Pausanias' description of Greece, Volume II.Pausanias, active approximately 150-175
History
Pausanias' description of Greece, Volume II.
Pausanias, active approximately 150-175
Greece -- Antiquities; Greece -- Description and travel -- Early works to 1800
Of the irruption of the Galati into Greece I gave some account in
connection with the council-chamber at Athens: but I prefer to give
the fullest account in connection with Delphi, because the greatest
struggle between them and the Greeks took place here. The first
expedition of the Celts beyond their borders was under Cambaules: but
when they got as far as Thrace on that occasion they did not dare to
go any further, recognising that they were too few in number to cope
with the Greeks. But on the second expedition, egged on by those who
had formed part of the army of Cambaules, who had tasted the sweets of
plunder and were enamoured of the gains of looting, a large army of
both infantry and cavalry mustered together. This army the commanders
divided into three parts, and each marched into a different district.
Cerethrius was to march against the Thracians and the Triballi: Brennus
and Acichorius were to lead their division into Pæonia: and Bolgius
was to march against the Macedonians and Illyrians. This last fought a
battle against Ptolemy king of the Macedonians, who had treacherously
slain Seleucus the son of Antiochus, (though he had been a suppliant
at his court), and was nicknamed Lightning on account of his
audacity.[109] In this battle Ptolemy fell, and with him no small part
of the Macedonians: but the Celts durst not adventure any further into
Greece, and so this second expedition returned home again. Thereupon
Brennus urgently pressed upon the general assemblies, and upon each
individual chieftain of the Galati, the advantages of invading Greece,
pointing out her weak state at that period, and the immense wealth of
her community, her votive offerings in the temples, her quantity of
silver and gold. He succeeded in persuading the Galati to invade Greece
once more, and among other chieftains he chose Acichorius once more as
his colleague. The army mustered 152,000 foot and 20,400 horse. Such
at least was the fighting force of the cavalry, for its real number
was 61,200: as each horse-soldier had two servants, who themselves
were excellent cavalry also and mounted. For the custom of the Galati
in an engagement was that these servants should remain in the rear
close at hand, and if a horse was killed they supplied a fresh one,
and if the rider was killed one of them took his place, and if he too
was killed then the third took his place. And if one of the masters
was only wounded, then one of his servants removed him to the camp,
and the other took his place in the battle. In this custom I think the
Galati imitated the 10,000 Persians, called _The Immortals_. But the
difference was that _The Immortals_ were a reserve force only used at
the end of an action, whereas the Galati used these reserves as wanted
all through the action. This mode of fighting they called _Trimarcisia_
in their dialect: for the Celts called a horse _marca_. Such was the
force, such the intentions, with which Brennus marched into Greece.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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