Light cavalry have always been some of the
most effective military units in history. Capable of inflicting heavy damage whilst
evading capture they are not a force to be underestimated. In the medieval period we are
familiar with the destructive power of the Mongols but in Antiquity it would be the North
Africans who instilled fear in their enemies. Today we will be looking at the deadly
history of the Numidian Cavalry. if you enjoy learning about daily life in the
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thegreatcoursesplus.com forward slash invicta The Numidian cavalry hailed from the regions of
Africa which are today covered by Mauretania, Algeria, Tunisia, and western Libya.
Geographically speaking these vast lands are quite diverse. They include regions of coastal plains,
river valleys, hill country, forested highlands, and inland steppe. In antiquity these would have
been populated by a host of ancient tribal groups. Not much is recorded of their societies
but it seems that they ranged from nomadic, to semi-nomadic, and fully settled lifestyles.
Their social structure was such that family units came together to form clans, groups of which in
turn formed tribes. Each tribe would have a chief who often had an advising body of leading figures
with an additional general assembly below them. The extent of their territory could be quite small
or might encompass many towns and villages. At various points in history, powerful Numidian kings
rose to unite numbers of tribes under one banner. By the third century BC, three
dominant kingdoms had emerged; the eastern Massylii, the
western Masaesylii, and the Mauri in the far West. They would play important
roles in the geopolitics of the region, engaging with the Carthaginians and
Romans during the Punic Wars and beyond. When it came time for military action,
Numidian forces could deploy powerful coalition armies with a range of skirmishers,
light infantry, cavalry, and even elephants. Given the prevalence of the nomadic lifestyle
it is not surprising that the Numidian cavalry proved to be one of the
main staples of such forces. Unfortunately we don’t know much about their
recruitment. Generally speaking though it seems likely that rather than being some form of mounted
nobility, the Numidian cavalry would be drawn from the various tiers of society, rallying at the
local level in small groups under their officers and marshalling into progressively larger
coalition forces when the need arose. With this understanding in place let’s now
turn to an analysis of their equipment. Numidian horsemen are classified as light
cavalry. Warriors are reported to have rode into battle bareback without a saddle or
bridle. Instead these horsemen relied only on a small rope to control their mounts. In terms of
protective gear we have similar descriptions of them being sparsely outfitted with little to no
armour outside of simple tunics and ornamental animal skins. However it is likely that wealthier
riders could have sported a simple metal pectoral or even a breastplate as well as some
kind of helmet. Besides this they are said to have carried a round, leather-covered
shield. Ultimately though, their main form of defense was their speed which allowed them
to easily evade the claws of their enemies. For offense, their main weapons were throwing
javelins, which they carried a large number of. In close quarters these could
double as stabbing spears. Otherwise it was not uncommon for these horsemen
to also carry a short slashing sword. The presence of other weapons is also likely since warriors
provided their own gear and it would be up to the individual Numidian how they wished to ride into
battle. Let’s now discuss their battle tactics. The Numidian horsemen operated in a manner
typical to most light cavalry, but were experts in their field. In the lead up to battle they
would be sent ahead of the army for scouting. In this capacity, they are reported to have served
as superb eyes and ears of the army. Additionally, they were used in screening actions, to shield the
main army from the view of the enemy. On campaign, the Numidians were frequently used to harass
the enemy, engaging in lightning raids and attacks on vital supply lines. As expert light
cavalry, the Numidians would frequently appear and cause mass damage, only to slip
away just as quickly when threatened. In battle they acted as skirmishers. Deployed
in the front or flanks of the battle line, they would charge in to harass the enemy,
loosing volleys, before riding away. Polybius describes their motions as a fluid,
loose order like that of a “flock of birds.” According to ancient writers, they could ride
over any ground. It would be hard for those subjected to this kind of an attack to just
sit still and take it. More often than not enemies would angrily charge out to meet them, but
ended up swatting impotently at a swarm of flies. If the attackers were foolish enough
to pursue the Numidian cavalry, they would often find that the
Numidian retreat was actually a trick. By faking a retreat and then wheeling back
and attacking their disorderly pursuers, the Numidians would frequently cause mass damage
against an enemy army. And, when the army itself was routed, it was the Numidians who would
often pursue enemy soldiers far and wide, in order to inflict as much damage as possible.
In the Second Punic War, they were so bold as to besiege settlements that harbored Roman survivors
who had fled in the aftermath of battles. If the situation called for it, the
Numidians could also close the distance. While they would not have the same impact as
close order heavy cavalry and couldn’t pierce a well-formed formation they nonetheless could
be used effectively to flank engaged soldiers. This was made possible by their high
levels of discipline and efficient command. It is likely that these tactics would have been
facilitated by the years of nomadic lifestyle which taught each warrior how
to herd and hunt wild animals. This martial prowess was then honed over the years
as a result of their extensive combat experience. For context, let’s now take a look
at their formidable service history. The history of the Numidian tribes long
predated the arrival of the Carthaginians in the 9th century BC. We must therefore imagine
many centuries of unrecorded inter-tribal warfare taking place. When the Carthaginians
and other newcomers did start to arrive and push into the interior they would get
their first taste of Numidian warfare. It seems that this did not go so well owing both
to the skill and numbers of the north African warriors. We have evidence for instance
that the early Carthaginians paid tribute to the surrounding Libyans and may have also
been similarly subservient to the Numidians. As the Punic colony slowly expanded however it
would learn to co-opt others into their own armies by hiring them as mercenaries or requiring terms
of service in treaties. This would have started to occur around the 4th to 5th centuries BC when
we see Carthage ramp up its military expansion. Historically speaking, our first record of
the Numidian cavalry riding alongside the Carthaginians would be during the Punic-Sicilian
wars. For instance they appear in the battles of the 6th and 7th Sicilian wars and almost certainly
fought in the ensuing conflict against Pyyrhus. We next see the Numidian cavalry ride into battle
during the First Punic war, excelling once again as elite skirmishing and raiding forces.
In the aftermath of this conflict however, the Carthaginians would lose their monopoly over
the use of Numidian cavalry as the north african tribes increasingly used their service as leverage
to achieve their political goals. For example during the Mercenary War many Numidians would
side with the rebels, gambling on profiting from a Punic loss while others sided with Carthage
in exchange for favorable deals. In time, this flip flopping would earn them a reputation
as shifty and duplicitous forces. Nonetheless, they continued to be regarded as highly effective
fighters... if you could secure their allegiance. Hamilcar Barca would see to this in the
230s BC when he swung his army inland to subdue the Numidians and re-enroll them
into the army before heading off to Spain. Here the mounted tribesmen would see heavy
fighting in many battles against the Iberian tribes. By the time Hannibal Barca finally took
command, the thousands of Numidian cavalry in Spain had racked up significant combat experience.
The pick of these forces would then accompany the ambitious general in his overland invasion of
Italy. Along the way, the Numidians would prove critical to the army’s movement, skirmishing with
the Roman and Gallic forces who got in their way. Once in Italy, the Numidian cavalry immediately
proved their worth once again by drawing first blood and beating the Romans at the Battle of
Ticinus in 218 BC. Soon after at the battle of the River Trebia they succeeded in luring the Romans
out of camp, destroying the pursuing cavalry, and later ambushing the main force from the
flank as it advanced against the Carthaginians. They proved similarly devastating in the ambush
of lake Trasimene. However their master stroke would come in 216 BC at the battle of Cannae when
they swept back the Roman flanks and executed a swift encirclement of the army that lead to
its complete annihilation. In the aftermath, the Numidians saw further successes as well. They
frequently rode out in huge parties of thousands to devastate the Italian countryside or pick off
isolated Roman troops. In 208 BC for instance, a particularly successful ambush resulted
in the death of the recently elected Consul Claudius Marcellus, who was impaled by a
Numidian cavalryman. Meanwhile back in Spain, the Numidians continued to hold the Romans
at bay, at least until the arrival of Scipio. Back at home in Africa however
things were breaking down. The eastern and western Numidian kingdoms were
increasingly at each other’s throats and saw the Second Punic War as a means to dominate the other.
Both Rome and Carthage would find themselves on opposite sides of this divide, propping up and
making alliances with one faction or the other to achieve their aims. When Scipio and Hannibal
finally faced off at the battle of Zama in 202 BC, there would be Numidians on both sides. These
clashed ferociously on the wings. The Roman ally, Massinissa, ultimately proved victorious and led
his troops to hit the Carthaginians from the rear, precipitating their collapse and effectively
ending the war. For this great feat, he would be helped by the Romans in the conquest
of the opposing western Numidians and was ultimately crowned as the first King of a united
Numidia, reigning until the ripe old age of 90. By the middle second century, the power of
the Numidians had grown so large that they both instigated and won a war with Carthage, which
would later be a pretext for the Third Punic War, in which Carthage was destroyed. With
Rome now ascendant in North Africa, the Numidians began to offer their services
to the legions. These campaigns would take them to the theaters of Iberia and Greece
as Rome continued its wars of expansion in the late 3rd century BC. By the end of the 2nd
century BC however Numidians would find themselves fighting against the Romans in the Jugurthine
war. Once again the prowess of the african cavalry was on full display as their armies harassed the
legions endlessly while evading capture. It was only through the determined campaigning of Gaius
Marius and a treacherous ambush that the Numidians would be defeated. However they would continue
to avoid total subjugation for another 50 years. Ultimately it would be the Roman civil wars
that spelled their doom. During these conflicts, the Numidians once again found themselves picking
between sides when war came to their doorstep. Unfortunately however they chose Marius over Sulla
and later Pompey over Caesar which put them on the losing side twice. These choices would be punished
by retaliatory raiding and eventually annexation. Yet under Rome, life for the typical Numidian
was very similar to what it had been in the past. The Numidians still largely lived
in tribes and practiced a nomadic lifestyle. Their prowess on horseback was
therefore maintained and they continued to be famed as effective light cavalry who served
alongside the legions for centuries to come. While eventually it becomes anachronistic to
call them Numidian cavalry, such north african troops would continue to play an important
military role long after the fall of Rome. A huge thanks is owed to our supporters on Patreon
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