X-Nico

Roman infantry tactics

The campaigns of Alexander, and Pyrrhus (a Hellenic-style formation of mixed contingents) show this.

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Their ineffectiveness was demonstrated at Cannae and Adrianople; in both instances the cavalry was completely destroyed by a vastly more powerful enemy horse.

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The above is only standard procedure and was often modified; for example, at Zama, Scipio deployed his entire legion in a single line to envelop Hannibal's army just as Hannibal had done at Cannae.

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The later debacles at Lake Trasimene and Cannae, forced the proud Romans to avoid battle, shadowing the Carthaginians from the high ground of the Apennines, unwilling to risk a significant engagement on the plains where the enemy cavalry held sway.

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The Gauls met comprehensive defeat by the Roman legions under Papus and Regulus.

see also