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The shield (skoutarion) came in several forms in the middle Byzantine period, with large 107–118 cm ovoid and circular shields like earlier classical examples mostly giving way to the smaller 50–80 cm circular shield and the 90–100 cm oblong kite shield (sometimes called a thyreos) shortly before 900 AD. [60]
The emblem mostly associated with the Byzantine Empire is the double-headed eagle. It is not of Byzantine invention, but a traditional Anatolian motif dating to Hittite times, and the Byzantines themselves only used it in the last centuries of the Empire. [11] [12] The date of its adoption by the Byzantines has been hotly debated by scholars. [9]
The phoulkon (Greek: φοῦλκον), in Latin fulcum, was an infantry formation utilized by the military of the late Roman and Byzantine Empire. It is a formation in which an infantry formation closes ranks and the first two or three lines form a shield wall while those behind them hurl projectiles. It was used in both offensive and defensive ...
They were in Byzantine service from as early as 874. The Guard was first formally constituted under Emperor Basil II in 988, following the Christianization of Kievan Rus' by Vladimir I of Kiev. Vladimir, who had recently usurped power in Kiev with an army of Varangian warriors, sent 6,000 men to Basil as part of a military assistance agreement.
The Byzantine army launched several assaults and were about to capture the city when King Amalric made peace and withdrew. The Byzantine fleet withdrew after a siege of over 50 days and sailed away in some haste, leaving only 6 triremes for Kontostephanos. With an escort, the general decided to march via Jerusalem back to Constantinople.
Weapons amongst the Byzantine army varied greatly, as did the composition of the army. Shields and spears were as always the most common weapon. Three crossbows as depicted in a book illumination from Morea, 1362. The crossbow was adopted by the Byzantine infantry in the 13th century, [23] although the Cypriote rebel Isaac Komnenos is recorded ...
Agrianian peltas.This peltast holds three javelins, one in his throwing hand and two in his pelte (shield) hand as additional ammunition.. A peltast (Ancient Greek: πελταστής, peltastes) was a type of light infantry originating in Thrace and Paeonia and named after the kind of shield he carried. [1]
The scutum (Classical Latin: [ˈskuːt̪ʊ̃]; pl.:scuta) was a type of shield used among Italic peoples in antiquity, most notably by the army of ancient Rome starting about the fourth century BC. [1] The Romans adopted it when they switched from the military formation of the hoplite phalanx of the Greeks to the formation with maniples (Latin ...