10-20-2006, 09:46 PM
Aryaman, I think there are particular difficulties in judging the size of medieval armies which don't apply in the classical period. Forces tended to be small and irregular because of the variety of recruitment methods and the small size of the political units involved. Most methods of recruitment, like calling upon allies or calling out a feudal levy, got an unpredictable number of troops who might leave when their obligation to serve ran out or the political situation changed. Thus in many cases neither side's leadership was likely sure how many men it had, let alone how strong the enemy were beyond "few", "about our number", "many." The fact that many sources were written by people with little military experience didn't help matters. I also understand that often when we compare literary sources on major medieval campaigns we can usually find something reasonable, and that official records often have their own problems.
Classical armies usually had stabler and larger sources of recruitment, and if a city's contingent for some campaign had been drasticaly under the agreed upon strength we would likely hear of it. They were also better organized than all but a few medieval armies. In the case of Alexander or the Thirteen Thousand, we have sources (or sources who read sources) who were involved in the administration of the army and presumably had access to contemporary records. My understanding is that most Classicists feel we can trust reliable sources on the strength of ancient Greek armies, bearing in mind that losses to disease etc. may be ignored and units may be assumed to be at full strength when they were not to give round figures or make calculation easier. Obviously we must use historical comparisons and logistical consideratons to check any figure for plausability.
On efficient logistics, Vortigern, I would consider efficient logistics those which permit the maximum force to be moved where needed with the minimum expense and delay. Clearly, if the Persians brought along masses of noncombatants and conveniences, this reduced efficiency because these people needed to be fed and watered and moved through passes and across bridges. Xerxes' army moved slowly (one way we know the number of people involved was substantial) and this had some strategic influence on the campaign. The Achaemenids were clearly very skillful logisticians, and this helped compensate, especially as most of their foes were no more efficient and worse organized until Philip II reformed the Macedonian army.
Classical armies usually had stabler and larger sources of recruitment, and if a city's contingent for some campaign had been drasticaly under the agreed upon strength we would likely hear of it. They were also better organized than all but a few medieval armies. In the case of Alexander or the Thirteen Thousand, we have sources (or sources who read sources) who were involved in the administration of the army and presumably had access to contemporary records. My understanding is that most Classicists feel we can trust reliable sources on the strength of ancient Greek armies, bearing in mind that losses to disease etc. may be ignored and units may be assumed to be at full strength when they were not to give round figures or make calculation easier. Obviously we must use historical comparisons and logistical consideratons to check any figure for plausability.
On efficient logistics, Vortigern, I would consider efficient logistics those which permit the maximum force to be moved where needed with the minimum expense and delay. Clearly, if the Persians brought along masses of noncombatants and conveniences, this reduced efficiency because these people needed to be fed and watered and moved through passes and across bridges. Xerxes' army moved slowly (one way we know the number of people involved was substantial) and this had some strategic influence on the campaign. The Achaemenids were clearly very skillful logisticians, and this helped compensate, especially as most of their foes were no more efficient and worse organized until Philip II reformed the Macedonian army.
Nullis in verba
I have not checked this forum frequently since 2013, but I hope that these old posts have some value. I now have a blog on books, swords, and the curious things humans do with them.
I have not checked this forum frequently since 2013, but I hope that these old posts have some value. I now have a blog on books, swords, and the curious things humans do with them.
