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A G R E E K A R M Y O N T H E M A RC H
A Greek Army on the March is a social and cultural history of the Cyreans, the classical Greek mercenary soldiers depicted in Xenophon’s Anabasis. While historians have traditionally viewed the Cyrean army as a single political community, this book reveals that the soldiers’ lives were largely defined by a pair of smaller social communities: the formal unit organization of the lochos (‘company’) and the informal comradeship of the suskenia (‘mess group’). Drawing on an extensive array of ancient literary and archaeological evidence, along with perspectives from military sociology and modern war studies, the book provides a comprehensive portrait of the Cyreans’ experience. It examines the environmental conditions of the campaign, ethnic and economic relations amongst the soldiers, the role of camp followers, and the practicalities of daily survival on the march. Anyone interested in ancient Greek warfare or in Xenophon’s Anabasis will want to read this book. j oh n w. i . l ee is Associate Professor in the Department of History at the University of California at Santa Barbara.
A GREEK ARMY ON T H E M A RC H Soldiers and Survival in Xenophon’s Anabasis
JO H N W. I . L E E
CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS
Cambridge, New York, Melbourne, Madrid, Cape Town, Singapore, São Paulo Cambridge University Press The Edinburgh Building, Cambridge CB2 8RU, UK Published in the United States of America by Cambridge University Press, New York www.cambridge.org Information on this title: www.cambridge.org/9780521870689 © John W. I. Lee 2007 This publication is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception and to the provision of relevant collective licensing agreements, no reproduction of any part may take place without the written permission of Cambridge University Press. First published in print format 2008
ISBN-13 978-0-511-37858-4
eBook (NetLibrary)
ISBN-13
hardback
978-0-521-87068-9
Cambridge University Press has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of urls for external or third-party internet websites referred to in this publication, and does not guarantee that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate.
Contents
List of illustrations List of tables Preface Acknowledgments Abbreviations, transliterations, and other conventions
page vi vii ix x xii
1.
Introduction
1
2.
The march route
18
3.
The army
43
4.
Unit organization and community
80
5.
The things they carried
109
6.
Marching
140
7.
Resting
173
8.
Eating and drinking
208
9.
The soldier’s body
232
10.
Slaves, servants, and companions
255
11.
Beyond the battlefield
276
Tables Bibliography Index
282 293 318
v
Illustrations
2.1. 6.1. 6.2. 6.3. 6.4. 7.1. 7.2. 7.3.
The march of the Cyreans, 401–399 bc Schematic diagram of lochos formations Contingent columns Equilateral rectangle (isopleuron plaision) Plaision formation Schematic diagram of a contingent encampment Schematic reconstruction of a lochos bivouac Schematic diagram of army encamped by contingents
vi
page 20 142 145 156 158 179 181 188
Tables
1. Chronology and conditions of the march 2. Cyrean troop strengths 3. Recorded Cyrean casualties
vii
page 283 290 291
Preface
This book is about an army of Greek mercenaries who marched into Mesopotamia twenty-five centuries ago. Their objective was the fabled ci