- The Oxford Handbook of Warfare in the Classical World
- ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
- CONTRIBUTORS
- Abbreviations and Spelling Norms
- Chronology
- Emperors from Augustus to Heraclius
- Preface
- Maps
- War and Warfare in Ancient Greece
- War and Warfare in Ancient Rome
- The Archaeology of War
- Warfare and Environment in the Ancient World
- The Classical Greek Experience
- The Three Thousand: Alexander’s Infantry Guard
- The Hellenistic World at War: Stagnation or Development?
- War and Society in Greece
- The Rise of Rome
- Imperial Rome at War
- War and Society in the Roman Empire
- Men at War
- Treating the Sick and Wounded
- Keeping Military Discipline
- The Business of War: Mercenaries
- Logistics: Sinews of War
- War at Sea
- Greeks Under Siege: Challenges, Experiences, and Emotions
- Generalship: Leadership and Command
- Finding the Enemy: Military Intelligence
- Greek Rituals of War
- Roman Rituals of War
- The Athenian Expedition to Sicily
- The Peloponnesian War and Its Sieges
- Epaminondas at Leuctra, 371 b.c.
- Demetrius “the Besieger” and Hellenistic Warfare
- The Second Punic War
- Roman Warfare with Sasanian Persia
- Epilogue: The Legacy of War in the Classical World
- Index
Abstract and Keywords
This chapter summarizes the basic literature on ancient logistics, and addresses the important limitations of the ancient overland transport of food and water. It then explores the responses of military commanders, especially Alexander the Great, to these limitations. Two actual cases are covered, where terrain, climate, weather, troop numbers, the capabilities of land, sea, and river transport had impacted the overall strategy. The first case considers Alexander the Great's crossing of the Gedrosian Desert in southern Pakistan and Iran, and the second looks at the logistic considerations that affected the establishment of the Roman frontier along the Rhine River in Germany. The total numbers of men, pack animals, cavalry horses, and followers are the most significant factor influencing an army's logistic capability. The maintenance of the safety of the army's food supplies and the health of the troops has been vital for any competent commander.
Keywords: ancient logistics, food, water, Alexander the Great, Gedrosian Desert, Rhine River, troop numbers
Donald Engels, Emeritus Professor of History, University of Arkansas
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- The Oxford Handbook of Warfare in the Classical World
- ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
- CONTRIBUTORS
- Abbreviations and Spelling Norms
- Chronology
- Emperors from Augustus to Heraclius
- Preface
- Maps
- War and Warfare in Ancient Greece
- War and Warfare in Ancient Rome
- The Archaeology of War
- Warfare and Environment in the Ancient World
- The Classical Greek Experience
- The Three Thousand: Alexander’s Infantry Guard
- The Hellenistic World at War: Stagnation or Development?
- War and Society in Greece
- The Rise of Rome
- Imperial Rome at War
- War and Society in the Roman Empire
- Men at War
- Treating the Sick and Wounded
- Keeping Military Discipline
- The Business of War: Mercenaries
- Logistics: Sinews of War
- War at Sea
- Greeks Under Siege: Challenges, Experiences, and Emotions
- Generalship: Leadership and Command
- Finding the Enemy: Military Intelligence
- Greek Rituals of War
- Roman Rituals of War
- The Athenian Expedition to Sicily
- The Peloponnesian War and Its Sieges
- Epaminondas at Leuctra, 371 b.c.
- Demetrius “the Besieger” and Hellenistic Warfare
- The Second Punic War
- Roman Warfare with Sasanian Persia
- Epilogue: The Legacy of War in the Classical World
- Index
