TECHNICAL TRAINING OF THE ATHENIAN CAVALRY (375 - 350 BC)

Abstract

Cavalry tactics require a well-thought-out horse and rider training on a regular basis as well as a cavalry led by a commander who has tactical skill, sufficient horsemanship and knowledge of horses. As a cavalry commander and horseman Xenophon studied the developments on the battlefield during the 5th and 4th century BC. He carefully analysed cavalry tactics of various enemies of Athens and he put forward recommendations on how the Athenians should train their cavalry. His works On Horsemanship and On the Cavalry Commander therefore show the most modern cavalry requirements of that time. They are important documents showing how the different styles of cavalry deployment came to influence each other. This paper wants to explain which foreign tactics he studied and why Xenophon advised specific horse training exercises to the Athenians.

Keywords

• cavaly
• xenophon
• cavalrytraining
• cavalrytactics
• horsetraining
• warfare