Misplaced Pages

#507492

69-554: Velites ( Latin: [ˈweːlɪteːs] ; sg. : veles ) were a class of infantry in the Roman army of the mid-Republic from 211 to 107 BC. Velites were light infantry and skirmishers armed with javelins ( Latin : hastae velitares ), each with a 75cm (30 inch) wooden shaft the diameter of a finger, with a 25cm (10 inch) narrow metal point, to fling at the enemy. They also carried short thrusting swords, or gladii , for use in melee . They rarely wore armour as they were

138-535: A 90 cm (3 ft) wooden shaft the diameter of a finger, with a c. 25cm (10 inch) narrow metal point, and tips designed to bend on impact to prevent them being thrown back, similar to the heavier pila of other legionaries. Livy says that they each carried seven javelins, but Roman satirist Lucilius says that they carried five, suggesting that the amount may have changed. The hastati and principes carried gladii , relatively short thrusting swords 74 centimetres (29 inches) in length, as their main weapons, and

207-421: A city, seat of the municipality, formerly called Titov Veles Veles Bastion , Stribog Mountains on Brabant Island, Antarctica Veles, singular of velites , a class of infantry in the early Roman Republic Veles , a genus of birds, only containing the brown nightjar the proper name of the exoplanet HD 75898 b See also [ edit ] Velež (mountain) , south-central Herzegovina, named after

276-409: A deep ravine near the enemy position, pre-positioned for their classic "buffalo horns" pitched attack, but in accordance with tradition, waiting until the omens were good for an assault. Discovered by a British cavalry patrol, the entire Impi sprang up as one man, and launched their attack from some 4 miles away. The advance was met by withering British rifle, rocket and artillery fire that made part of

345-512: A mass of projectiles at an enemy. Because these weapons were unreliable, these troops were supported by other groups of infantry, especially when confronted with enemy cavalry. In 16th century Italy, pike and shot infantry would have interweaving ranks of musket and pike armed soldiers to provide mobile cavalry protection. Furthermore, during this period artillery would evolve from basic stone throwers to barrelled cannons capable of mobility and more effective siege warfare. The battle of Nagashino

414-455: A new and highly effective formation of spear infantry called a phalanx . By 550 BCE the Greeks had perfected the formation, which consisted of individual soldiers called hoplites forming rows of spears and shields. These units would engage in pitched battles against enemies in tight formations that would press against the enemy. Only if one side faltered was the formation able to break and

483-402: A number of them were attached to each maniple of hastati , principes and triarii . They were typically used as a screening force , driving off enemy skirmishers and disrupting enemy formations with javelin throws before retiring behind the lines to allow the heavier-armed hastati to attack. They were normally the ones who engaged war elephants and chariots if they were present on

552-722: A shortage of manpower due to wars against Jugurtha , the different classes of units were disbanded entirely. The Imperial Guard of Napoleon were named after the Roman velites . veles#Latin From Misplaced Pages, the 💕 [REDACTED] Look up Veles  or veles in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. Veles may refer to: Veles (god) , a Slavic god Veles Municipality , in North Macedonia Veles, North Macedonia ,

621-438: A soldier if in the formed array... but to those who in the skirmishing or in similar circumstances in which there is no need to engage in single combat, have voluntarily and by choice placed themselves in danger." In the legion , the velites were attached to each maniple of hastati , principes and triarii . They usually formed up at the front of the legion before battle to harass the enemy with javelin throws and to prevent

690-412: A steep slope. The English formation held heavy infantry, referred to as housecarls , at the centre and light infantry on the flanks. Across the front of Godwinson's battle line was a shield wall made from soldiers interlocking their shields holding spears and missile troops behind. The Normans under William deployed in three groups which consisted of their origins, Bretons on the left flank, Normans in

759-565: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Pitched battle During the Prehistorical period , pitched battles were established as the primary method for organised conflict and placed an emphasis on the implementation of rudimentary hand and missile weapons in loose formations. This developed into the Classical period as weapons and armour became more sophisticated and increased

SECTION 10

#1732791134508

828-543: Is humanly possible to assist you in any plan that promises to get us the elbow room we need. The air and everything else will be available. Montgomery's overall pitched conception of the battle eventually bore fruit, but it took two months of bitter fighting in and around the city of Caen to come to fruition. During the Post war period, pitched battles became outdated because of increasing emphasis on camouflage , guerrilla warfare and strategic bombing , all of which prevented

897-411: Is that the leves ' equipment was upgraded until they were at the same level as the rorarii , and they both collectively became known as the velites . Velites were the youngest and usually the poorest (being fifth class citizens, with property worth 400–2,500 denarii ) soldiers in the legion, and could rarely afford much equipment. They were armed with veretum , light javelins, each with

966-483: The Battle of Lake Trasimene , which remains the largest ambush in military history by men involved, in 217 BC, Quintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus introduced a military step known as the agmen . It was a variable formation, with one or more columns, separated by cohorts, with their allies in between the cohorts. The front of the columns were the extraordinarii , along with some of the velites . Following this formation

1035-465: The Camillan legion of the 5th century BC, who had a very similar role to the velites . They were also the poorer and younger soldiers in the legion, though the rorarii and accensi classes were considerably poorer and were eventually disbanded, having insufficient equipment to be effective soldiers. Leves were likewise armed with a number of javelins, but carried a spear rather than a sword. Like

1104-546: The Carthaginians under Hannibal . The pitched battle occurred on 2 August in 216 BCE near the village of Cannae in Italy. The Romans had some 80,000 infantry and 6000 cavalry, whilst Hannibal controlled around 40,000 infantry and auxiliaries and 10,000 cavalry. The battle site was mutually decided as the flat river plain running along the river Aufidus and near the ancient village of Cannae. The Carthaginians favoured

1173-405: The siege of Capua in 211 BC, and were made up of citizens who would normally be too poor to join the hastati but were called up due a shortage of manpower. They were trained to ride on horseback with the equites and jump down at a given signal to fling javelins at the enemy. After the siege, they were adopted into the legions as a force of irregular light infantry for ambushing and harassing

1242-482: The velites carried them as backup weapons. They fought in a very loose, staggered formation like most irregular troops , and carried small round shields called parma , 90 cm (3 feet) in diameter. The velites were placed at the front of the maniples , so that the velites had the chance to prove themselves and win glory by seeking out single combat with an enemy. This is also why they wore highly identifiable wolfskin headdresses. "These are not given to

1311-435: The velites , leves did not have their own units, but were attached to units of hastati . Lucilius, however, suggests that rorarii and velites were interchangeable, with velites gradually superseding rorarii . Another theory is that the leves ' equipment was upgraded until they were at the same level as the rorarii , and they both collectively became known as the velites . Velites were first used, and created, at

1380-537: The 20th century, pitched battles decreased in frequency because of the increasing size of armies and developments in weapons technology. Larger armies meant that combat could not be resolved in single events and the introduction of the machine gun , advanced artillery, and barbed wire by the First World War meant that deploying infantry in large moveable blocks was ineffective as they could be easily made immobile and destroyed. Barbed wire alone brought an end to

1449-631: The 4th and 3rd centuries BCE. The effective nature of these heavy infantry formations would be further developed by the Romans who established a large professional army consisting of heavily armoured infantry units and units of auxiliaries . An example of a pitched battle that occurred during the Classical period was the battle of Cannae fought between the Roman Republic under the consuls Lucius Aemllius Paullus and Gaius Terentius Varro and

SECTION 20

#1732791134508

1518-635: The British front to the deep shelter of the Ngwebeni valley. This was truly a masterful manoeuvre. The amabutho moved rapidly in small units, mainly concealed from the Isandlwana camp nine miles away by the Nyoni Heights. The British mounted patrols that sighted some of the apparently isolated Zulu units had no inkling an entire army was on the move. The total Zulu host was then concentrated in

1587-500: The Carthaginian centre whilst their 6000 cavalry had been deployed on each flank positioned to defend against the superior Carthaginian cavalry. Hannibal had deployed his troops with a weak centre and reinforced flanks with the intention of letting the centre break. Behind his main line he positioned 8000 auxiliary infantry with the purpose of surprising the Roman infantry as they pursued the faltering Carthaginian centre. Hannibal

1656-746: The Germans, the Americans were to push in the west on the right of the Allied line, breaking through the German defences. The British role in the strategy would thus not be a glamorous one, but a brutal battle in a punishing cauldron of attrition, in and around the key city of Caen . Supreme Allied Commander Dwight D. Eisenhower affirmed Montgomery's overall strategy in a message of 10 July, urging stronger efforts: I am familiar with your plan for generally holding firmly with your left, attracting thereto all of

1725-515: The Middle Ages. Consequently, infantry tactics during pitched battles would evolve towards the late Middle Ages to emphasise the use of polearms such as pikes and halberds . Furthermore, pitched battles during this period saw the widespread introduction of the crossbow , as evidenced at the battle of Hastings, provided a powerful alternative to bows and were effective against most forms of armour. An important pitched battle that demonstrated

1794-473: The Western equivalent of divisional strength. Coordination of tactical movements was supplied by the indunas who used hand signals and messengers. Generally before deploying for combat, the regiments were made to squat in a semicircle. This semi-circular squat served to align all echelons towards the coming pitched battle, while the commanders made final assignments and adjustments. While formidable in action,

1863-466: The Zulu arrangements for a pitched struggle could be predictable, as they usually used the same 3-part layout in their operations. At Isandlwana, Zulu forces first lured the British into splitting their strength by diversionary actions around Magogo Hills and Mangeni Falls, and then moved to take advantage of this British error in a careful approach march, using dispersed units that hid the full strength of

1932-417: The advance falter. The British however had divided their forces- fooled in part by preliminary Zulu feints- and other errors, such as failure to base the camp on a strong central wagon or laager fortification for example also contributed to fatal weaknesses in the British defences. When pressure by the maneuvering Zulu formations caused the crumbling of the redcoat line, the Zulu prongs surged through and around

2001-499: The animals accompanying them. The rest of the men, excepting velites and officers, set up the tents of the soldiers. During this time the velites would guard the outside of the wall and the wall itself, while the rest of the troops would guard the interior. The watch, which was composed of eight men led by a decurion, ran from 6:00 am to 6:00 pm, and was divided into four shifts, each of three hours. Velites were descended from an earlier class of light infantry, leves , dating from

2070-413: The army. As one historian notes: Meanwhile, the joint Zulu commanders, who had indeed been considering a flank march to Chelmsford's east to join with Matshana and cut the British column off from Natal, decided instead to take advantage of the general's division of forces. They detached men to reinforce Matshana, but on the same evening of 21 January and during the next they transferred the main army across

2139-571: The battle as they were able to draw the English into a pursuit which was then counter charged and broken. The effective deployment of heavy cavalry by the Normans during this battle demonstrates the importance of technological improvements through arms and armour and evolving tactics to pitched battles during the Middle Ages. Pitched battles developed significantly during the early Modern era as tactics and deployment strategies evolving rapidly with

Velites - Misplaced Pages Continue

2208-685: The battle of Isandlwana in 1879 between the Zulu Empire and the British . The mobility and accuracy of artillery was also improved with rifling and sophisticated reload mechanisms and would be utilised to great effect alongside infantry throughout the 19th century. Furthermore, cavalry would continue to be an effective force for pitched battles during this period as they were implemented to harass infantry formations and artillery positions. These tactics would remain in warfare until developments in technology would make pitched battles less effective towards

2277-414: The battle was the deployment of 10,000 Ashigaru arquebusiers. Firearms had been introduced to Japan by European traders as early as 1543 and were adopted quickly. Nagashino was one of the earliest examples of their effective tactical deployment. Before the battle, Nobunaga had positioned his arquebusiers in formations to be protected from enemy cavalry by supporting Ashigaru spearmen. The Takeda strategy

2346-519: The battle. A possible reason for the battle was the attempted crossing of a river by a large group of armed men who were confronted at a ford. Archers may have been positioned at either side of the river in the attempt to cause casualties before a series of close quarter engagements. The battle at Tollense Valley demonstrates that early pitched battles in the European prehistorical period were characterised by large semi-organised groups of combatants and

2415-489: The centre and Franco-Flemings on the right flank. William deployed his missile troops which included crossbowmen , at the front of his lines with his heavy infantry and cavalry behind. William's heavily armoured Norman knights were essential in the battle as they were deployed in cavalry feints which thinned and at occasions broke Godwinson's shield wall as they pursued fleeing Norman cavalry. The repeated implementation of this battle tactic eventually led to Norman victory in

2484-540: The deity Volos (disambiguation) Velestovo (disambiguation) Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Veles . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Veles&oldid=1191233742 " Categories : Disambiguation pages Place name disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description

2553-469: The deployment of cavalry as they would be rendered immobile and made easy targets. Developments in tactics would emphasise fortified positions in trenches and would result in battles that would take months and be determined by attrition and supply rather than tactics and mobility. The introduction of mechanised armour and aircraft in the late First World War meant that trench warfare would be less effective as trenches could be outmanoeuvred and surrounded. This

2622-499: The efficacy of heavy infantry . Pitched battles decreased in size and frequency during the Middle Ages and saw the implementation of heavy cavalry and new counter cavalry formations. The early modern period saw the introduction of rudimentary firearms and artillery developing new tactics to respond to the rapidly changing state of gunpowder warfare . The late modern period saw improvements to firearms technology which saw

2691-634: The end of the 19th century. The Battle of Isandlwana was fought between the Zulu Empire and the British Empire on 22 January 1879. This pitched battle saw the implementation of superior tactics to overwhelm a technologically superior force. The Zulu army usually deployed in its well known "buffalo horns" formation. The attack layout was composed of three elements: The Zulu forces were generally grouped into 3 levels: regiments; corps of several regiments; and "armies" or bigger formations. With enough manpower, these could be marshaled and maneuvered in

2760-538: The enemy armour, while your right pushes down the Peninsula and threatens the rear and flank of the forces facing the Second British Army.. It appears to me that we must use all possible energy in a determined effort to prevent a stalemate or facing the necessity of fighting a major defensive battle with the slight depth we now have in the bridgehead... please be assured that I will produce everything that

2829-413: The enemy doing the same before retiring behind the lines to allow the heavier infantry to attack. After they had fallen back, they would move up behind the attacking troops and throw darts at the enemy. They also sometimes carried wounded back to the rear, although a corps of deportates usually did this. In a pitched battle , the velites would form up at the front of the legion and cover the advance of

Velites - Misplaced Pages Continue

2898-492: The enemy with javelins before the battle began in earnest. The velites were used against the Carthaginian elephants in the Battle of Zama . After their usual javelin throw, the velites took cover behind the maniples , and then launched a sortie, quickly coming out from behind the troops and attacking the elephants, before retreating again. With the putative reforms of Gaius Marius in 107 BC, designed to combat

2967-534: The evolution of tactics and technology during the Middle Ages was the battle of Hastings fought on the 14 October 1066. This battle was fought between the Norman-French Army under William the Conqueror and the English army under Anglo-Saxon King Harold Godwinson . This pitched battle was fought as William engaged Godwinson who deployed his army of infantry in a small dense formation at the top of

3036-501: The few examples of pitched battles during the period demonstrate developments in arms and armour and their effect upon tactics and deployment. Technological improvements in metalworking permitted the increased introduction of plate armour which provided superior protection in combat. Wealthy soldiers, often called knights , would combine heavy plate armour and a mount. These would be deployed in devastatingly effective charges or dismounted to fight on foot dominating battlefields throughout

3105-430: The field, such as in the Battle of Zama , in 202 BC. Their high mobility and ranged weaponry made them much more effective against these enemies than heavy infantry. An early Roman legion contained approximately 1000 velites . Velites were disbanded after the so-called " Marian reforms ". Lucilius suggests that rorarii and velites were interchangeable, with velites gradually superseding rorarii . Another theory

3174-492: The front guarded the retreat of the others; this contrasts with their usual method of retreat, in which the cavalry, the velites , and the triarii stayed behind and covered the retreat. When the Romans set up a temporary castra , two maniples (without their velites ) were selected to pitch the tents of the headquarters and officers, and details were made for fatigue duty, to get wood and water, and to give food and water to

3243-575: The gaps, annihilating the camp's defenders. The liquidation of almost 1,000 European troops with modern arms by the African spearmen sparked disbelief and uproar in Britain. Aside from the losses of British regulars, and the supporting native levies, the Zulu impi killed more British officers at Isandlwana than Napoleon killed at Waterloo. Towards the late 19th century and into the World Wars of

3312-467: The hastati, who were armed with swords. If the hastati failed to break the enemy, they would fall back and let the principes , similarly equipped though more experienced infantry, take over. If the principes failed, they would retire behind the triarii , well trained, heavily armoured, spear armed legionaries and let them attack. The number of triarii was fixed at 600 per legion, there were usually 1,200 hastati and 1,200 principes per legion, with

3381-423: The implementation of simple hand and missile weapons such as bows. Elsewhere, pitched battles had grown in frequency and size because of developments in technology and logistics during the later prehistorical period. Technological improvements included the addition of iron weaponry, shields, and cavalry which were deployed in organised formations. An example of a pitched battle that demonstrated these developments

3450-583: The introduction of early firearms and artillery . There was a general increase in the size of pitched battles during this period as states grew and could wield larger standing armies using improved logistics. Firearms were introduced in Europe during the 16th century and revolutionised pitched battles because of their devastating effect when fired in sequence. Despite this, early firearms were inaccurate and slow to fire meaning that they were most effectively deployed in smaller, mobile blocks of infantry who would fire

3519-410: The level ground to ensure the effective deployment of cavalry and the Romans the narrow field between the river Aufidus and the village of Cannae to make full effect of their powerful infantry. Both sides carefully deployed their troops ensuring to make full advantage of their respective strategies. The Romans had deployed their heavy infantry in a deep formation with the intention of breaking through

SECTION 50

#1732791134508

3588-435: The period. Pitched battles during the Middle Ages decreased in overall size and frequency because states were unable to field armies as large as those during the Classical period. The potential decisiveness and possibility of the death of the leader also decreased the number of pitched battles fought. Battlefield strategy also began to favour control through sieges and garrisons in fortifications such as castles . However,

3657-546: The prehistorical period, after 3000 BCE, battles became increasingly organised and were typified by the implementation of bronze weaponry and rudimentary missile weapons . One of the earliest battles in Europe occurred in the Tollense Valley where a pitched battle was fought during the 13th century BCE, consisting of at least several hundred combatants. Evidence of bronze weaponry and flint and bronze arrow heads indicates that archers were used alongside infantry during

3726-513: The prevalence of irregular warfare . The largest set-piece battle in the history of warfare was the Battle of Kursk . Pitched battles were first recorded during the prehistorical period as massed organised conflict became the primary method for the expansion of territory for early states. During the Neolithic period, from 10,000 BCE to 3000 BCE, violence was experienced endemically rather than in concentrated large-scale events. Later during

3795-630: The pursuing side engage in individual arms. The success of the phalanx was demonstrated against the Persians at Marathon in 490 BCE and then at Plataea in 479 BCE. The Macedonians under Phillip II and Alexander the Great would develop this formation further to be deeper and wield longer spears called a sarrisa . The Macedonian phalanx was extremely successful against the Persian Empire and dominated Mediterranean warfare during

3864-450: The reliability and accuracy of the weapons. The efficacy of firearms increased dramatically during the 18th century with the introduction of rifling for enhanced range and accuracy, cartridge ammunition and magazines. As a result, most armies during this period would strictly deploy firearm infantry. Notable exceptions to this would be in colonial Africa where native armies would still employ close quarter fighting to some success, such as at

3933-488: The rest being light infantry like the velites . In the standard legion around the time of the Second Punic War (218 -201 BC) there were 10 maniples of hastati , each having 120 hastati , with 40 velites attached. The maniples were further split into centuries, of 60 hastati and 20 velites , with the centurion of the hastati century commanding the velites as well. After the Romans were ambushed at

4002-627: The standardisation of rifle infantry , cavalry and artillery during battles. Pitched battles declined towards the late 19th century and had ceased by the First World War because of technological developments establishing trench warfare . Whilst there are a few examples of pitched battles that occurred on a large scale during the Second World War , during the Post-war period , pitched battles effectively ceased to exist because of

4071-565: The war, there would be several important battles that would employ pitched battle tactics at a larger scale. During the Normandy landings under Operation Overlord , the Allies engaged in a pitched battle on a massive scale to defeat German resistance. When the Allies landed at Normandy, the pitched battle strategy used by the commander of the British land forces , general Bernard Montgomery ,

4140-438: The youngest and poorest soldiers in the legion and could not afford much equipment. They did carry small wooden shields called parma for protection, and wore headdresses made from wolf skins so their brave deeds could be recognized. The velites were placed at the front partly for tactical reasons, and also so that they had the opportunity to secure glory for themselves in single combat. Velites did not form their own units;

4209-542: Was a pitched battle fought between the combined forces of Oda and Tokugawa clans against Takeda clan on 28 June 1575 during the Sengoku period in Japan. The battle occurred as Oda Nobunaga led 38,000 men to relieve Tokugawa forces besieged by Takeda Katsuyori at Nagashino Castle . This battle represents an example of a siege that develops into a pitched battle upon the arrival of new forces. Key to Oda success during

SECTION 60

#1732791134508

4278-419: Was a rear-guard of the ablecti , and the rest of the velites . The baggage trail was guarded by the cavalry. Both the front and the flanks contained a number of speculatores (scouts), to provide warning of an enemy army's approach. When enemies were nearby, the baggage train would be dispersed between the maniples . If the columns were forced to retreat, the velites and the extraordinarii that were in

4347-454: Was aware of the superior power of the Roman infantry and elected to out manoeuvre and trap the Romans in an encirclement. Hannibal's deployment tactic worked and although precise numbers of casualties are disputed, eight Roman legions or roughly 45,500-70,000 Roman infantry were slain. The battle resulted in a decisive victory for Hannibal and illustrates the importance of heavy infantry and advanced deployment strategies for pitched battles during

4416-626: Was demonstrated clearly during the early stages of The Second World War during the German Blitzkrieg in France. Tactics in the Second World War developed to focus on mobile groups of infantry who would work in tandem with armour, aircraft and artillery to out manoeuvre and surround enemy positions. This would generally result in many smaller skirmishes along a wide battle front rather than localised pitched battles. However, during

4485-649: Was en route to the main Egyptian camp on the North-West side of the fortress of Kadesh . In the second phase of the battle, Ramesses II launched a chariot counterattack on the Hittite chariots which were plundering the Egyptian camp and pushed them back towards the Orontes River and main force of the Hittite army. The third stage was a dedicated series of charges launched by both sides as the Hittite reserve

4554-516: Was positioned and refused to retreat over the river. The pitched battle resulted in an Egyptian tactical victory but a strategic stalemate for both sides. Pitched battles continued to evolve into the Classical period as weapons technology and battlefield tactics became more complex. The widespread introduction of iron weapons increased emphasis on close quarter infantry combat as improvements in armour and larger infantry block formations made projectiles less effective. The Classical Greeks implemented

4623-495: Was the battle of Kadesh in 1274 BCE between New Kingdom Egypt under Ramses II and the Hittite Empire under Muwatalli II . Evidence from reliefs at the temple of Ramesses II depict the implementation of chariots and larger infantry formations that used spears and swords for close-quarter fighting. The battle itself occurred in three stages. Initially, Hittite chariots were deployed and charged an Egyptian division that

4692-455: Was to confront German armoured units with constant harassment from British armies on the eastern flank of the beachhead. The role of the British forces would be to act as a great shield for the Allied landing, constantly sucking the German armour on to that shield on the left (east), and constantly grinding it down with punishing blows from artillery, tanks and Allied aircraft. As the shield held

4761-479: Was to utilise their superior cavalry force and make the Oda infantry flee with concentrated charges. This was unsuccessful as Oda spearmen worked in tandem with the arquebusiers who fired organised volleys in ranks of three to repel Takeda cavalry charges and achieve victory in the battle. Firearms and artillery dominated pitched battles during the late modern period as technological improvements such as rifling improved

#507492