Alexander : a history of the origin and growth of the art of war from ...

136 PHILIP'S IMPROVEMENTS.War, as against trooj^s like the Prussianinfantry of our owntimes. Later in the war many of our American volunteershad been hardened into a perfect equivalent of the best regulars.No doubt the Greek habit of relying on voluntary servicemade for true freedom, as our own organization ratherthan that of the Prussians yields the greatest good to thegreatest number ;but as a military machine Macedonia withits standing forces was far ahead of the rest of Greece.When Philip was elected to the throne (b. c. 359) to succeedhis brother, Perdiccas III., the Macedonian infantry wascomposed of raw and ragged material, mostly hide-clad shepherds,armed with wicker shields and ill-assorted weapons.It was a rabble rather than an army.The cavalry was better,in fact the best in Gi'eece, where horse had not beenmuch in vogue, and had been drilled to charge in compactorder, and with a short thrusting pike as weapon. Still itcovdd not be pronounced satisfactory.Philip saw that cavalry would not suffice ; he must haveinfantry to meet the solid ranks of the Theban, Athenianand Spartan phalanx.by hisThe foot-soldier, with whom he hadTheban education become familiar, was the one who,under Epaminondas' skillfultactics, had broken the theretoforeinvincible array of the Lacedaemonians. Philip mustbuild up an infantry which could break the Theban formation.The Greek hoplite had been armed with a large oblongshield, a sword and a one-handed pike, perhaps six to eight,rarely ten feet long. In close combat he pushed his enemyas well as defended himself with his shield, which was sometimesprovided with a knob or spike, and used his pike orsword as occasion demanded. Philip invented the sarissa orlong two-handed pike, which protruded so far beyond thefront rank that the Greek hoplite could not reach his enemyso as to use his shorter weapons ; and by this device he over-