Persian Assault Teteres, Thracian Warriors

Description

There is a good deal of debate as to how large ancient warships worked; the principles are understood, but the details are not always so clear. A Roman 'quadreme' or Greek 'tetreres' would seem to have four rows of oars if the name is translated literally. However, it is unclear how four sets of oars each with one rower apiece could be used without them getting in a terrible tangle even with a magnificently trained crew, or how the top set of rowers would be able to handle the extremely long oars pitched at a steep angle and still produce any power. The chances are that the term 'oar' had become synonymous with 'rower' and that the lowest bank had more than one man per oar. The other option was to go back to a double row of oars, with two men apiece. Two banks of oars would also have made for a cheaper construction task for each ship. Either way, the result was a ship that could rival the lighter trireme in speed, yet had more deck space for a large fighting contingent or artillery pieces.

There were some forty tribes of Thracians who shared a common language and culture, inhabiting a vast area north of the Greek city-states. They were seen as war-loving, rebellious, rambunctious, bad enemies, and good allies in a fight. Many Greeks dreaded a time when they would be united under a single leader and sweep southwards. Such a turn of events never happened, but Thracians could be found across much of the Greek and Persian world fighting as mercenaries; they often specialised as skirmishers and light troops. At the Battle of Raphia in 217BC there were Thracians in both opposing armies, ready to do bloody work. The forward curving rhomphaia with its razor-sharp blade and long handle could lop off limbs in the hands of a skilled user, and Thracians were certainly skilled. The most famous Thracian 'general' of all never actually fought an action in Thrace or in command of a Thracian army; he was Spartacus, the commander of the last great slave rebellion against Rome in 73-71BC.