An analysis of Roman military strategies and adaptations from the Tetrarchy to Heraclius.

Late Roman Combat Tactics by Dr. Ilkka Syvänne is essential reading for anyone seeking to understand land combat in the period from the Tetrarchy to the death of Heraclius, a period when the Romans faced serious and growing military threats on many fronts. The author’s detailed analysis provides the reader with a complete understanding of the combat equipment worn by the soldiers, types of troops, tactics, different unit orders and formations used by the late Romans and their enemies. Importantly, he lays out the developments and changes in these aspects across this critical period, assessing how the Romans adapted, or failed to adapt to the varied and changing array of enemies, such as Persians, Avars and Arabs.

The discussion examines how the Romans fought at every level, so that it covers everything from the individual fighting techniques all the way up to the conduct of large-scale pitched battles. There is an immense amount of technical detail but the human element and the experience of the officers and ordinary soldiers is not forgotten, with such factors as morale and the psychology of battle (the ‘face of battle’) given due consideration. The thoroughly researched text is well supported by dozens of diagrams and illustrations. A thoroughly illuminating read on its own, Late Roman Combat Tactics is also the perfect companion to Dr Syvänne’s eight-volume Military History of Late Rome.

• Cover
• Title
• Copyright
• Contents
• Acknowledgements
• List of Plates
• List of Maps, Diagrams and Battle Formations
• Introduction
• Abbreviations
• Chapter 1 The Military Manuals and Combat Tactics in Ca. 211-641
  • 1.1. Graeco-Roman heritage
  • 1.2. Arrian and Frontinus
  • 1.3. Modestus ca. 275 and Vegetius’s Epitoma Rei Militaris ca. 390-450
  • 1.4. De Rebus Bellicis by anonymous ca. 365-366
  • 1.5. Definitiones (second to third century) = Hermeneia (before sixth century)
  • 1.6. Urbicius: Epigrams, Taktikon, Epitedeuma ca. 505-18
  • 1.7. De scientiapolitica dialogus/Peripolitikes epistemes (On Political Science) ca. 530-550
  • 1.8. Syrianus Magister: Peri strategikes/strategias, Naumachica and Rhetorica militaris (ca. 545-52)
  • 1.9. The Strategikon (ca. 593)
  • 1.10. De militari scientia (mid-to-late seventh century)
  • 1.11. Aelian early second century and The Byzantine Interpolation of Aelian, sixth to tenth century
  • 1.12. Polyaenus/Polyaionos ca. 161 and The Excerpts of Polyaenus sixth century - ca. 850
  • 1.13. Apparatus Bellicus tenth century AD
• Chapter 2 Background
  • 2.1. Military structures: The types of units and their commanders
  • 2.2. Intelligence Gathering Organization
  • 2.3. Unit Structures 1: Land forces
  • 2.4. Navy in land warfare
  • 2.5. Recruitment
  • 2.6. Peace and Wartime Organization
  • 2.7. The Training in General and Winter Quarters
  • 2.8. Cavalry Training
  • 2.9. Infantry Training
  • 2.10. Training the Officers
  • 2.11. The Training of Militia / Paramilitary Forces and Police
• Chapter 3 Strategy and Pitched Battles
  • 3.1. Grand Strategy and Campaign Strategy
  • 3.2. The Strategic Situation and the Sizes of the Field Armies
  • 3.3. Marching to Combat
  • 3.4. When, Where and How to Fight
• Chapter 4 Cavalry Unit Orders and Formations
  • 4.1. Roman Cavalry Unit Formations and Orders
  • 4.2. The Rectangular Rank-and-File Unit Formations before Maurice’s Strategikon
  • 4.3. The Basic Unit in the Strategikon: The Tagma or Bandon or Arithmos
  • 4.4. The Moira (max. 2,000-3,000 horsemen) and Meros (max. 6,000-7,000 horsemen) in the Strategikon and their uses in drilling and combat
  • 4.5. The cavalry unit orders for the regular rank-and-file formations: Open, close, drouggos, crescent, interjection of ranks, tortoise
  • 4.6. The wedge and rhombus
  • 4.7. The use of the unit formations and orders
• Chapter 5 Cavalry Battle Formations
  • 5.1. Cavalry vs. Cavalry: Battle Formations
  • 5.2. The Cavalry Battle Formations for Armies in Excess of 10,000-15,000 Horsemen
  • 5.3. The Cavalry Formation for Armies of 5,000-15,000 Men
  • 5.4. The Cavalry Formation for Armies Less Than 5,000/6,000 Men
  • 5.5. The Single Line Formation
  • 5.6. The “Scythian”, “Persian” and the Improvised Formations
  • 5.7. Regular Cavalry Formation with Infantry Support
  • 5.8. The Moral Implications of the Cavalry Formations
• Chapter 6 The Cavalry Battle
  • 6.1. Forming the Battle Line
  • 6.2. The Components of the Cavalry Battle Formation
  • 6.3. The Cavalry Grand Tactics
  • 6.4. Length of Cavalry Battle
  • 6.5. After a V ictory
  • 6.6. After a Defeat
  • 6.7. Cavalry vs. Infantry
  • 6.8. The Weaponry, Individual and the Unit in Combat
• Chapter 7 Late Roman Cavalry Tactics
• Chapter 8 The Infantry Unit Orders
  • 8.1. The Open Order (araios, araiôsis)
  • 8.2. Pyknôsis: The Infantry Close Order
  • 8.3. The Shield-Interlocking Orders: synaspismos/ syskouton, testudo/chelônê, foulkon/fulcum
  • 8.4. Peri strategikes: Synaspismos/syskouton Macedonian Spear Phalanx and Infantry Phalanx vs. Cavalry
  • 8.5. The Advancingfoulkon against Infantry and the Kneeling testudo
  • 8.6. The Slopingfoulkon/testudo vs. Cavalry in Arrian and Maurice
  • 8.7. The Tortoise for the Storming of the Fortifications
  • 8.8. The Irregular Order (drouggos)
  • 8.9. The Unit Orders in Battle
• Chapter 9 Infantry Battle Formations and Tactics
  • 9.1. The Battle Formations of the Third Century
  • 9.2. The Phalangial Battle Formations from the Fourth Century to the Seventh Century
  • 9.3. The Lateral Phalanx (plagia falagx) until Maurice’s Reign
  • 9.4. Lateral Phalanx in the Strategikon
  • 9.5. Outflanking Formations: - Double outflanking: epikampios emprosthia (forwardangled), wings advancing before centre (fourth and fifth formations of Vegetius, variants of the epikampios emprosthia), koilembolos (hollow wedge), antistomos difalaggia (inward facing double phalanx), menoeides (crescent), hyperfalaggesis (double-outflanking) - Single outflanking: hyperkerasis (outflanking), a wing advancing before the rest of the phalanx, and loxe (oblique attack)
  • 9.6. The Rearward Angled Formations: epikampios opisthia, kyrte, taxis allê, taxis symmiktos and embolos/cuneus
  • 9.7. Four-sided/All-facing Formations: hollow square/oblong (plinthion, plaision), several hollow squares/oblongs side-by-side, wagon laager (carrago, karagos), double phalanx (difalaggia) and circle (orbis)
  • 9.8. The Regular Cavalry Formations with Infantry Support
• Chapter 10 The Infantry Battle
  • 10.1. The Deployment of the Army
  • 10.2. The Role of the Generalship and Officers
  • 10.3. The Role of the Cavalry in Infantry Battle
  • 10.4. The Role of the Light Infantry psiloi/levis armaturae
  • 10.5. The Role of the Heavy Infantry (skoutatoi, hoplitai, aspidoforoi, gravis armatura)
  • 10.6. The Fighting Techniques at Distance and in Melee
  • 10.7. The Role of the Foreign, Native, and Ethnic Contingents
  • 10.8. The Face of Infantry Battle
• Chapter 11 Late Roman Infantry Tactics
• Chapter 12 Other Fighting Methods on Land
  • 12.1. Military Trickery and Unorthodox methods
  • 12.2. Surprise attacks
  • 12.3. Ambushes
  • 12.4. Night attacks and attacks against the camps
  • 12.5. A Summary of the Other Methods
• Chapter 13 Conclusions
• Appendix 1: The Cavalry Battle in Mesopotamia in 422
• Appendix 2: The Battle of Mursa on 28 September 351
• Appendix 3: The Battle of Casulinus River in ad 554
• Appendix 4: The Bowshot in the Strategikon Notes
• Notes
• Select Sources
• Plates