Machiavelli, Volume I — Niccolo Machiavelli — John Shaqi
Machiavelli, Volume I
Niccolo Machiavelli · en
The Greekes did not arme them selves so heavyly, for their defense, as
the Romans dyd: but for to offend the enemies, they grounded more on
their staves, then on their swoordes, and in especiallye the Fallangye
of Macedonia, which used staves, that they called Sarisse, seven yardes
and a halfe long, with the which they opened the rankes of their
enemies, and they keept the orders in their Fallangy. And although some
writers saie, that they had also the Targaet, I can not tell (by the
reasons aforesayde) howe the Sarisse and they coulde stande together.
Besides this, in the battaile that Paulus Emilius made, with Persa king
of Macedonia, I do not remember, that there is made any mention of
Targaettes, but only of the Sarisse, and of the difficultie that the
Romane armie had, to overcome them: so that I conjecture, that a
Macedonicall Fallange, was no other wise, then is now a dayes a battaile
of Suizzers, the whiche in their Pikes have all their force, and all
their power. The Romanes did garnish (besides the armours) the footemen
with feathers; the whiche thinges makes the fight of an armie to the
friendes goodly, to the enemies terrible. The armour of the horsemen, in
the same first Romane antiquitie, was a rounde Targaet, and they had
their head armed, and the rest unarmed: They had a swoorde and a staffe,
with an Iron head onely before, long and small: whereby it happened,
that they were not able to staye the Targaet, and the staffe in the
incountring broke, and they through being unarmed, were subjecte to
hurtes: after, in processe of time, they armed them as the footemen,
albeit they used the Targaette muche shorter, square, and the staffe
more stiffe, and with twoo heades, to the entente, that breaking one of
the heades, they mighte prevaile with the other. With these armours as
well on foote, as on horsebacke, the Romanes conquered all the worlde,
and it is to be beleeved, by the fruiet thereof, whiche is seene, that
they were the beste appointed armies, that ever were: and Titus Livius
in his history, doeth testifie verye often, where comming to comparison
with the enemies armies, he saieth: But the Romanes, by vertue, by the
kinde of their armours, and piactise in the service of warre, were
superiours: and therfore I have more particularly reasoned of the
armours of conquerours, then of the conquered. But nowe mee thikes good,
to reason onelye of the manner of arming men at this presente. Footemen
have for their defence, a breast plate, and for to offende, a launce,
sixe yardes and three quarters long, which is called a pike, with a
swoorde on their side, rather rounde at the poinct, then sharpe. This is
the ordinarie arming of footemen nowe a dayes, for that fewe there be,
which have their legges armed, and their armes, the heade none, and
those fewe, beare insteede of a Pike, a Halberde, the staffe whereof as
you know, is twoo yardes and a quarter long, and it hath the Iron made
like an axe.