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The Seven Weapons That Changed The World
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by killfile | March 27, 2007 at 12:19 pm
4782 views | 15 Recommendations | 5 comments
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The blood-spattered spectacle of 300 has done more than any film since Gladiator to rekindle American interest in Ancient warfare. The cartoonish depiction of the Spartan military alongside the incalculable vastness of Xerxes' army evokes martial thematics that stretch through film, literature, music, and culture to the earliest echoes of Western Civilization. In that sense, 300 is, in and of itself, a fascinating mirror through which to view our own military history. The images of war depicted in Miller's comic book and its film adaptation differ substantially from Hoplitic combat as it likely occurred during the fifth century BC; and through those differences the formative moments in the Western Military Tradition are laid bare.The SciFi Channel published a blog entry recently which focused on the "Top 7 Weapons that Changed Warfare" but confined its analysis to the weapons of the middle ages for reasons neither altogether clear nor meaningful. Even so, military history is as much defined by technology and tactics; perhaps slightly more-so, as tactics themselves are dictated somewhat by the technological realities of the eras they confront.
To that end a more historically inclusive answer to SciFi's discussion is in order. Rather than focus upon a single moment or era in history, a more complete catalog might trace the entire Western military tradition from its earliest days in pre-Trojan Greece to the modern day
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Most RecentMost Recommended Comments (5)
at 12:57 on March 27th, 2007
Thanks for posting this, killfile. Interesting to consider the influence of films on things as specific as renewed interest in ancient weaponry.
Though I might argue that the "ancient weapon craze," if you want to call it that, began with Lord of the Rings. That's when I started to see various implements for sale at ComiCons and the like.
And I just revealed a few layers of nerd...
at 13:55 on March 27th, 2007
...I have to check the Official NowPublic Policy Coordinator on whether the phrase, "hoplitic combat" is permitted.
Hold on. The answer is just coming in...
And she is...giving a Big Thumbs Up!
OK! we're a go on the good stuff flag...
at 12:56 on March 28th, 2007
I take issue with the claim that the hoplite spear was that big of a threat to cavalry as to make them loath to come within range. It wasn't until the advent of the rifled bullet that cavalry charges were relegated to suicidal gallentry. Indeed the Crimean War presented the deathknell for heavy cavalry. (But with Tanks and Bradleys, we are back baby!)
That aside -- great lis, however, it was limited to land warfare (aircraft being limited to land by virtue of basing). That promts me to add two weapons to the list:
The Man of War: The dominent ship that eventually evolved into the battleship. Sure, frigates were faster, more common and sexier; but in the line of battle the man of war was king. By the middle of the 17th century cannons arrayed along the sides of
fighting ships had become the decisive weapon of naval warfare. Heavy
guns required a gun deck and a short, sturdy hull. The late
Elizabethan galleon that became the true man-o-war class reached its
culmination in England's Prince Royal of 1610 and the larger Sovereign
of the Seas of 1637, mounting guns on three decks; the Sovereign of the
Seas, the most formidable ship afloat in its time, carried 100 guns. By
the mid-1700s, great ships-of-the-line such as the British Victory and
French L'Orient dominated naval warfare, and would continue to do so
until the advent of the ironclad. The wooden wall gave England its empire.
The aircraft carrier: Prior to the advent of flight, the battleship was king of the sea. Planes turned the battleship's mass and size into liabilities that would not out live the second world war. Naval strategy changed from territorial to a projection force and warfare changed. The combined arms theory evolved.
"Modern navies that operate such ships treat aircraft carriers as the capital ship of the fleet, a role previously played by the battleship. The change, part of the growth of air power as a significant part of warfare, took place during World War II. This change was driven by the superior range, flexibility and effectiveness of carrier-launched aircraft." - Wikipedia
at 09:07 on April 4th, 2007
I take issue with the claim that the hoplite spear was that big of a
threat to cavalry as to make them loath to come within range.
I think you'll find, however, that the Phalanx effectively ends the relevance of calvelry in Greecian Warfare until the Cataphract Calvelry of Alexander the Great, made possible only because the spears in question grew so long as to make close combat advantagious again.
But even Alexander had to use his infantry to stagger the enemy line so his calvelry could get close.
at 18:11 on March 28th, 2007
If the movie is any indication, the Spartans could do their laundry on each others' abs, making them the inventors of the washing machine... Though I noticed a suspicious lack of chest hair.