[34] The following is the account given of the Macedonian phalanx by Polybius:—

"It is easy then to demonstrate by many reasons, that, while the phalanx retains its proper form and full power of action, no force is able to stand against it in front, or to support the violence of its attack. When the ranks are closed in order to engage, each soldier, as he stands in his arms, occupies a space of three feet. The spears in their most ancient form, contained seventeen cubits in length. But, for the sake of rendering them more commodious in action, they have since been reduced to fourteen. Of these, four cubits are contained between the part which the soldier grasps in his hands, and the lower end of the spear behind, which serves as a counterpoise to the part that is extended before him; and the length of this last part from the body of the soldier, when the spear is pushed forwards with both hands against the enemy, is by consequence ten cubits. From hence it follows, that when the phalanx is closed in its proper form, and every soldier pressed within the necessary distance with respect to the man that is before him and upon his side, the spears of the fifth rank are extended to the length of two cubits, and those of the second, third, and fourth to a still greater length, beyond the foremost rank. The manner in which the men are crowded together in this method is marked by Homer in the following lines:

"'Shield stuck to shield, to helmet helmet join'd,
And man to man; and at each nod that bow'd,
High waving on their heads the glittering cones,
Rattl'd the hair-crown'd casques, so thick they stood.'
Homer, Il. xiii., 131.

"This description is not less exact than beautiful. It is manifest, then, that five several spears, differing each from the other in the length of two cubits, are extended before every man in the foremost rank. And when it is considered likewise, that the phalanx is formed by sixteen in depth, it will be easy to conceive, what must be the weight and violence of the entire body, and how great the force of its attack. In the ranks, indeed, that are behind the fifth, the spears cannot reach so far as to be employed against the enemy. In these ranks, therefore, the soldiers, instead of extending their spears forwards, rest them upon the shoulders of the men that are before them, with their points slanting upwards; and in this manner they form a kind of rampart which covers their heads, and secures them against those darts which may be carried in their flight beyond the first ranks, and fall upon those that are behind. But when the whole body advances to charge the enemy, even the hindmost ranks are of no small use and moment. For as they press continually upon those that are before them, they add by their weight alone great force to the attack, and deprive also the foremost ranks of the power of drawing themselves backwards or retreating. Such, then, is the disposition of the phalanx, with regard both to the whole and the several parts. Let us now consider the arms, and the order of battle, of the Romans; that we may see by the comparison in what respects they are different from those of the Macedonians.

"To each of the Roman soldiers, as he stands in arms, is allotted the same space likewise of three feet. But as every soldier in the time of action is constantly in motion, being forced to shift his shield continually, that he may cover any part of his body against which a stroke is aimed, and so vary the position of his sword, so as either to push, or to make a falling stroke, there must also be a distance of three feet, the least that can be allowed for performing these motions with advantage, between each soldier and the man that stands next to him, both upon his side and behind him. In charging, therefore, against the phalanx, every single Roman, as he has two Macedonians opposite to him, has also ten spears, which he is forced to encounter. But it is not possible for a single man to cut down these spears with his sword, before they can take their effect, against him. Nor is it easy on the other hand to force his way through them. For the men that are behind add no weight to the pressure, nor any strength to the swords of those that are in the foremost rank. It will be easy, therefore, to conceive, that, while the phalanx retains its own proper position and strength, no troops, as I before observed, can ever support the attack of it in front."

Polybius, Book xvii. Ex. iii. in Hampden's translation, 1773.

[35] The 'pileum,' a close-fitting felt cap, was given by the Romans to slaves on the occasion of their enfranchisement, as a sign of freedom.

[36] Livy xxxix, chapter 51.

[37] In Greek warfare, any one who killed an enemy in battle was entitled to dispose of his body and arms as he thought fit. Plutarch means that by the laws of war Hannibal belonged to Scipio, and that Flamininus had no right to interfere between them.

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