Wedge

[Gaius Octavius]

Last night, I caught the tail end of a PBS program about the Romans and Brits going at it during the Boudiccan Rebellion. I'd always thought that the wedge was one 'slice' of a pie. It seems, rather, that it was a series of saw teeth and not necessarily one tooth. Paulinus, greatly out numbered, lined his cohorts up in a straight line in this saw tooth formation across the plain. The Iceni and allies, had wagons at their backs where their families came to watch the battle. The Iceni attacked and the Romans responded with their 'artillery', the scorpio or bellybuster. The Romans then marched forward, at a quick pace in the saw tooth formation, threw their pilum and continued into the Iceni. They marched through and over the Iceni who were hemmed in by their own rear ranks. They trampled to death any Iceni who fell under them. The benefit (to the Romans) of this formation was that the Romans were on the flanks of the Iceni throughout the battle field. The Romans stabbed at the Iceni in their fronts and at their sides. The Iceni retreated right into their own wagons. By this time the Roman cavalry was in action. Between these and the infantry and the fact that the Iceni were hemmed in by their wagons, a great slaughter of all the Iceni came about.

 

A demonstration of the usage of the scorpio was shown. In design, it is nothing more than a highly mechanized bow, on a horizontal plane, with a rachet to load it. It seems that the bolt was not barbed and could easily pass through the Iceni shield and the warrior behind it. The 'bellybuster' could be fired three times a minute.

[Pertinax]

Here we have a straight line weapon with excellent accuracy and a 3 shot per minute capability.THis unit was demonstrated and hit a human target at 150 yards with three shots out of three.

 

http://www.unrv.com/forum/index.php?act=mo...=si&img=906

 

projectile essentially a heavy arrow .Practical experience of use by LEG II AVG yields an interesting detail as to priming the weapon:the weapon was cranked using two men either side of a rear spool, using "spider" shaped winding handles, with the men facing the side of the unit, not using a "crank" handle facing forward. The turning moments on a crank are uneven and low in the down evolution stroke away from an operative, momentum is constant 9 and quicker) using the spider grip.

 

http://www.unrv.com/forum/index.php?act=mo...=si&img=917

[Favonius Cornelius]

In this situation, apparently the wedge worked well for the Romans. This was an uncommon tactical formation when you think of their many other battles. Why did it work so well here specifically?

[Dominus Rex]

I saw this same program, quite a while ago.

 

It's possible the formation worked because the Iceni, being barbarians with low disipline, couldn't hold their ground and instead get caught inside the V. Then, they would be sorrounded on three sides and would get cut down. It obviously worked extremely well for this battle, as the greatly outnumbered Romans gained a major victory and slaughtered nearly all of the enemy as the ran because of their baggage and women folk.

 

Why they didn't use this at more battles, I don't know.

[Pertinax]

In this situation, apparently the wedge worked well for the Romans. This was an uncommon tactical formation when you think of their many other battles. Why did it work so well here specifically?

One assumes that the ,apparent, total lack of unit cohesion ( or comprehension of such a concept) amongst the Icenii would make an atomised mass of individuals vulnerable to a body of men fighting as one and that the ability to "acquire and destroy" a given target is optimised for the Legions.So I suggest "killing" ability is maximised,as GO points out the Icenii were constantly in (individual) danger of flank assault, certainly the use of a "pigs head" or "swine array" was re-invented/assimilated by those a-Viking as a prime instrument for the penetration of defensive shield walls, the counter measure being an antagonistic array to break the momentum of the aggresing unit.

The other element is the effect on morale of a numerically superoir force being unable to break down a much smaller army with its customary show of bravado and personal bravery, thence to be counter attacked .Perhaps the relative size of the armies lead to an even quicker "tipping point" of momentum and morale being lost.

 

I saw this same program, quite a while ago.

 

It's possible the formation worked because the Iceni, being barbarians with low disipline, couldn't hold their ground and instead get caught inside the V. Then, they would be sorrounded on three sides and would get cut down. It obviously worked extremely well for this battle, as the greatly outnumbered Romans gained a major victory and slaughtered nearly all of the enemy as the ran because of their baggage and women folk.

 

Why they didn't use this at more battles, I don't know.

 

We posted at the same time saying similar things! Against more organised foes the attritional ability of the heavy troopers was still unsurpassed .

[Gaius Octavius]

A two man team operated the scorpio. There were two rachets(?). (I say rachets because there was a holding mechanism on the gears - my term.) One on either side, operated by each man. As Pertinax says, the winding gear was on a vertical plane. The bellybuster in the program was somewhat different than the one shown in P's picture. It seemed to be made mostly of metal.

If my memory serves, it was Archimedes who invented the scorpio for use by the defenders of Syracusa when the Romans attacked. (Sorry that I can't be more specific here.)

 

P, would you please explain the 'pigs head' or 'swine array' a little more. I am lost.

Edited July 15, 2006 by Gaius Octavius

[Pertinax]

My apologies, and I will veer slightly off topic as the "swine array" is in itself technically a re-invention of the individual "teeth" of the saw formation posited by GO. a-Viking combat had the concept of personal fidelity to a war chief at its core, one of the main planks of approved honourable behaviour were acts of physical bravery. a-Viking units might find themselves the key opposing mercenaries or most battleworthy troops on the field, you require a wedge formation of variously armed men (sword, axe in particular) to punch through an opposing shield wall. Risk is great, honour is likewise immense. It is in minature a column attack on a line.The best counter measyre was also a swine array.The name is from the rush of that most dangerous of hunted beasts , the wild pig.

 

Longbow mighht have something to say about this post.

 

http://www.unrv.com/forum/index.php?act=mo...=si&img=257

 

here is an early photo post of some jolly Norsemen waving at the opposition.

[Favonius Cornelius]

I agree with the reasons you fellow provide for using the wedge under these circumstances:

 

It's possible the formation worked because the Iceni, being barbarians with low disipline, couldn't hold their ground and instead get caught inside the V

 

One assumes that the ,apparent, total lack of unit cohesion ( or comprehension of such a concept) amongst the Icenii would make an atomised mass of individuals vulnerable to a body of men fighting as one and that the ability to "acquire and destroy" a given target is optimised for the Legions.

 

But therein lay still my uncertainty, because outnumbered Roman legions fighting against a disorganized barbarian foe is rather common, and yet the standard line formation is still the formation of choice.

 

I suppose one other factor is the terrain. The Roman commander choose his spot well, for it channeled all the Iceni forward right into the toothy maw of the Roman line.

 

Perhaps also the caliber of the general is a factor. A wedge position is something more advanced, it probably takes a capable leader to correctly pull it off and convince his outnumbered men to adopt it. Gaius Suetonius Paulinus had a rich military background.

[Gaius Octavius]

F.C. Perhaps you have answered your uncertainty.

[Favonius Cornelius]

I was kind of hoping I could bait one of you into doing so.

[PVarro]

But therein lay still my uncertainty, because outnumbered Roman legions fighting against a disorganized barbarian foe is rather common, and yet the standard line formation is still the formation of choice.

 

Well Cornelius, I have to agree that the Romans usually faught outnumbered battles. But this was the extreme case in that statement. The Romans mostly faught 2x1, or even 5x1. But this battle was 23x1. That's a huge difference.

 

And as for the discussion about the "saw" type formation of the army, I was under the impression that each unit made its own wedge. The 14th made a wedge, the recalled veterans that were still alive made a wedge, and the auxilia that the 14th had with them also provided a wedge.

 

The major factor I think was that the Romans were fighting for pride. They weren't about to back down from rebels that they had already conquered. The "formation" of the rebels did help the Romans win the battle. With no organized way to pull out of a battle, once the enemy army was engaged it would be till the end. The Brits in front knew that they should pull back, but everyone behind them didn't and therefore were pushing to get at the Romans who were tearing apart the army.

 

These are just my opinions of the battle.

 

PVarro