Hypaspistai Agematos (Shield-Bearers) A powerful, reliable force of hoplites who can be counted on in almost any situation. Please consult original manufacturers for such information.Euzonoi (Greek Infantry) These infantrymen are basic soldiers levied from the general population to serve where needed.Įpistratoi Hoplitai (Levy Hoplites) Any honest citizen can take up the shield and answer to the name of hoplite. Material presented throughout this website is for historical and entertainment value and should not to be construed as usable for hardware restoration, maintenance or general operation. Email corrections/comments to MilitaryFactory at Gmail dot com. No Reproduction Permitted - the Content of this Page is NOT for reuse in any form. Such was the culture that even at the stand at Thermopylae against Persian aggression, the 300 select Spartans were chosen based on those who had living sons to carry the family name back in Sparta should the father die in battle. This type of thinking allowed the Spartan culture to produce an organized result at many levels, even so much so that individual Spartan mothers would hold all the Spartan sons on equal footing. As such, it was seen as honorable for a Spartan female to die in child birth as it was for a Spartan male to die in combat. Though not touched upon in this article to any great detail, the Spartan female was equally revered in Spartan culture for her child-bearing capabilities. The sword was of a pretty basic and generally nondescript, suitable for cutting and thrusting but held as a secondary weapon to the spear. A dagger might replace the sword in some instances. For close-in fighting, the hoplite retained a 2-foot long straight sword held in an underarm wooden scabbard covered with reinforced leather (complete with bronze fittings). The butt spike could fortify the spear into the ground to deflect against enemy cavalry charges (as a 'pike'). A bronze construction butt-spike was added to the aft-end of the spear to help balance the weight of the iron spearhead and could be used as an alternate weapon should the spear head break off. For maximum effectiveness, the hoplite could wield the spear in an underhand hold when maneuvering and in an over-shoulder grip when thrusting. The individual hoplite was fielded with his most important tool - the thrusting spear, measuring between 6 to 10 feet in length depending on construction practices (later hoplites would be fielded with thrusting spears measuring some 18 feet long to keep enemies further at bay - these longer forms were known as Sarissas). The Hoplite would go on to become the symbol of power and masculinity in the Ancient Greek world, operating as a team of heavy infantry against lightly-armored and less-organized foes. These elements came together to present the collective naming convention recognized as 'hoplite', a term today generally associated with the Greek phalanx formation. A new generation of successful citizens was called upon to become this organized band of warriors, armed with principle elements such as the hopla – essentially a word derived to encompass the individual elements making up the whole in the form of an armored helmet, cuirass, leg greaves, the shield (incidentally identified as the hoplon) and a spear, held overhand and used for thrusting. Stemming from the creation of a new strategy of warfare created by a named King Pheidon, the 'phalanx' formation was now born - and with it, the hoplite infantryman as well. With the conquering of neighboring peoples, the issue of policing these new territories arose.
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