Armor from the original Pyrrhic victory

Pyrrhus  was born to prince Aeacides of Epirus, and Phthia, a Thessalian noblewoman, the daughter of the Thessalian general Menon. Aeacides was a cousin of Olympias, making Pyrrhus a second-cousin-once-removed to Alexander the Great. When Aecides father died, he left Epirus to the joint rule of Aeacides and his younger half-brother Neoptolemus.

Aeacides supported Olympias in her fight against Cassander and marched on Macedon. When Cassander was ultimately victorious, Epirus became a puppet kingdom of Cassander. Pyrrhus' family fled north and took refuge with Glaukias of the Taulantians, one of the largest Illyrian tribes. Cassander marched against Glaukias, and with his army defeated, Glaukias promised not to act against Cassander, but refused to give up Pyrrhus and his family.

By 313 BCE, Cassander was distracted by his war against Antigonus Monophthalmus so Aeacides returned to Epirus and raised a large army. However, Cassander, not that distracted,  sent an army under his brother Philip, who defeated Aeacides in two battles. Aeacides was wounded in the last battle and died soon after. But young Pyrrhus survived.

In 307 BCE, Glaukias invaded Epirus and put Pyrrhus on the throne. When Pyrrhus was seventeen he travelled to the court of Glaukias in Illyria to attend the wedding of one of Glaukias' sons. While he was in Illyria the Molossians rose in rebellion, drove out Pyrrhus' supporters, and returned his half brother Neoptolemus to the throne. So, Pyrrhus travelled to the Peloponnese and served his brother-in-law Demetrius Poliorcetes who was campaigning against Cassander in southern Greece.  In 302 BCE, Demetrius took his army to Asia Minor to support his father Antigonus Monophthalmus. Although Demetrius and young Pyrrhus fought on the losing side at the Battle of Ipsus, the largest and most important battle of the Wars of the Successors, Demetrius escaped along with Pyrrhus and 9,000 men. 

However, in 298 BCE his brother-in-law gave him over as a hostage to Ptolemy I Soter in Alexandria. He eventually married Ptolemy's stepdaughter, though, and Ptolemy helped restore Pyrrhus to his throne. In the years that followed Pyrrhus struggled against Demetrius and Lysimachus, who had survived the wars of the Diadochi to rule Macedon.

In 280 BCE, the citizens of the Greek city of Tarentum in southern Italy asked Phyrrhus to lead their war against the Romans.  Due to his superior cavalry, his elephants and his deadly palanx infantry he defeated the Romans at the Battle of Heraclea and, in 279 BCE, the Battle of Asculum. It was at the Battle of Asculum that the consul Publius Decius Mus almost managed to break the back of Pyrrhus' Epirot army. In the end, the Romans lost 6,000 men and Pyrrhus 3,500 including many officers. Pyrrhus later famously commented on his victory at Asculum, stating, "If we are victorious in one more battle with the Romans, we shall be utterly ruined".  It is from reports of this semi-legendary event that the term Pyrrhic victory originates.

Images: Bronze muscle cuirass and silvered helmet of King Pyrrhus I of Epirus at the Archaeological Museum of Igoumenitsa in northwest Greece courtesy of Wikimedia Commons contributor Harrygouvas.

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Autonomy differences between Carthaginian and Roman commanders

Competition among the elites of Rome in both the political and military spheres is well known. It was also used by one of Rome's most fiercesome opponents as well.  In Carthage, command was sometimes shared between two or even three generals and sometimes commanders were expected to seek approval from the council of 104 and the two suffetes (roughly equivalent to Rome's consuls) for important decisions such as declaring a truce, to sue for peace, or withdraw from a conflict altogether.

Furthermore, punishment of command officers was draconian (in every sense of that word!). It ranged from large fines to crucifixion of the offending general.  Even the families of those committing suicide were not spared humiliation.  Ancient sources record that the council crucified the corpse of one commander named Mago (out of the many men named Mago in the history of Carthage) in 344 BCE.  Scholars think these severe punishments rather than simply a loss of command may have made some Carthaginian generals over-cautious, although that could hardly apply to some of the spectacular risks taken by Hannibal Barca during the Second Punic War.

Although Carthage was known for employing mercenaries rather than raising citizen levies like the Romans, Carthage actually did have an elite group of 2,500-3000 infantry soldiers drawn from their own citizenry known as the Sacred Band.  Known by their iconic white shields, the Sacred Band, named after the famous unit from Greek Thebes, was barracked within Carthage itself and not relied upon for foreign campaigns.

In his excellent article on the Carthaginian Army in the Ancient History Encyclopedia, Mark Cartwright points out that Carthaginian officers dressed up for battle with plenty of gold jewelry and animal skins.

"Shields were decorated with motifs related to Punic religion, classic motifs such as Medusa, the Evil eye, or even personalised – Hasdrubal Barca had his own portrait on his silver shield." Cartwright observes, "Carthaginian officers would have further stood out in the heat of battle due to their impressive helmet plumes and glinting precious-metal armour. Generals often had expensive scale armour, such as that worn by Hannibal made from gilded bronze scales and inherited from his father."

You can read Mark's full article here:

https://www.ancient.eu/Carthaginian_Army/

Image: Punic cuirass courtesy of Alexander van Loon (CC BY - digitally enhanced)

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Etruscan panoply of the late 5th to early 4th century BCE

 This panoply comprises a matching ensemble of helmet, cuirass, and greave (shin guard), which are rare Etruscan works exemplifying the finest qualities of the form and decoration that characterize the greatest armors made in Etruria during the Classical period. In addition to exhibiting originality of design and exceptional workmanship, this ensemble occupies an important place in the historical development of Etruscan armor. It includes one of the finest Etruscan cuirasses known to survive and a helmet that has no parallels in the Ancient World. Very few Etruscan panoplies appear to have ever included anatomical cuirasses, and among the few specimen known to remain, many are extensively damaged or restored, unlike this example. The helmet, with its delicate embossed, chased, and engraved ornament, and its striking bronze and silver appliqués, is one of the most luxurious examples of a type found only in Etruria, and by far the best preserved representative of this exclusive group. It is most important, however, for its unparalleled construction with hinged cheekpieces that would have completely enclosed the wearer's face, and for the subtle modeling of the corresponding plates to follow the contours of the nose, cheekbones, and jaw. No other helmet with comparable features is known to exist. - The Metropolitan Museum of Art

This armor could have been worn during the Roman-Etruscan Wars of the early 4th century BCE.  After the Gauls defeated Rome at the Battle of the Allia, the Etruscans, the Volsci and the Aequi all raised armies in hope of exploiting this blow to Roman power. According to Livy the leading men of all of Etruria gathered at the sanctuary of Voltumna to form a hostile alliance against Rome.  Beset by dangers on all sides, the Romans appointed Marcus Furius Camillus dictator. Camillus inflicted crushing victories against the Volsci and the Aequi, then turned his attention to the Etruscans. Livy, Plutarch, and Diodorus Siculus detail the struggle in which the Etruscans laid siege to Sutrium, a Roman ally. The Sutrines sent for aid and Camillus marched to their relief. But, before help could arrive the Sutrines were forced into a conditional surrender, being allowed to leave without weapons and only one garment apiece. Meeting the exiled Sutrines later that same day, Camillus ordered the baggage left behind and marched his now unencumbered army to Sutrium where he found the enemy still dispersed and busy plundering the city. Camillus ordered all the gates closed and attacked before the Etruscans could concentrate their forces. The now trapped Etruscans at first intended to fight to the end, but when hearing that their lives would be spared, they surrendered in great number. Livy says Camillus,  having won three simultaneous wars, returned to Rome in triumph. The Etruscan prisoners were publicly sold. After the gold owed to Rome's matrons had been repaid (they had contributed their gold to ransom Rome from the Gauls), enough was left for three golden bowls inscribed with the name of Camillus and placed in the Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus before the feet of the statue of Juno.

In 387, however, Livy tells us the Etruscans again attacked Sutrium and the border stronghold of Nepete. By the time Camillus and his colleague, Valerius, arrived at Sutrium, the Etruscans had taken half the city, the Sutrines desperately defending the rest behind street barricades. Camillus divided his army into two and ordered his colleague to attack the walls on the side the enemy was holding. Attacked from both within and without the city, the Etruscans fled in panic and were killed in great numbers. Having recaptured Sutrium, the Roman army marched to Nepete, which by that time had surrendered to the Etruscans after treachery from some of the townsmen. Camillus first attempted to convince the Nepesines to throw out the Etruscans. When they refused, he captured the city by storm. All the Etruscans and those who had sided with them were killed and a Roman garrison put in place.

Images: Etruscan panoply of the late 5th to early 4th century BCE consisting of a helmet of the Italo-Chalcidian Type, an anatomical cuirass, and a left greave, probably from Vulci, courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

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