Cataphract, Clibanarii, whatever, against Infantry

[Nathan Ross]

...how did the ancients train chariot horses to charge infantry? Or did they?

no evidence that they did...

Chariots would fall into the 'whatever' part of the question, I guess :wink:

At Chaeronea in 86BC, Sulla's army faced the chariots of Mithridates' general Archelaus - these were the famous scythe-wheeled vehicles, which seem to have been specially intended to break through infantry.

Appian:

He next charged with sixty chariots, hoping to sever and break in pieces the formation of the legions by the shock. The Romans opened their ranks and the chariots were carried through by their own momentum to the rear, and before they could turn back they were surrounded and destroyed by the javelins of the rear guard. Mithridatic Wars 42

Plutarch (Life of Sulla, 18.3) describes the same incident. The chariots:

are of most avail after a long course, which gives them velocity and impetus for breaking through an opposing line, but short starts are ineffectual and feeble, as in the case of missiles which do not get full propulsion. And this proved to be true now in the case of Barbarians. The first of their chariots were driven along feebly and engaged sluggishly, so that the Romans, after repulsing them, clapped their hands and laughed and called for more, as they are wont to do at the races in the circus.

Plutarch suggests that the Roman infantry simply 'repulsed' the chariots, while Appian describes the Roman line opening and letting them through, which suggests that the flexibility of the Roman formation was of particular benefit against this type of attack.

Both, however, imply that frontal assault by these sort of chariots was a tried tactic, and therefore the Mithridatic army would have been trained to do it - quite how this was done, however, remains a mystery...

- Nathan