Phalanx

It would seem that, like in many facets of life, the natural order of things tends to push the unstructured aspects of life towards the structured. This is exactly the case found in the evolution of Greek warfare, specifically the gravitation from the open combat of Homer’s day to the structured and concise format of warfare employed by the hoplites; namely, the Phalanx. It is this very large shift in the ethics and structure of warfare that came to redefine and appropriate the Western way of war for many years into the future, whilst simultaneously giving the Greeks a comparative advantage to outside nations that had not yet refined their military ranks.

Around the mid-sixth century BCE, the Greeks were refining and enhancing the methods employed in the phalanx. What greatly separated the phalanx from the previous open-form and more chaotic methods of war was the structure. Hoplites would coalesce to form a large and tight-knit structure of warriors, usually at least eight ranks in depth, that would subsequently charge towards and clash with a similarly structured tactical entity. Densely packing soldiers together and forming a large wall made up of shields with the intent on protecting each other formed the basis for the phalanx. In battle the soldiers would employ the othismos, a mass pushing employed against the enemy in the hopes of evoking the trope, a mass retreat by the enemy army in the hopes of escaping whilst sustaining minimal damage to the remaining soldiers (Lendon 41). This new tactical entity fared quite well upon introduction, and it is perhaps because of the unprecedented unity and tactical coordination employed that was essentially able to condense such a large and diverse group of men into a singular, bound entity that was committed to unquestionably and selflessly performing their duties.

While the benefits of the phalanx were great in many facets, some drawbacks came from the adoption of a more unified and singular unitary method of warfare. These drawbacks include factors such as vulnerability in the rear and flanks of the phalanx due to a forward focus employed in this method of warfare. Also, because the phalanx was essentially one large unified body, the formation proved to be quite difficult to maneuver or change directions, should the need arise. Over time, the formation would be consolidated to promote increased maneuverability and communication. However, the Greeks were left with quite a tough task, not only in introducing the world to this new method of warfare, but also having to refine it in order to continue to dominate their enemies, who would surely seize the opportunity to exploit any weakness that would arise.

 

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