See U In History Hoplites: The Greek Phalanx The Phalanx was the main military formation used by the Greek or Hellenic armies, having been created around 700BC. It was regarded as a form of heavy infantry and its soldiers were known as the hoplites. As a rule of thumb, the soldier was equipped with a 2.5m spear, a large round shield, a short sword, a helmet, a chest armor and greaves. This whole set of equipment would weigh around 35kg. And so the armor was only
dressed shortly before the battle. In a phalanx, the hoplites remained in a tight formation, basically shoulder to shoulder
with their brothers in arms. This was something important for the phalange’s defense, since the shield of a soldier, besides protecting him, covered the right flank of the soldier next to him. Left-handed men were not allowed in a phalanx because of that. To keep the formation unified, a flautist dictated the rhythm of the march. The spear was the phalange’s main weapon, which had an iron spike and a metal latch on the other end. This latch allowed the spear to be stuck in the ground, in case of a cavalry attack, and also to keep the weapon properly balanced. In some cases, it could also be used as a
bruising weapon, particularly in the case where the spear was broken. The phalange’s wall of spears virtually hampered any form of frontal attack conducted by another infantry division that was not a phalanx as well. Because they could not hit
the opponents without first being stabbed by a spear. And, due to their large shields and heavy armor, attacks with items such as arrows, darts
and stones were barely efficient. When in formation, the first two rows of soldiers pointed their spears forward, while the two rows in the back tilted their spears at 45°, hence preventing the possibility of having
someone trying to launch an attack over of the first line of spears. In turn, the soldiers at the back replaced the fallen colleagues, pushing as well their colleague at the front, strengthening the formation. Even though the phalanx was virtually impenetrable in terms of front attacks, since, by being a quite solid body, the phalanx had very little mobility and maneuverability. So, generally, the phalanx had its flanks protected by the cavalry or light and minor troops. The only military formation capable of constituting a proper threat to a phalanx was another phalanx. So when two units of this kind clashed with each other, usually what decided the battle was the expertise and experience of the hoplites on each side, and the number of soldiers in the rear. The powerful Greek phalanx ruled the fields of battle in ancient times. Its reign lasted for several centuries, until the appearance of the Roman legions, which, due to their
mobility and employment of brand new tactics, gradually turned the Greek phalanxes
into something obsolete.
