The second traditional part of the infantry of antiquity were psils (ψιλοί) - the generic name for lightly armed soldiers who do not wear protective equipment: literally - "bald".
Here is how Mauritius Stratig described the equipment of such a soldier:
"Toxophores, carried over the shoulders, with large quivers holding 30 or 40 arrows; small shields; wooden solenaires with small arrows and small quivers, which are used to fire from a long distance from bows that harass enemies. Berites and darts of the Sklavenian type, available to those who do not know how to shoot with bows, Marsobarbuls, worn in leather cases, sling."
The same Mauritius recommended training psils in shooting "with a vertical spear in both the Roman and Persian methods", shooting with a shield, throwing a berit, using slings, running and jumping. The service of the lightly armed for the youth was a stepping stone to the "heavily armed" - oplite.
Vegetius wrote that the soldiers of the last call fall into the lightly armed. Certain ethnic groups also served in psils, armed with traditional, from the point of view of the Romans, light weapons: for example, the Slavs, whose national darts were to be used by all lightly armed, or the Isaurs, who were slingers.
The author of the middle of the 6th century. so determined the location of the psils in battle, according to the conditions. Firstly, if the phalanx (formation) has significant depth - on the flanks and between the aisles, thereby reaching the target when firing and not firing at the rear of its own.
Secondly, if the formation is in one row, they must stand behind the fires, "so that projectiles and stones, falling in front of the front of the phalanx, strike and frighten the enemies."
Thirdly, in the event of a mounted attack, they "extinguish" it with the help of slings and darts, standing in front of the formation of "heavily armed" infantry. Naturally, if the cavalry rush is not stopped by throwing weapons, the psils take cover behind the scooters through the passages between the units. Mauritius Stratig echoes Anonymous, pointing out that against lightly armed Slavs it is necessary to use psils and aconists with a huge supply of throwing weapons and darts. Lightly armed throwers throughout the period under review were important participants in the combat process, actively fighting against both enemy infantry and cavalry.
The presence of lightly armed in the ranks of the army of the empire suggests that the Romans successfully used various tactical techniques and various types of troops, combining them. This tactic justified itself when fighting opponents, the key feature of which was the use of one or another type of troops exclusively. Note that such opponents as the Iranians, realizing the importance of the infantry, it was in the VI century. carried out reforms of the army in order to level the bias towards the cataphracts. The Avars, who came to the fore as a heavily armed people of horsemen, began from the moment they settled in Pannonia to use horse-riflemen of the nomadic peoples of the Black Sea steppe and lightly armed Slavs.
Small arms
Lightly armed soldiers used various types of projectile weapons listed below, moreover, based on the tactical guidelines of this period, heavily armed infantry fought with these weapons:
Complex two-piece romaisky bow was 100-125 cm long, according to the iconography. Such weapons can be seen on the mosaic of the Great Imperial Palace, the mosaic from the Basilica of Moses, and on the Egyptian ivory plate, pixids of the 6th century. from the Vienna Museum of Art. The recommendations of the theoretical strategists boiled down to the fact that the psil should have a large supply of arrows. Traditionally, there were 30-40 arrows in a quiver. The quiver was worn over the shoulder, as on a pixid of the 6th century. from the Metropolitan Museum. Mauritius wrote that the weapon must match the physical capabilities of the soldier.
Berita - a short throwing spear, larger than a dart. Comes from the Latin veru, verutus.
Aconist (άκόντιον (singular)) - dart. Aconists, according to Vegetius, were called psils, throwers of darts, the youngest call.
Sling - primitive in appearance, but ingenious, in fact, a device for throwing stones. Military authors of the 6th century it was recommended to use the sling for all warriors, especially lightly armed ones: it rotated over the head with one hand, after which the stone was released towards the target. Based on the tactics used by the Romans during this period, the sling was the most important weapon, both during siege and defense, during battles and battles in the mountains: "Still, lightly armed arrows and slingers remained behind, waiting for a favorable moment for shooting." During the siege by the Romans of Qom, "bows sounded from the incessant throwing of arrows, slinges flew in the air, siege weapons were set in motion." Training in the use of a sling was an important aspect of the training of the entire infantry: "Moreover, carrying a sling is not difficult at all," wrote Vegetius.
But Agathius of Mirinei wrote about the Isaurians, the warriors of the mountaineers of Asia Minor, as special masters of handling the sling.
For throwing from it, not all stones were used, but smooth, comfortable for throwing. The stones could be completely round in the form of a stone ball or in the form of a flat sinker, slightly larger than the palm. The latter were made of lead and were called glandes during the Roman period. Such "shells" could not always be at hand, so it was advisable for soldiers to have them with them when entering the battlefield, although the presence of a sling meant the possibility of using any such stone.
Wooden solenaires (σωληνάρια ξύλινα) - there are several assumptions about this type of weapon, Firstly, if you follow the explanation of Mauritius, this device allows you to shoot several small shorter arrows from a standard bow. Secondly, a number of scientists believe that this is a kind of crossbow (crossbow), perhaps these are hand ballistas or ballista bows, about which Vegetius wrote. But, while the question remains open.
But they talk about another type of projectile weapon when it comes to oplites, not psils.
Matiobarbula (matiobarbulum) - a throwing weapon with a lead element. These weapons were also used by heavily armed. Vegetius wrote about weapons made of lead material at the beginning of the 5th century, and his contemporary, Anonymous of the 4th century, wrote about plumbata mamillata. Most likely, these are different types of weapons that used lead. Vegetius, described the Matiobarbuls as lead balls, which were especially well wielded by the two legions of Jovians and Hercules.
Ammianus Marcellinus writes about the use of lead shells during the siege of Hellispont. The following points speak in favor of describing the weapon as a lead ball: Vegetius reported that the soldiers should have five balls in the shield: it is extremely doubtful that this weapon with a shaft, at the same time, lead balls could fit in the shield without any problems. He also noted that the weapon must be used before the use of arrows and darts, which again speaks in favor of a ball-projectile, it is extremely doubtful that darts with a lead element, that is, with a weight, flew farther than darts. The infantry could use slings to increase speed. But then the matiobarbula, like a lead ball, approaches the glands, a flat lead sinker for throwing from a sling.
Another weapon using lead was Plumbata mamillata - a metal dart 20-25 cm long, at one end of which is a spherical lead ball ending with a sharp tip, at the other end of the dart there are feathers. To consider plumbata mamillata, as suggested by some researchers, as a kind of darts, seems to be incorrect, outwardly, of course, it resembles this arrow, but the method of using darts when throwing for the tip excludes the range, and a short weapon is unlikely to penetrate the shield. The 4th century plumbata is most likely a dart with a long enough shaft for throwing.
Mauritius wrote that scuttles should be taught "throwing at a distance and the use of matiobarbul". It was carried in leather cases and transported on carts, it is unlikely, it can be considered that small-sized weapons had to be transported on carts. Some researchers suggest that, firstly, when it hit the shield, it made it heavier, sagging under its own weight, making the shield unusable, and the warrior who threw it, an easy target to hit. Secondly, the presence of lead at the tip improved the hitting accuracy. It is possible to make the assumption that two tools evolved by the 6th century. into a short dart with a lead ball, ending with an iron point on one side and plumage on the other.
In such a case, this use case appears to be reasonable and technically justified. Weapons similar to those described above, of the late 4th century, were found in Pitsunda. We also know of several such arrowheads, from different periods from the Roman camp of Carnuntum, on the middle Danube.
Sword
In the Latin text of Justinian's Novel LXXXV, paramyria (παραμήριον) is designated as "enses (quae vocare consueverunt semispathia)" - ed. ensis number. Even in Vegetius we see the opposition of a half-spat, a smaller edged weapon, a sword-spat. This is confirmed by the "Tactics" of Leo, explaining that these are "large single-edged swords worn at the thigh" - mahair. Mahaira (μάχαιραν) - initially, a curved blade with a thickening in the combat part of the blade from the side of the chopping part. Archaeological finds of such weapons from this period have come down to us in Frankish graves from Cologne: it is a straight blade with a thickening in the warhead.
The authors of the 6th century. used, when describing a similar weapon, the term xyphos (ξίφος) or a straight short sword, so there is no need to talk about paramyria as a “saber”.
Thus, the paramyria of the VI century. this is a broadsword with a straight single-edged blade, according to the calculation of Yu. A. Kulakovsky - 93, 6 cm long. A broadsword, which could possibly have a thickening at the end of the blade. Paramyria was worn not on a shoulder harness, but on a hip belt: "… let them gird themselves with paramyria, of course, single-edged swords having four spans of length with a handle (translated by Yu. A. Kulakovsky)."
For the period under review, Paramyria can be compared with the Germanic Saxon, or rather its elongated variation - langsax (from 80 cm. Blade).
Saks, or scramasax, is a wide single-edged sword or large dagger, knife (Greek - mahaira). This weapon was used both in conjunction with a sword and by itself. It can be assumed that the Germanic Saxon in the Byzantine classification is designated as paramyria or ensis.
We are finishing the cycle about the division of the army of the Romans of the VI century. The last article will be devoted to the legions or regiments of the Roman army that survived until the 6th century.
Used sources and literature:
Agathius of Myrene. On the reign of Justinian. Translation by S. P. Kondratyev St. Petersburg, 1996.
Ammianus Marcellin. Roman History. Translated by Y. A. Kulakovsky and A. I. Sonny. S-Pb., 2000.
Xenophon. Anabasis. Translation, article and note by M. I. Maksimova M., 1994.
Kuchma V. V. "Tactics of the Lion" // VV 68 (93) 2009.
About the strategy. Byzantine military treatise of the 6th century Translated by V. V. Kuchma. SPb., 2007.
Perevalov S. M. Tactical treatises of Flavius Arrian. M., 2010.
Procopius of Caesarea War with the Persians. Translation, article, comments by A. A. Chekalova. SPb., 1997.
Stratigicon of Mauritius. Translated by V. V. Kuchma. SPb., 2004.
Theophylact Simokatta. History. Per. S. S. Kondratyeva. M., 1996.
Flavius Vegetius Renatus A summary of military affairs. Translation and commentary by S. P. Kondratyev St. Petersburg, 1996.
Corippe Éloge de l'empereur Justin II. Paris. 2002.
Jean de Lydien Des magistratures de l'État Romain. T. I., Paris. 2002.
