The Seleucids had to keep a sizable army on their western borders, fearing an invasion by their main enemies, the Ptolemies. Therefore, they did not have the opportunity to quickly and with great forces force the rebellious to obedience. The threat, which remained unnoticed in time, arose when unrest began on the eastern outskirts - among the Iranian nomadic tribes. The latter drove out the governor sent from the capital and declared their allegiance to the Achaemenid kings, whom everyone had already forgotten about.
The uprising was led by the leader of one of the tribes named Arshak. The Greeks called this tribe contemptuously “parny” (fugitives), considering them poor and fearful, pushed back to the desert arid lands by stronger neighbors. However, the warriors of Arshak were brave and determined to achieve freedom. They swiftly attacked and destroyed government troops in the territories of the provinces of Hyrcania and Parthia, proclaiming Arshak as king, and then his brother Tiridates, which marked the beginning of the Arshakid dynasty (250 BC - 224 AD).
The worried Seleucids repeatedly tried to destroy the emerging kingdom, but could not cope with the Parthian army. It consisted of light cavalry armed with small double-curved bows and short arrows, with which the riders showered the enemy, dragging him towards their heavily armed cavalry. Riders and horses of the heavy cavalry were protected by scaly or plate shells made of "Margian iron" (see the article "Military Affairs of the Ancient East"). Over the armor, the warriors threw cloaks of red or purple purple.
The Parthian warriors cherished their war horses more than their lives. Golden or rare white suit, they were fast and hardy, well trained, got used to the owner, unmistakably fulfilling all his commands on the battlefield. The Greeks and Romans claimed that the Parthian horses are descended from the "heavenly", the distinguishing feature of the latter was the bloody sweat that came out when running fast. Getting magical horses or their Parthian offspring was the cherished goal of many of the Parthian neighbors. The Roman military leader Marcus Aurelius was happy when, as a military booty, he got a Parthian horse, which could ride for 8-9 days, overcoming up to 150 km daily.
The Parthians also used dogs - terrible Hyrcanian killer dogs. Each of them could cope with an armed infantryman or horseman, a few - with a war elephant. The Greeks considered these dogs, which were raised in the province of Hyrcania subordinate to the Parthians, a cross between shepherd sheep dogs and Asia Minor lions. They had a strong, lean body, covered with short hair, and a huge lion-like muzzle framed by a mane of long, coarse hair.
Комментариев нет:
Отправить комментарий
Примечание. Отправлять комментарии могут только участники этого блога.