Persian Invasion of 480 BC - articles

[Sean Manning]

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1) I can´t share your opinion that ancient soldiers somehow were tougher than medieval or modern soldiers,

I have expressed no such opinion; rather, I said the ancients were more accustomed to privation.

You think the ancients were better able to withstand privation than early modern peasants? Urban poor and landless peasants were the recruiting base for early modern armies, which never raised more than 50,000 to 100,000 men in a field army. If ancient soldiers needed less food, they were weaker and could carry less. That 3 lbs of grain figure has a wide support as a basic diet across peasants in different cultures, if I recall some readings correctly.

Greek soldiers of 480 BC, and the elite of the Persian army, were from the upper class or at least comfortable. Neither were willing to grind their own grain, carry their own arms, or starve themselves.