Thursday

Greece:

In ancient Greece the chariot was unsuitable for battle because of the mountainous terrain. The famous Alexander the Great only used the chariot to arrive on the battlefield, he never actually fought from it!

The effectiveness of arrows as a weapon, however, was not underestimated by the Greeks. They enabled archers to kill without ever being engaged by the enemy. This became a source of conflict in itself.

Aristotle noted that in civil wars the lower classes 'often' defeated the rich because 'being light armed they could easily compete with the cavalry and hoplites', i.e. soldiers from the wealthier classes.

Maybe this was why the ancient Greeks were reluctant to use the bow as it gave the poorer classes more control and power over the outcome of a battle.

It must have been an embarrassment to the wealthy classes! No matter how much money they spent on weapons and horses, a poor man with a piece of wood could wipe them out in battle.