Chapter 55 : Death of a Basileus
Although the Demetid Dynasty and the Pyrrhic Dynasty are two parts of what was once the united Arche Makedonia, they each have their own strengths and weaknesses militarily. The east-west division separated one side or they other from a certain technology or resource, while at the same time the differences of culture and regional forces bring new technology or tactics into use.
The defining characteristic of the Pyrrhic military is chain armor. This armor had been brought eastward by the Galatians to Thraikia and Galatia. In the Arche Makedonia quality chain armor is produced in the western territories or by Galatian smiths. With all the western territories falling into the hands of Pyrrhos and the Galatians swearing loyalty to Makedonia, all quality chain production is cut off from the Demetrids. In the Pyrrhic army chain is used widely by all classes of soldiers, but mostly by the Pezhetairoi and the Thorakitai. The Demetrid Thorakitai instead is forced to adapt to the east and begins to use scale armor or reverts to linothorax.
The Demetrid military, on the other hand, begins to include eastern influences in their military. Aristotelis had always been facinated with the east and Bykoli had continued his dream of warfare in the east. Already with an interest in eastern warfare, the Demetrids are quick to exploit eastern technology and tactics to help fill their gaps. This shows itself in three different ways. First of all, the Demetrids begin recruiting eastern natives into their Pantodapoi phalangitai, as well as hiring natives to fight in their particular traditional way, to make up for their shortage of of Hellenes and Makedones. Secondly, much of their armor and equipment becomes more eastern, most notably the use of scale armor. And finally, the use of eastern tactics in their core forces. These showed themselves most of all in their Hellenikoi Kataphraktoi and Hellenikoi Hippotoxotai, two elite units of mixed men fighting in the ways of the east. [I changed the name of the Baktrian Hippotoxotai and allowed for recruitment in the same areas as the Hellenikoi Kataphraktoi.]
No matter the differences in technologies, this war is to be decided by resources and number of elite soldiers. As the civil war starts, Pyrrhos has more Makedones under his control, but Pefkolaos controls the resources of Anatolia. Kappadokia, and Armenia. To gain the upper hand in resources, Pyrrhos had ordered his son to conquer the resources of Iberia and moves all other standing armies eastward to Anatolia.
For quite some time, neither side had actually fought eachother, but as both sides make their battle plans and move their troops against the other, the fighting began. In Armenia, the Thraikioi, who had been settled in the Van Lake region after the end of the Third Armenian War and the defeat of the Kingdom of Hayasdan, had mobilized and garrisoned themselves in a fort near their homes along the lake shore. The Thraikioi didn't exactly join the side of Pyrrhos but rather fought against the Demetrids. Laying claim to all of Armenia, the Demetrids sent a military force to wipe out this rebel army:
Besieged by their enemy, the Thraikioi sally out of their camp and move to meet them:
This battle gave the Demetrids a chance to try out one of their new cavalry squads of kataphraktoi. These kataphraktoi move forward to confront the Thraikioi to the west of the fort. The Thraikioi counter them by moving forward and throwing their javelin, but they have no effect and simply glance off the heavily armored men:
Their javelin doing nothing, the Thraikioi rush forward to confront the kataphrakoi in melee, but as the move forward they are countered by enemy spearmen who help the kataphraktoi get clear of combat:
On the eastern side of the battle field, the heavy Thraikioi move forward to confront the bulk of the enemy battle line:
As the heavy Thraikioi hold down the Demetrid infanty, the Thraikioi on the western edge of the battle finally manage to break through and confront the kataphraktoi:
The Thraikioi engulf the kataphraktoi and begin cutting through their armor with their large blades:
The kataphraktoi don't stand a chance against the Thraikioi weapons and soon the entire group, including their enemy leader is dead. Confronted with a huge amount of elite troops and now leaderless, the rest of the Demetrid forces in the center break and flee while the Thraikioi give chase:
As the enemy attempts to flee, the Thraikioi cavalry chases down the routers:
Although it is not a fair trial, the first usage of kataphraktoi for the Demetrids turns into a complete defeat. The Thraikioi manage to defend their homes and continue to be a thorn in the side of the Demetrids in Armenia:
Soon after the battle near Lake Van, the Demetrids attempt to capture the client state of Ioudaia by besieging Heirosolyma as well as the Delphikos military camp to the north near Megiddo:
Forced to break from their own besiegement before they can rescue Heirosolyma, the Delphikos family quickly prepares their men and sally out to meet the enemy:
As the first enemy force approaches the fort, the Kretikoi open fire with their arrows and completely wipe them out. When the second Demetrid force arrives to find all their own men dead and confronted by a large force of Kretikoi and Hetairoi, they decide to withdraw rather than fight:
The Delphikos manage to relieve their own siege but must rest and gather supplies before they can rescue Hierosolyma:
Faced with constant war, Eulandros tires of fighting and desires simply to govern a town again. He then places his sons in command of the army:
It is around the same time as the battle in Ioudaia that Pyrrhos and Pefkolaos met eachother on the battlefield for a second time. Pefkoloas had sent his advisors, administers, and son to Demetreia and barricaded himself in Nikaia, where he was gathering an army. Before he could build any substantial force, however, Pyrrhos had arrived with his rebuilt army and besieged the city. When reinforcement seige equiptment arrives to find the city besieged, Pyrrhos moves to wipe it out before it can reach the city or retreat. Pefkolaos takes this oppertunity to sally out of the city and try to catch Pyrrhos unprepared:
Facing only a single group of seige weapons, Pyrrhos sends in his Hetairoi and charges:
These unarmored, poorly equiped men quickly fall dead, but Pyrrhos then notices Pefkoloas' army approaching from the city. Pyrrhos withdraws his Hetairoi behind the battle line and prepares his Pezhetairoi for battle. Pefkolaos sends his cavlary forward, ahead of the rest of his army to meet Pyrrhos:
While one group of cavalry is wiped out in the center by the archers, a second hits the left flank while Pefkolaos personally leads his kataphraktoi in a charge at the right flank:
The Basilikon Agema charges in and confronts the elite kataphraktoi as the right flank Pezhetairoi begins to break formation:
While the Basilkon Agema and Pezhetairoi hold down the Demetrid kataphraktoi and Pefkoloas, Pyrrhos circles his Hetairoi around the right flank. Preoccupied by battle, Pefkoloas doesn't notice this move and Pyrrhos gains the upper hand. Pyrrhos lines up his Hetairoi and orders a charge at full speed, which he personally leads:
The force of the initial charge alone kills half of the kataphraktoi and then Pyrrhos and his Hetairoi completely encircle Pefkolaos and switch to their swords. History records that the crippled 55 year old Pyrrhos and 35 year old Pefkoloas personally duel eachother and Pyrrhos deals the killing blow against his enemy. It is however, more likely that a random Hetairoi was the one to deal the killing blow and the duel is a myth written by a historian who never actually witnessed the battle. Either way, Pefkoloas falls dead and his army desolves into chaos:
Pyrrhos falls back and reestablishes his battle line, expecting the rest of the army to either surrender of fall back to Nikaia. Instead, they hold their ground, though disorganized and devided into many separate groups:
Random groups move forward, seemingly without any any plan or organization:
All of these groups break quickly, but then reform and try again. Seeking a surrender, Pyrrhos once again leads his Hetairoi forward to convince the enemy they have lost:
Once out from behind his line, Pyrrhos is confronted by the remaining cavalry force who fight bravely against Pyrrhos' vastly superior Hetairoi who outnumber them three to one:
The enemy cavalry retreat, but still there is no surrender or retreat. Pyrrhos orders his battle line to defend the hill and returns to a familiar tactic he hasn't used since Italia: superiority though masses of cavalry in quick strikes. Separating his Hetairoi, Pyrrhos charges in at isolated groups:
Meanwhile, the Basilikon Agema moves forward to counter the largest group of enemy men still standing:
On the far side of the battle Pyrrhos charges and breaks groups again...
...and again:
Pyrrhos successfully kills or routes the bulk of the Demetrid army, while the Basilikon Agema charges at the remaining enemy:
At last the remnants of the army finally break and surrender. Pyrrhos has his men collect their dead and march to the city of Nikaia:
Pyrrhos honors Pefkoloas with a grand funerary pyre, with all the rights due to a great leader. He does not, however, send the remains to Aigai but instead has them taken by envoy to Pefkolaos' family in Demetreia. Once in Demetriea, Antigone (wife of Pefkoloas and daughter of Bykoli) and and Euktimenos Idomeneus (4 year old son of Pefkoloas and Basileus of the Demetrids) honor Pefkoloas and place his remains in the tomb of Bykoli, which had been built there only a few years earlier.
The envoy of Pyrrhos also requests the terms on which the Demetrid family will surrender, but he receives none. The Demetrids ridgidly refuse to surrender and insist on continuing this war. The advisors, nobles, and generals of the Demetrids continue to wage the war, insisting that neither the death of Bykoli, Pefkoloas, nor any man will deter them in their claim at the Arche Makedonia. The court of Euktimenos and especially his mother Antigone rule in his stead. Pyrrhos receives nothing and the war continues. However, with the closes Demetrid army on the far side of Kappadokia, it is only a matter of time for Anatolia to become Pyrrhos'.
The known world in the summer of 174BC:
Next: Chapter 56 : The Galatians' War
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