Military Strategy in Homer

 

Military Strategy in Homer

            The purpose of this inquiry is to conduct a study into Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey to see what we might learn about military strategy in ancient Greece as seen through the eyes of Homer. There is no historical or biographical evidence that suggests that Homer ever served in the military or that his descriptions of warfare and its outcomes are in any way based on his own personal experience as a fighter. Based on his knowledge of weaponry and wounds, there are some scholars who believe that Homer may have served in a medical capacity at the front lines, but again, there is no documentary proof for such an assertion. However, the bard’s in-depth knowledge of warfare, the marshalling of troops and the conduct of battles and campaigns is extensive and builds even further the level of respect that he has garnered over the ages as a fountain of knowledge and a source of insight into the lives of the ancient Greeks.

            The overall military strategy of the Achaeans was to conduct a siege of the citadel of Troy. After over nine years of effort, it did not appear that they were any closer to accomplishing their purpose than they were at the start of the war. As Achilles noted, “If ever Zeus grants us the power one day to sack the well-walled city of Troy.” The lofty and rugged walls of Troy had not been battered down, the Scaean Gates had not been breached and the wide streets of Troy had not resounded with the footsteps of successful Danaan warriors. Periodically the armies met on the plains in front of the city for a skirmish and the noise and confusion must have been fearsome.

Finally both sides met together in one place and their shields clashed together, the might of men with bronze-clad breastplates whose bossed shields met one another and the loud din of war erupted. There arose the wailing and exaltation of men, of those destroying and of those being destroyed, and blood flowed freely across the land.

After a battle, the two sides dragged off their dead and wounded and retreated to their positions, the Achaeans to their camp on the shoreline and the Trojans to their lofty walled city.

            It would appear from Homer’s descriptions that the Greeks had come ashore on the coastline in front of Troy and had hauled their ships out of the water in order to protect them from rough seas and the elements and to perform any repairs needed on their hulls. Ships on land were also less vulnerable to enemy attacks and raids. Having the ships lined up on the shore would also prevent access to the shoreline itself and lessen the possibility of it becoming a fighting front line. However, it did make the ships more vulnerable to fire, should the enemy get close enough to shoot burning brands at the vessels. Over the period of nine years, the Achaeans would no doubt have established a significant settlement of tents and shanties along the shoreline in front of their ships to accommodate those who were not berthed on the ships themselves. Proof that the ships were stationed on land can be found in the several references in the epic to having to haul a ship down to the sea in order to set sail. When Odysseus returned to the camp after delivering Chryseis to her father, Homer noted,

When they arrived at the array of the army of the Achaeans, they dragged the black ship onto the shore and high up upon the sandy beach, laying props beneath it. Then the men dispersed among the tents and the ships.

            An army that filled 1,000 ships had to be fed and with a war waging on the Trojan plains, there was no place or time for agricultural endeavours. If you can’t grow it or raise it yourself, the next best alternative is to steal it from someone who can. The Achaeans regularly raided surrounding cities and took what they wanted. The fields, warehouses and barns were stripped of anything that was edible, and the men and the boys were killed so that they could not join the opposing army, while the women were taken into captivity to be used as servants or sex slaves. Chryseis who was awarded to Agamemnon and Briseis, who went to Achilles, were two of the latter. Both women would play critical roles in the wrath of Achilles and the outcome of the war. Achilles makes mention of the raids which they carry out on the surrounding areas when he complains about having to give up Briseis and later in the epic he claims that he personally was responsible for sacking 23 cities.

Nothing of value remains. All that was taken from those utterly destroyed cities has already been awarded and it is not right to seize it back from the army.

But now you threaten to take away my prize from me, which the sons of the Achaeans gave me, that for which I toiled so hard. Never have I had a prize equal to one of yours when the Achaeans have sacked a well-inhabited fortress of the Trojans.

Twelve cities of men have I destroyed with my ships and eleven by land and from all these I have taken forth a goodly amount of wealthy treasure and all of it I bore back to Agamemnon the son of Atreus.

            The famous catalogue of the ships gives us a great amount of detail about the Achaean men who sailed for Troy, their fighting strengths and their leaders. In total Homer reports that there were 1,186 ships in the fleet with soldiers in 29 contingents from different cities on the Greek mainland and the islands. Based on the average number of men per ship, scholars estimate that the total Danaan force numbered between 70,000 to 130,000 men. It is thought that the Trojan forces and their allies equaled them in numbers. Both armies consisted of infantry carrying shields, spearmen, archers and horse-drawn chariots which usually bore a charioteer and a fighter. Agamemnon himself suggested that the Achaeans far out-numbered the Trojans, although the Dardanian forces were supplemented by allies.

What shame for posterity to hear about, that so great a force of Achaeans has fought this war in vain and continues to fight against a force that we strongly outnumber. For if both the Achaeans and the Trojans swore an oath to declare a truce and there was a gathering made of all the citizens of Troy, and the Achaeans were lined up in groups of ten with one Trojan being selected to pour out wine for each of our companies, there would be many of our groups of ten that would lack a wine steward for themselves. To this extent I say that the sons of the Achaeans outnumber the Trojans who inhabit that city. However, they have many spear-brandishing allies who greatly hinder me and attempt to keep me from sacking the well-inhabited citadel of Ilium.

            Odysseus suggested to King Agamemnon that he retain the fighters in their individual contingents so that they would better support one another in battle. This would also give the leader an opportunity to find out which of his contingents were the best fighters and those upon whom he could therefore rely in battle.

Agamemnon, you should separate the men according to tribes and families so that tribes may assist tribes and families might help families. For if you do this and the Achaeans obey you, you will come to know which of the leaders of the people are cowardly and which are brave, for they will fight in their separate groups of alliance. If you fail to seize the city, you will know whether it is by divine guidance or the cowardice of the men and their inexperience in war.

Before a battle or skirmish commenced, the men were marshalled together in their separate contingents by their leaders.

Just as goatherds arrange their own flocks separately, after they have been mixed in the pasture, so the leaders of the men easily maneuvered their soldiers, moving them left and right and up towards the front of the battle line.

            Tired of almost ten years of siege and strife, both sides decided that the war could best be concluded if a fight of champions was to be staged, with a single hero fighting for each side in a winner-take-all battle. Agamemnon explained the rules to the gathered throngs.

So if Alexander slays Menelaus, then let him take Helen and all her goods and allow the rest of us to return home in the sea-faring ships. But if the red-haired Menelaus kills Alexander, then the Trojans are to give up Helen and all her possessions and pay back reparations to the Argives suitable now and for generations to come. But if Alexander falls and Priam and Priam’s children fail to pay the penalty to me, then I will remain here and fight for that penalty until such time as the war is ended.

It sounded like a great idea and during the fight Menelaus was getting the better of Alexander. It looked like he was actually going to defeat him and deliver victory into the hands of the Achaeans, until the meddling of the goddess Aphrodite put an end to the duel as she rescued Alexander and deposited him back into Helen’s boudoir. Homer reports that they made love in the well-carved bed, while Menelaus declared victory to no avail, and the war waged on.

            The actions of King Nestor of Pylos give us a pretty good idea of how the Achaeans arranged their warriors for battles and the tactics that they used on the battlefield.

Nestor was ordering his troops into ranks and was urging them on to battle. Around him were the great Pelagon, Alastor, Cromius, Haemon the ruler and Bias the shepherd of the people. He put the charioteers with their horses and chariots in the front and placed the many brave foot soldiers in the back so that they might hem in the fighting. He put the cowards in the middle so that even if they did not want to fight, they would be forced to do so. He gave the first order to the charioteers and told them to rein in their horses and not to move in a tumult through the crowd. He ordered those who were skilled charioteers and eager to fight the Trojans not to go it alone, either up front or behind the lines, because they would be more easily conquered if caught fighting alone. He advised that any man in a chariot coming upon another should reach out with his spear towards that man, for that would be a better move. In such manner even the ancients of long ago were able to destroy walls and cities if they kept such tactics in mind.

            The Trojans left their well-walled city to skirmish with the Achaeans on the plain in front of the city at various times. But it would appear that their major line of defense was to remain in the city with the Scaean gates firmly barred and to patrol the walls as they fended off the enemy. They seemed to be successful, even if they were outnumbered, as the siege of the city was approaching its tenth year, without inroads being made by the Greeks. The Trojans knew where their weak spots were and moved to secure them as they could. Andromache advised her husband Hector,

Position your soldiers near the wild fig tree where the city can be easily breached and the wall can be scaled, for three times now the best of the enemy have come there and made an attempt with the two Ajaxes, the renowned Idomenus, the sons of Atreus and the brave son of Tydeus. Someone who is well-skilled in oracles has told them so, or else their minds have stirred them up and urged them on.

            The Greeks developed two new tactics late in the war. The first was to call a temporary truce so that the battlefield could be cleared of corpses and burials could be undertaken, and the second was to dig a wide and deep trench in front of their encampment as protection from the enemy chariots. The wise Nestor of Pylos explained,

Therefore it is fitting for you to stop this warfare of the Achaeans at dawn and for us to gather together with oxen and mules to collect the corpses of our dead. We will cremate them a short distance from the ships, so that afterwards each one of us many carry home their bones to their children, when again we return to our fatherland. Once we have gone forth, let us build a common funeral mound for all of them on the plain and in front of it let us erect high towers as a safeguard for ourselves and our ships. In it we will set in place some well-fitted gates so that we can have a road for chariots to travel in and out and outside of it let us dig a deep trench within which we can curb our horses and men, if at any time the war of the haughty Trojans might come upon us.

But when it was not yet morning and still before dawn, a chosen number of the Achaeans rose about the funeral pyre and going out as a group, they constructed around it a common tomb and nearby they erected a wall and lofty towers, as protection for themselves as well as the ships. In the wall they installed well-fitted gates, so that there could be a road for horses to go in and out and around it they dug a deep and wide trench and fitted it with palisades.

            The Trojans developed their own tactic for dealing with this new challenge as Hector explained it to his men.

Hector urged on the Trojans with a loud voice. “O Trojans and Lycians and close-fighting Dardanians, be men my friends and be mindful of courage which rushes to battle. I realize indeed that the son of Cronos willingly grants me great victory and glory and delivers nothing but misery to the Danaans. Mere children have built these weak walls and they are not worthy of notice. They will not hold back my force and our horses will easily leap over this ditch they have dug. Then when I am at their hollow ships, they will remember only hostile fire. I will torch their ships with fire and slay the Argives beside their ships, bewildered and overcome with smoke and fire.”

Later on the Trojans did attack near the trench and found that indeed it was impervious to their chariots and they had to dismount to attack.

Hector went on through the ranks of his comrades and urged them to cross the trench. However, the swift-footed horses lacked the courage and they neighed loudly as they stood on the highest point of the bank for they were frightened by the broad trench for it was not easy to drive right through it or to leap over it. For on both side of the trench there were over-hanging banks and on them were set sharp-pointed stakes which the sons of the Achaeans had put in place all big and close together as a defense against the enemy. It was not easy for a horse drawing a well-wheeled chariot to cross, but footmen could do it if they were eager to do so.

After the trench and the walls had been destroyed by Apollo and the Trojans entered their camp and set ships afire, the Achaeans launched their ships and moored them safely in the harbour away from the threatening torches of the Trojans. The trench actually turned out to be a death trap for the fleeing Trojans. Modern day archaeological excavations at Troy have uncovered evidence of a large ditch that was dug and which corresponds with Homer’s description of the fortifications erected by the Achaeans.

            At one point Odysseus and Diomedes developed a plan to infiltrate the Trojan lines by night and to engage in a little espionage. Nestor had encouraged Diomedes to go alone but the latter thought it would be best if he had a companion with him.

Nestor, my heart and my heroic spirit encourage me to enter the encampment of those Trojan enemies who are nearby, but if some other man came with me, I would feel more comfortable and daring about it. If two go together, then one can determine before the other how best to act but if one goes by himself, he is not as sharp in his thinking and may miss the mark.

The Trojans had adopted a similar tactic and had sent Dolon on a mission to spy on the Achaeans. Odysseus and Diomedes met Dolon out in no-man’s land and things did not turn out too well for the Trojan spy who first explained to the pair what he was up to and then had his head rolling in the dust as he was still speaking.

Hector brought many infatuations to my mind and promised to grant me the single-hooved horses of the noble son of Peleus along with his richly wrought bronze chariot and he encouraged me to go through the swift dark night toward the enemy to spy out whether the ships were well-guarded and watched as before or whether our foes, now having been beaten down under our hands, have it in their minds to prepare an escape and not keep watch through the night, having had quite enough evil upon them.

            The war carried on in a similar fashion for some time with victories and defeats being recorded on both sides. Armies went against armies and individual heroes battled one another in hand-to-hand combat. Finally with the slaying of Patroclus, Achilles returned to the fray, slew Hector and dishonoured his corpse. With Achilles raging about the battlefield, the tide started to turn in favour of the Achaeans. The Trojan forces were split in two with half of them crossing the river to escape Achilles and the other half retreating back into the relative safety of the city.

            With Hector dead, the Trojan War was rapidly drawing to its conclusion when ‘the wily and crafty Odysseus, he of the many counsels’, pulled off the greatest deception of all time and a stroke of pure military tactical genius. The events surrounding the use of the Trojan horse are not even reported in the Iliad and are only briefly mentioned in the Odyssey. It is mainly from accounts such as Vergil’s Aeneid and other ancient literary works that we find out what happened. The tactic was brilliant in both its conception and its undertaking and is the only report of any kind of siege weapon used in the ten years of the Trojan War. Odysseus had the Achaeans construct a huge wooden horse that was capable of concealing thirty warriors in its body. They dragged the wooden horse to the gates of Troy in the middle of the night and left it there. The Danaan fleet then sailed off, as if for home, but only went so far as the island of Tenedos, where they hid from the view of the Trojans. They were assisted by Sinon, who passed himself off as a Greek defector. Sinon convinced the Trojans that the Danaans had given up the fight and had sailed home and had built the horse as an offering to Athena, in atonement for them having previously desecrated her temple in Troy. He told them that the Greeks had built it too big to take into the city, so that the Trojans could not bring it in and gain the favour of the goddess themselves. However, if they were to remove a portion of their city wall, they would be able to drag it inside, and this they did. Under the cover of darkness the Greek warriors, captained by Odysseus, descended from their hiding place, opened the city gates to their comrades and sacked Troy.

            The military tactics described by Homer and his reports of the conduct of the war provide us with evidence of the importance of several elements critical to military success or failure:

·         The type of warfare being waged at Troy gives the advantage to those who can field the largest number of combatants.

·         An advantage is provided to a well-protected besieged city that has access to provisions.

·         A large army that is far from home must constantly work hard to provision itself.

·         Flat ground, such as the Plain of Scamander, can provide an advantage to warriors who are chariot-based.

·         Bronze armour, spears, swords and archery are all necessary tools for success.

·         Good leadership is essential for military victory.

·         Exemplary offensive and defensive strategies are required as well as good supply chain management.

·         Armies must develop suitable ways of dealing with their wounded and their dead.

·         Overcrowded and unsanitary conditions can result in serious pestilence.

·         The presence of a strong motivation for fighting cannot be underestimated.

It is clear from Homer’s writings that he had a strong grasp of all these elements and that he displayed more than a passing knowledge of things military. By studying the way in which he reported on the Trojan War, we can gain a clearer insight into how battles were fought in ancient Greece and how warfare was conducted in general.