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This article lists and briefly discusses the most important of many military treatises on military science produced in the Byzantine Empire.
The Eastern Roman Empire was, for much of its history, one of the major powers of the medieval world. Continuing the institutions of the Roman Empire, throughout its history it was assailed on all sides by various numerically superior enemies. The empire therefore maintained its highly sophisticated military system from antiquity, which relied on discipline, training, knowledge of tactics and a well-organized support system. A crucial element in the maintenance and spreading of this military knowledge, along with traditional histories, were the various treatises and military manuals. These continued a tradition of Greek-Hellenistic warfare and tacticians that stretched back to Xenophon and Aeneas Tacticus, late Hellenistic military manuals adapted and applied for the needs and realities of the Byzantine army, most of them deriving from the wide corpus of ancient Greek and late Hellenistic authors, especially Aelian, [1] Onasander [2] and Polyaenus, [3] and to a lesser extent Aeneas [4] and Arrian. [5] Pioneering scholars in the modern study of Byzantine military manuals include Friedrich Haase (1808-67), Karl Konrad Müller (1854-1903), Rezső (Rudolf) Vári (1867-1940) and Alphonse Dain (1896-1964). [6]
A large corpus of Byzantine military literature survives. Characteristically Byzantine manuals were first produced in the sixth century. They greatly proliferated in the tenth century, when the Byzantines embarked on their conquests in the East and the Balkans, but production abated after the early eleventh century. There is some evidence of similar works being written in the Palaiologan era, but with one exception, none survive. [7]
Aelianus Tacticus, also known as Aelian, was a Greek military writer who lived in Rome.
Philo of Byzantium, also known as Philo Mechanicus, was a Greek engineer, physicist and writer on mechanics, who lived during the latter half of the 3rd century BC. Although he was from Byzantium he lived most of his life in Alexandria, Egypt. He was probably younger than Ctesibius, though some place him a century earlier.
Onasander or Onosander was a Greek philosopher. He was the author of a commentary on the Republic of Plato, which is lost; as well as of the Strategikos - a short but comprehensive work on the duties of a general, which was dedicated to Quintus Veranius. The Strategikos was the main source used for the military writings of emperors Maurice and Leo VI, as well as of Maurice of Saxony, who consulted it in a French translation and expressed a high opinion of it.
The Byzantine army was the primary military body of the Byzantine armed forces, serving alongside the Byzantine navy. A direct continuation of the Eastern Roman army, shaping and developing itself on the legacy of the late Hellenistic armies, it maintained a similar level of discipline, strategic prowess and organization. It was among the most effective armies of western Eurasia for much of the Middle Ages. Over time the cavalry arm became more prominent in the Byzantine army as the legion system disappeared in the early 7th century. Later reforms reflected some Germanic and Asian influences—rival forces frequently became sources of mercenary units, such as the Huns, Cumans, Alans and Turks, meeting the Empire's demand for light cavalry mercenaries. Since much of the Byzantine military focused on the strategy and skill of generals utilizing militia troops, heavy infantry were recruited from Frankish and later Varangian mercenaries.
Asclepiodotus Tacticus, also known as Asclepiodotus, was a Greek writer and philosopher known for his treatise on military tactics.
A poliorceticon is any member of the genre of Byzantine literature dealing with manuals on siege warfare, which is formally known as poliorcetics. As with much Byzantine literature, the poliorcetica tend to be compendia of earlier guides illustrated with Biblical and Classical anecdotes. The extent to which they might be up-to-date or representative of actual experiences in the field is sometimes questionable and greatly depends upon the author.
Nikephoros Ouranos, Latinized as Nicephorus Uranus, was a high-ranking Byzantine official and general during the reign of Emperor Basil II. One of the emperor's closest associates, he was active in Europe in the wars against the Bulgarians, scoring a major victory at Spercheios, and against the Arabs in Syria, where he held command during the first decade of the 11th century as Basil's virtual viceroy. A well-educated man, he wrote a military manual (Taktika) and composed several surviving poems and hagiographies.
The Byzantine army evolved from that of the late Roman period taking as leading models and shaping itself on the late Hellenistic armies, but it became considerably more sophisticated in strategy, tactics and organization. The language of the army was still Latin, although later Greek dominated, as it became the official language of the entire empire. Unlike the Roman legions, its strength was in its cavalry, especially the armoured cataphracts, which evolved from the clibanarii of the late empire. Infantry were still used but mainly as a base of maneuver for the cavalry, as well as in specialized roles. Most of the foot-soldiers of the empire were the armoured skutatoi and later on, kontarioi, with the remainder being the light infantry and archers of the psiloi. The Byzantines valued intelligence and discipline in their soldiers far more than bravery or brawn. The "Ρωμαίοι στρατιώται"(rōmaíoi stratiōtai) were a loyal force composed of citizens willing to fight to defend their homes and their state to the death, augmented by mercenaries. The training was very much like that of the legionaries, with the soldiers taught close combat techniques with their swords, spears and axes, along with the extensive practice of archery.
The Strategikon or Strategicon is a manual of war regarded as written in late antiquity and generally attributed to the Byzantine Emperor Maurice.
Lochagos is used in the Greek language to mean "Captain". More precisely, it means "leader of a lochos". The equivalent term in the Hellenic Army Armour & Cavalry is Greek: ιλάρχος, romanized: ilarchos, "leader of an ilē.
The Eastern Roman army refers to the army of the eastern section of the Roman Empire, from the empire's definitive split in 395 AD to the army's reorganization by themes after the permanent loss of Syria, Palestine and Egypt to the Arabs in the 7th century during the Byzantine-Arab Wars. The East Roman army was the continuation of the Late Roman army of the 4th century, until it gradually transformed into what is now called the Byzantine army from the 7th century onwards.
A turma, was a cavalry unit in the Roman army of the Republic and Empire. In the Byzantine Empire, it became applied to the larger, regiment-sized military-administrative divisions of a thema. The word is often translated as "squadron" but so is the term ala, a unit that was made up of several turmae.
The term Tactica or Taktika can refer to:
The Tactica is a military treatise written by or on behalf of Byzantine Emperor Leo VI the Wise in c. 895–908, and later edited by his son, Constantine VII. Drawing on earlier authors such as Aelian, Onasander and the Strategikon of emperor Maurice, it is one of the major works on Byzantine military tactics, written on the eve of Byzantium's "age of reconquest". The original Greek title is τῶν ἐν πολέμοις τακτικῶν σύντομος παράδοσις. The Tactica elaborates on a wide variety of issues, such as infantry and cavalry formations, drills, siege and naval warfare etc. It is written in a legislative form of language and comprises 20 Constitutions and an Epilogue and is concluded by 12 additional chapters, the latter mainly focusing on ancient tactics.
The Praecepta Militaria is the Latin conventional title given to a Byzantine military treatise, written in ca. 965 by or on behalf of Eastern Roman emperor Nikephoros Phokas. Its Greek title is Στρατηγικὴ ἔκθεσις καὶ σύνταξις Νικηφόρου δεσπότου Strategikè ékthesis kaì syntaxis Nikephórou despótou.
Droungos or drungus is a late Roman and Byzantine term for a battalion-sized military unit, and later for a local command guarding mountain districts. Its commander was a "droungarios" or "drungarius" (δρουγγάριος), anglicized as "Drungary".
The merarchēs, sometimes Anglicized as merarch, was a Byzantine military rank roughly equivalent to a divisional general.
The phoulkon, in Latin fulcum, was an infantry formation utilized by the military of the late Roman and Byzantine Empire. It is a formation in which an infantry formation closes ranks and the first two or three lines form a shield wall while those behind them hurl projectiles. It was used in both offensive and defensive stances.
A military treatise or treatise on war is any work that deals with the "art of war" in some basic aspect. Fundamentally military treatises are treatises on military strategy. Other works may also be included in the definition that, although they deal with other topics, include sensitive information about military matters. These may include, among others, description of specific battles, sieges, general campaigns, reports of military authorities, and commented works about ground or naval battles.
Marie-Alphonse Dain was a French Hellenist and Byzantinist. He was born 3 April 1896 at Chavignon (Aisne) and died 10 July 1964 in Paris. He was a major figure in the field of Greek codicology and palaeography and a pioneer of modern scholarship on Byzantine military texts.
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