Collections: Raising Carthaginian Armies, Part V: How a Carthaginian Army Fights

This is the fifth and last part of our series (I, II, III, IV, V) looking at how Carthaginian armies were raised and constituted. Over the last four parts, we've looked at the larger components of Carthaginian armies: the relatively small role of Carthaginian citizens, the more prominent role of North African conscripts, of Numidian … Continue reading Collections: Raising Carthaginian Armies, Part V: How a Carthaginian Army Fights →

Collections: Raising Carthaginian Armies, Part IV: Allies and Mercenaries

This is the fourth part of our series (I, II, III, IV, V) looking at how Carthage's complex, multi-ethnic armies were raised and structured. Last week, we looked at Carthage's unusual system for raising vassal forces: long-serving Carthaginian generals could inhabit positions within the personalist, non-state mobilization systems of Numidia and Iberia, enabling them to … Continue reading Collections: Raising Carthaginian Armies, Part IV: Allies and Mercenaries →

Collections: Raising Carthaginian Armies, Part III: Generals, Warlords and Vassals

This is the third part (I, II, III, IV, V) of our series looking at how Carthage's complex, multipart armies were raised and constituted. Last time, we looked at the backbone of Carthage's armies: North African troops levied out of Carthage's subject communities in North Africa. These fellows seem to have been directly employed by … Continue reading Collections: Raising Carthaginian Armies, Part III: Generals, Warlords and Vassals →

Collections: Raising Carthaginian Armies, Part II: The African Backbone

This is the second part (I, II, III, IV, V) of our series looking at the structure of the Carthaginian army. As we discussed last time, while Carthage has an unfair reputation for being an 'un-military' society, its military system was one of the highest performing in the ancient Mediterranean, able to produce vast and … Continue reading Collections: Raising Carthaginian Armies, Part II: The African Backbone →

Collections: Raising Carthaginian Armies, Part I: Finding Carthaginians

This is the first part of a series (I, II, III, IV, V) looking at the structure of the Carthaginian army. Although Carthage has an (unfair!) reputation for being a country of "peaceful merchants who tended to avoid wars," Carthage was, I will argue, without question the second greatest military power the Mediterranean produced - … Continue reading Collections: Raising Carthaginian Armies, Part I: Finding Carthaginians →

Collections: Alexander Goes West (A Silly Counterfactual)

This week we're going to do something a bit silly, in part because I have to prepare for and travel to an invited workshop/talk event later this week and so don't have quite the time for a more normal 'full' post and in part because it is fun to be silly sometimes (and we might … Continue reading Collections: Alexander Goes West (A Silly Counterfactual) →

Collections: Phalanx’s Twilight, Legion’s Triumph, Part V: Epilogue

This is the fifth part of our four(ish) five part (Ia, Ib, IIa, IIb, IIIa, IIIb, IVa, IVb, IVc) look at how the Roman legions were able to overcome the Macedonian sarisa phalanx in the third and second centuries BC. We have covered the decisive battles in the story, although after 168 it is not … Continue reading Collections: Phalanx’s Twilight, Legion’s Triumph, Part V: Epilogue →

Collections: Phalanx’s Twilight, Legion’s Triumph, Part IVc: Perseus

This is the third part of the fourth part of our four(ish) part (Ia, Ib, IIa, IIb, IIIa, IIIb, IVa, IVb, IVc, V) look at the how the Roman military system and its manipular legion were able to defeat the Hellenistic military system and its Macedonian sarisa phalanx in the third and second centuries BC. … Continue reading Collections: Phalanx’s Twilight, Legion’s Triumph, Part IVc: Perseus →

Collections: Phalanx’s Twilight, Legion’s Triumph, Part IVb: Antiochus III

This is the second part of the fourth part of our four(ish) part (Ia, Ib, IIa, IIb, IIIa, IIIb, IVa, IVb, IVc, V) look at the context between the Roman military system based on the manipular legion and the Hellenistic military system structured around the Macedonian sarisa phalanx in the third and second century BC. … Continue reading Collections: Phalanx’s Twilight, Legion’s Triumph, Part IVb: Antiochus III →

Collections: Phalanx’s Twilight, Legion’s Triumph, Part IVa: Philip V

This is the first part of the fourth part of our four(ish) part (Ia, Ib, IIa, IIb, IIIa, IIIb, IVa, IVb, IVc, V) look at why the thing to use to beat a Macedonian sarisa phalanx is, in fact, a Roman legion in the third and second century BC. Last time, we finished our look … Continue reading Collections: Phalanx’s Twilight, Legion’s Triumph, Part IVa: Philip V →