Monday 26 February 2018

The Battle of Tanagra 457 BC : First Peloponnesian War

The Battle of Tanagra was fought in 457 BC between Sparta and Athens during the First Peloponnesian War. There isn’t a lot of information on the battle but from the various sources the following is a very brief summary.
When the Phocians made war on the cities of Doris the traditional homeland of Doric Greeks—Sparta sent a relief force under the command of Nicomedes with an army of 1,500 Spartan hoplites and 10,000 of their allies.
Athens, already contemptuous of Spartan treatment and now suspecting her of negotiating with factions within Athens to undermine their democracy, manoeuvred to cut off the Spartan army isolated in Boeotia.
Meeting the Spartans on the plains outside Tanagra in 457 BC Athens under the command of Myronides fielded most of her land army, supported by troops from Argos and by contingents from their other allies, making up altogether a force of 14,000 men. Although both sides sustained "great losses," the Spartans were victorious.
A great opportunity to get (nearly) all my greeks on the battlefield πŸ˜€
The initial setup, Athenians and Spartans would have taken the far right end of their respective lines, the place of honour, with less deserving allies towards the left. The Homoioi are the true spartan citizens. The Spartans true to history have very limited light troops although their alllies the Boeotians have some light cavalry. The Athenians are supported on the right by some Thessalian cavalry but in the historical battle they swopped sides so we created a special rule whereby a failed nerve test would see them change sides.

A closer look at the Athenian citizen Hoplites 
The spartan perioikoi looking to impress their commander Nicomedes
The two battlelines start to break up slightly as they advance
The Athenians have a small contingent of Athenian archers
As the battlelines close the skirmishers trade slingshot and arrows but apart from getting in the way they have little effect
The Spartans beat their shields and adavance to the sound of twin flutes
The Argive Hoplites tremble and wish they hadn’t allied with the Athenians !
The Athenians can’t wait to get to grips with the Boeotians but can’t get the skirmishers out the way to charge
The first big clash as the Spartan crash into the Argive phalanx
At the other end of the battlefield the lines have been broken
The skirmishers continue to jostle in the centre
A huge melee in the centre (the white dice marking casualties show that each phalanx is gradually being worn down and will enventually break) the battle will turn on who can hold the longest
After several turns of to and fro the Athenians get the advantage and are able to start to turn the spartan flank
The last Boeotian phalanx is also close to breaking
The Athenians can sense victory but are already very tired
Flipping history on it heads the Thessalian cavalry never fails a nerve test and holds true to their Athenian allies
The remaining Spartans unbroken gather around their commander before withdrawing from the field in good order
The final shot of the battlefield the exhausted Athenians have won, but don’t have the energy to chase down the Spartans
Well we tricked history with this one, the Spartans can always find more allies and they can march home claiming a draw but we know different.
A very fun battle, true greek battles can feel a little static as the push of hoplite on hoplite turns the fortune of each city state but this was fun. For those with a need to know such details the battlefield is 6x4, we played with Kings of War with some house modifications and some specific house stats for certain units. This is nearly all of my Hoplites, and there is only one in the lead pile awaiting production. I do need some more greek light cavalry though πŸ˜€

17 comments:

  1. Superb report Matt and very beautiful pictures that highlight the two armies. The kings of war historical rule is really nice to play!

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    1. Thanks Stefan we find KoW givethe right balance but we have added a little additional complexity but the core rules are sound πŸ˜€

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  2. A splendid set to and an impressive of array of Greeks, there Matt. Shall have to give KoW another run out here when I have the next batch of Romans and Goths completed.

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    1. Thanks Phil lots of greeks indeed and very nice to get them on the field of battle. KoW works with big games but in my view not medium/smaller gamesπŸ™‚

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  3. Fine looking armies, figures, battle, and photos! How many figures did you have out on the table this day?

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    1. Thanks Jonathan good question I had to count them but around 450 figures πŸ˜€

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  4. Impressive and beautiful armies, what a pleasure to look at such wonderful pictures!

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  5. It’s all Greek to me, as they say. A splendid looking battle, but glad democracy triumphed over oligarchy. I would love a Greek army, but...

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    1. Thanks David......not every bodies cup of tea but a certain epic and historical pleasure. As to collecting an army ............

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  6. Cool battle, unusual for you the field isn't awash with beautiful terrain.

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    1. Thanks the challenge of a historical battle where the participants deliberately sought out the flattest bit of land they could find to fight. It would be unseemly for them to attack until the enemy was neatly organised and prepared πŸ˜€I do like my new desert cloth though

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  7. Great looking game! I remember covering the Spartan civil and military organisations in school, great fun! The white linen cuirasses contrast really well with the shields and bronze helmets, I do miss the elephants though, at least you've got some more in the lead pile!
    Best Iain

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    1. Thanks Iain......nice to try something more historical but the elephants will be back πŸ˜€

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  8. Great AAR, Matt. I do like the whole look of the Greek armies of this period.

    But Tanagra - weren't “Darmok and Jalad” there?

    (Star Trek reference - shows where the scriptwriters found their inspiration! ;)

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    1. Thanks AJ that must have been the other Tanagra πŸ˜€

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