ancient Rome had originally fought as part of a phalanx similar to the Greek version. A evolution of change began when the Roams found out at the River Allia, this formation could be subject to an envelope tactic which enabled the attackers to penetrate the Roman flanks. In time the phalanx was therefore discarded into the legion.
Rome dropped the Greek phalanx and adopted the manipular formation of the Samnites in the 4th century BC
Phalanx Formation
A massed fighting formation of armoured infantry.
Flat land allowed it to keep close formation and change its frontal direction easily, however that also favoured enemy cavalry, so the phalanx needed its own cavalry support to protect it, and also th stop enemy light infantry from attacking from all sides.
The hoplites fought in the phalanx formation.
The phalanx was a formation of warriors 16-deep where the three front ranks' pikes provided a mass of points which attackers would impale themselves. The other ranks rested their pikes on the shoulders in front and these helped to deflect missiles. Cavalry on the flanks attacked any attempt to outflank the phalanx, and light infantry provided a link between the cavalry and the phalanx.
Phalanx Formation
the battle formation that ancient Greece used was called the phalanx formation.
A massed fighting formation of armoured infantry.
Phalanx
A phalanx was a military formation of packed ranks of infantry locked into formation with spears providing offensive and defensive capability, and shields providing lateral and overhead protection.
Phalanx
Their battle formation - the phalanx was a massed formation which broke less cohesive ranks. Their spears were twice as long as other Greek spears which added to the phalanx's power.
Flat land allowed it to keep close formation and change its frontal direction easily, however that also favoured enemy cavalry, so the phalanx needed its own cavalry support to protect it, and also th stop enemy light infantry from attacking from all sides.
The hoplites fought in the phalanx formation.
The ancient Greek phalanx battle formations have been the subject of debates both in ancient history and among today's historians. In fact, it is still not clear whether the so called deep phalanx formation was a better tactic then the so called "shallow" formation. In one instance a phalanx formation composed of veterans, may have only needed ranks four rows deep. In the case of new, untested soldiers, the depth of the phalanx formation was at times 12, 16, and 32 ranks deep. Some historians believe the deeper the group, the more power it had. It had extra soldiers in the rear ranks to step forward to replenish lost troops on the front rows. This is contrasted by others who claim that extra deep ranks were redundant inasmuch as the front ranks were responsible for either the victory or the defeat in a battle.
The phalanx was a formation of warriors 16-deep where the three front ranks' pikes provided a mass of points which attackers would impale themselves. The other ranks rested their pikes on the shoulders in front and these helped to deflect missiles. Cavalry on the flanks attacked any attempt to outflank the phalanx, and light infantry provided a link between the cavalry and the phalanx.
The phalanx was invented by the ancient Greeks, but is seen most when Alexander The Great was in power. Alexander improved the phalanx by adding the pike (an 18 foot spear) to it increasing its effectiveness in battle.