Post by diades on Oct 4, 2020 13:53:23 GMT
Children, settle. Your parents are preparing the feast. The evening sky is taking on the hues of autumn leaves and the air is still and warm yet. It is time for a story from when I was not much older than you are now. That’s it, hush now. Ready?
Come, ride with me through the veins of history. I'll show you a God who falls asleep on the job, but which one? Kydon or Mars?
I was standing at the walls of our city, Kydonia (modern day Chania on Crete), looking South-West. The Romans were coming. Crete had maintained its independence since the Macedonians had been defeated by the Romans. Sure there were those who sought to influence and trade: Ptolemy, Rhodes, Mithridates, but we were free. Free to fight amongst ourselves: Knossos, Gortyn, Lyttos, Polyrrhenia and us too, fighting for supremacy.
Put it in your minds’ eyes. Here I was behind the walls in the near right corner of what was to be the battlefield with the stream running beside the walls off into the distance and through the woods. On the left of the field, steep hills. The Romans emerged over there, between the woods and the far, steep hill. A row of legionaries, with scorpions too, backed by their mounted general, extending their line with auxiliaries out on the hill. In the woods, on this side of the stream, light troops, javelin men and slingers, and between the woods and the beach, light horse.
Our men still really knew how to dance the pyrrhiche in those days. We had hoplites (Sp) in the city, with two units of archers (Ps) in front of it. Our own battleline formed up opposite the Romans, with their right anchored against the stream: theurophoroi (4Ax),backed by our general and our elite cavalry, trained as Philipoemen taught, then two more units of hoplites, double ranked theurophoroi and beyond, our own light horse backed by more units of our archers.
Seeing the Roman deployment, we sent our theurophoroi across the stream, raging after night rains, to shore up our archers facing the woods, whilst our reserve hoplites marched out of the city to take their place by the stream. Meanwhile our light horse raced forward wide left between the hills. The Romans advanced, sending their auxiliaries out front to threaten our light horse, who cantered further left. The auxiliaries wheeled left to approach our infantry left flank. Our theurophoroi wheeled out to face them, whilst our archers took to the hills to support.
The Roman gradually advanced his right to join legionaries onto the auxiliaries in an oblique, whilst pushing some of our hoplites back under a hail of bolts. He also sent his own light horse all around the back of his army to counter ours on his right. Meanwhile our right flank advanced towards the woods, prompting a unit of legionaries to cross the stream. All through the battle our two units of archers and one unit of theurophoroi fought in the woods against their two units of skirmishers and a unit of legionaries to little effect..
Our general raced to and fro across the field to command both flanks. The Roman’s right was now strong and artillery continued to hamper our hoplites. Once the Roman general himself was on the right and the artillery moved further forwards we were in trouble, we had only light troops on our left, a displaced unit of hoplites in no man’s land and two units more on the right against the stream. At least our archers held the hill. The Roman general switched ends of his right flank with his light horse on the end. Our own light horse charged in on the flank and destroyed their opposite numbers. Of course that left them exposed to the Roman general’s cavalry who turned and pushed them back before being brought up short and allowing our heroes to get out of harm’s way, having drawn the enemy general out of the fight for a while.
Finally, both right flanks advanced, spinning the axis of battle around. Enemy auxiliaries and legionaries clashed with our theurophoroi on the left, whilst on the right our hoplites attacked the legionaries and scorpions. On the left the legionaries were too strong, but pursued ahead of their recoiled comrades tp their doom as they were flanked by archers and destroyed. The fight on the right was more even and ebbed and flowed both ways. Ultimately the artillerymen caved in and our hoplites looked strong, but then the enemy general plugged the gap and brought more legionaries to his aid. There was a dangerously exposed flank…
That was when our general and the knights of Kydonia showed their metal. Charging legionaries was always a risky business, but he rallied his men with a brief speech, so it is said: ”And how can we win, when fools like Mithridates can be kings? As my mother always said, ‘Don't waste your time, or time will waste you’. No one's going to take me alive, the time has come to make things right. You and I must fight for our rights; you and I must fight to survive! Charge!”
And, yes, children, as you know, that charge heroically destroyed the legionaries and Marcus Antonius was sent packing! (4-0).
Unfortunately, as we know, those Roman’s are persistent. A few years later they sent Quintus Caecillius Metellus and more legionaries, and after three long years they brought Crete under the yoke. Remember the glory of the Knights of Kydonia, children. Right, time to eat!
Come, ride with me through the veins of history. I'll show you a God who falls asleep on the job, but which one? Kydon or Mars?
I was standing at the walls of our city, Kydonia (modern day Chania on Crete), looking South-West. The Romans were coming. Crete had maintained its independence since the Macedonians had been defeated by the Romans. Sure there were those who sought to influence and trade: Ptolemy, Rhodes, Mithridates, but we were free. Free to fight amongst ourselves: Knossos, Gortyn, Lyttos, Polyrrhenia and us too, fighting for supremacy.
Put it in your minds’ eyes. Here I was behind the walls in the near right corner of what was to be the battlefield with the stream running beside the walls off into the distance and through the woods. On the left of the field, steep hills. The Romans emerged over there, between the woods and the far, steep hill. A row of legionaries, with scorpions too, backed by their mounted general, extending their line with auxiliaries out on the hill. In the woods, on this side of the stream, light troops, javelin men and slingers, and between the woods and the beach, light horse.
Our men still really knew how to dance the pyrrhiche in those days. We had hoplites (Sp) in the city, with two units of archers (Ps) in front of it. Our own battleline formed up opposite the Romans, with their right anchored against the stream: theurophoroi (4Ax),backed by our general and our elite cavalry, trained as Philipoemen taught, then two more units of hoplites, double ranked theurophoroi and beyond, our own light horse backed by more units of our archers.
Seeing the Roman deployment, we sent our theurophoroi across the stream, raging after night rains, to shore up our archers facing the woods, whilst our reserve hoplites marched out of the city to take their place by the stream. Meanwhile our light horse raced forward wide left between the hills. The Romans advanced, sending their auxiliaries out front to threaten our light horse, who cantered further left. The auxiliaries wheeled left to approach our infantry left flank. Our theurophoroi wheeled out to face them, whilst our archers took to the hills to support.
The Roman gradually advanced his right to join legionaries onto the auxiliaries in an oblique, whilst pushing some of our hoplites back under a hail of bolts. He also sent his own light horse all around the back of his army to counter ours on his right. Meanwhile our right flank advanced towards the woods, prompting a unit of legionaries to cross the stream. All through the battle our two units of archers and one unit of theurophoroi fought in the woods against their two units of skirmishers and a unit of legionaries to little effect..
Our general raced to and fro across the field to command both flanks. The Roman’s right was now strong and artillery continued to hamper our hoplites. Once the Roman general himself was on the right and the artillery moved further forwards we were in trouble, we had only light troops on our left, a displaced unit of hoplites in no man’s land and two units more on the right against the stream. At least our archers held the hill. The Roman general switched ends of his right flank with his light horse on the end. Our own light horse charged in on the flank and destroyed their opposite numbers. Of course that left them exposed to the Roman general’s cavalry who turned and pushed them back before being brought up short and allowing our heroes to get out of harm’s way, having drawn the enemy general out of the fight for a while.
Finally, both right flanks advanced, spinning the axis of battle around. Enemy auxiliaries and legionaries clashed with our theurophoroi on the left, whilst on the right our hoplites attacked the legionaries and scorpions. On the left the legionaries were too strong, but pursued ahead of their recoiled comrades tp their doom as they were flanked by archers and destroyed. The fight on the right was more even and ebbed and flowed both ways. Ultimately the artillerymen caved in and our hoplites looked strong, but then the enemy general plugged the gap and brought more legionaries to his aid. There was a dangerously exposed flank…
That was when our general and the knights of Kydonia showed their metal. Charging legionaries was always a risky business, but he rallied his men with a brief speech, so it is said: ”And how can we win, when fools like Mithridates can be kings? As my mother always said, ‘Don't waste your time, or time will waste you’. No one's going to take me alive, the time has come to make things right. You and I must fight for our rights; you and I must fight to survive! Charge!”
And, yes, children, as you know, that charge heroically destroyed the legionaries and Marcus Antonius was sent packing! (4-0).
Unfortunately, as we know, those Roman’s are persistent. A few years later they sent Quintus Caecillius Metellus and more legionaries, and after three long years they brought Crete under the yoke. Remember the glory of the Knights of Kydonia, children. Right, time to eat!
