Dictionary of Greek and Roman antiquities. Ed. by William Smith. Illustrated by numerous engravings on wood.

48418 EXERCITUS., EX ERCITUS.'lr;e genius of Epaiminondas introduced a complete soldiers in the army of Alexander amounted to
revolution in the military system. I-e was the 18,000, and were divided not into four, but into
first who adopted the method of charging in co- six divisions, each named after a Macedonian prolumn, concentrating his attack upon one point of vince, from which it was to derive its recruits.
the hostile line, so as to throw the whole into con- These bodies are oftenercalled TdCeits than pdaAa'yyes
fusion by breaking through it. For minute details by the historians, and their leaders taxiarchs or
the reader is referred to the account of the battle strategi. The phalanx of Antiochus consisted of
of Mantineia (Xen. Hellen. vii. 5. ~ 22; comp. vi. 16,000 men, and was formed into ten divisions
4. ~ 12). It seems from the description that the (/Afp71) of 1600 each, arranged 50 broad and 32
troops were drawn up in a form somewhat like deep (Appian, Syi'. 32; Liv. xxxvii. 40).
a wedge. In the general principles of its arrangement and
Philip, king of Macedonia, is sometimes spoken the modes of altering its form, the Macedonian
of by Greek writers as the inventor of the phalanx. phalanx resembled the Lacedaemonian, though
It is probable enough that he was the first to the late tacticians do not always describe the
introduce that mode of organisation into the army movements by the same technical terms as Xenoof Macedonia, and that he made several improve- phon. The Macedonian phalanx, however, altered
ments in its arms and arrangement, but the pha- its form with great difficulty. If an attack on the
lanx was certainly not invested by him. The flanks or rear was apprehended, a separate front
spear (adcipwer-a or aciptac), with which the soldiers was formed in that direction, if possible before the
of the Macedonian phalanx were armed, was ordi- commencement of the fight. Such a double phanarily 24 feet long; but the ordinary length was lanx, with two fronts in opposite directions, was
21 feet (Polyb. xviii. 12; Aelian. Tact. 14), and called 5daayt &fiaeToeos. To guard against
the lines were arranged at such distances that the being taken in flank, the line was bent round,
spears of the fifth rank projected three feet beyond forming. what was called the inmlKcd/uros'rdtr.
the first, so that every man in the front rank was The cavalry or light troops were not unfrequently
protected by five spears. The men in the ranks employed for this purpose, or to protect the real
further back rested their spears on the shoulders (comp. Arrian, Anab. ii. 9, iii. 12; Polyb. xii.
of those in front of them, inclining them upwards, 21).' Respecting the relative advantages and disin which position they, to some extent at least, advantages of the Roman legion and the phalanx,
arrested the missiles that might be hurled by the there is an instructive passage in Polybius (xviii.
enemy. Besides the spear they carried a short 12, and comp. xii. 19, &c.). The phalanx, of
sword. The shield was very large and covered course, became all but useless, if its ranks were
nearly the whole body, so that on favourable broken. It required, therefore, level and open
ground an impenetrable front was presented to the ground, so that its operations were restricted to
enemy. The soldiers were also defended by hel- very narrow limits; and being incapable of rapid
mets, coats of mail, and greaves; so that any movement, it became almost helpless in the face of
thing like rapid movement was impossible. When san active enemy, unless accompanied by a suffiin dense battle array (rKcvwoos or 7rvsvo'?ss), cient number of cavalry and light troops.
three feet were allowed for each man, and in this The light-armed troops were arranged in files
position their shields touched (mvvaarairo's, Polyb. (XodXo) eight deep. Four lochi formed a 0 aerees.,
l. c.; Aelian, Tact. c. 11. gives six feet for each and then larger divisions were successively formed,
man in the ordinary arrangement, three feet for each being the double of the one below it; the
the 7rtvcow-'s or dense battle array, and one and a largest (called E'Mray!.a), consisting of 8192 men.
half feet for the rvva~'7rou&;). On a march six The cavalry (according to Aelianus), were arfeet were allowed for each man. The ordinary depth ranged in an analogous manner, the lowest division
of the phalanx was sixteen, though depths of eight or squadron (YAiX), containing 64 men, and the
and of thirty-two are also mentioned. (Polyb. 1. c. successive larger divisions being each the double
comp.. xii. 19-21.) Each file of sixteen was called of that below it; the highest (Eirc'ay7ea) contain-;Xos-. It is difficult to say what reliance is to be ing 4096.
placed upon the subdivisions mentioned by the Both Philip and Alexander attached great imtacticians Aelian, &c. as connected with the pha- portance to the cavalry, which, in their armies,
lanx of Philip, though they may have been usual consisted partly of Macedonians, and partly of
in later times. According to them each higher Thessalians. The Macedonian horsemen were the
division was the double of the one below it. Two flower of the young nobles. They amounted to
lochi made a dilochia; two dilochiae made a Te- about 1200 in number, forming eight squadrons,
~rpapXia, consisting of sixty-four men; two te- and, under the name'atlpot, formed a sort of
trarchies made a TrdS,s; two'rdEis a o'eT'ray. a or body-guard for the king. The Thessalian cavalry,evayfa, to which were attachedfive supernumeraries, consisted chiefly of the dlite of the wealthier class
a herald, an ensign, a trumpeter, a servant, and an of the Thessalians, but included also a number of
officer to bring up the rear (obpayds); two syntag- Grecian youth from other states. There was also
mata formed a pentacosiarchia, two of which made a guard of foot-soldiers (67ra7mrTa), whom we
a XmXtapxfa, containing 1024 men; two chi- find greatly distinguishing themselves in the camliarchies made a -red'os, and two rfksj made a pha- paigns of Alexander. They seem to be identical
]angarchia or phalanx in the narrower sense of the with the sre4I'atpoi, of whom we find mention.
word, the normal number of which would there- They amounted to about 3000 men, arranged in
fore be 4096. It was commanded by a polenmarch six battalions (a7'ers). There was also a troop
or strategus; four such bodies formed the larger called Argyraspids, from the silver with which
phalanx, the normal number of which would be their shields were ornamented. [ARGYRASPIDES.]
16,384. When drawn up, the two middle sections They seem to have been a species of peltastae.
constituted what was termed the odcpaAuds, the Alexander also organised a kind of troops called
others being called Odpara or wings. The phalanx BmlcdaXal, who were something intermediate be