144 herramientas de gestión, autonomía, espacios para la toma de decisiones y poco a poco los

since it may serve in some slight measure to explain why the cavalry disposition is not as clear as the disposition of the other troops.

65.

The following diagram represents our own suggestion as to the arrangement of the 2,800 cavalry about which we are more certain; : I !— ---1 I” — ;--- 1 r necivu _{1 \} + skcCiw* ---: 1 \---:--- J L I '1^ vl skirmishing cavalry

heavy infantry cavalry - - ^

Cavalry dispositions; 700 + 700 > 700 + 700 = 2,800.

Note on VI,8-lla

We must realise that VI,8-lla consists of three literary

strata. The first is from 8-lOa ( naiT?o)^ The last sentence

of this passage was originally the concluding sentence of a

section on total cavalry disposition, "thus they shall take up their position on each side of the array", and in that section, the word used for cavalry is O ' » . The next stratum con­ sists of the phrase "in all four thousand six hundred, and one thousand four hundred attached to the men drawn up.in the for-

ki »

mations, fifty to each formation". Here cavalry is * In

this stratum, which is later than the previous one, the phrase "on each side of the army" ha's been understood as . "on all sides of the camp". The phrase "men drawn up in the formations" is very obscurely put, but in view of the number of formations in­ dicated (twenty-eight), must apply to the heavy infantry, and

rr^ 1V o will thus mean a unit of 1000 men.^^ The final l4

stratum, which again uses the word to mean cavalry ,

provides the total, 6,000, and indicates the unusual nature of this number by adding "five hundred to a tribe". Both the second and third strata accept the total of 6,000, It is just

possible that the third stratum is the same as the first, and that the second stratum is thus an interpolation. But the ex­ traction of the second stratum does not really leave a logical sequence*

The three strath are indicated in the following citation of the relevant passage:

j l d d n iX .A t3»ôSK y a q y i À i x n Wu/ 2. rS n m v n S ta'v n n J n o i v o n q i b v b

)1 IXA W & n O'z > W Ji' f - I T D . V ^ a o t bs n '>t.'i9,1 i’,T’ 1 3

.

1

’The Procedure for the. Pitched Battle

We have already dealt with this question to some èxtent above 3p,50ff.), but there remain some détails to be added. TÎie adcount % : . W g i n a _ â : t V T I I , 3 b f f . : C 7 ^

■ ' 7."the priests : shallTblow on the trunipete,; of : 7- . ■■ summoning,'■ ( K l ) , and three battalions

.\-pf/.''slc_irËi:sher^^^

■ ., ’ to take up position between the lines with the cavalry at their flanks on the right and the left. The priests shall blow on the trumpets

TTii?) signals to array for battle, and the columns shall deploy into arrays; The .-'.''"QW priests shall tblow! for them a second; fanfare

( ay o n ), signals for advance, until they epphoach the enemy line and stretch their

:-0.-"'F^7o-hai^8:toTthei-r^

' This, of cchrse , -describes the second ;,wavé7bfQskirmishers, for the first wave comprises two battalions of slingers!. Thé procedure, is presumably the same, however, for all three waves.

After the battalions have arrayed and advanced towards the éneMÿ line and drawn'their weapons, how exactly do they discharge them? This v/é learn from VIII ,l4bff. ;

67.

"According to this procedure ( ) the pr0.es)ts shall blow for the three battalions; when the first battalion throws, Cthe priests and the levites and all the band of horn-

blowers^Io shall blow a great fanfare to •

direct ( the fighCting 3 for

them the priests Cshall blowO on the trumCpets

3 to their place in the Cformations."

Even with the poor state of the t e x t w e can see that when the three battalions had reached the enemy line all together, they then operated in sequence. The first battalion threw, and.then partially withdrew; the second battalion followed suit, and so on. On completion of their attack, all battalions withdrew to their place in the heavy infantry lines together. This we know from VIII,1-3®» which describes the method of withdrawal of the first wave of skirmishers, comprising two battalions:

"The trumpets shall continue blowing to

direct ( ) the slingers until they have

finished throwing, seven times. Then the priests shall blow on the trumpets of with­

drawal ( ) and they shall come by the

side of the first formation n n )

to take up position in their allotted place

There are two possible meanings of the phrase "by the side of.the first formation". Either the skirmishing battalions re­ tire one at a time to a place beside the heavy infantry forma­ tion, that is, the front line of the "front formation", or the second battalion (to which the text refers) takes up position beside the first, which must already have retired. In either case, an intermediate position of withdrawal is indicated, end this is referred to as the TAV % , Apparently the final with­ drawal of the skirmishing battalions takes place only when the next wave has been summoned, thus providing a continuous assault against the enemy and avoiding an awkward interval in the

proceedings.

skirmishing battalions join with the one skirmishing battalion already fighting. The last wave of skirmishers consists of two battalions; the one has already assaulted the enemy .and

effected its partial withdrawal; the second battalion of this last wave is engaged at that moment. Although the text of

IX,3-4 implies that all the skirmishing battalions join in from

their position in the midst of the front formations ( 13 ' J 9 n .ÏM31 , our own interpretation of the order of

events would require that one of these was not within the ranks of the heavy infantry, but at the position of intermediate with­ drawal already described. The writer may perhaps be excused for a certain looseness of expression, (unless the procedure for the last two skirmishing battalions did not exactly follow that of the first two waves).

In all probability, the intermediate withdrawal position (called the TX)^ ^ is the position taken up by the skirmish­ ing battalions after their arraying in front of their own lines; VIII, 4 refers to the skirmishers as "taking up position between the lines’! (hi:) iVhA . Once the skirmishing battalion had thrown, and was disarmed, it would retire behind the protective cover of the next battalion.

To sum up, then. The three waves of skirmishing battalions follow the same procedure: 1. they emerge from the ranks of the heavy infantry in columns. 2, they array in front of their own lines. This is their intermediate position. 3« Then they ad­ vance together, 4, The first battalion of the wave uses its weapons, and then retires to the intermediate position. 5* The other battalion(s) follow suit. 6. When all the battalions are back in the intermediate position, the next wave of skirmishers

69.