Page 61 - History of War - Issue 10-14

WEDGE
A more-aggressive formation than the
testudo and the orb, the wedge made
an effective use of the Roman sword
choice, the gladius. The soldiers woul
form a triangle shape with the tip fac
the enemy and charge straight into th
enemy. The idea was to disrupt enem
lines and make use of the gladius’
advantage over barbarian broadsword
in close-quarter combat.
Strengths: Took the enemy by surprise
Weaknesses: Risky strategy if not
undertaken properly.

BATTLE OF ILIPA HASDRUBAL’S CAMP

Countering war elephants
The skirmish tactic was
utilised superbly by
General Scipio in a battle
that effectively ended INFANTRY
the Carthaginian grip
on Spain. Facing a full
elephant division and
10,000 more men, Scipio CAVALRY CAVALRY
used his skirmisher (velite)
troops to hurl javelins at
the enemy camp before
dawn. The Carthaginians INFANTRY
scrambled to their posts
and were met with the
Roman army on their
doorstep. In disarray they SKIRMISHERS SKIRMISHERS
sent out their elephant
divisions but the wide
gaps in the Roman ranks
meant the elephants did
as much damage to their
own forces as they did
to the enemy before they
were brought down by INFANTRY INFANTRY INFANTRY
skirmisher javelins.

cavalry

CAM

ANTI-CAVALR
On the ancient battlefi eld,
the horse was the tank of
the age. The Roman Legion
devised a way to repel a
cavalry charge by forming a
tight barrier of shields with
their pilum spears pointing
out from the front. When
faced with this wall, a hors
would often pull up and
SKIRMISH then be at the mercy of the
The Roman army wasn’t always organised into tightly packed clusters. What Roman archers.
gave it the advantage over the phalanx was its ability to spread out and double Strengths: Effective tactic
the size of its ranks. This would enable the commander to make use of velite against a greatly feared
skirmisher units who hurled javelins at the enemy before the infantry rush. weapon.
Strengths: Very effective against phalanx tactics. Weaknesses: If the horse re
Weaknesses: Ranks vulnerable to a counter attack. to pull up…

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