[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]

Re: Golb's Theory

On Thu, 05 Sep 1996 14:21:39 -0400 (EDT), jwest@SunBelt.Net writes:
>
>Is it a 19th century invention?  What evidence is there that women and
>children followed their soldier husbands/fathers around in the first century
>BCE or CE?

   Plenty.  Read Arrian, 7.6 about the 30,000 youths, sons of his troops on
   the way east and west, enlisted as a special army.  Arian does not say they
   were offspring of the camp followers but the other sources did.  

   The baggage trains and followers of the Persian armies were immense, being
   miles long by every account.  Alexander would strip his forces of unneces-
   sary followers, his best troops brought their "comforts" with them, each
   other, like the Sacred Band of Thebes.  Roman legion "impedimentia" details
   are well described and always included large numbers of camp followers who
   lived amoung the baggage animals except when the nightly forts constructed
   were made too small for even the auxiliaries.  Armies were travelling
   cities!  Soldiers on the move and in action by Roman times had adopted
   Alexander's lean logistics.  His troops always travelled faster than his
   baggage trains, if for no ther reason than that oxen drew the heavy wagons,
   horse collars being a medieval invention.  Modern warfare began with horse
   transport.  Oxen moved both Greek and Roman seigetrains.  Read D. W. Engels
   U California Press book 472 _Alexander the Great and the Logistics of the 
   Macedonian Army_ 1978.  None better, relying on 19th c. Brit Imperoal Army
   Ordnance data.  As a former Ordnance Officer (RCOC), I recommend it.

   As for turn of the era details, read either or both of Caesar's (Big Julie)
   _De Bello Gallico_ and _De Bello Civilo_.  Roman practice only departed
   from the Caesar's (uncle and nephew) practice when the Romans recruited
   barbarians for the ranks.  That changed the ball game.  Downhill there-
   after.

Tom Simms
>
>
>Thanks,
>
>Jim
>
>++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
>Jim West
>Professor of Biblical Languages, CCBI
>Adjunct Professor of Bible, Quartz Hill School of Theology
>