and reare it hath beene the manner to continue halfe the souldiers in each file with their faces to the front and command the other halfe to turne their faces to the reare against the enemie behind And this forme is called Phalanx Amphistomos discribed by Aelian cap. 38. And sometimes it is vsed to speed our march and preuent the enemie as was said before of Clisis Agesilaus made an incursion into the Territory of the Thebans and finding a Trench and Ramper cast vp by the Thebanes for
themselues of the weight of their Targets Where Diodore hath en ortho tò dorati menein to continue their Pikes vpright Polienus hath protinomenous ta dorata ortha holding before them their Pikes vpright But both haue pikes vpright and Diodorus his Continue hath relation to the Posture they were in which Chabrias would not haue them to alter Polienus his hold before to that they were commanded to doe In ordering of Pikes at this day I haue shewed that the Souldiers hold them vpright the but end set on the ground before and somewhat wide of their right foote Aemilius Probus reciting this historie peruerteth the Stratagem Hee saith that Chabrias forbad the Phalange to giue backe and taught his Souldiers to receiue the enemies charge kneeling with one knee the other set against the Target and with the Pike abased Wherein hee quite dissenteth from Diodore and Polien Diodore saith the command was to keepe their array Polienus not to runne forward but quietly to stand still Probus not to giue backe Probus saith they should kneele with one knee and rest against the Target with the other Diodore that they should hold their Targets sunke to their knees Polienus that they should carry their Targets before at their knees Probus that they should abase and charge their Pikes Diodore that they should continue and order them vpright Polien that they should hold their Pikes vpright So that Diodore and Polien agree and expound one another Aemilius Probus bringing in a new historie dissenteth as I said from the other two especially in making that to be a forme of fight prescribed by Chabrias a simple forme to receiue the charge vpon their knees which was a contempt to shew how little especially in that strength of ground he regarded Agesilaus which contempt also made Agesilaus retire not doubting but it proceeded from a great assurance of the enemy Therfore as I said I take these words ep ' orthon apodounai not only to appertaine to the aspect of the Souldier but also and that much rather to the erection and ordering of Pikes Of Countermarches and the diuers kindes thereof with the manner how they are to be made CHAP. XXVIII THere are two sorts of Countermarches one by file the other by ranke each of these againe is diuided into three kindes The first called the Macedonian The second the Lacedemonian The third the Choraean which is also the Persian and the Cretan 1 The Macedonian is that which leauing the ground it first had taketh in liew thereof the ground which was before the front of the Phalange and turneth the aspect of the Souldier backeward where before it was forward 2 The Lacedemonian is that which leauing likewise the ground it first had taketh in steed thereof the ground which was behinde the Reare of the Phalange and turneth also the face of the Souldier the contrary way 3 The Persian is the Cretan and Choraean This keepeth the same ground of the Phalange euery souldier taking another place for that he had the file-Leader the place of Bringer-vp and so the rest in order and turneth also the face of the Souldier the contrary way 4 Countermarches by ranke are made when a man would transferre the winges into the place of the Sections and the Sections into the place of the wings to the end to strengthen the middest of the battaile Likewise the right hand parts into the left hand parts and the left hand parts into the right hand parts They that feare to countermarch the Phalange in grosse the enemy being at hand doe it by Syntagmaes I will now set downe in what manner countermarches ought to be made The Macedonian countermarch by file is said to be when the file-leader turneth about his face and all the rest with the Bringer-vp go against him on the right or left hand and passing on to the ground before the front of the Phalange place themselues in order one after an other according as the file-Leader himselfe hath turned his face Therefore it maketh shew to the enemy appearing in the Reare of running away Or it is when the file-Leader turneth about his face and the rest passing by him on the right or left hand place themselues orderly one behinde another But the Lacedemonian is when the Bringer-vp turneth his face about and all the rest turning also their faces and proceeding forward together with their file-Leader order themselues proportionably in the ground which was behinde the Reare of the Phalange Wherefore to the enemy appearing behinde it makes a semblance of falling on Againe the Lacedemonian is when the file-Leader turning his face about to the Pike or Target transferreth the whole file to another place equall to the first and the rest following stand as before behinde him Or else when the Bringer-vp turneth his face about and hee that stood next before him passing by on the right or left hand is placed againe next before him and the rest following are placed one before another in their former order till the file-Leader be the first The Choraean is when the file-Leader turning about toward the Pike or Target precedeth the file and the rest follow till the file-Leader haue the place of the Bringer-vp and the Bringer-vp the place of the file-Leader And these are the Countermarches by file In the same manner are Countermarches made by ranke in case a man would countermarch by ranke For euery ranke Countermarching either keepeth the same ground or changeth the right hand place or else the left hand place of the battaile one of which must needes fall out and neuer faileth Notes THe two former motions are performed one in close Order the other in all Orders Epistrophe when the battaile is shut so close that as Aelian saith a man can turne his face neither the one way nor the other Clisis in open Order Order and close Order The two ◠following motions Countermarch and Doubling one is done in open Order the other for the most part in open order too and yet sometimes in Order and close order as we shall see in due place This Chapter handleth Countermarches the next Doublings Countermarch is a motion whereby euery souldier marching after other changeth his front for the reare or one flancke for the other For there are two kindes of Countermarches one by file and the other by ranke And each of these is againe diuided into three the first called the Macedonian the second the Lacedemonian the third the Choraean or Cretan A Countermarch by file is when euery souldier followeth his Leader of the same file By ranke when euery souldier followeth his sideman of the same ranke in the Countermarch 1 The Macedonian Countermarch In this Countermarch the purpose of the Commander is to turne the front of his battaile against the enemy that sheweth himselfe in the Reare and withall to take the ground that lyeth before the front of the Phalange It is called the Macedonian Countermarch saith Aelian because
bringers-vp The words of Command may be these For the Macedonian Countermarch by file File-leaders turne your faces about to the right or left hand The rest of euery File passe thorow in order one after another and place your selues at your distances after your Leaders turning your faces about and so stand For the Lacedemonian Countermarch by file The first manner Bringers-vp turne your faces about to the right or left hand The rest turne your faces about and beginning at them that are next to the Bringers-vp countermarch and place your selues in your distances before the Bringers-vp and one before an other till the File-leaders be first The second manner File-leaders countermarch to the right or left hand and let euery mans file follow him and keepe true distance For the Choraean countermarch by file File-leaders countermarch to the place of the Bringers-vp and stand and let your files follow you keeping their distance For the Macedonian countermarch by ranke The right or left hand corner file turne your faces to the right or left hand The rest of each ranke passe thorough to the right or left hand and place your selues orderly behind your side-men keeping your distance Cap 29 Dobling of Rankes The front before Dobling of rankes Dobling of rankes in action The front after Dobling of Rankes For the Lacedemonian countermarch by ranke The first manner The corner file where the enemy appeareth turne your faces to the right or left hand The rest of ech rankes turne your faces and passe thorough to the right or left hand and place your selues before your side-men orderly keeping your distances The second manner The right or left wing where the enemy appeareth not countermarch to the contrary wing and all in the Ranks follow euery man his side-man keeping your distance For the Choraean countermarch by ranke The vttermost corner file of the right or left wing countermarch into the place of the left or right winge and stand And the rest follow ranke-wise keeping their distance Of doubling and the kindes thereof CHAP. XXIX 1 THere are two kinds of doubling one of Rankes the other of Depth or files and 2 either of these double the number or the place 3 The length is doubled in number when of a front of 124 files we make a front keeping the same ground of 248 files by inserting in the spaces betwixt file and file some of the followers that stood in the depth This is done to the end to thicken the length of the battaile If we lift to recall them to their first posture we are to command those that were inserted to countermarch to the place they had before 4 There are that mislike these doublings especially the enemy being at hand and would haue a shew of doubling made without indeed doubling the Phalange already ordered by stretching out the light-armed and the Horse on both sides of the wings of the Battaile 5 The vse of doubling the length is when either we would ouer-wing the enemy or else our selues feare to be ouer-winged The Depth is doubled 6 by inserting the second file into the first so that the Leader of the second file be placed next behind the Leader of the first file and the second man of the second file be the fourth man of the first file and the third man of the second file be the sixt in the first file and so forth the rest till the whole second file be ingrossed into the first and likewise the fourth file into the third and all the euen files into the odde Doubâ—ing of the Depth by Countermarch is made either when the next side-files in seuerall as in the former example the second and the fourth and the rest of the euen files countermarch to the Reare and place themselues behind the Bringers-vp of the odde files or else the files remayning in their first place and number halfe of them diuiding themselues from the other halfe countermarch likewise to the Reare and conveying themselues behind the other there order themselues and so double the depth of the Phalange If we would returne them to the first posture we must recall those that were conveyed to stand behind to the place they had before the Countermarch Notes THE former three Motions alter not the forme of the Phalange For whether you turned faces wheeled or countermarched the Phalange the depth and length remained one The motion to be expressed in this Chapter induceth an other shape to the Phalange and maketh it seeme a different body from that it was before being by Doubling extended either in length or in depth For Doubling the number of men or the place of the Phalange in front maketh the length twise as much and doubling the same in flanke maketh the depth double to that it was before For Doubling is nothing else then making a military body twise as long or twise as deepe as it was before 1 There are two kindes of doubling The Doublings are either of length or depth Or which is all one as Suidas saith of ranks or files For ranks stretch out in length files in depth And these againe are diuided into two other kinds the body being 2 Doubled in number or place That which is here called number is called elsewhere persons or by Suidas men It is called persons in the Insertion which is made to Aelian I know not by whom in the precedent Chapter of Countermarches Which because it lay thrust in betwixt the description of Countermarches and nothing perteined to that argument I neuer made doubt was crept into the text And I am rather confirmed in my opinion because I saw it noteâ— with an Asteriske in that Aelian being of Robortellus Edition which the learned Isaack Casaubon had quoted and purposed to set forth if vntimely dâ—ath had not prâ—vented him I will here set downe the words because they differ not much from Aelian and may giue some light to the manner of Doubling It is to be vnderstood so are the words â—hat a Phalange is doubled in persons or place when we therefore take halfe the souldiers from the Depth and making files of them place them euen with the rest in length of the front so that of 124 files we make 248 this is Doubling of persons In like sort we double the place with 124 files not increasing the number but onely commanding some to turne to the Pike some to the Target till the Phalange be stretched out to a convenient length as from 5 furlongs to 10. In the same manner is the depth doubled For either one file is inserted into an other man for man so that the second File-leader becomes the follower of the first and the second man in the second file the follower of the second in the first file and so the rest Or else 16 men are so extended that they hold as much ground in length as 32 vsuallydoe So farre the insertion It followeth in Aelian 3 The length is doubled in
Souldier which fought vnder the Ensigne had excepting the Target both to assure himselfe from the flying weapons of the light armed and from the pike and sword of the armed in case the battaile were entred and pierced as farre as the Ensigne For it was no reason he should carry a Target lest both his hands should be bound the right with the Ensigne the left with the Target and so he haue no vse of either against the enemy And in the left hand I would giue him a speare or â—auelin not a pike which cannot be weilded with one hand for his owne defence and to offend the enemy Which weapon I haue read Ensignes of ancient time did beare What the Ensignes place was whether in front or in the middest of the Battatle I see it controverted Patricius absolutely affirmeth that the Ensignes were placed in the middest of the front and had 8 files on the right and 8 on the left to the end they might be seene and followed by all That Ensignes were first invented to be a marke of seuerall bodies military in an Army I haue before shewed But it followeth not thereof that they were placed in the front in time of fight For being in the middle they no lesse gaue notice what the body was than in the front The reason of following is of lesse force Inasmuch as the Souldier well knoweth whom to follow though he had no Ensigne at all the Commander alwaies with his motion giuing him direction when to advance forward when to turne his face to the right or left hand when to countermarch when to double and when to vse all other motions military And the Commanders were therefore called Leaders because they went on before and the Souldiers followed after So that the Ensigne in regard of following neede not to be set in the front Yet in exercising the troupes and in marches I finde that the Ensigne was in the front together with the Captaine Crier Trumpeter and Guide But I take the reason to be because being in the middest and hauing neither file nor ranke with the rest they might happily bring a confusion and be a hinderance to the changes and diuers figures of the Battaile When the time of fight was the Ensigne retired to his place that is to the middest For so Leo interpreteth himselfe in his precept of closing files which must be done saith he not onely by File-leaders in front Commanders of fiue and Bringers-vp in the Reare but in the middest also where the Ensigne standeth And I rather agree to Leo herein because I see it was the manner of the Romans also to place their Ensignes in the middest of their Maniples From whence came the appellations of Antesignani Souldiers that stood before the Ensignes and Postsignani that stood behinde Besides the Ensigne being in the front the Ensigne bearer may soone get a clap who falling the Ensigne goeth to ground and is in danger of loosing which was the greatest disgrace among the Romans that might befall Lastly Aelian himselfe in plaine words placeth the Cornet of horse farre from the front For speaking of the ordinarie Horse-troupe he saith it is to consist of 64 horse the first ranke of 15 horse the 2 of 13 the 3 of 11 the 4 of 9 descending still and diminishing 2 horse in euery ranke till you come to one He addeth he shall carry the Cornet that standeth in the second ranke next the ranke-Commander on the left hand which ranke is the second ranke himselfe declareth making the ranke of 15 the first the 2 the 13 which is the 7th from the front and next the reare but one If the Cornet haue no place in front why should the Ensigne considering both serue to one vse and the reasons of seeing and following are equall to both And albeit Suidas place the Ensigne the Crier the Trompet and Sargeant before the Battaile the Lieutenant in the reare he is notwithstanding to be vnderstood of the times of marching or of exercise which I noted before For what should that Rable of vnarmed being 4. in euery Syntagma and in the whole Phalange 256. doe in the front in the time of fight but onely pester the chosen of the Armie who therefore haue the front that they may make speedier way into the enemies battell 7 A Reare-commander Was the same that a Leutenant is with vs. He commandeth the Souldiers in the Reare no lesse then the Syntagmatarch in the front and had his place in the Reare What the duty of a Reare-commander was I haue shewed out of Cyrus words in Xenophon And Aelian afterwards setteth it downe most plainly He was armed as the rest of the armed of the Syntagma namely with Pike and Target and with such other armes as I haue described in my notes vpon the second Chapter 8 A Trumpet The invention of the Trumpet is attributed to Tirrhenus Hercules sonne But the different vse of these officers is worth the noting out of Suidas The Crier saith he serueth to deliuer directions by voice the Ensigne by signall when noise taketh away the hearing of the voice the Trumpet by sound when thorough thicknes of dust a signall cannot be discerned The Sargeant to bring such things and dispatch such messages as his Syntagmatarch commands So that these officers were held all necessary for a Company the one supplying the defect of the other and seruing for vse when the other failed The Trumpet then was to be vsed according to Suidas when neither the Crier nor Ensigne could doe seruice With the Trumpet was the signall giuen for the Campe to remoue for the Campe to lodge By the Trumpet the Souldiers were taught their time to fight their time to retreate The Trumpet set and discharged the watch From the Trumpet came the measure of the Marche and the quicknes and slownes of Pace In briefe the Trumpet did all the offices that the Dromme doth with vs at this day Whether the Trumpet or Dromme are of most vse in the field I may not now dispute Onely I will say that the Graecians and Romans the most expert and iudicious Souldiers that euer were held themselues to the Trumpet and neuer vsed the Dromme The Dromme was first invented by Bacchus who as Polyenus reporteth fighting against the Indians in stead of Trumpets gaue the signall of Battaile with Cymballs and Drommes From him it came to the Indians who vsed it altogether as Curtius noteth in the battell betwixt King Alexander the Great and Porus. The Dromme of Parthians is described by Plutarch in the life of Crassus and by Appian And Leo saith the Saracens who invaded Christendome and infected the Turkes with their superstition ordered their fights by the Dromme From this Easterne Asiaticall people it was brought into Europe and now the generall custome is among stall Europaean Nations that the foote haue Drommes in the field the horse Trumpets And
which respect a place fit hath alwaies beene sought for their seruice to secure them from the accesse of the Horse or of the enemies armed Which place was either behinde the Phalange as Aelian here would haue it or else in the wings betwixt the Horse and the armed or if they skirmished loose before the front and chanced to bee pressed with the enemy they retired into the interualls and conueied themselues behind the Phalange in safetie Leo saith if there be any place of strength it will much helpe the light-armed For after their flying weapons spent reâ—iring thither they will be in more securitie as a steepe rockie place or the bancke of a riuer or a high hill or such other Our stories report that at the battaile of Agincourt in France 200 English Archers were bestowed in a meddow fenced with a deepe ditch from whence they so gauled the French horse and foot that they were a great helpe to the victorie The like happened before at Poitiers where that braue Prince of Wales eldest sonne of Edward the third hauing to fight with the whole power of France vnder the leading of their King gaue safegard to his Archers with hedges and ditches and other strengths So that the French-horse hauing no accesse to disorder them were ouerwhelmed with the tempests and stormes of their arrowes and such a victory obteined by our nation as might maâ—ch the most renowmed of all antiquitie To say nothing of the inuention which Henrie the fifth vsed against the horse of France for securing his Archers The storie saith he deuised stakes of two yards long and armed both ends with pikes of iron the one to sticke into the ground and the other to gall and enter the horses bellies in case they came to charge our Archers home By meanes whereof he caried the famous victorie of Agincourt This for the assurance of the light armed when they come to fight without which assurance their seruice would be weake and scarce worth the hauing Their seruice then according to Aelian hath many particulars And they are good to Prouoke the enemie If the enemie be in a wood a fenâ—e a hill a fort a towne or other place of strength that admitteth no accesse the manner hath beene to send out the light armie to shew themselues and with a Brauado to towle him out of his aduantage and bring him into the field where he may more easily be dealt withall Examples are plentifull but I will content my selfe with a Macedonian example Alexander leading his armie against the Triballs that had hid themselues in a wood commanded his Archers and Slingers to runne out and to shoote and sling amongst the Barbarians to see if he could towle them into the plaine The Archers and Slingers spared not to let flie and the Triballs being wounded with arrowes threw themselues out of the wood with all speed to fall vpon the vnarmed Archers Alexander presently commanded Philotas with the Horse of vpper Macedonia to charge the right wing on which part they cast out themselues furthest And Heraclides and Sopolis with the horse of Bottiâ—a and Amphipolis the left himselfe stretching out in length the Phalange of foote setting the rest of horse before the Phalange led against the midst of the enemie As long as it was but a skirmish the Triballs had not the worst But after the Phalange close serred came vp roundly to them and the Horsemen charged them no longer with darts but pressed and ouerbore them with their horse they fled thorough the wood to the riuer To beginne the fight Leo agreeth If saith he we haue light-armed enough let them before the armie ioyne send their darts and arrowes at the enemie and after the fight of the armed is begunne plie the flanke with their missiue weapons that at ouce both their flankes may be assaulted It hath beene and is now the ordinarie course to beginne the fight with the light-armed And because wee shall read of no batâ—aile almost wherein it was not so I will forbeare examples To wound a farreof The light serue to great purpose if the Generall desire not to come neere to fight but seeke to annoy his enemie a farre of without danger of his owne folkes Liuy telleth of Cn. Manlius Volso that being to make warre against the Gallo Graecians that fled into the mountaines and awaited the Romans there and sought to defend themselues by aduantage of the place he prepared great plenty of darts arrowes bullets and small stones for Slinges and leauing his legionariâ— soulâ—iers behind led his light armed against the enemy that possessed certaine straights by which his armie must passe After some fight the Gallo-Graecians being not sufficiently armed to dâ—fend their bodies from the missiue weapons the light-armed of the Romans forced the passagâ— And following them euen to the Campe where their Companions came to their aide they first droue them into their Campe and after the Legionarie Souldiers comming vp they wonne it I haue before rehearsed the historie of Iphicrates who with his Targetires that came seldome to hand blowes but plied the enemie with darâ—s a farre of ouerthrew and slewe a whole Moira of the Lacedemonians The Acarnans likewise with this kinde of fight much incumbred Agesilaus that made an excursion into their Countrey The story is this a Agesilaus hauing taken a great prey in the territory of the Acarnans rested that day where he had taken it being busie in selling of it In the meane time many Acarnan Targetieres assembled themselues together where Agesilaus was incamped vpon the side of a mountaine and with darting and slinging they forced his Campe to descend to the plaine themselues in the meane time being free from hurt The next day Agesilaus led away his armie The passage out of the place was straight by reason of the mountaines lying about in a circle which the Acarnans possessing plied the Lacedemonians with darts and stones from the higher ground and sometimes descending to the skirts of the hills they pressed the armie so that it could not moue forward And when the armed foote or horse fell out vpon them they profited little For the Acarnans retired immediately to their strength Agesilaus perceiuing it would be hard for his armie to winde out of those straights so long as the enemy so hung vpon them resolued to charge those on his left hand For the ascent on that side was more easie both for his horse and armed foote Commanding therefore his men to charge the armed of 29 yeeres of age first fell on and the horse after them vpon the spurre Himselfe followed with the rest The Acarnans therefore that were descended and busie a darting were quickly put to flight and many slaine in seeking to remount the hills But their armed foote and most of their Targetiers stood imbattailed on the toppe and from thence both threwe other missiues and lanced Iauelines wherewith they wounded horsemen and killed
the right hand 2 Ecperispasmos I could neuer hitherto conceiue any vse of a treble wheeling for so Aelian takes the word vnlesse a Perispasmos were first made and the battaile had the front already brought to the reare and so an Epistrophe added from the reare to the same hand Otherwise seeing that one wheeling is sooner made then two and therefore sooner then three I see no neede of three wheelings especially seeing we may doe that wee desire with one For example let vs wheele our battaile thrice to the right hand the front will come to be in the place of the left flanke The same will be performed as well with one wheeling to the left hand Et frustra fit per plura quod potest fieri per pauciora especially in matter of warre where the least moment of time often carieth the whole businesse The like may be said of Ecperispasmos to the left hand The vse of the motions of wheeling and double wheeling is when the battaile being closed and the enemy comming to assault you in any other one place then the front you seeke to bring the best men to fight For if you be to be charged in two places at once or more wheeling helpes little except it be to turne the front to one enemy and in that case your onely shift is to turne faces against them that come to charge on what side soeuer they come Examples of these two motions I meane Epistrophe and Perispasmos meete vs almost in euery Greeke Historie Of which I will represent one or two especially of the latter the rather because practise giueth both light and life to precepts Plutarch recounteth that after King Pyrrhus had in vaine assaulted Sparta he was invited by an Argiuan named Aristaeus to receiue Argos into his protection and that hee marched thitherward with his armie Arieus the king of Lacedemonia laying ambushes for him and taking the principall streights by which he was to passe charged his reare wherein the Galatians and Molossians were When Pyrrhus heard the bruite and noise he sent his sonne Ptolomy with the band of Companions to aide himselfe with all speede marching out of the streights led on his armie The medly being sharpe about Ptolomy and the chosen Lacedemonians commanded by Eualcus standing close to their busines Oroesus a Candiot of Aptera valiant of his hands and swift of foote running crosse against the young Prince gaue him a deadly stroke and ouerthrew him His fall made the rest to flie And the Lacedemonians hauing the victorie and following the chase came into the Champian ground still killing but not remembring they were not followed with armed foot Vpon whom Pyrrhus hauing euen then heard of and being much mooued with the death of his sonne wheeled about the Molossian horsemen And himselfe first aduancing vpon the spurre imbrued himselfe with the slaughter of Lacedemonians He alwaies seemed mighty and terrible in armes but then he exceeded himselfe in daring and valor For turning his Horse vpon Eualcus who shunning him shifted a side and with all strooke at his bridle hand as he passed by and wanted but little of cutting it off But missing the hand he light vpon the raines and carued them quite a sunder Pyrrhus with all strooke him thorough the body with his Launce Then leaping from his horse and fighting a foote hee cut in pieces the chosen Lacedemonians that fought to recouer the body of Eualcus This was the fight that Pyrrhus made by wheeling about his Horsemen against the Lacedemonians that followed vpon his Reare Another example of Wheeling about is reported by Polybius and it is of Amilcar Annibals father this is the history The mercenary souldiers of the Carthaginians reuolted from them and ouerthrew some of their Generalls and shut them vp within the Citie of Carthage possessing both other streights that led into the Countrey and also a bridge laide ouer a riuer called Macar which riuer was not passable but by that Bridge Besides they built a City for defence of that Bridge Amilcar seeking to dislodge the enemie from that Bridge and hauing no way to come at them conueniently obserued that when certaine windes blew the mouth of the riuer toward the sea was commonly filled vp with sand and would giue passage sufficient for his armie Finding then a fit time hee put ouer his army in the night and before day or ere any man knew of it made himselfe Master of the passage and presently led against them that held the bridge Spendius hee was one of the chiefe Rebells hearing thereof aduanced to meete Amilcar in the plaine and both ten thousand from the City at the bridge foote and fifteen thousand more from Vtica came out one to aide another thinking to wrappe in the Carthaginians betweene them who were not aboue ten thousand Souldiers of all sorts and 70 Elephants Amilcar led on his armie Before were the Elephants the horse and light armed followed next the armed foote came last And perceiuing the enemie that followed his Reare pressed hard vpon him he commanded his whole armie to turne about Those that were in the Vangard of the march hee willed to returne to him with speede the other that at first had the reare hee wheeled about and straight opposed against the enemy The Lybians and mercenaries imagining the Carthaginians fled for feare fell vpon them disorderly and boldly came to hands But when they saw the Horsemen being now turned about and come vp neere to the foote and already put in order make a stand they themselues by reason they looked for nothing lesse fell into a feare turning their backes fled presently as before they gaue on vnaduisedly and straglingly And some of them falling vpon their owne people that were comming on wrought both theirs and their owne destructions othersome were trampled vpon and trode to death by the horse and Elephants that followed the chase Thus farre Polybius And thus farre of Wheelings The figure and words of command are reserued for the 32 Chapter where the manner of wheelings and returning to the first posture is set downe Of filing ranking and restoring to the first posture CHAP. XXVII TO file is when euery particular man keeping equall distance from other standeth in his owne file lineally betwixt the file-Leader and bringer-vp To ranke is to be in a right line euen with his sidemen in the length of the battaile 1 To restore to the first posture is to bring the sight of the Souldier to the same aspect he had before the first turning As if his face were at first towardes the enemy being commanded to turne towards the Pike and thence to returne to his first posture hee is againe to returne his face toward the enemy Notes OF filing and ranking enough is spoken before 1 To restore to the first posture This motion differeth from Anastrophe before specified For Anastrophe bringeth backe againe the whole body to the first place after a Wheeling This the Souldiers faces
the Macedonians were the inventers of it Which of the Macedonians he telleth not but excludeth Philip and Alexander who both vsed the Lacedemonian Countermarch And before their times I haue not read of any warlike Kings of Macedonia The manner of it is this First all the File-leaders turne their faces about either to the right or left hand then the next ranke passeth thorough by them on the same hand and being come to their distances place themselues directly behind their File-leaders and then turne about their faces the same way And so the third ranke after them and the fourth and all the rest till the Bringers-vp be last and haue taken the reare of the battaile againe and turned about their faces The figure expresseth not well the action For in it the Bringers-vp begin first to countermarch which according to Aelian should moue last Yet may this Countermarch be done as the figure is But I take Aelians way to be easier and readier And it may be also that the Countermarch expressed in the figure is lost in the text For one of the Lacedemonian Countermarches which proceedeth the contrary way beginneth the motion with the File-leaders as this doth with the Bringers-vp as wee shall straight see 2 The Lacedemonian countermarch In this Countermarch the proceeding is contrary to that of the former that tooke the ground before the Phalange this takes the ground after In that the mouing was from the Reare to the front in this from the front to the reare This is the invention of the Lacedemonians Aelian describeth it to be done in two manners One when the Bringers-vp first turne about their faces and the next ranke likewise turning faces beginneth the Countermarch and euery man thereof placeth himselfe directly before his Bringer-vp and the third doe the like and so the rest till the ranke of the File-leaders come to be first The other when the File-leaders begin the Countermarch and euery one in their files follow them orderly The figure expresseth this last Aelian preferreth the Lacedemonian Countermarch before the Macedonian because in it the souldiers seeme to fall on and goe to the charge where in the Macedonian they seeme to flie There are notwithstanding times when it is better to vse the Macedonian As in case you meane to march on and not to fight with the enemy except you be compelled Or else you seeke to gaine some ground of aduantage For the Macedonian continueth still the march and stayeth not the Lacedemonian returneth vpon the enemy and so looseth ground in marching Agesilaus after victorie gotten against the Argives against whom he stood in the right winge hearing that the Thebans had beaten the Orchomenians in the left winge vsed the Lacedemonian Countermarch against them The words of Xenophon sound thus Here the strangers were about to crowne Agesilaus thinking he had got the victory when newes was brought that the Thebans after they had broken the Orchomenians had forced a passage as farre as the baggage Then Agesilaus countermarching his Phalange led against them The Thebans perceiuing their Confederates were fied vp to the mount Helicon closed their troupes together as neare as they could seeking to open a way by force and to get vp vnto them Agesilaus albeit he might by giuing way to the formost haue followed them at heeles and charged the reare yet did he it not but met the Thebans front to front Thus encountring and clashing their Targets together they fought thrust on killed and were killed In fine some of the Thebans broke thorough to Helicon other some as they sought to escape were left dead on the place Agesilaus here followed the chase vpon the Argives toward the mount Helicon The Thebans vpon the Orchomenians the contrary way towards the enemies Campe. The Thebans seing their confederates fled to the mount Helicon returned toward them Agesilaus countermarched to meete them met them and fought with them For the Countermarch he vsed I make account it was the Lacedemonian himselfe being a Lacedemonian And he vsed it to meet the Thebans brauely in front The same Agesilaus after he had by night incamped in a peece of ground behind Mantinaea incompassed about with mountaines perceiuing the next morning that the Mantinaeans gathered together vpon the toppes that lay right ouer the head of his Rearegard determined to lead his Armie out of the place with all speed Now if himselfe should lead he feared the enemy would giue vpon his Reare Therefore standing still and turning his armes against the enemy he commanded the last of the Phalange to march backe againe from the Reare and come vp to him and so at once he brought his Armie out of the streights and made it by little and little stronger When the Phalange was thus doubled he proceeded in that order into the Champeigne there againe reduced the depth of the armed foote to 9 or 10 men in euery file This place of Xenophon if it be not corrupted is very obscure And I cannot tell whether to take it for doubling of the front or the Macedonian countermarch The words make for a doubling For Xenophon saith plainely the Phalange was doubled Besides he addeth it was made by little and little stronger which could not be done with a Countermarch And that a deepe Phalange or Hearse such as this by the euenings march and the straights it entred seemeth to be is made stronger by doubling the front there is no question On the other side the streights thorough which it was to passe perswade me it should be a Macedonian Countermarch For in doubling the front the length still increaseth the manner is not to inlarge but to extenuate the front when an Armie is to be conveighed thorough a narrow place And Xenophon saith expresly that Agesilaus led it thorough the streights into the Champeigne in that order to which it was reduced last that in the Champion the depth of the Armed was lessened and brought to 9 or 10 for there Agesilaus imbattailed his Phalange to receiue the enemy if he would charge And in a march through straight waies the front is commonly narrowed and proportioned to the way but in open ground the Phalange is againe brought to the iust length So that it seemeth the depth was much before it come into the plaine because in the plaine it was brought to 9 or 10 men and therefore no doubling Lastly Agesilaus and the front I doubt not of the Phalange with him turned face to the enemy before the Reare came vp to him which is done in no other motion than the Macedonian countermarch In which all the File-leaders first turne about their faces toward the enemy and then the whole battaile marcheth against the File-leaders and placing themselues orderly behind them turne their faces the same way that they haue done before Now where it is in Xenophon that Agesilaus hauing gained the Champeigne extended his Armie to 9 or 10 Targeteres I suspect a
fault to be in the number of 9 and that it ought to be read 8 or 10. To extend a Phalange is to draw it out in length the length is the space betwixt the point of both wings When he saith he extended it to 10 the meaning is he drew it out so farre in length that he left but 10 in depth Ten is the decas whereof I spoke before and I haue likewise noted that the Lacedemonians for the most part made the depth of their battaile 8. The number of 9 as all other vneuen numbers was reiected by the Tacticks as vnfit for doublings So that mine opinion is that Xenophon at the first wrote 8 or 10 not 9 or 10 howsoeuer 9 be crept into the place of 8. But to returne to Agesilaus admit he vsed doubling of ranks or of the front in retiring out of the Mantinaean straights yet giue me leaue to be of opinion that the Macedonian Countermarch had beene the fittest motion for that purpose For himselfe being thereby cast in the reare he had both preuented the charge of the enemie which he feared and yet wounde better out of the straights the long Herse which still remained in the Macedonian Countermarch being more proportionable to issue out of a narrow place then a broad-fronted Phalange which ariseth out of doubling the front 3 The Persian is the Cretan or Choraean This Countermarch is called the Persian and Cretan because it was vsed amongst the Persians and Cretans And it was termed the Choraean also of the similitude it had with the solemne Graecian dances vpon stages the company that shewed themselues in such dances being called Chorus Who in their daunces ordered themselues into files and ranks as souldiers doe in battaile and mouing forward to the brinke of the stage when being straightned by the place they could passe no further they retired one through the ranks of the other exceeding not the bounds of the place as is done in this Countermarch The other two kinds of Countermarch changed the ground they had before The Macedonian tooke the ground before the front The Lacedemonian the ground after the reare The Choraean holdeth the same ground beginneth the motion with the File-leaders who notwithstanding proceede no further then thither where the Bringers-vp stood their files following them euery souldier keeping the same distance he had before the mouing The figure shewes the manner of it These Countermarches by file are to be made when the enemy appeares in the reare and commeth to charge vs. And they are made to the end to bring our best men that is the File-leaders to the incounter Wherein notwithstanding there is a caution to be held that if the enemy be very neare or so neare that we cannot conueniently countermarch before he come vp to vs we forbeare lest we fall into disorder and in disorder be easily defeated In which case the best remedy is to turne faces about and so receiue him Hitherto of Countermarches by file 4 Countermarches by ranke are made The ends of Countermarches by ranke are two in Aelian one to strengthen the middest of the battaile the other to strengthen the wings If the strength of the enemies battaile lie most in the middest reason of Warre would that we should oppose our greatest strength against the middest If in the wings against the winges There is an other cause of strengthning the winges namely if the enemy be ready to charge either of them and this strength Aelian would haue giuen by the Countermarch of our best men into the winges It shall not be from the purpose to make all plaine by an example or two Herodotus reporteth that before the battaile of Plataea betwixt the Graecians and the Persians it was agreed betwixt the Athenians and Lacedemonians that where the Athenians had vanquished the Persians in the battaile of Marathon and had lately slaine Masistius the Generall of the Persian horse and by those incounters had good experience of the Persian manner of fight and where the Lacedemonians were imbattailed in the right wing against the Persians the Athenians in the left wing against the Thebans and other Graecians that tooke part with the Persians they should change and the Athenians haue the right wing the Lacedemonians the left These newes were caried to Mardonius the Generall of the Persians who whether fearing the Athenians or desirous to fight with the Lacedemonians changed his place from the left into his right wing to the intent to oppose against them which when Pausanias saw he returned to his right wing and Mardonius to his left the place which he had at the beginning Here are changing wings on both parts The one coueting to fight in the left wing the other desirous to fight in the right The Countermarch by ranke from the right wing would haue fitted Pausanias as the contrary Countermarch would haue fitted Mardonius Yet am I led to thinke that Pausanias vsed a wheeling of his battaile and so conveighed it from one wing to an other behind the battaile of the other Graecians to the end that being shadowed by them hee might the better hide his purpose from Mardonius An other example I finde in Livy and Polybius both It is this Pub Scipio who was afterward called Africanus and Asdruball the sonne of Gisgo being incamped neare together in Spaine brought daily out of their Campes their Armies one against an other And after they had long stood waiting who should begin the fight which was done at neither hand they conveighed them backe againe The manner of their imbattailing was this The Romans and likewise the Carthagineans mingled with the Africans had the middle their Confederates the wings The opinion was they should fight in that order Scipio when he perceiued this to be firmely beleeued the day before he ment to fight made an alteration of all When night came he gaue the word thorough the whole Campe that horse and men should dine before it was light day and that the horsemen in Armes should keepe their horses bridled and sadled The day was scarse sprunge when he sent his horse and light-armed to beat in the Carthaginean Gardes himselfe streight followed with the armed Legions disposing the Romans contrary to the setled opinion of his owne people and of the enemy in the wings and receiuing the Allies into the middest Asdrubal raised out of his bed with the cry of his horsemen had no sooner leaped out of his Tent and seing the tumult before the trench of his Campe and the amazednes of his people and the Ensignes of the Legions shining a farre of and the field full of enemies presently sent out his whole power of horse to vndertake the Roman horse Himselfe issued out of the Campe with his foote not changing any thing of his wonted manner of imbattailing The fight of the horsemen had now a long time beene doubtfull and could not bee tried because still as they were beaten which
hapned a like to both they found a safe retreat within the battailes of foote But when the Armies were come within 500 paces one of an other Scipio giuing a signall of Retreat and opening his battaile receiued all the horse and light-armed into the middest and diuiding them into two parts placed them as seconds behind the wings Now when time was come to begin the fight he commanded the Spaniards who had the middle ward to march on leasurely and sent a messenger from the right winge for hee commanded there to Syllanus and Martius willing them to stretch out the left winge as they saw him stretch out the right and to charge the enemy with the light-armed and horse before the middle wards might be able to come vp and ioyne The winges being thus stretched out they led with all possible speed three Cohorts of foote and three troupes of horse a peece against the enemy besides the light-armed and those that were receiued into the Reare who followed a thwart There was a great empty space in the middest because the Ensignes of the Spaniards came slowly on And now the wings were in fight when the old souldiers Carthaginians and Africans the strength of the Armie were not yet come to vse their darts neither durst they runne into the wings to helpe them that fought for feare of opening the middest of the battaile to the enemy who was comming on against them The winges were pressed with a double medley The Horse light-armed Velites wheeling about their Troupes charge their flanks The Cohorts pushed on in front to the end to breake of the wings from the body of the battaile And the conflict was vnequall both in all other respects and especially because a rable as it were of drudges and vntrained Spaniards were opposed against the Roman and Latin souldiers The day being now farre spent the Armie of Asdruball oppressed with the mornings tumult and compelled to take the field before they had strengthned their bodies with meat began to faint and faile in strength which was the reason that Scipio lingered out the day made the fight somewhat late For it was past the seuenth houre before the winges of foote attached one an other and yet the fight came later to the middle wards So that the scorching heat of the south-sunne and the labour of standing armed and hunger and thirst first afflicted their bodies before they came to hands with the enemy Therefore they stood leaning vpon their Targets and being weary both in body and minde they gaue backe at last keeping notwithstanding their array no otherwise than as if the battaile being yet entire had retreated at the commandement of the Generall But when the victors perceiuing them to shrinke so much the more eagerly pressed on the brunt could hardly be indured any longer And although Asdrubal restrained and stopped them that gaue ground crying that hills and a safe place of retreat was at their backs if they could be but intreated to retire easily yet feare ouercomming shame and the enemy killing them that were next to hand they forthwith turned their backs and vniuersally powred out themselues into flight This stratagem of Scipio resteth principally in shifting his best men the Romans into the winges the Spaniards his worst into the middest and in keeping the Spaniards aloofe from ioyning and in hasting to try the day with the Romans against the weakest of the enemy Asdrubals way to meete with this stratagem had beene to countermarch by ranke halfe his Carthaginians and Africans into one winge and halfe into the other And by that meanes his Spaniards should haue had the middest against the Roman-Spaniards and his old souldiers Carthaginians and Africans beene opposed in the wings against the Romans and Latins and the advantage eluded that Scipio sought As the Countermarches by file were of three kindes so are the Countermarches by ranke namely the Macedonian the Lacedemonian and the Choraean The Macedonian beginneth to moue at the corner of the wing which is nearest to the enemy the enemy appearing to either flanke And therefore incâ—rreth the same imputation that was laid vpon the Macedonian countermarch by file as seeming to runne away because it dismarcheth from the enemy Yet is there vse of it as well as of that by file For by this countermarch you may set the strongest part of your Armie against the enemy and apply the weakest to some Riuer Lake hill or such like so that the enemy can not come to incompasse it It taketh the ground that lyeth on the side of the contrary wing The Lacedemonian taketh the ground that lieth on the side of that wing which is toward the enemy and bringeth the best men to be formost against the enemy And therefore beginneth the moving on the contrary side The vse of it is when your forces are such as are able to incounter the enemy and you desire to bring your best men to fight The Choraean keepeth the same ground the battaile had at first bringeth one wing to possesse the place of the other Or else the Sections to possesse the place of the wings as might haue beene done in the last example cited concerning Scipio and Asdrubal The manner of countermarch by ranke is contrary to the countermarch by file In countermarch by file the motion was in the depth of the battaile and either the front remoued toward the reare or the reare toward the front and tooke one an others place In this the motion is in length of the battaile flanke-wise the wing either marching into the middest or else cleane thorow to the other wing In doing it the souldiers that stand vttermost in the flanke of the wing must moue first to the contrary wing and the rest of euery ranke seuerally follow them in order The figure will shew the manner of the motion Patritius vtterly mistaketh the countermarch by ranke and groundeth himselfe vpon a wrong principle namely that in all Countermarches the File-leaders must march toward the reare and the Bringers-vp towards the front And therefore in changing the winges into Sections he makes the winges to fall of behind in the reare the File-leaders wheeling about and there to ioyne themselues as neare as the middle Section will giue leaue and the Sections falling backe likewise to ioyne themselues to the flanks of them that were the wings Whereas the nature of this Euolution is clearely to leaue the File-leaders in front and Bringers-vp in reare as they were at first And albeit the File-leaders then change their places yet change they their place with none but with File leaders and the change is but a change of hands the right hand for the left or the left hand for the right For whereas the File-leaders of the right wing had before the right hand now in countermarch by ranke being transposed to the left wing they haue the left hand of all the rest of the File-leaders as likewise the Bringers-vp of the other
sleeuing them vpon one side which you will may be vsed without danger as well when the enemy is neare as when the fight is in as much as they disturbe not the battaile but advance fresh aides against the enemy on the flanks of it 6 By inserting the second file There are two manner of doublings of the depth or of files one in number the other in place In number when one file is inserted into another the Leader or first man of the second file standing behind the Leader of the first the second behind the second the third behind the third and so forth of the rest Or when the euen files countermarch and their Leaders place themselues behind the Bringers-vp of the odde their files following them or which commeth all to one the files being whole they diuide themselues into two parts in the front and halfe countermarch and place themselues in the Reare of the other file to file albeit the two last are Doublings both in number and place and not in place alone The true Doubling of the place alone is not Aelian The Insertion whereof I spake remedieth this defect also There it is said that when 16 men that is a file are so extended that they possesse as much length as 32 should doe that is as 2 files it is doubling of place which is nothing else but changing of the Souldiers order into open order For in their order they haue 48 foote in depth in their open order 96 foote in depth In this Doubling of depth we must take heed that we make not the front of our Armie to narrow lest we giue oportunitie to the enemy to incircle and incompasse it Polybius noteth this a great faulâ— in Marcus Atilius Regulus at such time as he fought with the Carthaginians and was taken prisoner His words haue this effect k The Romans seing the enemy order his battaile marched out against him fuâ—l of courage Being notwithstanding somewhat appalled at and foreseing the Elephants violence in comming on they set their Darters before and placed many maniples of Armed behind one after an other and diuided the Horse halfe into one wing halfe into the other Then making the whole battaile shorter but deeper then they were wont they prouided well against the Elephants but not against the Horse that farre exceeded theirs in number Being now come to hands the Roman horse ouerpressed with multitude of the Carthaginians quickly fled from either wing But the foote of the left wing partly auoyding the Elephants partly contemning the Mercenaries fell on and charged the right wing of the Carthaginians and putting it to flight followed hard and gaue chase euen to the trench But of those that were placed against the Elephants the first sinking vnder the violence of the beasts perished being ouerturned and troden to death by heapes The body of the battaile remained a while vnbroken by reason of the depth of them that were after placed But when the Reare of all incompassed by the horse was forced to turne about and fight with them and the other that had by force made way thorough the middest of the Elephants and were now behind their backs came vp to the fresh Phalange of the Carthaginians standing in good order they were by them slaine Thus fortune being contrary on all sides the Romans for the most part were troden to death by the excessiue might of the beasts and the rest died with the darts of the horsemen in the place where they fought The error of Attilius Regulus was in ordering his battaile too deepe by meanes whereof it was easily incompassed and distressed by the Carthaginian horse Appian likewise blameth Antiochus for ordering his Phalange 32 men in depth where the Macedonian Phalange ought to but 16 deepe shewing that by that ouersight it was incompassed by the Romans and ouerthrowne I haue touched the historie in my notes before Many other examples might be alledged but these two are sufficient for our purpose The words of Command in doubling of the length by number Middle men double your Rankes to the right or left hand By this Command the middle men with their halfe files march vp to the front in the spaces betwixt the files and stand euen with the File-leaders and the rest euen with the rest of the Ranks Doubling of the length in place Stand in your open order One halfe openeth their files to the right hand the other to the left and stand six foote one from another Doubling of the depth in number Double your files to the right or left hand The euen files fall into the spaces of the odde files Double your files by countermarch to the right or left hand The euen files countermarch and fall behind the reare of the odde and place themsâ—lues lineally after them obseruing their first distances Diuide your files and double them by countermarch to the right or left hand Halfe the files diuide themselues from the other halfe and countermarch out behind the Reare then turne their faces towards the place behind the Reare of the standing files which remoued not then march on and place themselues orderly behind them file to file then turne their faces as at first Doubling the depth in place Ranks open behind to your open order The broad-fronted Phalange the deep Phalange or Herse and the vneuen-fronted Phalange CHAP. XXX PLagiophalanx or the broad-fronted Phalange is that which hath the length much exceeding the depth Orthiophalanx or the deep Phalange commonly called the Herse is that which procedeth by wing hauing the depth much exceeding the length In generall speach euery thing is called Paramekes which hath length more then the depth and that which hath the depth more then the length Orthion and so likewise a Phalange The Phalange Loxe or vneuen fronted is that which putteth forth one of the wings which is thought fittest toward the enemy and with it beginning the fight holdeth off the other in a convenient distance till oportunitie bee to advance Of Parembole Protaxis Epitaxis Prostaxis Eutaxis Hypotaxis CHAP. XXXI PArembole or insertion is when placing souldiers before we take off the hindmost and ranke them within the distances of the first Protaxis or fore-fronting is when we place the light-armed before the front of the armed and make them fore-standers as the File-leaders are When we place the light-armed behind it is called Epitaxis as it were an after-placing Prostaxis or adioyning is when to both flanks of the battaile or to one flanke some part of the hindmost is added the front of them that are added lying euen with the front of the battaile such addition is called Prostaxis Entaxis or Insition is when it seemeth good to set the light-armed within the spaces of the files of the Phalange man to man Hypotaxis or Double-winging is when you bestow the light-armed vnder the wings of the Phalange placing them in an embowed forme so that the whole figure resembleth a
the distance required to the right hand Faces as you were Close your hinder ranks forward and order your Pikes Restoring to the first posture File-Leaders stand firme The other Rankes turne faces about and open behinde to the first distance Faces as you were The right-wing-corner-file stand firme the rest turne faces to the Target and proceede to your first distance Faces as you were and order your Pikes Closing to the left wing It differeth not from the other but that the mouing is to the contrarie hand Closing to the middest of the Battaile The right-wing turne faces to the Target the left to the Pike Each moue vp to the middest of the Phalange and stand at the distance named Faces as you were Close the hinder rankes forward and order your Pikes Restoring to the first Posture The first ranke stand firme The rest turne faces about and open the rankes to the first distance Faces as you were The files next the middle section stand fast and the right wing turne faces to the Target the left to the Pike and moue on till the first distance recouered Faces as you were and order the Pikes We may not forget Aelians generall rule for turning of faces out of Closings that the Pikes be alwaies aduanced For when you come vp to the closenesse required the Pike vpon the shoulder will hardly admit turning of the face The like falleth out when you would open from the Closing The vse and aduantage of these exercises of armes CHAP. XXXIV THese precepts of turning about of faces of wheeling and double wheeling of the Battaile and of reducing it to the first posture are of great vse in suddaine approches of the enemy whether hee shew himselfe on the right or left hand or in front or in the reare of our march The like may bee said of Countermarches Of which the Macedonians are held to bee the inuentors of the Macedonian the Lacedemonians of the Lacedemonian and for this cause either to haue name accordingly The Histories witnesse that Philip who much enlarged the Macedonian kingdome and ouercame the Graecians in battaile at Cheronea and made himselfe Generall of Greece and likewise his sonne Alexander that in short time conquered all Asia made small account of the Macedonian countermarch vnlesse necessitie forced it and that they both by the vse of the Lacedemonian became victorious ouer their enemies For the Macedonian countermarch the enemy falling vpon the reare is cause of great confusion in as much as the hindermost dismarching toward the front and making a shew of running away it more encourageth and emboldneth the enemy to follow For feare and pursuit of the enemy ordinarily accompanieth that kinde of countermarch But the Lacedemonian is of contrarie effect For when the enemy sheweth himselfe in the reare the Leaders with their followers brauely aduancing and opposing themselues it striketh no small feare and terror into their mindes Cap. 30 The File-leaders A Deduction to the left hand A right induction The Front A Deduction to the right hand Cap. 36. The Coelembolos or hollow fronted wedge The Front The right Induction Cap. 36. The Coelembolos The left wing The right wing The front The Phalange set against the left wing of the Coelembolos The Phalange set against the right wing of the Coelmebolos The forbearing Phalange Of the signes of direction that are to be giuen to the armie and their souerall kindes CHAP. XXXV WEe are to acquaint our forces both foote and horse partly with the voice and partly with visible signes that whatsoeuer is fitting be executed and done as occasion shall require Some things also are to be denounced by the Trumpet for so all directions will be fully accomplished and sort to a desired effect The signes therefore which are deliuered by voice are most euident and cleere if they haue no impediment But the most certaine and least tumultuous are such as are presented to the eye if they bee not obscured The voice sometime can hardly be heard by reason of the clashing of armour or trampling and neighing of Horses or tumult of cariage or noyse and confused sounds of the multitude The visible signes also become many waies incertain by thicknes of aire and dust or raine or snow or sun-shine or else thorow ground that is vneuen or full of trees or of turnings And sometimes it will not be easie to find out signes for all vses occasions eftsoones presenting new matter to the which a man is not accustomed Yet can it not fall out that either by voice or by signal we should not giue certaine and sure direction Of marching and of diuers kindes of Battailes fit for a March And first of the right-induction of the Coelembolos and the Triphalange to be opposed against it CHAP. XXXVI BEing now to speake of marching I will first giue to vnderstand that some kind of march is a Right-induction other some a Deduction on the right or left hand And that in a single or double or treble or quadruple-sided-battaile In a single when one enemy is feared In a double when two In a treble when three In a quadruple when the enemy purposeth to giue on on all sides Therefore the march is vndertaken sometimes in a single Phalange sometimes in a twofold Phalange or else in a threefold Phalange or in a fourefold Phalange A right-induction is when one body of the same kinde followeth another as if a Xenagy lead and the rest follow Xenage-wise Or a Tetrarchy lead and the rest follow according to that forme It is so called when the march stretcheth it selfe out into a wing hauing the Depth much exceeding the length Against it is opposed the Coelembolos which is framed when the Antistomos Diphalange disioyneth the Leading-wings closing the Reare in manner of the letter V as the figure after placed doth teach In which the front is disseuered the reare ioyned and knit together For the Right-induction pointing at the middest of the enemies battaile the Coelembolos quickly opening before serueth both to frustrate the charge of the front and to claspe in and circumuent the flankes of the right-induction Furthermore a Triphalange is to be set against the Coelembolos one Phalange fighting against one winge of the Coelembolos The second against the other and the middle and third forbearing and expecting a time fit to charge Of Paragoge or Deduction CHAP. XXXVII PAragoge or Deduction is when the Phalange proceedeth in a wing not by file but by ranke hauing the Commanders or file-Leaders either on the right hand which is called a right-hand-Deduction or on the left hand which is called a left-hand Deduction For the Phalange marcheth in a double treble or quadruple-side accor̄ding to the place and part it is suspected the enemy will giue on And both the Paragogies beginning the fight in flanke doe make the length double to the depth This forme of fight was deuised to teach a Souldier to receiue heedfully the charge of
you are farre superior so in vertues worthy of your birth and yeares and in all hopefull expectations are you nothing inferior to Adrian It may please your Highnesse to regard him with a gratious eye and to esteeme the Presentor of him your faithfull bedesman that will not cease to pray to the mighty God of hosts to giue you conquest ouer all your enemies From my Garrison at Woudrichem in Holland the 20 of September 1616. Your Highnesse most humbly deuoted IO BINGHAM THE TACTICKS OF AELIAN or art of embattailing an army after the Grecian manner THE Grecian arte of embattailing an army most mightie Augustus Cesar Adrian the antiquitie whereof reacheth back to the age wherein Homer lyved hath beene committed to wryting by many whose skill in the Mathematicks was not reputed equal with myne whereby I was induced to thinke it possible for me soe to deliver the groundes therof that posteritie should rather regard and esteeme my labors then theirs that before me haue handled the same argument But weighing againe myn own ignorance for I must confesse a truth in that skill practise of armes which is now in esteeme among the Romaines I was by feare with-held from reviving a science half dead as it were and since the invention of that other by your auncestors altogeather out of request and vnregarded NotwithstandiÌ„ng comming afterward to Formie to doe my dutie to the 1 Emperour Nerva your maiesties father It was my fortune to spend sometime with 2 Frontine a man of Consular digniÌ„tie and of great reputacion by reason of his experience in militarie affaires and after conference with him perceiving he imparted no lesse studie to the Grecian then to the Romaine discipline of armes I began not to despise that of the Grecians conceiving that Frontine would not so much affect it if hee thought it inferiour to the Romaine Having therefore in times past framed a project of this worke but yet not daring then to publish it in regard of 3 your majesties incomparable valour and experience which make you famous aboue all Generalâ—s without exception that euer were I haue of late taken it againe in hand finished it being if I deceaue not my self a worke both worthy to be accompted of of sufficiencie especially with such as are studious of the arte to obscure the credit of the auncient Tacticks For in respect of the perspicuitie I dare bouldlie affirme the reader shall more advantage himselfe by this little volume then by al their writings such is the order and methode I haue followed Howbeit I durst scarcely offer it to your majestie who haue beene Generall of so greate warres least happily it proue too too slender a present altogether vnworthy of your sacred viewe And yet if your majestie shall bee pleased to thinke of it as of a Greekish Theorie or a various discourse it may bee it will giue you some little delight the rather because you may therin behold 4 Alexander the Macedons manner of marshalling his fields And for that I am not ignorant of your majesties more weightie affaires I haue reparted it into chapters to the end you may without reading the booke in few wordes take the somme of that which is to bee delivered and without losse of time find the places you are desirous to peruse Notes THe Tacticks As Taxis in a general sence signifieth order so Tacticos is as much as perteyning to order but specially taken it signifieth parteyning to order of a battaile or to the embattailing of an army Here of the arte of embattailing an army is called Tacticè and hee that is skillful and experienced in that arte Tacticos Vegetius nameth him magistrum armorum and the books written of the arte Tactica And that this is the true signification of the word may appeare by Xenophons Cyropaedia where the arte Tactick is distinguished from the arte Imperatory or arte of a Generall Hee induceth Cyrus in a discourse with his father speaking thus In the end you asked mee what my master taught mee when hee professed to teach the art Imperatory And when I answered the Tacticks you smiled and asked particulerly what the Tacticks availed without provision of thinges necessary to liue by what without preservacion of health what without knowledge of arts invented for the vse of warre what without obedience so that you plainely shewed that the Tacticks are but a small portion of the arte Imperatory or of commanding an army Thus Xenophon making a difference between the arte Imperatory the arte Tactick And in other place hee speaketh yet more particulerly Cyrus sayd hee 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 it not the duty of a Tactick to enlarge onely or to stretch out in 〈◊〉 the front of his Phalange or to drawe it out in depth or to reduce it from a winge to a Phalange or to countermarche readily the enemy shewing himselfe on the right or left hand or in the rear but to diuide it when need is to place euery part for most advantage to leade it on speedily when occasion is of prevention Yet sometimes in a gener all signification books entreating of the whole arte of warr are called Tacticks as the Constitutions military of the Emperour Leo are entituled Tactica Leonis perhaps of the best parte because the arte of embattailing an army hath alwayes been esteemed the chiefest point of skill in a Generall Howbeit Aelian in his title of this booke taketh Tacticè in the streighter signification as appeareth by the definitions he alleageth out of Aenaeas and Polibius of whome the first defineth the art Tactick to bee a science of warlick motion with whome also Leo agreeth the other to bee a skill whereby a man taking a multitude serviceable ordereth it into files and bodies and instructeth it sufficiently in all thinges apperteining to warre Which two definitions comprehend in fewe words the argument of the whole booke For first Aelian intreatcth of levieng of arming men then of filing next of joyning files and making bodies after of ordering the whole Phalange or battaile further of motions requisit to affront the enemy whersoever he giveth on whether in front flank or reare lastly of marching and of the sondry formes of battailes carieng with them advantage of charging or repulsing the enemy in your marche He that will further vnder stand the boundes of this arte let him reade in the 21. chapter of Leo the 58. section 1 The Emperour Nerva your maiesties Father The Emperour Nerva here mentioned was not Nerva Cocceius whoe succeeded Domitian but Vlpius Traianus who was also called Nerva because he was adopted by Nerva Cocceius succeeded in the Empire And where Aelian termeth him Adrians father indeed Adrian pretended he was Traians sonne by adoption But Dio plainely denieth it Spartian saith some reported hee was adopted by the faction of Plotina Traians wife by substituting one to speake with a faint voice as if it had beene Traian vpon
of the horse in generall Chap. 20 The diligence to bee vsed in choise and exercise of the best formes of battailes Chap. 21 Of Chariotts the names and degrees of the Commaunders Chap. 22. Of the Elephants the names and degrees of theire Rulers Chap 23. The names of the militarie motions expressed in this booke Chap. 24. Of turning and double turning of the souldiers faces as they stand embattailed Chap. 25. Of wheeling double and treble wheeling of a battaile and of returning to the first posture Chap. 26. Of filing ranking and restoring to the first posture Chap. 27. Of Counter march and the diverse kinds thereof with the manner how it is to be done Chap. 28. Of doubling and the kinds thereof Chap. 29. Of the broadfronted Phalange the deepe Phalange or Herse and the vneuen fronted Phalange Chap. 30. Of Parembole Protaxis Epitaxis Prostaxis Entaxis Hypotaxis Chap. 31. The manner how the motions of the wheeling Double and Treble wheeling of a battaile are to bee made Chap. 32. Of closing of the battaile to the right or left hand to the middest Chap. 33. The vse and advantage of these exercises of armes Chap. 34. Of signes of directions that are to bee given to the army and theire seuerall kinds Chap. 35. Of Marching of diverse kinds of battailes fitt for a Marche of the right Induction of the Coelemboles and of the Triphalange to bee opposed against the Coelemboles Chap. 36. Of Paragoge or Deduction Chap. 37. Of the Phalange called Amphistomus Chap. 38. Of the Phalange called Antistomus Chap. 39. Of the Diphalange called Antistomus Chap. 40. Of the Phalange called Peristomus Chap. 41. Of the Phalange called Himoiostomus and of the Plinthium Chap. 42. Of the Phalange called Heterostomus Chap. 43. Againe of the horsebattaile called the Rhombe and the foote halfe-moone to encounter it Chap. 44. Of the horse battaile Heteromeres and the broad fronted foote battaile to be opposed against it Chap. 45. Of another kinde of Rhombe for Horsemen and of the Epicampios Emprosthia to encounter it Chap. 46. Of the foote battaile called Cyrte which is to bee sett against the Epicampios Chap. 47. Of the Horse battaile which is square in ground and the wedge of foote to bee opposed against it Chap. 48. Of the Foote battaile called Plaesium and the Sawefronted foote battaile to encounter it Chap. 49. Of overfronting the enemies battaile and overwinging it and of Attenuation Chap. 50. Of the leading of the Cariage of the Army Chap. 51. Of the wordes of cōmaund of certain Rules to be observed therin Chap. 52 Of silence to be vsed by souldiers Chap. 53. The manner of pronouncing the wordes of Commaunde Chap. 54. The Authors that haue written Tacticks of this booke and of the profitt of the Arte. CHAP. I. HOmer the Poet seemeth to bee the first at least we reade of that had the skill of imbattailing an army and that admired men indued with that knowledge as appeareth by Mnestheus of whome he writeth His like no liuing wight was found nor any age did yeild To Marshall Troopes of horse or bandes of foote in bloudie field Concerning Homers discipline militarie the workes of Stratocles of 1 Frontine a man of Consular dignitie in our time are to be read 2 Aeneas perfected the Theorie thereof at large publishing many volumes of warfare which were abridged by 3 Cyneas the Thessalian Likewise 4 Pyrrhus the Epirote wrote Tacticks and his sonne 5 Alexander and Clearchus and Pausanias and 6 Euangelus 7 Polibius the Megapolitan a man of great learning Scipioes companyon Eupolemus and 8 Iphicrates 9 Possidonius also the Stoick sett forth the art of warre many other some in Introductions as Brion some in large Tactick volumes Al which I haue seene and read and yet thinke it not much to purpose to mention perticulerlie being not ignorant that it hath beene the manner of those writers for the most parte to applie theire stile not to the ignorant but to such as are alreadie acquainted with the matters they intreat of as for the impediments which presented themselues to mee when first I gaue my minde to the studie of this art as namely neither to happen vpon sufficient Instructours nor yet to find light or perspicuitie enough in the precepts delivered I will endevour as much as I can to remoue out of other mens way And as often as wordes shall faile to expresse my meaning I will for plainenes sake vse the direction of figures and pourtraicts adioyning thereby the view of the ey as an aide and assistance to the vnderstanding withall retaine the termes of auncient authours to the end that whosoever shal follow this booke for an introduction being therein exercised both to the same wordes also to the vsage of things expressed in them may grow as it were acquainted and imagine himselfe no straunger when he cōmeth to read their workes By which waies by me prescribed I make no doubt they will easely be vnderstood Now that this art of all other is of most vse may appeare by Plato in his booke of lawes where he saith That the Cretan Law giver so contrived his Laws as if men were alway praepared to fight For all cities haue by nature vnproclaimed warre one against another Which being so what discipline is more to bee esteemed or more avaylable to mans life then this of warre Notes IT seemeth by this Chapter that the Authors that haue of auncient time written Tactiks haue beene many and those not of such kinde of men as haue given themselues to study and contemplation alone but of such as besides theire knowledge in good letters haue beene actors in warre themselues which is more principall actors some of them Generalls other the next degree to generalls Howbeit there is none heere mentioned by Aelian whose workes are extant Where by may be esteemed the inestimable losse these later ages haue suffred in being deprived of such excellent monuments I hope I may so terme them without offence though I haue not seene them For what but excellent can proceed from men of such excellencie in theire profession such as the most parte of those were Yet for some of them I can say nothing as finding litle remembrance of them in auncient writers Of this kind are Eupolemus Stratocles Hermias Clear chus Pausanias albeit such names may often bee founde The rest are specially mentioned and much commended Of whome I will set downe what I finde 1 Frontine a man of Consular dignity I haue before noted some what of Frontine Wee haue of his as it is thought other workes besides his stratagemes But this booke of Tacticks whereof Aelian speaketh wee haue not I will onely adde the relation of Vegetius towching Frontine who writeth thus Cato the elder albeit hee had beene both invinceable in armes and often Generall of great armies beleeued yet hee should more profit his Countrey if hee laid downe in writing the
Whoe will reade of Iphicrates let him goe to Aemilius Probus that writeth his life His actes are also declared by Xenophon and Diodorus Siculus and Polyaen and Iustin and divers others as they were incident to theire generall histories Hee was esteemed one of the best Generalls of his time and was called out by name by Darius King of Persia to bee generall of the Graecians his mercenaries in the warre hee had against the Aegyptians His fame and aestimation was soe great with Alexander the great that when his sonne whose name was also Iphicrates with other Graecians were taken prisoners by him for that they came embassadours into Persia to Darius he not onely spared him for the loue of the City of Athens and for the remembrance of his fathers glory the wordes of Arrian but held him about him in honour so long as hee liued and after his decease sent his reliques to Athens there to be interred by his friendes and kinsfolk 9 Posidonius the Stoick Posidonius in his time was a Philosopher of high renowne and of the sect that were called Stoicks Tully citeth him often in his workes In the second booke of Tusculan quaestions hee recounteth that Pompey the great on a time comminge to Rhodes was desirous to heare him But vnderstanding hee was extreame sick of the goute hee forbore not notwithstanding to visit him being a most noble philosopher whome after hee had seene and saluted and vsed with honorable wordes and told him hee was sory hee could not heare him discourse you may if you please quoth Posidonius and I will not suffer paine to bee cause that so great a man seeke mee in vaine Then as hee lay in his bed began hee gravely and copiously to dispute that nothing was good but that which was honest And when firebrands as it were of torment towched him to the quick amiddest his disputation he broke foorth often into these wordes Sorow all this is nothing Though thou trouble me never so much I will not yet confesse that thou art of thy self evill So Tully Pliny likewise telleth that Pompey after the warre of Mithridates going into the howse of Posidonius a man famous in Philosophy forbid his serieant to knock at the doore as the manner was and the serieants bundles of roddes saith he were submitted to a doore by him to whom East West had submitted theÌ„selues The same Tully attributeth to this Posidonius the invention of a Sphaere whose particuler conversions did worke the same in sonne moone and the other fiue planets that is wrought by the motion of heauen euery day and night The preparation of warlicke forces and division of them and how they are armed CHAP. II. I will then beginne with such 1 preparations as are absolutely necessary for service in warre the forces whereof are of two sortes the one Land forces the other ship forces Land forces are such as fight on land Ship forces such as are ordered for fight in shippes vppon Sea or Rivers But the order of Sea service I will reserue for another place and intreat now of things pertayning to Land service The levies then for land service are either of those that fight and mannage Armes or else of those that fight not but remaine in the campe for necessary vses They fight that stand ordered in battaile and with armes assaile or repulse the enemy The rest fight not as Phisitians merchants servants and other which follow the campe to minister vnto it Such as fight are either footemen or Riders footemen properly that serue on foote Of Riders some vse Horses some Elephants They that vse Horses are carye â—ither one Horse-back or else in Chariotts And these are the differences in generall But in speciall the foote and Horse receaue many other divisions onely the Elephants and Chariotts never varie Footemen then are reparted into three kindes one being Armed another Targettiers the third light or naked 2 The Armed beare the heaviest furniture of all footemen 3 vsing according to the Macedonian manner large round Targetts and 4 longe Pikes 5 The Light contrarywise beare the lightest having neither Curace nor Greue nor longe or round Targett of any weight but 6 flieng weapons onelie as 7 Arrowes 8 Dartes 9 Stones either for hand or sling To this kind is referred the 10 armour of the Argilos who hath his furniture like to the Macedonian but something lighter For hee carieth 11 a little slight Torgett 12 and his Pike is much shorter then the Macedonian Pike which manner of arming seemeth a meane betwixt the light or naked and that which is properlie called heavie as being lighter then the heavie and heavier then the light and that is the cause that many place it amongst the light The forces of Horse which wee distinguished before from Chariotts as being ordered in Troopes are either 13 Cataphracts or not Cataphracts They are Cataphracts that cover theire owne and theire horses bodies all over with armour Of not Cataphracts some are Launciers some Acrobolists 14 Launciers are such as joyne with the enemy and fight hand to hand with the Launce on horseback Of these some beare longe Targets and are therevppon called Targetiers Other some Launces alone without Targets who are properlie called 15 Launciers and of some Xestophori 16 Acrobolists on horseback are such as fight a far of with flieng weapons Of these some vse darts some bowes They vse darts whome wee call 17 Tarentines Of Tarentines there are two sortes for some throw little 18 darts a farre of and are termed Darters on horseback but properlie Tarentines others vse light darts 19 after they haue spent one or two close presently with the enemy like the Lanciers which wee spake of and fight hand to hand These in common speech are named light horsemen So that of Tarentines some are properly called Tarentines whose manner is to darte a far of Some light horsemen who joyne and fight hand to hand 20 The horsemen that vse bowes are termed Archers on Horseback and of some Scythians These then are the differences of such as are in the Campe the kinds of Souldiers being in nomber nyne Of footmen armed Targetiers Light armed or naked Of horsemen Lanciers Darters Archers Cataphracts And lastlie Chariots and Elephants Notes IN this Chapter the kindes of Souldiers are distinguished according to theire seueral armes borne in fight And therefore of foote some are called armed because they beare heavy armes other light-armed or naked because they weare no defensiue armes other some Targetiers because theire chief defence rested in a slight target wherewith they covered theire bodies The horse also haue theire appellation as theire armes are And some are Cataphracts because themselues horses were armed compleatly other Launciers for that they vsed a launce other some Acrobolists by reason they fought with flieng weapons a farre of The first thoughts of a Prince or State that is resolved to put an army into the field ought to
or Ochane which was the Macedonian manner and not to hold them any more by the Porpax or handle and so to free their left hand to apply both to the menaging of a pike This I take to be the direct meaning of Plutarch Cleomenes then perswaded them to leaue theire speares take pikes And left the target in the left hand might proue an impediment to the vse of a pike hee thought best they should cary them at their backe by the Ochane To cary them then by the strappe at the backe is to giue free vse to the left hand without which a pike specially a long pike such as Cleomenes advised them vnto cannot be wielded as experience will teache any man that list to make triall 4 And long pikes Pikes for the most parte haue beene called by two names by the Graecians Doru and Sarissa Aelian nameth them Dorata both heere and in other places of this book Xenophon speaking of the weapons of the Chalybes saith they had Dorata of 15. cubits long armed with iron at one end onely Tet is Doru taken for a speare oftentimes as in that place of Plutarch last recited where Cleomenes perswaded the Lacedemonians to chaunge theire Dorata speares into Sarissas pikes The like recounteth hee of Philopoemen whoe chaunged the speares of the Achaeans into pikes calling the speares Dorata the pikes Sarissas And even in this place Aelian termeth them not Dorata simply but with addition of Perimekestera of a longsise And after describing the armes of the Peltastes hee saith theire speares Dorata were much shorter then the pikes Sarissae of the armed Properly the pike of the Macedonian is termed Sarissa if sometime Doru some other word is added to avoide the ordinary signification of Doru as Doru macron in Xenophon Doru perimekes in Aelian Yet deny I not but it may bee called Doru of the matter For Doru signifieth wood of any kinde and by consequent the wood a pike is made of But as I said the Macedonian pike is properly called Sarissa What the length of this pike was Aelian will shewe in the 14. Chapter And for the wood it was made of I take it to haue beene Corneil For I finde that the Macedonian horsemans staffe was of that wood Arrian confirmeth it saieng And nowe the Macedonians had the better both by reason of the strength of theire bodies and experience in warre and also because they fought with Corneil launces against Iavelins For I assent not to the translater of Arrian whoe turneth Xystois Craneinois into Corneil dartes where it should bee Corneil launces For in that place Alexander is reported to haue fought with a launce and to haue broken it in fight and to haue asked another of Aretes one of the Quiries of his stable whoe had also broke his and fought with the truncheon and to haue taken the launce of Divarates the Corinthian and returned presently to the fight and therewith overthrowne Mithridates the sonne in lawe of Darius Besides it is said that the Macedonians had the advantage in weapons Take it thus that they fought with dartes against Iavelins what advantage had they especially being come to the shock Dartes are vsed a farre of At hand noe man fighteth with them vnlesse hee haue noe other weapon I thinke noe man will deny but that a Iavelin in closing is more advantagious then a darte And that Xyston signifieth a launce Aelian himselfe testifieth in this Chapter calling the launciers Doratophori or Xystophori The Macedonian then had his horsemans staffe of Corneil Whiâ— Pliny affirmeth to bee a sound and a fast wood If his launce a man may â—bably coniecture his pike also which exceeded the launce in length and thicknesse onely Wee at this day preferre the Ashe before all woodes for toughnesse lightnesse and beautie especially if the vaine runne through to the end Notwithstanding I finde in Cicuta a knight of Venice an old souldier and one that followed the Emperour Charles the fift in his warres of Africk that the opinion of his time enclyned rather to Firre both for lightnesse and strength I haue not seene the experience therefore leaue I the iudgement to triall Wee haue then out of Aelian that the armed had both target and pike that one man should at one time vse both target and pike in fight against the enemy will seeme incredible in our dayes Yet vsed the Macedonian souldiers both at one instant they both charged theire pikes and covered themselues with theire targets against the flyeng weapons of the enemy The manner was this when they closed with the enemy they charged theire pikes with both handes and with a slight wryeng of the body and lifting vp the right shoulder whirled their target hanging at their backe vpon the left shoulder that stood next the enemy in the charge and so covered all theire body to the midle and beneath I haue touched it in the practise of Cleomenes It appeareth more plainely in Plutarch describing the battaile betwixt K. Perseus and the Consul Aemilius Hee hath this The enemy approaching Aemilius issued out of his Campe and fownd the legionary Macedonians bearing nowe the heades of their pikes stiffe vpon the targets of the Romans not suffering them to come vp to the sword which when hee sawe and sawe with all the other Macedonians casting about their targets from behinde their shoulders and receiving the Roman targetiers with their pikes abased together at one signal and likewise the firmenesse of the battaile shutte vp serred the roughnesse of the front the pikes lyeng out before he became astonied affrighted as having never before beheld so fearefull a sight Which passion spectacle hee afterward oftentimes recounted to his familier friends This ioyâ—ing of targets in the front is called Synaspismos whereof wee shall haue occasion to speake heere-after 5 The light They had divers names given them in the Greek history Sometimes they are called Euzoni because they so girded vp theire apparaile about theÌ„ that they were light and fitt for motion Sometimes Askeuoi because they beare no military furniture of defence Sometimes Elaphroi because they resemble as some think a harte in lightnesse and swiftnesse Sometimes Gynnietae naked because they were without defensiuâ— armes Sometimes Psyloi naked or light as they are heere termed by Aelian and by Appian and the other that I cited 6 Flyeng weapons onely The light-armed are divided into three kindes Archers Darters and Slingers Which three kindes were of much vse emongest the Graecians and they beare onely flieng weapons Xenophon testifieth that Cyrus the elder had them And the Graecians in theire returne out of Persia Alexander had them in his warre against Darius and Pyrrhus in his warre in Italy Sicill and Greece The Graecians against Brennus King of the Gaules Both the Athenians The bans at the battaile of Delos 7 Arrowes Archers haue alwayes
artes which are called Habits arise out of a number of actions precaeding so can noe man atteyne to a perfect knowledge of armes till hee haue with care and diligence employed his study and labour therein and vpon the foundation of practise raised the frame of sound and perfect skill Noe man is naturally borne a souldier One may more incline to warre then another but the skill commeth not without industry and paines Plutarch saith that it is neither Eurotas nor the place betwixt Babyx and Gnacion that bringeth foorth valiant and warlicke men but they are to bee fownd in all places where youth is bred vp in shame of vice and boldnesse to vndergoe perill for vertues sake Eurotas was a river neere Lacedaemon Babyx and Gnacion two rivers with in the same City The Lacedaemonians were accounted the most valiant people of Greece And Plutarch speaketh this of the victory which the Thebans had against the Lacedaemonians The Thebans which till that day had noe reputation of valour but afterward by exercise vse of armes vnder Epaminondas and Pelopidas became the bravest souldiers of Greece Not vnlike was the saieng of Pyrrhus to his muster-master choose you said hee good bodies and I will make them good souldiers The strength of the body is requisite in a souldier to vndergoe the labours of warre but exercise it is that giveth the perfect skill and the desire to handle weapons Therefore as Demosthenes being demaunded what was the first and principall thing in the arte Oratory answered Action what the second Action what the third Action So may wee truely say that in the art military exercise is not onely the first second third principall thing to make a souldier but also all in all Aelian speaketh not of exercise but in Generall what particuler exercise is fitt for a souldier hee that desireth to knowe let him reade Xenoph. Cyrop lib. 2. 42. B. C. lib. 3. 77. C. D. Veget. lib. 1. ad caput 9. ad caput 19. lib. 2. caput 23. 24. Iust. Lips comment ad Polyb. lib. 5. dialog 14. Leo. caput 7. Patric Parallel parte 2. 139. Now for the victories that haue beene obteyned by a small number of men well exercised against a multitude vnskillfull and vntrained I need say nothing Histories are plentifull witnesses therein I will onely recite one example wherein the difference may bee seene not between skillfull and vnskillfull but between skillfull and skillfull both enured to labour and both brought vp vnder the same practise and discipline of Armes At what time after the death of Alexander the great his chiefest Commaunders fell at oddes emongest themselues and sought every man to establish himself in the possession of his Conquests it chaunced that Antigonus and Eumenes came together in two sundry battailes In the first Antigonus had in his army aboue 28000. foote 8500. horse 65. Elephants Eumenes lesse foote 17000. in all but emongest them 3000. Argyraspides whoe had served in all Alexanders battailes were invincible strok a great feare into the enemies harts about the number of horse his enemy had So. Elephants When the foote came to ioyne saith Diodorus Siculus the fight continewed a good while at last many falling on either side Eumenes his foote had the better by reason of the valour of the Macedonian Argyraspides They albeit they were stroken in years yet in regard of the manifold perills they had been in excelled in courage skill of fight in so much that no man was able to withstand them And therefore being but 3000. in number they were notwithstanding sett against the enemy as the strength of the whole army In the other battaile he speaketh of their age At that time saith he the yongest of the Argyraspides were noe lesse then 60. years olde or thereabout the most of the rest about 70. some were elder al of thē vnmatcheable in skill readinesse of fight strength of body such was theire dexterity and courage gathered in continuance of dangers which they had passed Afterward rehearsing the battaile he saith The Argyraspides serring themselues close and with liuely force falling vpon the enemy killed some and put other some to flight And fought against the whole Phalange of the enemy with irresistible fury not loosing one of theire owne men yet through skill manhood slayeng of the enemy aboue 5000. routed theire whole foote which in number were many times more then themselues Thus writeth Diodorus Siculus of the olde practised Macedonians who yet fought not against straungers or rawe souldiers or such as were newly brought into the field but against men of their owne nation that had long handled armes wonne many victories been instituted and trained in the same discipline and course military that they themselues had been before Such difference long practise and experience wrought in the one against the other What a file or Decury is and of how many men it consisteth CHAP. IIII. TO order into files is r to make files A file is a number of men beginning at one Leader and contineuing in order of followers to the last man The number of a file is diversly given 2 for some allow it eight some twelue and some sixteen men Wee for this time will retaine the number of sixteen both because that number is proportionable to the indifferent length of a Phalange and also if vse require at any time to double the depth thereof and to giue it thirty two men or to lessen and contract it and make it but eight neither of both shall hinder the service of the light-armed behinde 3 for whether they vse Darts or slings or Arrowes they may easelie with their flieng weapons overreache the depth of the Phalange Notes NExt after arming and choyce of souldiers it followeth to put them in order for service that is first to file them then to band them which is ioyning of files and lastly to embattaile them which is to make a Phalange Of these in the following chapters 1 To make files The Tacticks haue not expressed the precepts of this arte all in the same wordes A file is heere called Lochos the signification whereof is divers Sometimes it is taken for an Ambushe and Lochan signifieth to lye in Ambush it signifieth beside a number of men that are of one body as it were and vnder one commaunder who is called Lochagos and Lochizo is to sett in files The number of this body hath beene diversly taken The Thebans Lochos Hieros first instituted by Gorgidas or as other say by Epaminondas consisted of three hundred men The Lochos of the Lacedaemonians of fiue hundred and twelue Xenophon in his returne out of Persia telleth that the number of the Lochoi of the Graecians which hee ledde was almost a hundred armed men And when they chose extraordinarie men to preserue the Plaesium a hollow forme of square
battaile where in the Graecians marched from breaking they appointed six Lochoi of a hundred a piece for that purpose and Commaunders to leade them And after hee reckoneth seventy men to a Lochos And in the first booke of Cyrus his expedition hee telleth of two Lochoi of the armed of the Regiment of Menon that were slaine by the inhabitants of Cilicia and counted them a hundred men Cyrus in the same Xenophon commaundeth his Lochos to bee made of twenty foure men But the Lochos that Aelian heere speaketh of is a lesse number namely sixteene which was the file of the Macedonians as appeareth by Arrian and Polybius Albeit Arrian calleth it not Lochos but Decas and Polybius the depth of the battaile This number of sixteene was vsed by the Graecians also before King Phillips time as appeareth by Xenophon in his historie of the Graecians And likewise by Thucydides who reporteth that the Siracusans were so ordered against the Athenians Leo saith it was the manner of the auncient warriers to make a file of sixteen calleth it a Tetragonall number 2 Some allow it eight some twelue The Lacedaemonians made the depth of theire battaile sometimes eight men for a file is it that measureth the depth of the battaile and so fought with theire enemies Thucydides witnesseth as much the Lacedaemonians saith hee were not alwaies ordered in depth alike but as theire Lochagoi they were commaunders of fiue hundred and twelue a piece thought good commonly notwithstanding the depth was of eight a piece Xenophon also writeth that Dercyllidas the Lacedaemonian being to fight with Tissaphernes and Pharnabazus ordered his Phalange into eight The same proportion was helde by Mnasippus the Lacedaemonian against the Corcyraeans and by Clearchus the Lacedemonian against his enemies Xenophon saith that Thrasybulus the Athenian salieng out of Pyraeum against Pausanias the Lacedemonian King ranged his men into eight His wordes are When Thrasybulus and the other armed sawe these things they quickly gaue aide to theire owne people and put theire armed in order eight deepe Pausanias being hardly layed vnto and retiring foure or fiue furlongs commaunded the Lacedemonians and theire Allies to resort vnto him and there casting his men into a deepe Phalange ledde against the Athenians Out of which words wee may note that the Lacedaemonians observed not alwaies that order of eight deepe but varied according to place or other circumstance Yet ordinarily they gaue but eight to a file or to the depth of theire Phalange as Thucydides witnesseth before The same Thrasybulus with his complices entring the base Citty of Athens called Pyraeum to free his countrie from bondage of the thirty tyrants having but a fewe with him possessed the court which led to the temple of Diana called Munychia and being assaulted by the garrison of rhe Lacedaemonians ordered his armed men into ten deepe and the light armed behinde them The tyrants and theire followers stood in battaile fifty deepe At the battaile of Leuctra the Lacedaemonian armed were twelue in depth the Thebans fifty Alexander the great leading his armie against Clitus and Glaucias the way being so narrow that no more then foure might marche in front made the depth of his armie a hundred and twenty And the souldiers that Xenophon brought backe out of Persia when they purposed to sacke Byzantium put themselues without commaunde in order of fifty deepe In the text is fifty deepe but the margent hath eight which I take to bee the truer reading because Xenophon saith the place was faire to sett a battaile being voide of building and having an even plaine And it was not the manner of the Graecians to make a Phalange fifty deepe vnlesse there were extraordinarie occasion In the battaile of Delos betwixt the Athenians and Thebans the Thebans were fiue and twenty in depth the Athenians but eight The same Athenian were eight in depth against the Syracusans So that the depth of eight was much vsed among the Graecians How-be-it I find not that they called a file of eight by the name of Lochos Cyrus the elder made his files of twelue men and the leader thereof hee called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and the file it selfe decas which in signification albeit it importe ten yet wee must retaine the word as it is vsed and not fly to the originall of the Etimologie as I noted before vpon other occasion But Aelian maketh his file of sixten His reason followeth 3 For whether they vse darts c. The file being sixten in number the souldiers therein every one having after-distance from other three foote take vp in the whole depth fourty eight foote and being doubled to thirty two men they take vp ninety six foote which amounteth to thirty two yards That bowes and slings easilie out reache this distance appeareth by Vegetius before by mee alleaged who saith they stroke their marke six hundred foote of which in our account by scores is ten score Of the darte a man may rather doubt which notwithstanding with an exercised arme is sent much further then thirty two yards Lipsius writeth that a dart was vsually cast foure hundred foote which amounteth to a hundred thirty three yardes or as wee in shoting measure it six score and odde The reason why Aelian placed the light armed behind wee shall see beere after in fitt place The order and parts of a file or Decury CHAP. V. ' THE best man of every file is the first in place and hee that leadeth the file who is also called the file-leader the Commaunder the fore-stander The last man of the file is called the Reare-Commaunder or bringer-vp The whole file it self is termed 2 a verse and 3 a Decany and of some 4 an Enomoty Yet there are that hold Enomotia for the fowerth parte of a file and the Commaunder of an Enomoty they call Enomotarcha and two Enomoties they take for a Dimery name the Commaunder thereof Dimerites so that the half file is said to bee a Dimery 5 and the Commaunder Dimerites This man is the last of the file Hee that standeth next behinde the file-leader is named a follower and the next after him a Leader and the next after him againe a follower So that the whole file consisteth of Leaders followers placed successiuely one after another 6 It behoueth the file-leader to bee more sufficient then the rest of the file and next him the Leader of the half-file or bringer-vp They define a file to bee a Rowe of followers placed according to theire worth successiuely after a file-leader Notes 1 THE best man of every file Why the file-leader ought to bee the best man of the file many reasons may bee given first because hee commaundeth the rest And as in all other things hee that is to rule and governe another ought to haue more knowledge then hee that is commaunded and
places the enemy commonly giveth vpon The front wee alwaies turne against the enemy if we can The reare the enemy seeketh to attache and by it to distresse vs if hee can The flanks for the most part are secured by the horse and light armed For Leo placeth the light armed and horse in the flanks Soe these two places being most subiect to the violence of the enemy require extraordinarie care and assurance As for the weakest which are in the midst they never come to strike stroke but after the front and reare are broken In another place hee writeth to this effect your Contubernies the souldiers that cabin together you shal order according to fiue men or to ten or to foure or to eight or to sixteen as you shall find most convenient that being bound one to another with mutuall acquaintance they may fight one for another in battaile and bee more valiant against the enemy But you shall doe more wisely if when you are to joyne you place brothers by brothers friends by friends For when hee that fighteth hath an entierly beloved frend standing next behind him hee must of necessity hasard himself with more egernesse for his frends sake And the other being ashamed not to requite one that sustaines such danger in his behalfe will hardly bee brought to forsake his friend so well deseruing and first betake himselfe to his feete The same is the advise of Onosander and was much practised in auncient time The Lochos Hieros or Holy-band of the Thebans whereof I spake before consisted all of friends that had bound themselues one to another in friendship With this Holy-band Pelopidas gaue the first disgracefull overthrow to the Lacedaemonians that ever they had Of this band Plutarch writeth that it was never beaten vntill the battaile of Chaeronaea when Philip the father of Alexander vanquisht the Athenian and Theban forces both together After which battaile Phillip surueying the dead bodies and comming to the place where these three hundred lay all close mingled one with another and strooken through with the Macedonian pikes hee wondred greatly and hearing that it was the band of louers and beloued wept and said evilly may they perish that suspect any filthines in deede or suffering to haue been practised amongst such men Cyrus the elder had his Homotimos nourished vp together and Alexander his Hetairos whose extraordinarie service appeared in all theire battailes Diodorus Siculus writeth of Sesoosis the Aegyptian King to this effect at the birth of Sesoosis his father did a magnificent and royall deed For gathering together all the children of Aegipt that were borne the same day and setting over them some to nourish and governe them hee gaue the same education and institution to them all conceiving that they that were brought vp together partakers of the same liberty would become the best affected and most assured fellow helpers in warre This was the iudgement of Myris the father of Sesoosis King of Aegipt in providing assured assistance to his sonne for the conquering of the whole world which by certeine blinde prophecies was promised him Now what little trust theire is to bee given to men that are not acquainted one with another Pompey that great Captaine of the Romans sheweth in his epistle to Domitius For men saith hee are not quickly to be assembled hether by musters and if wee had them you are not ignorant how much they may bee relyed vpon being vnacquainted to fight against ould Legions Yet hath Leo another mixture in his files For hee would haue the ould and new souldiers put together in one file Least saith hee the ould being by themselues alone proue weake and of small force and the yong disorderly having litle experience For the one albeit ould yet are well acquainted with service the other albeit young and valiant yet are vnskilfull For the Enomoties dimerie and file see the figure Ioyning of Files CHAP. VI. 1 IOyning of Files is when one file is layed flank-wise to another the Leader of the second file to the Leader of the first and the follower of the second File-leader to the follower of the first and so the rest Every man that ranketh Cap. 6. Joyning of Files 1 File 2 Files Joyned 4 Files Joyned The Flank The Front is called Parastates as for example the Leader of the second file to the Leader of the first and so theire next followers and the rest As often then as the second file the third the fourth and so the rest are layd flank-wise to the first it is named Ioyning of files Notes 1 IOyning of files is A file of it self will worke litle effect against an enemy For what can a man alone in front doe Cyrus in Xenophon wisheth that where as the Aegiptians stood a hundred in depth they had beene in depth a thowsand for soe saith hee wee should haue the fewer hands to fight against The ranke bringeth the multitude of hands to fight And it is held that the more hands are with conveniency brought to fight the more is his advantage that bringeth them This is done by ioyning filâ—s together out of which ioyning ranks spring and ranks the more they increase and extend themselues in length the more hands are ready to encounter the enemy Now as it was said in the former chapter that files consisted of leaders and followers from the first to the last so is it in this chapter saide that ranks consist of side men from one end of the length of the Phalange to the other Fewe or many men placed side to side in a right line make a ranke as in two or three files ioyned together there are sixteen ranks of two or three men in a ranke And the two or three file-leaders make the first ranke theire followers the next and soe the rest vntill you come to the sixteenth The like falleth out in more files Vrbicius saith that the file-leaders make the front as they terme it of the Phalange which they call also the first ranke And further hee saith they that runne in an even line betwixt the two wings the right and the left are said to bee Parastatai or sidemen Likewise the last ranke is called Oura or the reare and the commander Ouragos the bringer-vp So Vrbicius agreeing with Aelian Now out of these two chapters is a cleare distinction of the names of souldiers that by reason of theire posture or place in battaile make the diversitie of files and ranks They that make files are Protostatai first-standers Epistatai after-standers which are by vs commonly called Leaders and followers For these two saith Aelian make the file from the beginning to the end Parastatai side-standers or as wee terme them sidemen make the ranks And if you measure the length of the Phalange you doe it by number of men in the ranke if the depth by number of men in the file Of a Phalange the length and depth thereof of rankinge and
fiâ—nge the division of the Phalange into winges the place of the armed foote of the light-armed and of the Horse CHAP. VII 1 THE whole bodie of the multitude of files is termed a Phalange whose 2 length is the first ranke of file-leaders and is named the front the face the edge of the battaile the ranke the mouth the Commaunders the fore-standers the head of the files As much of the Phalange as stretcheth backward from the front to the reare 3 is named the depth The bearing straight foorth of side-men in length whether they bee Leaders or followers is ranking And the standing of Leaders and followers directlie in a line in depth is filing A Phalange is divided into two whole partes beginning at the middle section of the front and houlding on cleane through to the vttermost parte of the depth whereof the one half is called the 4 right wing and head the other half the left winge and taile 5 The two fold section it self that divideth the length hath the name of the Navell and the Mouth 6 The Light-armed are placed after the Phalange of the Armed and behind them the Horse Yet if occasion require both light-armed and Horse are otherwise disposed as after in this discourse will appeare Notes THE whole body of multitude of files is termed a Phalange Ioyning of files makes ranks and a sufficient number of files and ranks together make a body which is called a Phalange For that name is given to any entire body of an indifferent greatnesse compacted and vnited for fight Hesychius deriveth the originall of the word Apo tou pelas allelois inai from the standing of the souldiers in battaile neere one to another Suidas in the same sence albeit hee differ a litle in words saith the Phalanges are so called apo tou pelasai anchi of approching one neere to an other The great Etymologicon goeth yet a little further and saith that Phalanges are as it were Palanges para to pelas kai eggys einai as it were Pelangys These are the coniectures about the originall of the name Which of them is truest is not greatly to the purpose It is enough to vnderstand in what sence the word Phalange is commonly taken amongst Tactick writers who as I said in a generall signification call any great body of armed gathered together and vnited for fight a Phalange Soe Caesar nameth the battaile of the Heluetians into which they cast themselues when they fought against him and likewise the battaile of Ariovistus a Phalange So speaketh Xenophon of the Plaesium or square holow battaile into which the Graecians that went with Cyrus the younger into Persia fashioned themselues at their returne out of Persia. And the same Xenophon saith the horse of the Graecians when they were to encounter the Persians ordered themselues foure in depth in forme of a Phalange And Arrian that the Persians at the River Granicus were ordered in a long Phalange and Xenophon againe discoursing how Iphicrates exercised his nauie when hee expected to fight with the Lacedaemonians saith hee sometimes lead in a wing that is in a large depth sometimes in forme of a Phalange in a broad front The first inventer of the Phalange is thought to bee Pan the generall of Bacchus his armie Polyaenus saith Pan was the commaunder of Bacchus his armie This man was the first that invented the order of a battaile called it a Phalange and parted it into the Right and left wing For which cause Poets faine that Pan carieth two hornes vpon his head Besides hee was the first that by slight and cunning cast a feare vpon his enemies For when Bacchus incamping in a hollow forest was advertised by his spies that an infinite number of enemies were lodged one the further side hee began to be afraide But not Pan who commanded the same night the armie of Bacchus to giue as great a shoute as they could The Rocks and hollownesse of the forest rendered it againe double to the enemy made shewe of a greater armie then Bacchus had Where with the enemy falling into a feare fled foorth with In honour of this strategeme wee faine that Eccho is Pans loue the causlesse night-feares which fall vpon Armyes were attributed to Pan. So farre Polyenus about the inventer of the Phalange The number of the Phalange is not alwayes one It may consiste of ten thousand twenty fiue thousand or as many as you list Antigonus the King of Macedony had his Phalange of ten thousand Ptolomaeus King of Aegipt of twenty fiue thousand The ten thousand Graecians that went with Cyrus into Persia are called a Phalange What number the Helvetians and Ariovistus had in theire Phalange is not preciselie set downe by Caesar. Yet it seemeth by Caesar that the most parte of the fighting multitude of the Helvetians cast themselues into a Phalange and those of Ariovistus likewise But Aelians Phalange is restreyned to a certeine number as the next following Chapter will teache 2 The length whereof The length of the Phalange is to bee accounted by the ranke not by the file The file is but sixteen men deep The ranke from the pointe of one wing to the pointe of the other conteyneth a thousand and twenty foure men in Aelians Phalange So that the files being short in comparison of the ranks it is reason that the length of the Phalange bee measured according to the ranke not to the file Suidas agreeth with Aelian sayeng that the length of the Phalange is the first Syntagma the first ranke of file-leaders which is ordered in a right line stretching from one wing to another and is called the face and the mouth and the front the edge and the first-filing and the first standers of the battaile The next rowe lyeng Parallel to this is called the second ranke and the third the third ranke and soe the rest The length is termed in Greeke Mecos to which is opposed the depth which is named Bathos Neither is there in true account any other dimensions in a Phalange besides the length and the depth which are in this chapter mentioned by Aelian Other names are given in Greeke writers sometimes but they signifie either the one or the other 3 Is named the depth As the length runneth along by front from one wing to another so the depth beareth backward from the front to the reare The depth is properly called Bathos as I said And Bathera Phalanx is a deepe Phalange And Arrian saith Alexander ordered his Phalange es Bathos in depth And Polybius that the Romans made theire battaile much shorter then before but much deeper Bathyteran And as it is called Bathos for the most part so is it by Leo called also Pachos For the depth of a file is by him termed depth or Thicknes Bathos etoi Pachos in two severall chapters of his Tacticks not in respect of the file it selfe which is no
wound many of them The stones and darts of the light-armed were to flye over the front of the battaile and that could not bee vnlesse the light-armed were placed behinde I will adde one example onely out of Plutarch to shew the seruice of the light-armed in the reare Plutarch discoursing of the battaile fought betwixt Sylla and Archelaus the Generall of Mithridates at Cheronaea hath thus Afterwards the foote forces came to joyne the Barbarians holding out and charging theire long pikes and endevouring with locking theire targetts close together to mainteine the order and closenes of their Phalange The Romans on the other side casting away their darts and drawing their swordes putte by the enemies pikes in choler to the end they might come quickly vp to them For they espied opposed against them in front 15000. of the enemies slaues that were enâ—ranchised by Proclamation of the Kinges generalls enrolled emongest the armed And when the Roman Armed coulde hardly breake them by reason of theire depth and fast knitting together and of theire bouldnes in daring contrary to the nature of slaues to abide the danger of the encounter the arrowes and darts cast in aboundance from the Reare made them shewe their backs and fall in a route Wee finde heere that the light-armed from the reare effected that which the Armed could not These slaues endured the shocke and could not bee broken by the armed and yet were defeated with Arrowes and darts from the Reare Nowe for the distance that should bee betwixt the bodies of the light-armed and betwixt them and the reare of the armed Aelian saith nothing I make noe doubt but there ought to bee as great if not greater as in the sections of the armed For wee must vnderstand that the sections that served to sever the Phalangarchies one from another must runne through the light-armed in depth to the reare And by them are the Epixenagies to bee devided a sunder as the Phalangarchies are with Epixenagies answer the Phalangarchies for number of files albeit not in number of men Likewise there ought to bee a greater space in ranke and file then the armed had For the handling of missiue weapons require more liberty of place then the managing of a pike or sworde A dart can not bee sent for ciblie without running two or three steppes in the delivery of it A sling being throwne and circled about the head before the stone or bullet can bee forced out to any purpose will not suffer a neere stander by In bowes and arrowes is the like reason if they be vsed as they ought Besides the light-armed in their fight are tied to noe certainty of order or grounde but fight dispersedly Soe that the more grounde they haue the fitter they are for seruice In which respect a large intervall croswise betwixt the armed and them should serue to purpose it having liberty for their motion forward and backward as occasion should require 7 And behinde theÌ„ the Horse I haue not read in any greek historye that the horse-men in a sett battell haue beene ranged behinde the light-armed The vsuall manner was to place them in the wings Soe did Alexander before he passed the River Granicus soe at Issos soe at Gangamela Soe did Antigonus against Eumenes and Eumenes against Antigonus Soe Ptolomeus against Demetrius and Demetrius against Ptolomeus and in brief all the Macedonians and the Graecians before the Macedonians were accounted of for matter of armes vnlesse some speciall cause moved an alteracion And as I shewed out of Xenophon before all theire times Cyrus albeit hee set the light Armed in the reare notwithstanding hee beestowed the horse in the wings Alexander having passed the River Ister as long as hee marched in the corne lande placed his horse behinde his Phalange when hee entred the Champeigne hee sett them on the right wing and lastly cast his Phalange in to a Plaesium and ordered his horse before In the Corne-land they followed for feare of an Ambushe In the Champian they marched on the right wing because on the left the Phalange was secured by the River before the Plaeâ— sium that being over-layde with the multitude of the enimye they might haue a sure retreate to the foote The same Alexander when hee was to fight the Battaile of Issos with Darius as long as hee was in the streights marshalled his horse after his foote But in marching forward comming to open ground when he might giue full length to his Phalange hee placed his horse on both the wings But the reason of setting them behinde-was in the streightnes of the place and hee being incerteine how neere the enemye lay was loathe to put them to hasard before they had liberty of grounde to order themselues and might haue assistance of the foote For otherwise it was an ordinarie matter in marching as it is the manner also at this day to dispose the horse half behinde and half before I will content my self with one example When Agesilaus retourning out of Asia passed through Thessalie the Thessalians allies of the Thebans followed him and sought to endammage his armie to theire vttermost Hee had before disposed his march into a Plaesium with the horse half in front and half behinde nowe when the Thessalians ceased not to molest him by falling vpon his reare hee sent to the reare all the horse of the vantgarde excepting those that attended his person Either party prepared them selues to fight The Thessalians holding it not sure with Horse alone to incounter armed foote Turning about their faces began leasurely to retire and the Lacedaemonians slowly to followe Agesilaus perceaving the errour of both sent the best of his horse that were about him commanding them to signifie to the rest that they together should goe and charge the Thessalians with all speede and giue noe respite to them to turne their faces The Thessalians contrary to their expectation being hottly charged some fled other some turned about towards the enimy other some indevouring to turne were surprised by theire enemies that by that time were come vp to theire flancke Nowe for the reason of Aelians placing the Horse in the reare I haue noe more to say then that from thence they might bee soone drawen to all places front flanke or wheresoever the enemy is like to distresse vs. For it hath beene the forecast of all generals to fashion their battails according to the figure the enemy hath before chosen Examples are so plentifull I neede not alleage many Onely I will remember one latine story of placing horse in the reare L. Lentulus and L. Manlius Acidinus in Spaine being to fight with the Illergetes and Ansetans and other Spaniards that had revolted from the Romans in this very kinde of placing horse in the reare imitated and gotte the advantage of and defeated theire enemies Livy hath the story and writes thus in effect The next day at the rising of the sonne
said are the files of the Phalange But if the conueniency be obserued it will not seeme impertinent For all the Leaders being in front therefore are they called Leaders because they precede and the rest follow it makes both a gallant shew and that rancke being as it were the edge of our battaile not only serues to hew a sunder and rent a pieces the forces of our enemie But also standeth as an assured bulwarke of defence before the rest of the Armie that followeth And it is well noted by Leo that the multitude of Commanders in orderly diuisions both signifies that there are many worthy and valiant men in the armie And is a meanes to keep the Souldiers in greater obedience and to giue vndoubted effect to all directions Of what qualitie and disposition those Leaders ought to be you may see in the fourth Chapter of Leos Tactickes Onely I will adde that as they are higher in dignity so ought they in vertue and valour exceede those that are vnder their command 1 A Dilochy Consists of two files for so signifies the word Dilochia and the Leader is called a Dilochite 2 A Tetrarchy Of foure files and the Leader is called a Tetrach one that hath the command of foure files And here I must once more admonish that in the words of diuers signification we must not weigh what is the proper signification but how they are vsed in this Art and booke For the word Tetrarch signifieth sometimes a King as Hesychius hath and Deiotarus in Tully is called a Tetrarch and Herode in the Gospell who both are commonly knowne for Kings Thessaly likewise was diuided into 4. Principalities Thessaliotis Pthiotis Pelasgiotis and Astiotis whereof euery one was named a Tetrarchy Onely the difference is that a Tetrarch being a King or a Gouernour signifies him that hath the gouernment of the fourth part of the land for a Tetrarchy is the gouernment of the fourth part But a Tetrarchy in Aelian signifies a body military consisting of foure parts 4. files and the Tetrarch commands not ouer one alone but ouer all the 4. parts 3 A Taxis As the word Tetrarchy is diuersly taken so is Taxis likewise For sometimes it imports Order in a generall signification as I noted before Sometimes the order of a battaile sometimes a company of any kinde of Souldiers foote or horse as Taxis Peltastarum Taxis Equitum Sometimes a single Phalange as in Arrian mention is made of Taxis Ooeni Taxis Perdiccae and Taxis Meleagri c. who were Phalangarches as the story sheweth i Sometimes for all the armed as Taxis Phalangitarum Sometimes a rancke of men standing embattailed as in Thucidides who discribing the battell of the Lacedemonians saith the front which he calleth the first rancke teen proteen Taxin consisted of 448. But in a more speciall signification it is taken for a band of Souldiers And in that signification the number varieth In Xenophon it comprehendeth a hundred men What the number of the Athenian Taxis was I finde not deliuered by any Writer That they had Taxiarchs Polyenus sheweth plainely And if a man with leaue might gesse I would imagine their Taxis consisted of 250 men For I finde in the same place of Polyenus that they had Chiliarchies Pentecosiarchies Taxies and Lochagies I haue before shewed that Lochos in Xenophon is made sometimes of aboue 100. men Out of which may be inferred with probability that Taxis being the next degree aboue the Lochagie hath the double number or more The rather because a Chiliarchy hauing in it a 1000. the Penticosiarchy must haue 500. and by likelihood the Taxis 250. as being the next office vnder the Pentecosiarchy But whatsoeuer the Taxis of the Athenians or of other people was Aelian maketh his Taxis vp with 128 men and 8. files which is a double number to the Tetrarchy With whom Suidas agreeth giuing 2. Tetrarchies to a Taxis and saith it consists of 128 men The Commander of the Taxis is called a Taxiarch as the Commander of the Tetrarchy is a Tetrarch Here I am to note by the way that the Interpreter of Xenophon translateth Taxiarcha the Commander of a Cohort wher 's Taxis in the straighter signification cannot be taken for a Cohort because a Cohort differeth much in number hauing in it at the least 500. and odde men where the Taxis when it is greatest hath no more then 128. And Polybius saith plainely that spira is the Greeke word that fully expresseth the Romane Cohort 4 A Syntagma The word commeth of Syntasso or Syntatto to place together and a Syntagma is a body compounded of many parts artificially put together But it may be taken for anybody in the armie Diodorus reports of Dionysius the elder That after he had diuided his whole Armie which had in it 30000 into three parts he imployed two against the Carthaginian Campe in diuers manner himselfe tooke the Syntagma or third part which consisted of mercenary Souldiers and led against that quarter of the campe which had the Engins Aelian also vseth the word diuerslie For he calles the whole armie by the name of Syntagmata in the plurall number and sometimes Syntagma in the singular And further giues the same name to a file Suidas likewise discribing the length of a Phalange saith it is the first rancke Syntagma of file Leaders which stretcheth forth in a right line from winge to winge Whereby appeareth that which the Logitians affirme which I touched before that there are more things then names of things And that fit names cannot be giuen to all The names that haue beene giuen by antiquity to expresse the seuerall bodies of the Phalange are to be reteined by vs as proper enough to signifie the thing they meant Neither are we to vary from them vnlesse we our selues can inuent better The Syntagma that Aelian here mentioneth is framed of two Taxies that is of 16. files of 256 men The Commander of it is named a Syntagmatarch And where he addeth it is called of some a Xenagy we are to vnderstand that Xenagos was he amongst the Grecians that had the command of a band of strangers as he that leuied strangers was called Xenologos and the band it selfe was called a Xenagy Why the Syntagma should haue the appellation of Xenagy I cannot diuine vnlesse the reason were because it was about the number wherof strangers made their companies that serued amongst the Graecians And I thinke and shall till better information that the body of the light armed called a Xenagy mentioned hereafter had that name likewise for the same reason Now of all the bodies in this Chapter mentioned there is none that commeth so neere the companies vsed at this day as doth the Syntagma for excepting that our numbers differre and are in diuers places more or lesse the offices of each are alike You haue in
yet for the Trumpet I cannot say that all the Graecians held themselues precisely vnto it Plutarch much commendeth the Lacedemonian manner of ioyning with the enemy and writeth it is in this sort When the King hath offered the Goate that was the Lacedemonian sacrifice when they were to giue battaile hee straight commands all the Army to crowne their heads and the Flutes to sound the measure of Castor And himselfe withall beginneth the Paean the song they vsed when they were to charge and advanceth first against the enemy So that it is a braue and no lesse fearefull thing to behold them pacing according to the measure of the Flute neither dissoluing their order nor shewing any astonishment of minde but mildely and ioyfully approching the danger of conflict diuiding out their Marche to the sound of the instrument For it is not likely that men so demeaning themselues can be transported with feare or choler Nay rather they must needes haue a setled minde full of hope and assurance as if God were present on their side thus Plutarch Out of whose words it is cleare that the Lacedemonians vsed no Trumpets in fight but Flutes and made them their instruments to daunce as it were the measures of warre by For they vsed an easie and slow pace framed to the cadence of the sound which may well be resembled to the solemne measure in dancing Athenaeus rehearseth out of Herodotus that the Lydians vsed the like But he addeth that the Cretans made choice of the Harpe for their instrument of warre as though it had beene peculiar to that nation Pausanias testifieth the like of the Lacedemonians Polybius goeth not so farre but affirmeth onely that the Cretans and Lacedemonians in stead of Trumpets brought in Flutes and measures into the warre And if it were so that the Lacedemonians vsed Harpes it is like they tooke them from the Cretans For I finde in Plutarch that Lycurgus brought many of his lawes from Crete and had great familiarity with Thales the Cretan whom he also sent to Lacedemon to make an ouerture for the establishing of his lawes that were then newly finished Yet Diodorus Siculus reporteth that the Lacedemonians vsed also Trumpets in their Battailes He writing of a fight that was betwixt the Thebans and Lacedemonians vnder the leading of Agesilaus vseth these words in effect There was a strong fight betwixt them a long time and at first Agesilaus had the better but afterward when the Thebans issued out of the City at all hands Agesilaus seeing the multitude caused the Trumpet to sound a retreat The signe of retreat here was giuen by Trumpet and it seemeth the Lacedemonians had the vse both of Trumpet and Flute Of the Flute in pacing toward the enemy to ioyne battaile of the Trumpet in all other military signalls such I haue before noted it as the rest of the Graecians gaue by Trumpet The place of the Trumpet in the time of the Battaile was within the Phalange by the Ensigne Thucydides placeth the Flutes of the Lacedemonians within the battaile where they can finde no roome vnlesse they stand by the Ensignes And albeit Polienus saith the Flute led the Army and went before yet that is to be vnderstood in the marche For in case of a Marche or exercise Leo also giueth the Trumpet place by the Captaine in front When the fight commeth he retireth himselfe to his place in the Battaile with the rest 9 A Sergeant The word Hyperetes signifieth a Minister which is all one with the French word Sergeant as appeareth by the interpretation of our Law it selfe wherein the Sergeants next degree to Iustices are called seruientes ad legem I reteyne therefore the name of Sergeant because it is familiar amongst souldiers And a Sergeant hath the same office in our Warre that Hypenetes had amongst the Graecians What his duty and seruice should be is declared out of Suidas There were of these officers as well among the horse as the foote as appeareth in Xenophon The estimation and worth of their places is expressed by the same Xenophon Cyrus held the Sergeants in warre saith he worthy of no lesse honour than messengers and Embassadors in peace He conceiued that they ought to be trusty skilfull in matter of warre vnderstanding quicke swift industrious and voide of feare besides endued with all qualities requisite in the best sort of men that they were to accustome themselues to refuse no manner of seruice but willingly vndergo whatsoeuer is laid vpon them by their Commanders These Sergeants attended their Commanders in Marches and other times saue onely when Battaile was to be ioyned and alwaies expected his command During the fight they retired to some place where they might bee ready at call for as I said before they could haue no place in front 10 A Crier Concerning the office of a Crier Suidas hath taught vs that he was to deliuer the Commanders pleasure by voice Leo calleth him Mandator from the Latine word because he signified to the souldiers Mandata the commandments of the Captaine In exercise he stood at the head of the Troupe taking from the Commander the words of direction and making as it were proclamation of them to the Souldiers and serued often when neither Trumpet nor signall might be giuen he was otherwise also of great vse For in all busines which required distinct signification of any sudden alteration in the Armie the Crier had his part alone Xenophon telleth in the Graecians returne out of Persia that Clearehus their Generall led them not against the enemy both because their courages began to fall and also because they were all the day fasting and it grew somewhat late But yet hee turned not out of the way lest he might seeme to flie but holding on right forward he came with the vantgard to the next Villages by sunne-set there quartered The very timber of the houses of some of those Villages was broken downe and carried away by those of the Kings armie The first therefore lodged themselues reasonably the last being be-nighted euery man tooke vp his lodging as it fell out and made a great noise calling one after an other so that the enemie heard it Whereby it came to passe that the next of them fled out of their tents This appeared the next day for neither was there carriage-beast nor Campe nor smoake neere at hand to be seene The King also was terrified as it should seeme with the accesse of the Armie Which he declared by the next daies worke Yet in the processe of night a feare seased the Graecians themselues and the tumult and hurleburly was such as is wont when men are possessed with feare Clearchus in this distresse commanded Tolmides the Elean whom hee then had with him the best Crier of those times after silence to make proclamation that the Commanders signified generally that whosoeuer could
he taketh vp 2 cubits 3 In Constipation or shutting one cubit Densation then or closing is when we draw wide distances close together and by side-men and followers that is both in length and depth gather vp the bodie of the Phalange so notwithstanding that the souldier yet hath libertie to moue and turne about Constipation or shutting is when the Phalange by side-men gathereth it selfe yet closer together then in Densation so that by reason of the nearenesse there is left no Declination or turning of faces either to the right or left hand The vse of Closing is when the Generall leadeth the Phalange against the enemy Of Shutting when he would haue it stand fast and as it were locked vp and serred to receiue the charge of the enemy Seeing then there are 1024 File-leaders in the front of the Phalange it is plaine that 4 in their ordinary array they take vp in length 4096 Cubits 5 that is ten furlongs and ninetie six cubits In Closing fiue furlongs and forty eight cubits In Shutting two furlongs a halfe and fower and twenty cubits Notes AFter Souldiers are armed and distributed into bodies military the next care is to be had of their Mouing For as a man let him be neuer so well proportioned and strong if he pace disorderly and either set too great strides or reele here and there or so mince and tread out his steps as if his leggs were bound together groweth hereby deformed and not onely loseth his comelinesse but his actiuitie withall and possibility to performe any thing by strength So is it of an Armie that hath either too great distances or is thronged vp or pestred too close together Too much thronging bindeth as it were the souldiers hands and taketh away the vse of his weapons as on the other side falling one loose from another and standing or mouing too farre asunder maketh the Battaile weake and disiointed and subiect to the enemies entry and easie to be broken The meane betwixt both was brought in by King Philip King of Macedonia who first constituted and raised the Macedonian Phalange and invented the distances of opening and closing the same imitating the serring of Targets called Synaspismos practised by the old Heroes at Troy Out of his discipline sprung the distances mentioned here by Aelian which are of three sorts The first are large distances of 1 Foure Cubits Which amount to six foote For a Cubit conteineth a foote and a haâ—fe This distance was vsed in marching or else in solemne pompes and shewes And the souldier hauing a pike of 14 Cubits or 21 long whereof one halfe lay forward on his shoulder and the other halfe backward it was requisite he should haue a reasonable large distance both in file and ranke to the end that in turning this way or that Cap. 11. The first distance ordnary 6 foote in file asmuch in ranck The Reare The second distance called Closing foote in file asmuch in ranck The third distance called or serring foote in file shoulder to shoulder in rank way or that way or mouing out of his place for no man in his marche can alwaies hold his ranke he offended not his next neighbours therewith This distance our exercise at this day calleth open order The next distance is of Two Cubits Or three foote The name of it in Greeke is Pycnosis that is thickning In Leo it is called Sphinxis knitting together in our moderne exercise Order And it is when from the distance of 6 foote we draw our Phalange both by file and ranke so close that the souldiers stand but 3 foote one from an other euery way This distance is vsed when the Army approcheth neare to the enemy and onely commeth not to charge that it may be ready to shut and locke it selfe for the charge which is performed in the last distance of One Cubit A foote and a halfe This is called Synaspismos ioyning Target to Target For as I before shewed the pikemen of the Macedonians vsed also Targets with their pikes and in charging the enemy closed so neare in front that their owne Targets touched one another This kind of fight the Aegiptians vsed in Xenophon which he calleth locking together of Targets and by meanes therof had the advantage against the Persians The Parthian horse likewise comming to charge Crassus with their staues After they perceiued the depth of the locking of Targets and the setlednesse and stedfastnes of the Roman Phalange they retired and durst not come to hands with them And Diodorus Siculus writes that Alexander besieging the City of Halicarnassus there was in the City and in seruice of Darius one Ephialtes an Athenian a man of great valour and strength of body He by the permission of Memnon Generall of Darius Armie determined to make a saly And taking to him 2000 mercenarie souldiers all chosen men and giuing brands flaming with fire to one halfe and reseruing the rest for fight he opened the gates and fell out throwing fire vpon the engines of battery which soone caught a mighty flame And marshalling the rest into a thicke and deepe Phalange himselfe led on and was the first that fell on the Macedonians coÌ„ming to aide and to quench the fire Alexander aduertised hereof speeded to the medley ordered first the Macedonians in front after them other choice men for seconds and in the third place men of extraordinarie account for their prowesse himselfe leading them on sustained the enemy which seemed vnresistible and sent others to slake and put out the fire and to preserue the Engines The fight was hot and albeit the Macedonians found meanes to quench the fire yet had Ephialtes the better in the fight who both himselfe killed many with his owne hands and the towers from the walls furnished with many Catapelts annoyed greeuously the Macedonians In so much that some falling in the place other-some forsaking their ground by reason of the number of Engine Darts that fell thicke amongst them Alexander himselfe was reduced to extremitie Here the old souldiers of the Macedonians although otherwise freed from such seruice in regard of their age hauing of a long time followed the warres with King Philip and gained many a battaile were by this occasion tolled out to succour and as they excelled the yonger sort in greatnes of spirit and military experience so meeting with the run-a-waies they bitterly reuiled and taunted them for their cowardice Then serring themselues close and ioyning their Targets together they repressed and held the enemy short who now seemed to haue the victory in his hands Finally killing Ephialtes and many other they droue the rest into the City A memorable seruice of the vse of Targets and of the Synaspisme of the Macedonians which was not vsed but when they either gaue vpon or receiued the charge of the enemy And the Targets so knit together serued for a wall as it were to the whole Phalange and
forces to his sonne Aleander that he needed no other Allies to ouerthrow the Soueraâ—gnety of Persia. After his death Alexander â—ooke his langdome and Armie and with it encountring and v inquishing Darius in two great Battailes runne thorough Asia like a flash of 〈◊〉 renâ—ing a pieces aâ— that resâ—ted or stood in his way and laid the foundation of that kingdome which albeit afterward diuided continued long in his Successors Neither was the experience of their invinciblenesse against the barbarous people onely but as much against the Graecians who â—ill Philips time were esteemed the chiefe masters of Armes in Europe This is cleare by the victories the Macedonians obteined against the renowned Cities of Greece both ioyntly and seuerally Philip ouerthrew the Phoceans albeit the Lacedemonians and Athenians ioyned with them The same Philip at Cheronaea defeated the power of the Thebans and Athenians ioyned together Alexander tooke and sacked the Citie of Thebes that about that time was accâ—unted the mighttest Citie of Greece His Lieutenant Antipater foyled the Lacedâ—nians 〈◊〉 battâ—ile â—nd steâ— their King Agis Antigonus Tutor of King Phiâ—p the sonne of Demetrius broke an Armie of the Lacedemonians and Peloponesi◠〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and chased out of Greece Cleomenes the last brave King of Sparta 〈◊〉 they were not beaten in the field by any Nation but onely by the Romans And yet the iudgement of Polybius doth in this also proue it selfe good For where the Romans had these victories against the Macedonians he assigneth this to be the cause that the Phalange at the time of the fight had not the proper place nor meanes to vse it owne power in the encounter so long as the Phalange hath ground enough and can meete the enemy with a right front he holdeth it not possible to be foyled being diuided and in places vneven he is of opinion and experience hath taught it may easily be put in a route Plutarch compareth it for strength so long as it is one bodie and maintaineth the Synaspisme iointly to an invincible beast being disâ—euered he saith it looseth the force in the whole and in euery man particular both in regard of the manner of arming and also because the violence oâ— it consists rather in knitting of all parts together than in particular of any mans valour Three battailes to praetâ—rmit aiuers skirmâ—shes I finde the Romans 〈◊〉 with and thâ—em 〈◊〉 the Macedonians One against King Philip the sonne of Demeâ—us an 〈◊〉 against Antiochus the third against Perâ—eus the soâ—e of King Pâ—lip For I paâ— ouer those wherein they were beaten by Pyâ—hus 〈◊〉 worâ— Philip 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Phalange and not vsing the whole together but fighting against the Romans with the right winge onely yet had the better and wâ— too â—ard for that part of the Roman Army that ioyned with him but the other winâ— comming into the field fit rather for a march than a fight and not being able to order themselues Phalaâ—ge-wise were soone defeated and the Roman victorious fell vpon the râ—re oâ— the right winâ— where Philip was and had now gotten the victorie and so 〈◊〉 the field Antiochus vnskilfull in true ordering of a Phalange truste◠〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 horse than his Phalange and being to fight with L Scipio where hee 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 giuen full scope anâ— extâ—nded the front of the Phalange by making it 16 deepe 〈◊〉 contrary-wise narrowed it 〈◊〉 out the depth into 32 whereby he lost the advantage of matching the â—ront of the Romans and after his horse were beaten gaue facilitie to the enemy of 〈◊〉 on it all sides Perseus ioyning â—attaile with Paulus Aemiâ—us 〈◊〉 long 〈◊〉 the Phalange continued in the right figure slew many of the Romans anâ— forced them to retire but following on too eagerly he came to vneuen and rough ground wherein the Phalange being disseuered left spaces and breaches for the Romans to enter and defeat it So long then as the Macedonian Phalange had fit ground and the right property of embattailing it stood fast against the Romans the greatest souldiers that euer were being in their hands that kâ—ew not how to vse it as a sword in the hands of a childe it yeelded to time and fortune The cause of the strength of the Phalange is assigned to be 2 The manner of embattailing Which consists principally in ordering of Target and pike in closing of the Targets by Synaspisme and in ioint charging of the pikes which lying out thicke from the front besides the horror of the sight giue almost an impossibilitie to enter the Phalange I haue alledged the iudgement of Aemilius concerning the sight presented by a Phalange when the Pikes lie so charged out of the front Polybius thinketh nothing can resist the force thereof Livy albeit many times more than partiall to the Romans yet in the selfe-same fight betweene Perseus and Aemilius giueth his iudgement thus of the Phalange The second Legion saith he inâ—inuated it selfe into the middle empty place and so broke asunder the Phalange Neither was there any more euident cause of victory then the fights in diuers places at once which first troubled the Phalange in turning many waies and afterward plainly disioynted and scattered it whose forces being vnited and rough with charged pikes are intollerable If by giuing on in diuers places you constraine it to bring about the pikes immoueable through length and weight it entangleth it selfe with confused crossings If at one time you charge it both flanke and reare they fall asunder like a ruinous building As then they were compelled many waies to answer the Romans and so to breake their battaile into many parcells And the Romans vpon the first opportunitie of a breach straight waies conveighed in their troupes who if they had met the enemy in front had runne vpon the pikes as in the beginning it hapned to the Pelignans being too forward to come to hand and could not haue resisted the Phalange fast shut and serred vp for the encounter thus Livy concerning the Phalange Who albeit a Roman holdeth the same opinion that Polybius doth And in another place telling of Philips encamping â—e saith he was lodged in a wooddy plot which was vnfit for the Phalange especially of the Macedons which vnlesse it cast the pikes as it were a muniment before the Targets and that cannot be but in open ground is of no great vse So then if Pikes may be charged out before the Targets the Phalange is of great vse But that I may not seeme to rely vpon bare opinion let vs heare by an example or two the experience of the Pike and Target of the Macedonian against the Roman armes When T. Quintus Flaminius the Rom Consull had driuen King Philip and his army from the streights neare Antigonia seeing that the enemy kept himselfe with his strength and absteined from the field he determined to try the Cities of Thessaly and hauing wonne some
euer slaine in battaile by byting or stroke of a horse Men they are that performe whatsoeuer is done in fight As for vs the foote he meaneth our mounting is much more firme and stedfast then theirs They hange vpon their horse and are in feare not onely of vs but to be shaken of and throwne to ground We contrariewise haue stable footing and shall be able both with great assurednesse to strik and direct our aime with more certainty One aduantage the horse-men haue they may more securely runne away Hitherto Xenophon And so much is summarily spoken of the seruice of horse 1 The Thessalians whose power was great in horse The Thessalians inhabiting about the mountaine Pelius were the first that fought on horse-backe and were therefore called Centaures When they watered their horses in the riuer Peneus the horse heades stooping to drinke made the vnskilfull multitude who saw the bodies of men ioyned to the shoulders of the horse conceiue that the vpper part was man and the neither Oxe For it should seeme horse were not so well knowne then as Oxen with which they laboured and plowed their land The Poets therefore fained that they were monsters compounded of two diuers natures man and oxe or bull and that Centaurus the beginner of the race was begotten by Ixion vpon a cloude which was figured like Iuno Howbeit Seruius giueth a better originall of the name saying that certaine seruants of a Thessalian King seeing their masters Neate raging with the Brimse a flie that biteth cattell got a horse backe and pricking them with goades reduced them to their stables and that they were after called Centaures Para kentein tous taurous of pricking the neate The great Etymologicon giueth yet an other beginning of the name For where I haue said that Centaurus was begotten by Ixion vpon a cloude which was figured like Iuno with whom Ixion was in loue The Etymologicon saith the sonne of Ixion and of the cloude was called Centaurus Apo tou ton patera autou kentein ten auran But Diodorus Sicul. reporting the historie of the Centaures speaketh not of Centaurus the father of the race but saith notwithstanding that they were bred of a cloude and that the Nymphs brought them vp and that they were the first horsemen and therefore called Hippocentauri which gaue occasion to the fable that they had two natures It is generally agreed that these Centaures were Thessalians and that they were the first horsemen that are mentioned in any history And as they were the first so by reason of their long practise they were accounted the best the most valiant and the most expert horse-men of all Greece euen to the time of Philip sonne of Amintas King of Macedonia who conquered all Thessaly saith Iustin not of desire to make himselfe rich of the prey of that Countrey but to winne to his armie the strength of the Thessalian horsemen Whose seruice he vsed afterward in all his war Neither did they lesse seruice to his sonne Alexander in whose greatest battailes their vertue clearelie appeareth and is especially commended by histories Pyrrhus also principally by their valor put the Romans to flight Agesilaus returning out of Asia towards his Countrey led his armie through Thessalie and being much incumbred in his mareh by the Thessalian horsemen that were his enemies hee charged them and ouerthrewe them and pleased himselfe maruellously therein because with troupes of horse which himselfe had raised and disciplined hee had ouerthrowne the Thessalians that were saith Xenophon so highly renowned for horsemanship 2 Fashioned and forme of a Rhombe There are three kindes of horse battailes mentioned by Aelian the Rhombe the Wedge and the Square And the square is either a iust square or longer in flanke then in front or in front then in flanke The Rhombe was the inuention of the Thessalians and in that forme they vsually fought But where he maketh Iason to be the inuentor of it he afterward expoundeth his owne meaning attributing the inuention to Ileon the Thessalian from whom also it was tearmed Ile but the chiefe practise to Iason Euclyde defineth a Rhombe in this sort f A Rhombe is a square figure that hath the sides equall but the angles not right That is the foure sides of the square are of one and the same length but the points which make the angles are two of them stretched out in greater length and become more sharpe two of them brought narrower together and made more blunt then the right angles of a Tetragonall square See the figure It is the same figure in a battaile that at this day we call the Diamond battaile which is sometimes practised amongst the foote for shew and evercise sake but amongst the horse I haue not seene it practised And as the square goeth to charge with all the souldiers that stand in one of the sides that is with the front for the front is but a side of the square so the Rhombe chargeth with one of the points which is the front of the Rhombe Whether of them is of most vse in the field I am not to determine For the square standes the practise of our daies besides the vsage of the Persians Sicilians and most Graecians as Aelian saith For the Rhombe the Thessalians alone which notwithstanding were acknowledged the best horsemen of Greece vnlesse we allow the Wedge for a parcell of the Rhombe a Rhombe being but a double Wedge as making two wedges when it is diuided in two and then haue wee for the Rhombe not onely the Scythians and Thracians both nations very good Horsemen but King Philip Amintas sonne and Alexander the great and his successours Either of both formes haue their reasons For the squares they that vse them held opinion as Aelian saith that they were easier to frame and fitter for ioint mouing of horse and sooner in order of file and ranke and that the Commanders iointly charged the enemy which in no other forme could be done For the easinesse to frame I see no great difference onely custome and vse must in euery for me yea in the squares themselues make the horseman ready to know and take and keepe his place The same may be said for the ioint moouing of the horse Now to file and rancke is common to the square with some Rhombes and as soone done in the one as in the other the number of the troupe being once knowne and euery horseman hauing his place assigned and the forme resolued vpon into the which it must be cast For where there are 4 kinds of Rhombes one that fileth and ranketh an other that fileth but ranketh not the third that ranketh but fileth not the last that neither fileth nor ranketh as Aelian teacheth in the next Chapter The first will finde no more difficultie of fiâ—ing and ranking then the square the two next albeit the one ranke not the other file not yet the want of filing or ranking
hindereth no more the readinesse of framing them then the vse of filing and ranking helpeth the other The fourth is rather curious then profitable as I take neither doe I findâ— example of it And it may bee truly affirmed of it that the square is much easier to be fashioned We shall haue occasion to speake of the last three in due place Touching the ioint falling on of the Commanders I confesse the aduantage is great For when the best men such as the Commanders ought to be altogether fall vpon the enemy they are very like to put hard to them And as it is a great part of skill to bring many hands to fight so is it no lesse to bring the best hands to fight Many hands make light worke the best hands sure worke Now for the Rhombe Aelian alledgeth these reasons First that it is fittest for all encounters because the horsemen are ready to turne their faces euery way with speed Then that they cannot be surprised in flanke or reare hauing the best men in their flanks and the Commanders in euery point of the Rhombe And cannot the square turne faces euery way They can but not with the same advantage For the Rhombe which way soeuer faces are turned remaineth in the first forme And whether it be to the right or left flanke or to the reare it keepeeh still 4 euen sides and the men of most seruice in the sides Besides that one point alwaies affronteth the enemy Not vnlike a Calthrop which howsoeuer you cast it to the ground hath one point bearing right vp to wound the horses feet But the square in turning faces to either flanke altereth the forme of the front In a broad square the front at the first was longer than the sides faces being turned to either flanke the sides become longer than the front contrariwise in the Herse battaile Besides in such turning of faces the square leeseth the advantage of embattatling the Commanders that stood in the front standing now in one of the flanks and being not able to charge the enemy iointly the greatest advantage of that forme and so the front being without Commanders is subiect and in danger of surprise where the Rhombe which way soeuer faces turne hath as many Commanders in the front as at first But let vs take the horse square in full strength with all Commanders in front whether shall that forme be better than the Rhombe I dare not affirme it For where there are two kindes of fight One with maine force the other with sleight and Art in the first I will preferre the square in the last the Rhombe The square for slaughter and violent ouerthrowing the Rhombe for piercing and artificiall breaking the enemies battaile which last amongst great Commanders hath alwaies beene accounted the best kinde of winning In the square all the Commanders fall iointly vpon the enemy and because they are supposed to be the chiefe of the Army in all likelyhood they will ouerthrow the formost and slay many Yet by reason of the length of their front they sticke man to man and can make no farre entrance and the victorie hangeth doubtfull till they haue slaine the most of them that resist and so make the rest to flie The Rhombe contrary-wise being narrow and pointed in the front first forceth a passage with the point which maketh way to the rest that follow and then without great labour piercing further and further breaketh the aduerse battaile disperseth and putteth them to flight and after doth execution at pleasure Neither can I make a fitter resemblance then by comparing the 2 figures one to an axe the other to a wedge both instruments vsed for diuiding solid masses of wood For the axe albeit sharper than the wedge yet hauing the edge drawen out in length can not by any strength be driuen farre into the wood but by doubling many stroaks and by much labour commeth at last to diuide it The wedge contrary-wise though not so sharpe being once entred insinuateth it selfe more by litle and litle with the narrownes of the point and maintayning the hold it first got at last forceth it asunder though it be neuer so tough So is it in the square and Rhombe whereof the square beginneth and endeth with violence the other vseth first cunning and mildenes as it were to enter being once entred renteth a peeces and disparteth all that standeth in the way The manner of our times alloweth not of Rhombes Experience of former times highly prized them I will insist vpon the Thessalians alone who are accounted the inventers of the Rhombe fought alwaies Rhombe wise Polybius had seene their seruice and beene Generall of the Horse in his owne country and therefore able to iudge He giueth this censure of them that in troupes and being imbattailed they could not be resisted to fight man to man in single combat they had neither will nor courage What then should be the reason they should be so powerfull in troupes No other then the forme of their imbattailing which forme was the Rhombe here mentioned by Aelian In this forme they commonly beat the Graecian and Persian squares and gat the reputation of the best horsemen of Europe 3 The Scythians and Thracians vsed the wedge The Rhombe is of 4 sides the wedge but of three and halfe a Rhombe maketh a wedge as will be shewed in the next Chapter The wedge was vsed by the Scythians and Thracians and whether King Philip of Macedonia borrowed it of them I am vncertaine But I rather incline to thinke that his The ban Master taught him as well the wedge as other formes of battailes The cause of my coniecture is for that I finde that his fellow scholer Epaminondas beat the Lacedemonian horse at Mantinaea in that forme Xenophon recounteth the storie to this effect The enemy they were the Lacedemonians ordered their horse like a Phalange of armed in depth without mingling foote with them But Epaminondas made a strong wedge of horse also for before he tells the Theban armed were cast into a wedge and ioyned some foote with them conceiuing after he had cut in peeces the horse he should not misse of ouercomming the other forces of the enemy And so going to charge he was not deceiued of his hope Thus Xenophon Of ioyning horse and light armed together I haue spoken before And that they were light-armed that Epaminond as ioyned to his horse Diodorus Siculus sheweth By Xenophon then it is plaine that not onely the Scythians and Thracians but the Graecians also when they thought it convenient vsed the horse-wedge and that Epaminondas ordered both foote and horse in a wedge And considering King Philip was brought vp in Epaminondas his Fathers house and made partaker of the learning wherewith Epaminondas was instituted it is like in erecting a new military discipline amongst the Macedonians as he tooke many other things from the Graecians so he borrowed this forme hauing first seene
body an Epitherarchy Of eight 4 Ilarcha and the body an Ilarchy Of 16 5 Elephantarcha and the body an Elephantarchy Of 32 6 Keratarcha and the body a Keratarchy That which consisteth of 64 wee call 7 a Phalange of Elephants as if a man should name the Commander of both the wings Phalangarcha Notes THe vse of Elephants was greater amongst the people of Asia and Africa Those of Europe esteemed them not much And yet we finde that they were brought into the field by the Romans also who first saw Elephants in Italy in the warres they had against King Pyrrhus â— The Indian Elephant was preferred before the African for greatnesse of body strength and courage Many things are written concerning the seruice of Elephants But because Aelian toucheth no more then the names of the bodies and the degrees of Commanders I will only note such things as I finde concerning them in Histories Their kinde of armor and furniture I haue taken out of Liuy and expressed them as neere as I could in figure For their power strength and manner of fight see Diodor. Sicul. lib. 17. 609. lib. 19. 717. Polyb. lib. 1. â—5 D. lib 5. 425. C. Their place in battaile Diodor. Sicul. lib. 17. 685. Arrian lib. 5. 111. Liu. decad 4. lib. 7. 141. B. Appian in Syriac 107. Polyb. l. 1. 34. D. The distance one from an other Arrian lib. 5. 111. Light armed in the distances betwixt Elephant and Elephant Diodor. Sicul. lib. 17. 609. lib. 18. 665. lib 19. 685. 716. Plurarch in Pyrrho Remedies against Elephants Diodor. Sicul. lib. 18. 665. lib. 19. 717. Polyb. l. 1. 42. A. Hirt. de bell African 416. Liu. decad 3. lib. 7. 194. C. I haue noted before the improprietie of names giuen to militarie bodies as well in the armed and the light armed foote as in horse troupes and in Chariots That defect is no lesse in Elephants The Commanders and commands of them hauing names which were at first large and improper enough but afterward made good by vse and receiued by the Tacticks as significant to expresse the things for which they were inuented The first is giuen to him that is to command one Elephant Who is called 1 Zoarchos The Commander of a liuing creature that is of one Elephant The next is 2 Therarchos A Commander of Beasts which name is appropriated to him that commandeth two Elephants and the body it selfe is named a Therarchie 3 An Epitherarcha Hauing the authoritie ouer the Therarchie and the body is called an Epitherarchie comprizing foure Elephants 4 An Ilarch As it were the Commander of a troupe and the body is called an Ilarchie I le is commonly applied to horse and signifieth a horse troupe and Ilarcha the Captaine But here Ilarcha signifieth the Commander of 8 Elephants 5 An Elephantarch A Commander of Elephants as thougâ— the other bodies before mentioned were not of Elephants Such straights are men often times driuen vnto in deuising new names for new things which notwithstanding passe afterward and growe familiar by vse Elephantarcha commandeth 16 Elephants and the command is called an Elephantarchie 6 A Keratarch The Commander of a wing the body a Keratarchie hauing in it 32 Elephants A wing of Chariots had as many 7 A Phalange This is the greatest body and consisteth of 64 Elephants But as Chariots may be ordered into many Phalanges and yet the same names retained in euery one of the Phalanges so it is in Elephants For that armies haue had in them at once aboue 64 Elephants appeareth by Histories Polybius and Diodor Sicul testifie the first that the Carthagineans the last that King Porus against Alexander had the one 140 the other 130 Elephants in their armies The same Polybius saith that Ptolomey had against Antiochus 73 Elephants in his armie and Antiochus 102. And Plutarch reporteth that Androcottus King of a part of India gaue to Seleucus at on time 500 Elephants The names of military motions expressed in this booke CHAP. XXIV THus haue we set downe in particular the kindes of perfect Forces together with the seuerall names of euery body Which being premised it seemeth Cap 25 〈…〉 Faces turned to the right hand The Front Câ—â—s or one Turning of Faces to the right hand The Front The first standing The Front fit to deliuer the words of exercise that when the Commander shall will any thing to be done the Souldier in daily experience acquainted before with the signification of euery of them and with the moouing in each figure may easily performe and execute whatsoeuer is commanded There is a motion called Clisis whereof one kinde is to the Pike the other to the Target Another is called Metabole another Epistrophe another Anastrophe another Perispasmus another Ecperispasmus besides we say to file to ranke to returne to the first posture to countermarch to double Likewise we vse the words Induction and Deduction to the right or left hand a broad-Phalange a deepephalange and vneuen-fronted Phalange and Parembole and Protaxis and Entaxis and Hypotaxis and Epitaxis and Prostaxis The signification of which words I will shortly deliuer And yet I am not ignorant that the precepts of warre are not by all Tacticks expressed in the same tearmes Notes AElian in the Chapters precedent hath numbred vp all kindes of forces as well foote as Horse and Chariots and Elephants that in ancient time were accounted necessarie for warre And hath giuen them their armor and furniture and distinguished them into militarie bodies and imbattailed them and taught the distances that they ought to hold in fight It followeth now that he speake of motions military which are the life of an armie and onely giue meanes of victorie and without which all preparation of forces is vaine and auaileth nothing in the field nor to the end for which they were leuied This Chapter then conteineth the names of those motions the following Chapters the particular explication of them To which we will note what we finde in ancient writers For the signification of the words I referre them to the seuerall Chapters where they are expounded Of turning and double turning the Souldiers faces as they stand embattailed CHAP. XXV 1 CLisis or turning of the face is the particular motion of euery Souldier declining his face either to his Pike that is to the right hand or to his Target that is to the left hand The vse of it is when the enemie sheweth himselfe in flanke 2 to encompasse our winges or else to charge vs or for some other cause whereof I will speake in conuenient place 3 Two turnings of the face towardes the same side transferre the sight of the Souldier to the reare of the battaile And this kinde of motion is called Metabole being also vsed either to the Pike or to the Target In the first standing the mouing of the Souldiers face toward the Pike is called Clisis the second mouing the same way
number When the front hath twise as many files as it had before this is Doubling in number or in men or in persons For the persons or men make the number in the files And the files carrying an euen depth of men and being doubled double the number of the front or length Aelian speaketh but of one kinde of doubling namely of number and that must be done in open order as I said before For the files of 16 standing in open order if you command the Middlemen as we terme them at this day they were called in the Macedoman files the third Enomotarchs to double their ranks These middle men with the hinder halfe file march vp to the front so doubling the front in number leaue yet the same measure of length The figure sheweth how it is done Yet are there two other waies when the Phalange standeth in close order both which double the number and place One is when the Middlemen diuide themselues and one halfe with their followers turning their faces march out of the right flanke The other of the left flanke of the Phalange And then turning their faces againe sleeue vp and ioyne themselues in an euen line with the File leaders in front The other when all the Middle turne their faces one way and march out with their followers beyond one flanke right or left and turning faces againe sleeue vp to the front and stand euen with the File-leaders One of these is done when we desire to enlarge both the wings of the Phalange the other when but one wing Of these two last waies I haue set downe no figure because I finde them not expressed in Aelian Cleandridas the Lacedemonian vsed yet an other kinde not spoken of by Aelian Polienus telleth the story thus Cleandridas making warre vpon the Thurians hauing halfe as many men againe as they conceiuing if they had intelligence hereof they would hardly bee brought to fight imbattailing his Phalange stretched it out in depth The Lucans therefore contemning the small number drew out their forces in length with intent to ouer-front the enemy which Cleandridas perceiuing commanded the followers to march vp and ranke with their Leaders and by that meanes increased the length of his Phalange and ouer-fronted the enemy who being incompassed and assailed with missiue weapons on all hands perished intirely excepting a few that saued themselues by shamefull flight The words seeme obscure to a man not acquainted with the Tacticks There are two kinde of soldiers saith Aelian in a file Leaders and followers All the Leaders are the odde of the file as the first the 3. the 5 the 7 and so forth the followers are the euen as the 2 4 6 8. Those that are in the same ranke are called side-men Now saith Polien Cleandridas willed the followers to step forward and to ranke and become side-men with their Leaders that is he willed the euen files to double their ranks with the odde and so extenuated the depth but increased the length of his Phalange by which art he ouerfronted inclosed the enemy on all sides This way then to double ranks or the length of the battaile is to insert the euen ranks man by man into the odde All the Doublings that haue beene rehearsed were Doublings either in number alone or else both in number and place For doubling of place alone nothing is said in Aelian The Insertion I recited supplyeth this defect saying the place is doubled with 124 files onely by commanding halfe to turne to the Pike halfe to the Target till the Phalange be stretched to a convenient length as from 5 furlongs to ten which is as much to say in few words as to open the Phalange Or to bring it from order to open order For so the front possesseth double ground to that it had before 4 The vse of Doubling the length is Two causes are assigned for the doubling of the length One to ouerwing the enemy the other to auoide ouerwinging our selues Cleandridas in the example aboue performed both For he both disappointed the Lucans that sought to incompasse him and besides incompassed and inclosed them The narrower the front is it is the more in danger of ouer-fronting being drawne out in length it is freer from enclosing because a greater compasse must be fetched before it can be inclosed Yet are we to take heed that in doubling of the front we giue it not so much length that it faile in depth The want of length or depth is alike dangerous and giueth advantage to the enemy I haue touched before and quoted Leo glancing onely at his words Now I will set them downe as they lye When the thicknes or depth of the Phalange saith he is gathered vp and made more thinne it behoueth not so to lengthen it that it become altogether weake and without depth For it will so come to passe that the enemy shall easily cut it in peeces and make a passage thorough it and not onely seeke to incompasse it before but passing thorough the middest bee found behinde and there indamage it And this it behooueth a Generall not onely to take heede hee suffer not himselfe but also indeuour to put vpon his enemy Hitherto are the words of Leo shewing the disadvantage of a battaile too much thinned by doubling the length But Leo elsewhere aâ—deth an other cause of doubling namely to make shew a faire sight of the Armie For the more ground it taketh in front the more will the number appeare and the bravery of euery man in particular discouered Further Antigonus vsed also this doubling for a policâ—e to beguile his enemy Polien reporteth the fact thus Antigonus incamped against Eumenes with an armie inferior in number And when messengers were sent often from one to an other Antigonus at the receit of a messenger of the enemy commanded one of his souldiers to come running in as it were out of breath and all to be-sullied with dust and to bring newes that his Confederates were come Antigonus hearing the newes leaped for ioy and sent away the messenger The next day he led his Armie out of his trench doubling the length of his front When the enemy heard of their messenger the newes that was brought to Antigonus concerning his Confederates and saw the length of his battaile doubled they imagined that the depth was answerable to the front And therefore they dislodged being afraid to ioyne with him 5 There are that mislike Countermarches and Aelians doublings of number are dangerous the enemy being ready to charge Because the files of the Battaile must be kept in open Order â—ill the motions be ended which posture is not fit to receiue the charge of the enemy as we saw out of the eleuenth Chapter The other two doublings are done in close order whereof I made mention a little before The one diuiding the middle men in halfe anâ— sleeuing them vp by the battaile on both sides The other
the enemy not onely in front but also in flanke Of the Phalange Amphistomus CHAP. XXXVIII THe Phalange Amphistomus for it is so called because it hath two fronts and that part of the battaile that is set and aduanced against the enemie is called a front Seeing then in this forme the middlemost are ordered backe to backe and those in front and reare make head against the enemy the one being Commanders of the front the other of the reare therefore it is called Amphistomus It is of great vse against an enemy strong in Horse and able to giue a hot and dangerous charge and principally practised against those Barbarians that inhabit about the riuer Ister whom they also call Amphippi because they change Horses in fight The Horse battaile to encounter this forme hath a Tetragonall shape being for the purpose diuided into two broad-squares they are broad-squares that haue the front twice as much as the depth And these Squares are opposed seuerally against the diuisions of the foot-battaile Of the Phalange Antistomus CHAP. XXXIX THe Phalange Antistomus is like the Amphistomus the forme being a little altered so that it accustometh the souldier to resist the seuerall kindes of incursions of Horse All that hath beene spoken concerning the former Phalange both for foote and Horse agreeth with this figure also Herein they differ that Cap. 37. A foure fronted Phalange against all allemptes of the Enemy The Front of the reare The Front of the right flank The Front of the March The Front of the left flank Cap. 38. The Phalange Amphistomus Cap 39 The Phalange Antistomus Front Cap. 40. The Horsmans wedge Front A Diphalange Antistomus the Amphistomus receiueth the charge in front and reare the Antistomus in flanke But aswell in the one as the other they fight with long Pikes as doe the Alans and Sauromatans And the one halfe of the souldiers in the files turne their faces forward the other halfe backward so that they stand back to backe This forme hath two fronts the one before where the file-Leaders the other behind where the back-Commanders stand And being also diuided into a Diphalange it maketh the fore-front with the one and the after-front with the other Phalange Of the Diphalange Antistomus CHAP. XL. A Diphalange Antistomus is that which hath the file-Leaders placed not in Deduction outwardly but inwardly face to face one against-an other and the reare-Commanders without one halfe in a right the other in a left-hand Deduction This forme is vsed when the Horse giue on and charge Wedge-wise For the * Wedge shooting foorth into a point and hauing the Commanders following in flanke and endeauouring to disseuer and breake the front of the foote the Leaders of the foote foreseeing their purpose place themselues in the middest with intent either to repulse them or else to giue them a thorough passage without losse For the Wedge flieth vpon the foote in hope to charge the multitude in the middest and to disorder the whole battaile And the foote Commanders conceiuing well the fury of that kinde of forme leaue a little space betwixt either front and stand like walles on both sides and iointly turning their faces toward the middest giue them a fruitlesse and empty passage This forme of Horse-battaile is called a Wedge by Tacticks which was inuented by Philip King of Macedon who placed his best men before that by them the weaker sort might be held in and enabled to the charge as we see in a speare or in a sword the point whereof by reason of the sharpnesse quickely piercing maketh way for and letteth in the middle blunt iron Of the Diphalange called Peristomus CHAP. XLI THe Phalange of the Diphalange * Peristomus proceedeth by deduction in a wing the oblique deduction on the right hand hauing the file-Leaders without the left hand oblique deduction the reare-Commanders within The figure sheweth the intent of them that fight so ordered For the battaile going to charge hauing beene at first Tetragonall diuideth it selfe into two oblique wings the right and the left of purpose to enclose the aduerse square-battaile And they fearing to bee inclosed transforme themselues into two seuerall marching-Phalanges directing one against the right the other against the left wing Therefore it is called Peristomus as hauing the front bent against the enemy both waies Of the Diphalange called Homoiostomos and of the Plinthium CHAP. XLII A Diphalange * Homoiostomus is so named because a whole file that is 16 men mouing by it selfe another file followeth it And it is therefore called Homoiostomus because they that follow follow in a like figure This kinde is opposed against the Plinthium * Plinthium is a forme of Battaile that hath the sides equall both in figure and number In figure because the distances are euery where equall In number because there are as many men in length as in depth In this foure-sided-Battaile are none in the flankes but armed without Archer or Slinger to helpe When therefore two Phalanges march together one by another and both haue their Leaders either in a right-hand or left-hand Deduction it is called a Diphalange Homoiostomus Of the Diphalange Heterostomus CHAP. XLIII A Diphalange * Heterostomus is that which proceedeth by Deduction hauing the Leaders of the former Phalange in a right-hand-Deduction and of the following Phalange in a left-hand-Deduction so that the battailes march counterchangeably one hauing the Leaders in one flanke and the other in the other and so the rest Againe of the Battaile called a Rhombe and of the foote-halfe moone to encounter it CHAP. XLIV THe battaile framed in forme of a Rhombe was first inuented by Ileon the Thessalian and was called I le after his name and to this forme he exercised and accustomed the Thessalians It is of good vse in that it hath a Leader at euery corner at the point the Captaine of the Troupe the reare-Commander behinde and on either side the flanke-commanders The foote battaile fittest to affront this is the Menoides or Cressant hauing both the wings stretched out and in them the Leaders and the middest imbowed to inuiron and wrap in the Horsemen in their giuing on Whereupon the Horsemen ply the foot a farre off with flying weapons after the manner of the Tarentines seeking thereby to dissolue and disorder their circled frame of marching Tarentum is a City of Italy the Horsemen whereof are called Acrobolists because in charging they first cast little Darts and after come to hands with the enemy Cap. 42. The Battaile called Plinthium The front The Diphalange Homoiostomus Cap. 43. The Diphalange Heterostomus The File-leaders The bringers up Cap. 45. Heteromekes or the Herse of Horse The front Plagiophalanx or the broad fronted battaile of foote Cap. Epicampios Emprosthia The front Of the Horse-battaile Heteromekes and of the Plagiophalange to be opposed against it CHAP. XLV THe Horse battaile Heteromekes is that which hath the depth double to the
length It is profitable in many respects For seeming to cary but few in so small a bredth it deceiueth the enemy and it easily breaketh his forces with the thicknesse and strength of the embattailing and may without perceiuing bee lead thorough straight and narrow passages The Foot-battaile to encounter it is called the Plagiophalange or broad-fronted Battaile For being but slender in depth it beareth foorth and extendeth it selfe in length so that albeit it be broken in the middest with the charge of the Horse yet is nothing broken but a little of the depth and the fury of the Horse is carried not vpon the multitude of the foote but straight and immediately into the open field And for that cause is the length thereof much exceeding the depth Of another kinde of Rhombe for Horsemen and of the foote-Battaile Epicampios Emprosthia to encounter it CHAP. XLVI ANother sort of Rhomboides there is whereof I need say no more but that it fileth and ranketh not For I haue before shewed the vse and that Ileon the Thessalian was the inuentor and that Iason Medeas husband most put it in practise The vse thereof is great being directed and lead in the foure corners by the Captaine the Lieutenant and the two flanke-Commanders It is commonly fashioned of Archers on Horsebacke as the Armenian and Persian manner is Against it is opposed the foote-battaile called Epicampios Emprosthia because the circumduction of the front is like an embowing The end of this forme is to deceiue and ouer-reach the Archers on Horsebacke either by wrapping them in the voide space of the front as they charge and giue on vpon the spurre or else disordering them first with their wings and breaking their fury by ouerthrowing them finally with their rankes about the middle Ensignes This kinde of Battaile was deuised to entrappe and beguile For opening the middle hollownesse it maketh shew but of a few that march in the wings hauing notwithstanding thrice as many following and seconding in the reare So that if the wings bee of power sufficient for the encounter there needeth no more if not retiring easily on either fide they are to ioyne themselues to the bulke of the Battaile Of the foot-battaile called Cyrte which is to be set against the Epicampios CHAP. XLVII THe Battaile to be opposed against the Epicampios is called Cyrte of the circumferent forme This also maketh semblance of small forces by reason of the conuexitie of the figure For all round things appeare little in compasse and yet stretched out in length and singled they proue twice as much as they appeared to be as is euident in pillars which are round and therefore in sight shew the one halfe and conceale the other The greatest piece of skill in embattailing is to make a shew of few men to the enemy and indeed to bring twice as many to fight Of the Tetragonall Horse-battaile and of the wedge of foote to be opposed against it CHAP. XLVIII THe Tetragonall Horsebattaile is square in figure but not in number of men For in Squares the number is not alwaies the same and the Generall for his aduantage may double the length to the depth The Persians Sicilians and most of the Graecians doe affect this forme and take it to bee easie in framing and better in vse Against it is opposed the Phalange called Embolos or Wedge of foote all the sides consisting of armed men This kinde is borrowed of the Horse-mans wedge And yet in the Horse-wedge one sufficeth to lead in front where the Footewedge must haue three one being vnable to beare the sway of the encounter So Epaminondas the Theban fighting with the Lacedemonians at Mantinea ouerthrew a mightie power of theirs by casting his armie into a Wedge It is fashioned if the Antistomus Diphalangy in marching ioyne the front of the wings together holding them open behind like vnto the letter A. Of the foot-Battaile called Ploesium and of the winding or saw-fronted foot-battaile to encounter it CHAP. XLIX THe Battaile Ploesium hath the length much exceeding the depth And it is called Ploesium when armed foote are placed on all sides the Archers and Slingers being throwne into the middest Against this kinde of Battaile is set the winding-fronted-battaile to the end that with the vnequall figure they may Cap. 47. The Cyrte or convex half Moone The front The Epicampios The front Cap. 48. The foote wedge The front The Horsbattaile square in figure not in horse The front Cap. 49. The Peplegmene The front The Plesium Cap. 50. The aduerse battaile The overfrontnig battaile Cap. 50. The aduerse battail The overwinging battail traine out those of the Ploesium to cope with the foremost of the winding-fronted-battaile and by that meanes dissolue and disorder the thicknesse oâ— the same And the file-Leaders of the winding-battaile are to obserue and marke the file-Leaders of the Ploesium that if they still maintaine their closenesse and fight serred they also incounter them in the like forme if the Ploesium file-Leaders seuer themselues and spring out from their maine force then they likewise bee ready to meet them man to man Of Hyperphalangesis and Hyperkerasis and of Attenuation CHAP. L. HYperphalangesis or ouer-fronting is when both wings of the Phalange ouer-reach the enemies front Hyperkerasis or ouerwinging is when with one of the wings we ouer-reach the front of the enemy So that hee that ouerfronteth ouerwingeth but hee that ouerwingeth ouerfronteth not For they that match not the enemy in multitude may yet ouerwing them Attenuation or lessening is when the depth of the battaile is gathered vp and instead of 16 men a smaller number is set Of conueying the Cariage of the Army CHAP. LI. THe leading of the cariage if any thing else is of great importance and requireth a speciall Commander It may bee conueyed in fiue manners either before the Armie or behinde or on the one flanke or the other or in the middest Before the Army when you feare to bee charged behind Behind the Army when you would leade toward the enemy When you feare to bee charged in flanke on the contrary side In the middest when a hollow-Battaile is needfull and fit Of the words of Command and certaine obseruations about them CHAP. LII LAst of all wee will briefly repeate the words of direction if we admonish first that they ought to be short then that they ought to be without double-signification For the Souldiers that in hast receiue direction had neede to take heede of doubtfull words least one doe one thing and another the contrarie As for the purpose If I say turne your face some it may be that heare mee will turne to the right some to the left hand and so no small confusion follow Seeing therefore these words turne your face import a generall signification and comprehend turning to the right or left hand we ought in stead of saying turne your face to the pike to pronounce it
thus To your Pike turne your face that is we ought to set the particular before and then inferre the generall Like reason is if you say turne about your face or countermarch For these are also generall words And therefore wee should do well to set the particular before As to the Pike turne your face about or to the Target turne your face about Likewise the Lacedemonian countermarch not the Countermarch Lacedemonian For if you place the word Countermarch first some of the Souldiers will happily fall to one kind other to another kinde of Countermarch For which cause words of double sense are to be auoided and the speciall to be set before the generall Of silence to be vsed by Souldiers CHAP. LIII BVt aboue all things silence is to bee commanded and that beed be giuen to directions As Homere specially signifieth in his discriptions of the Graecian and Troian fights The skilfull Cheef-taines pressed on guiding with carefull eie Their Armed troupes who followed their Leaders silently You surely would haue deem'd each one of all that mighty thronge Had been bereft of speach so bride led he his heedfull tongue Fearing the dread Commanders checke and awfull hest's among Thus march't the Greekes in silence breathing flames of high desire And feruent zeale to backe their friends on foes to wreake their ire As for the disorder of the Barbarians he resembleth it to birdes saying As sholes of fowle geese cranes and swannes with necks far stretched out Which in the slimy fennes Caïsters winding streames about Sheare here and there the liquid skie sporting on wanton wing Then fall to ground with clanging noise the fennes all ouer ring None otherwise the Troians fill the field with heaped sounds Of broken and confused cries each where tumult abounds And againe The Captaines marshall out their Troupes ranged in goodly guise And foâ—rth the Troians pace like birds which lade the aire with cries Not so the Greekes whose silence breathed flames of high desire Fernent in zeale to back their friends on foes to wreake their ire The words of Command CHAP. LIIII Thus then are we to command TO your Armes Stand by your Armes Cariage away from the battaile Marke your directions Seperate your selues Aduance your Pikes File and ranke your selues Looke to your Leader Reare Commander order your file Keepe your first distances Faces to the Pike moue a little further stand so as you were Faces to the Target moue a little further stand so Faces about to the Pike moue a little further stand so Double your Depth To your first posture Double your Length To your first posture The Lacedemonian countermarch To your first posture The Macedonian countermarch To your first posture The Choraan countermarch To your first posture Battaile wheele to the Pike To your first posture Battaile wheele about to the Pike To your first posture These precepts of the Art Tacticke most inuincible Caesar I haue laide out to your Matie which will be a meanes of safety to such as shall vse them and of â—he ouerthrow of their enemies THE EXERCISE OF THE ENGLISH IN the seruice of the high and mighty Lords the LORDS the ESTATES of the vnited PROVINCES in the Low COVNTRIES THE Soldiers are diuided into two kindes Foote and Horse The Foote againe are of two kindes Pikemen and Musketiers Pikemen are armed with a head-peece a Curace and Tases defensiue and with a Pike of fifteene foote long and a Rapier offen siue The Armour is all yron the Pike of Ashen wood for the Steale and at the vpper end an yron head of about a handfull long with cheekes about the length of two foote and at the butt-end a round strong socket of yron ending in a pike that is blunt yet sharpe enough to fixe to the ground The forme thereof is expressed in the grauen figure The Musketier hath a head-peece for defence a Musket the barrell of the length of 4 foote the bore of 12 bullets to the pound a Bandelier to which are fastned a convenient number of charges for powder sometimes as many as 15 or 16 a lether bagge for bullets with a pruning yron a Rest for the Musket with an yron forke on the vpper end to support it in discharging and a pike on the nether end to sticke into the ground lastly a Rapier The figure of this armour also is here inserted These soldiors both Pike-men and Musketiers are diuided into Companies and euery Company consisteth halfe of Pikes halfe Musketiers The Companies are some more in number some lesse Some reach to 300 men some 200 some 100 some 90 some 80 some 70. Euery Company hath these officers of the field A Captaine a Lieutenant an Ensigne 2 Serieants 3 Corporalls two Drommes and for other vses a Clerke a Surgion and a Prouost Companies are compacted into Regiments and the Regiments commanded by Coronells Regiments conteine not alwaies a like number of Companies some hauing 10 some 11 12 13 14 15 some 30 Companies and aboue In euery Regiment are a Coronell a Lieutenant Coronell a Serieant Maior all officers of the field a Quarter-master and a Prouost-martiall for other imployments It shall not be greatly to the purpose to mention higher officers then Coronells my principall intent being no other then to set downe the armes and exercise of our Nation in the said vnited Provinces Their armes are spoken of Their exercise followes FIrst both Pikes and Muskets are ordered into files of 10 deepe The Musketiers are sometime placed before sometime in flanke sometimes in the reare of the pikes To exercise the motions there are two distances to be obserued The first is when euery one is distant from his fellow 6 foote square that is in file and ranke 6. The second is when euery Souldier is 3 foote distant one from the other aswell in file as in Ranke And because the measure of such distances cannot be taken so iustly by the eye the distance of 6 foot betwixt the files is measured when the Souldiers stretching out their armes doe touch one an others hands and betwixt the Rankes when the ends of their pikes come well nigh to the heeles of them that march before And the measure of 3 foote betwixt the files is when their elbowes touch one another betwixt the rankes when they come to touch the ends of one anothers Rapiers For to march in the field the distance of 3 foote from file to file is kept and of 6 foote from Ranke to Ranke To order themselues in Battaile as also to goe towards the enemy the distance of 3 foote in file and ranke is obserued and likewise to conversion or wheeling The Musquettiers also going for to shoote by Rankes keep the same distance of 3 foot but going to skirmish they goe a la Disbandade which is out of order There is yet another sort of distance which is not vsed but for to receiue the enemy with a firme stand
it may bee that the old translation had an eye vpon the vsage of auncient time wherin the matter of armes was principally of Brasse Homer reporteth that the armour of Diomedes was of brasse Pausanias that all the Heroes that is the auncieÌ„t worthies about the time of the siege of Troy had their armour of Brasse Alcaeus the Poet in describing his armory saith the rest of his armes were of brasse as his head-pieces his greves his Targets only his Curaces were of linen Pausanias reporteth al so that the sword of Memnon was of brasse the head of the speare of Achilles Pisanders axe the head of Meriones his shafte Servius Tullius in sessing the City of Rome appointed the chiefest richest Citizens to arme themselues with headpieces greves Curace buckler alofbrasse The targets of the Lacedaemonians were of brasse also by the institution of Lycurgus So that brasse was much vsed in armes in the oldest times And where Alcaeus speaketh of his linen Curace I find that Curaces of linen were in request also eveÌ„ in those times Homer affirmeth that Aiax Oileus had a linen Curace But afterward Iphicrates the Athenian held them so good that he gaue them to his souldiers to weare in stede of their vsuall armes made of iron brasse And Xenophon armeth Abradates the K. of Suse with a linen armour adding that it was the manner of that Countrey And Plutarch saith that Alex. the great after he had gotten the victory against Darius in Cilicia found emoÌ„gest the spoile a lineÌ„ armour which he afterward vsed in the battailes he fought Patricius is so confident in the strength of a linen armour of his owne device that he doubteth not to preferre it before well tempered iron What his invention is he keepeth to himself for feare the Turk should haue intelligence of it so Christianity bee driven to an exigent Al men knowe that the temper of an iron armour may be such as wil resist the violence of a musket shotte and that at a neere distance Neither is this temper the invention of our dayes The like hath been of auncient time Plutarch writeth that Demetrius be sieging Rhodes was presented with two iroÌ„ armours brought out of Cyprus either of the weight of 40. pownds The maker of them whose name was Zoilus desirous to shewe their strength firmenesse caused one to be set vp at the distaunce of 26. paces and bee shotte at with an arrowe discharged out of a Catapult The armour hitte remayned vnpierced nothing appearing vpoÌ„ it but the rasing as it were of a peÌ„knife And that a Catapult is of more violeÌ„ce theÌ„ a musâ—et the effects thereof declared in history make plaine Whether a linen coate be of that resistance or not hath not been yet tried Nay the contrary hath been tried For Alexander at a siege of a City of the Mallians as I take it was sore wounded with an Indian arrowe through an armour of linen Whose armour I would iudge to haue beene not of the stenderest and weakest but of the surest kinde Yet is it not to bee passed over that Iustus Lipsius alleageth out of Nicetas Choniates concerning a linen armour of Conradus of Monferrate Conradus saith hee fought then with out a target and in steede of a Curace hee had on a woven weed made of flaxe soked in sowre wine well salted and often-folded It was so sure against outward force of strokes being fulled with wine and salte that it could not bee pierced with iron or steele This invention our age hath not beene acquainted with whether it bee the same that Patricius aimeth at let experience iudge That antiquity practised it in wooll Pliny witnesseth who writing of wooll and woollen garments saith Of wooll wrought and pressed together by it selfe alone I think as our hatters worke felt a garment is made if you worke it with vineger it cannot bee strooke through with a sword This wooll so wrought he calleth coactam which in Caesar as I take it is called Subcoactum Caesars wordes sound thus Pompey although hee had noe purpose to hinder Caesars workes with his whole army nor yet to hazard battaile sent notwithstanding archers and slingers of whome hee had great store to convenient places and by them many of our souldiers were wounded a generall feare of arrowes fell vpon them and well nigh our whole campe made themselues coates and cases of either felts subcoactis or quilts or leather thereby to avoide the daunger of flieng weapons But wee will leaue Patricius to his fancy and adde an example out of Xenophon of armes vsed by the Chalybes a nation inhabiting the Chaldaean Mounteines The Chalybes saith hee were the most valiant nation that the Graecians passed through such as durst come to handes with them They vsed linen Curaces reaching downe to theire bellies and in steede of winges they had roapes thick woond and fastened together The strength of roapes thick woond togither must noe quaestion bee great Caesar confirmeth it Emongest other defences which his souldiers deuised for assurance of a Turret against the Engins of the Marsilians hee saith They made foure stories of Cables fitting the length of the walles of the Turret and foure foote broade and fastened them hanging downeward to the beames sticking out of the Turret on those tâ—ee parts which lay toward the enemy which kinde of covering alone they â—ad in other places made triall could bee forced or strooken through by noe missiue weapon or Engine whatsoever This I haue heard was the device of the Spaniards in 88. to defend their ships against the fury of our artillery Whereof I may inferre that if Cables combined together bee of such assurance against Engines roapes thick layde and fastened together must bee a strong defence against a sword To end with the matter whereof armes were made I finde likewise that the Macrones vsed in steede of Curaces coates made of haire And thus much of the matter of Armes Besides armes should be fitt for the body and for the strength of him that beares them When David was to fight against Goliath K. Saul seeing him without armour caused his owne head-piece curace to be put vpon him David assayed to marche but finding these armes to heavy was faine to leaue them and to goe against Goliath vnarmed Saul was the tallest man of his nation David but meane of stature to put armour proportioned to a large body vpon him that is a great way lesse of members is as much as to deliver him bound to his enemy Xenophon emongest other causes why the Lacedaemonian horse were beaten by the Thebans at the Leuctrian battaile alleageth this for a maine cause That the richest men kept furnished out horses as often as musters were takeÌ„ the man that was to serue shewed himself answered to his name receiving horse
armes such as were given him was so led against the enemy They were beaten saith XenophoÌ„ receiving horse armes at al adventure not knowing whether they were fitt for service or not Whether armes be to bigge or to litle they hurt a like To litle they pinche the bearer make him not able to endure labour because he is in paine To great by theire slap and loose hanging about the body they hinder the motion of those partes that are to be imployed in fight Being fitte they differ litle from ordinary apparaile except it be in weight which inconvenience is easily remedied by vse and practise Tully writeth of the Roman souldier that his continuall vse of armes was such that hee noe more reconed his target sword head-piece other armes to bee burdenous vnto him theÌ„ his shoulders armes haÌ„ds said that armes were part of a souldiers body being so fitly made borne that need requiring they could throw down their burdens vse their ready armes in fight as the members of their bodies Yet must care be had that theire weight exceed not the strength of him that beareth them For whoe wil be able to centinâ—w long in fight that beside the labour of fight is charged with a burden more then he can well bear The proofe is plain in beasts which how strong soever they be faint tire vnder to much weight Alian after speaking of the length of pikes giveth this rule that they bee noe longer then a man may well vse wield in handling To much length maketh them to heavy vnfitte to be managed wherby they rest vnprofitable to offend the enemy In this property of fitnesse those armes weapons are compreheÌ„ded which are of most vse in the field For as in all other artes thinges of greatest effect are alwayes praeferred so is it in warr There is great advantage in armes which is the cause that one kinde hath been preferred before an other Aemilius Probus giveth a notable testimony of skill in matters of warre to Iphicrates of whom he writeth thus Iphicrates the Athenian invented many things in warr Hee chaunged the armes of the foote For whereas before they vsed great targets short pikes litle swordes he gaue them litle round targets called Peltae that they might be fitter for motions encounters and doubled the sise of their pikes made their swordes longer Hee likewise chaunged theire Curaces in stede of iron brasse brought in other wrought of linen wher by he made them nimbler at all assayes For lessening the weight hee brought to passe that they as much covered the body and yet were very light and fitte for vse Of these targets which Iphicrates invented the names of Peltati Targetiers sprong of whom wee shall heare more in this chapter And yet wee must not heereof coÌ„clude that Iphicrates chaunged all the armed foote into Targetiers for the Athenians had still their armed notwithstaÌ„ding this invention of Targetiers as Xenophon testifieth but where as the Athenians before had noe targetiers of theire owne people as I coniecture Iphicrates brought in this kind of armour and so of the armed hee made some targetiers left the rest to the armes they bore before iudging it more profitable to haue both Targetiers Armed of their owne people then armed alone Philopoemen also the braue Achaean Generall taught his Countrey-men in stede of longe targets Iavelines to take arownd target called Aspis a pike after the Macedonian maÌ„ner and to arme themselues with head-pieces Curates greues and to settle themselues to a staid and firme kind of fight in lieu of concursory and peltasticall encounters and by this meanes brought theÌ„ to be valiant braue souldiers victorious in their fights against their enemies Polyb. discoursing of the Gaulois Spanish swords of auncieÌ„t time saith that the Gaules sword was so fashioned that it served onely to strike with and but for one stroke after which it so bowed both in length breadth that vnlesse the point were rested vpon the grownd the blade rightened you could not strike with it the second time But the spanish sword was both for thrust stroke having a strong point a stiffe sure edge to strike withal on either side by reason of the firmnesse of the blade This difference the RomaÌ„s espied and being excellent imitators of all thinges which were best for vse though they were enemies from whom they tooke them made choice of the spanish sworde after Annibals time caused their foote to vse noe ether Suidas witnesseth it The Spaniards saith he in forme of swordes farre excell all other nations For their swords both haue a strong point and an edge on either side that entreth deep in striking Which caused the Romans to lay down their owne countrey swordes and take the spanish forme from them that followed Anniball The forme they took but the goodnesse of the mettall exactnesse of the temper they could never atteine vnto The Romans then reiected the french swordes as of small vse imitated the spanish because they were fitt for service Xenophon describing the nations which followed Croesus against Cyrus theire manner of arming and order in battaile telleth of the Egyptians that they were armed with targets reaching downe to theire foote with long pikes with swordes which they call Copides for order stood a hundred in depth bringeth in Cyrus deriding this manner of arming and order to his souldiers sayeng they were a like armed a like embattailed For theire targets said he are greater then is fitte for action for fight being raunged a hundred deep it is manifest they will hinder one another in fight except a fewe Annibal after his first victory against the RomaÌ„s armed his Africans his best most trusty souldiers with the armour of the slaine Romans because he fownd it better then his owne Pyrrhus vsed not onely the armour but the Italian souldiers also raunged them a cohort a Merarchy alter natiuely one by another And Mithridates after his experience in his first warrs with the Romans that aswell in arming as in manner of fight they excelled all other nations left the arming of his owne Countrey brought in the Roman sword target reduced all as neere as hee could vnto their discipline So then strength fitnesse are required in armes To them is comelinesse adioyned The shield of Achilles how was it bewtified with pictures Stories by Vulcan and that of Aenaeas comming out of the same forge how glorious was it To say nothing of the braue armes of Hector Agamemnon Diomedes Glaucus Turnus Mezentius other Alexanders armes were very rich He had a Sicilian Cassock gyrded vpon a double linen Curace the spoile of Issos his headpiece was of iron â—ining like pure silver the work of Theophilus about his necke was an iron gorget