It is the year 359 BC. The Kingdom of Macedonia lies on the brink of destruction – its army defeated and people in despair. Yet all hope is not lost. A new king has ascended the throne, keen to revert his kingdom’s fortunes. His name is Philip.

Recognising the perilous situation, Philip would embark on one of the most revolutionary, all-encompassing military reforms in antiquity.

Origins

Our story first takes us outside of Macedonia – as we examine the extraordinary upbringing of the young Philip.

Contrary to what one might have expected, Philip did not spend much of his youth in his native Macedonia. Instead, thanks to the fragility of the kingdom, the young prince had spent much of his adolescence serving as a hostage of foreign powers: first at the court of the Illyrians and then later at Thebes. It was while Philip was residing at the latter that his ideas of radical military reform likely took root.

The rise of Thebes

In 371 BC, the balance of power between the mainland Greek cities would be shaken to its core. At Leuctra, the Thebans won a stunning victory against the Spartans, destroying Spartan hegemony and becoming the dominant power on the Greek mainland.

The reason behind this unprecedented victory was the military innovation and expert leadership of two leading citizens, Epaminondas and Pelopidas.

Most notable among the Theban innovations were those that radically improved the Theban infantry. Not only had Epaminondas’ concentration of his Theban hoplite phalanx in deeper ranks on the left of his line shattered the opposing Spartans, but the creation of an elite, professional infantry body, the Sacred Band, provided Thebes with a force that proved equal to the famed Spartan warriors of antiquity.

Thanks to these reforms, the military might of Sparta finally met its match. The consequences would be far-reaching.

Residing in Thebes at the time of Leuctra, there Philip quickly appreciated that the secret of Thebes’ newfound military supremacy. Its professionalism was its key!

Yet it was not just the reforms of the Thebans that would evidently influence Philip. At the same time, the reforms of another leading Greek general also appear to have greatly impressed the young Macedonian. His name was Iphicrates.

Iphicrates

A renowned Athenian general, Iphicrates had recently experimented with reforming the weaponry of some of the Athenian infantry. He had replaced the heavier bronze hoplite armour with lighter linen cuirasses and the large, circular hoplon shield with a lighter, smaller equivalent, the pelta.

He had also equipped these men with much longer spears. The increased length of this new spear meant that it had to be held with both hands, while the reduced body armour provided the soldiers with increased mobility.

These reforms did not stand the test of time with the Athenian infantry. Yet scholars assume that this style of fighting continued for those hoplites that were fighting on ships at sea – the increased spear-length and improved flexibility undoubtedly proving very useful when attacking adjacent enemy vessels.

Reform and military innovation was therefore a common theme among the mainland Greeks in the early 4th century BC. Philip was quick to learn.

Returning home

In 365 BC, Philip returned to Macedonia. He had learnt a lot from the reforms of Epaminondas, Pelopidas and Iphicrates as would soon become evident.

The death of Philip’s elder brother Perdiccas, in a battle against the Illyrians in 359 BC brought Philip an abrupt ascension to the Macedonian throne. The kingdom he inherited had never been weaker. With potential enemies to his north, east and west, Philip’s tenure as King was by no means guaranteed. Another invasion looked imminent.

Very quickly, having secured his throne from rival claimants, he set about reforming the Macedonian army, putting into practice what he had learnt from his time as a hostage.

The Macedonian infantry

Arguably the unit that Philip revolutionised the most was his Macedonian infantry. Although limited evidence survives, it is likely that in 359 BC, these foot soldiers that Philip inherited were of a very poor quality.

Scholars presume they had mostly been light infantry, recruited from a peasant class that was deep in poverty, usually ill-equipped and lacking any form of training. Consequently, they had proven no match for the superior infantry quality of their neighbours, most notably the Illyrians.

Despite this, it appears the Macedonian infantry also included an elite unit, armed in the Greek hoplite fashion. Yet these hoplites were few in number and no match for their Illyrian counterparts. In 359 BC, the Macedonian infantry was in dire need of reform if Philip’s reign was to continue.

Philip was quick to realise the necessity for this change. Remembering the military lessons he had learnt both from Epaminondas and Iphicrates, Philip quickly recruited 4, 000 Macedonian levies and equipped them for a radical new style of fighting.

Arms and armament

For their armour, Philip equipped his Macedonians with a blend of the heavy hoplite and the lighter Greek peltast panoply. He had each soldier fitted with a bronze helmet, greaves, tall boots and a cloth tunic. Unlike the hoplites of their southern neighbours, Philip did not arm his new recruits with heavy breastplates, but much lighter body armour. Yet this decrease in protection was quickly made up for by the new weapon that Philip developed: the sarissa.

The sarissa

Their deadly new armament was a 4-6-metre-long pike. Its shaft was made from cornel wood – the best available wood in the Greek world at that time. Fortunately for Philip, Macedonia was renowned for such high-quality timber. He thus acquired significant supplies of it to create his new weapon with ease.

At one end of the sarissa was an iron pike tip. Its streamlined head was designed specially to penetrate armour and continue through into the enemy’s body.

Meanwhile, at the opposite end of the pike was a heavy metal butt. Made of either iron or bronze, this butt was designed to act as a counterweight, offering the wielder more balance when holding the sarisa 3/4s of the way down the shaft. Its shape could also anchor the pike into the ground when bracing for an enemy charge.

Just as with the high-quality cornel wood, bronze and iron were also readily available in Macedonia, providing Philip with easy accessibility to the materials required for making these new, deadly offensive weapons.

The pelta

Unlike the shorter doru spears of the hoplites, the sheer length and weight of the radical sarissa meant that each Macedonian soldier required both his hands to carry it. Carrying a heavy shield as well was impossible. Philip therefore equipped his men with a smaller, light shield called a pelta.

The Pelta was commonly used by the Greek light infantry and by Iphicrates’ new-look Athenians earlier in the 4th century. An infantryman could sling it around his neck and strap it to his left arm. These men were also equipped with a short spear and a slashing sword, but the pike was the primary weapon.

Equipped in such a manner, Philip did not intend these pikemen to fight on their own; the sarissa was next to useless in a one-on-one fight. Instead, Philip intended each man should fight as part of a larger, trained mass: the Macedonian phalanx.

The Macedonian phalanx

Our surviving evidence on the structure of the Macedonian phalanx in Philip’s reign is sparse and sketchy. Much of our information comes from later sources that describe the evolved phalanx of the later Hellenistic Period. Yet there are a few facts we can deduce.

Originally, the Macedonian phalanx consisted of basic units of ten men called a dekas, although this number was soon increased to 16. Multiple dekas units, or dekades, combined into larger groupings called a lochos (lochoi in the plural). They deployed the separate dekades side by side and placed the most experienced men nearer the front.

At its beginning, it appears the Macedonian phalanx was primarily trained to be formed 16-men deep and 8-men across – the men being in very close order thanks to the small size of their shields. This basic tactical unit consisted of 128 men and was commanded by an officer called a lochagos.

Command structure in Philip’s phalanx

Alongside the lochagos, other specialised soldiers also served alongside each lochos. There was the bugler – the salpingetes – who would relay messages with his bugle during the heat of battle. There was also a signalman – called the semeiphoros – who would give visual signals during the march with his standard, as well as an army herald – a stratokerux – who would shout out orders.

There was also an aide – a hyperetes – who was to convey messages between units and do whatever the lochagos required, and finally a file closer – the ouragos – who would collect any stragglers from the phalanx.

Wall of iron

As each lochos moved in their rectangular formation on the battlefield, every man would carry their sarissa upright. Only just before they were to engage their enemy would the first five ranks lower their deadly pikes horizontally, creating a deadly wall of iron. The lines just behind would lower their own pikes at a 45-degree angle to protect their comrades from enemy projectiles. The rows further back would keep their pikes upright.

Thanks to the great length of the pike, four deadly sarissa heads could protrude ahead of the first infantryman in the phalanx. This gave Philip and his infantry a great advantage over their neighbours. Not only could the sheer offensive power of multiple advancing sarissae steamroll any opponent, but any opposing infantry force would struggle to get past the multiple rows of pikes to even reach the holder, becoming pinned on a line of deadly iron tips.

From the elite hoplite infantry of both the Illyrians and the Greeks to the hardened warriors of Thrace and Paeonia, all would struggle to combat Philip’s sarissa-wielding phalanx with their shorter spears.

Flaws

Taken from the front, Philip’s new Macedonian phalanx was virtually unstoppable. Its cohesiveness and the weight of its offensive armament was unmatched in the contemporary world. Yet this new formation was not without its flaws.

The key to the phalanx’ deadliness was its cohesiveness. If the formation was shattered – whether it be from fighting on uneven ground or from being attacked on either the side or rear – then the poor individual fighting skill of these soldiers would soon be apparent. The phalanx was deadly just for so long as it maintained its order.

And so, in 359 BC, Philip equipped and trained his 4, 000 new Macedonian recruits in this new, revolutionised system of warfare. Continuously he would train them in a variety of manoeuvres to make sure they were ready for war.

He ensured the phalanx formation had flexibility for example, training his men to either double or halve the usual 16-man depth of the phalanx when necessary. Furthermore, Philip also made his infantry march and run long distances with full equipment so that they were always fit and ready for battle when on campaign.

The Pezhetairoi

As we have mentioned, the majority of Philip’s reformed infantrymen originated from the Macedonian levy of the region – farmers, craftsmen and men from other citizen professions. Yet among his new-look infantry, Philip also had an elite corps: the pezhetairoi or ‘foot companions.’

These men were a picked force from the Macedonian infantry. Selected by their size and strength, they would serve as the distinguished infantry guard of the King. The pezhetairoi were also Philip’s only professional soldiers, far out-classing the skill of the rest of his infantry. Truly they were the Macedonian king’s equivalent of the famed Theban Sacred Band.

As of such, Philip stationed his elite pezhetairoi on the furthest right wing of the infantry line – the most prestigious place among the footmen in his army. It was the pezhetairoi for example, that most likely accompanied Philip on his right during his first major battle in 357 BC against the Illyrians.

Leading his best soldiers forwards ahead of the rest of his army, we hear that Philip and his elite phalanx shattered the opposing Illyrians, who proved no match for them. For the first time in years, the Macedonian infantry now outclassed its neighbours.

Hoplites or phalangites?

Scholars still debate the equipment of Philip’s pezhetairoi. Some argue these men were armed as hoplites, wielding shorter spears, a larger, aspis, shield and heavy, bronze body armour, trained to add versatility to Philip’s sarissa-wielding infantry line.

Yet surviving evidence for this assumption is sparse and many now argue that Philip equipped his pezhetairoi with the same equipment as the rest of his reformed Macedonian infantry. It was their skill and expertise with not just the sarissa, but also the spear and sword, that singled these soldiers out from the rest, not their equipment.

Evolution

Later, upon the accession of Philip’s son, Alexander, this elite infantry force would undergo a significant change. Alexander extended the name pezhetairoi to include the entirety of his phalanx. He thus gave his elite infantry a new name – one that would remain down through to the Hellenistic period: the hypaspists.

End

Philip’s infantry reforms were the first great step in transforming his kingdom from one on the brink of destruction to becoming the dominant power in the Central Mediterranean. Yet reforming the Macedonian infantry was only one part of Philip’s great plan.

Although their role would prove crucial in the successes of both Philip and then his son Alexander, these men were not meant to win the battles on their own; the army needed another unit to deal the critical blow. The most prestigious unit in the Macedonian army would serve that purpose: the Companion Cavalry.





Notes and Further Reading

Huge thanks to Johnny Shumate Cogito for letting us use their fantastic illustrations.

Check out Cogito’s YouTube channel here.

Click here for Johnny’s website.

Johnny’s Etsy page, check it out here.

Kings and Generals YouTube Documentary channel here.

You can access Diodorus, book XVI that covers the reign of Philip II here.

Anson, E. M., ‘The Hypaspists: Macedonia’s Professional Citizen-Soldiers’ (1985). Historia, Vol. 34 (2), 246-248.

Bosworth, A. B, (1988), Conquest and Empire: the reign of Alexander the Great, Cambridge.

Erskine, A, ‘The Pezhetairoi of Philip II and Alexander III’ (1989). Historia, Vol. 38 (4), 385-394.

Hammond, N. G. L., (1994), Philip of Macedon, London.

Heckel, W. ‘The Three Thousand: Alexander’s Infantry Guard’ (2013). The Oxford Handbook of Warfare in the Classical World.

Milns, R. D. ‘Philip II and the Hypaspists’ (1967). Historia, vol. 16 (4), 509-512.

Worthington, I. (2008), Philip II of Macedonia, New Haven.

Worthington, I. (2014), By the Spear: Philip II, Alexander the Great and the Rise and Fall of the Macedonian Empire, New York.

Wrightson, G, ‘The Nature of Command in the Macedonian Sarissa Phalanx’ (2010). History, Political Science, Philosophy and Religion Faculty Publications. 11.

Author: Tristan Hughes Twitter Facebook

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