807:, Perseus' cavalry had yet to engage, and both the king and his cavalry were accused of cowardice by the surviving infantry. Poseidonius claimed that the king was injured by enemy missiles and was brought to the city of Pydna at the start of the battle. However, the 3,000 strong guard fought to the death, nearly 11,000 Macedonians were captured, and Livy reported that his various sources claimed up to 20,000 Macedonian dead. The battle lasted about an hour, but the bloody pursuit lasted until nightfall. Other reports state that due to confusion or tactical error from the king, a corps of 10,000 Macedonians were cut off and did not participate in the engagement.
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The two armies were drawn up in their usual fashion. The Romans had placed the two legions in the middle, with the allied Latin, Italian, and Greek infantry on their flanks. The cavalry was placed on the wings, with the Roman right being supplemented by 22 elephants. The phalanx took up the center of the
Macedonian line, with the elite 3,000-strong Guard formed to the left of the phalanx. Lighter
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little success. Roman allies' officers began to despair. One 'rent his garments' in impotent fury. Another seized his unit's standard and threw it among the enemy. His men made a desperate charge to recapture it, but were beaten back despite inflicting some casualties. Unable to get under the thick bristle of pikes, the Romans used a planned retreat over the rough ground.
830:, who did not engage the enemy. From the case of the 3,000 Agema peltasts, who maintained cohesion far longer than the regular phalanx, it may be concluded that the training levels of the troops involved played an important role in determining both the frontal strength of the pike phalanx and the success of infantry trying to break through the pike wall.
724:, which was perceived by the Macedonians as an ill omen; according to Plutarch, they interpreted it as a sign of their king's demise. Meanwhile, Paullus is said to have understood that eclipses occurred at regular intervals but still believed it was necessary to perform sacrifices and wait for "favourable omens."
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against some 3,400 Romans and allies. By the time of the battle, the
Macedonian army numbered closer to 30,000 men. For example, prior to the battle Perseus dispatched 8,000 of his Macedonians to guard against the Roman fleet threatening his rear: 2,000 peltasts, 5,000 phalangites, and 1,000 cavalry.
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The fighting began the afternoon of the next day, June 22. The exact cause of the start of the battle differs; one story is that
Paullus waited until late enough in the day for the sun not to be in the eyes of his troops, and then sent an unbridled horse forward to bring about alarm. More likely it
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But as the phalanx pushed forward, the ground became more uneven as it moved into the foothills, and the line lost its cohesion, being forced over the rough terrain. Paullus now ordered the legions into the gaps, attacking the phalangites on their exposed flanks. At close quarters the longer Roman
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A Roman deserter, however, made his way to the
Macedonian camp and Perseus sent a force of 12,000 under the command of Milo to block the approach road. The encounter that followed sent Milo and his men back in disarray towards the main Macedonian army. After this, Perseus moved his army northwards
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The two centers engaged at about 3 PM, with the
Macedonians advancing on the Romans a short distance from the Roman camp. Paullus claimed later that the sight of the phalanx filled him with alarm and amazement. The Roman allies tried to beat down the enemy pikes or hack off their points, but with
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Paullus then had Scipio rejoin the main force, while
Perseus deployed his forces for what appeared to be an attack from the south by Scipio. The Roman armies were actually to the west, and when they advanced, they found Perseus fully deployed. Instead of joining battle with troops tired from the
781:, mercenaries, and Thracian infantry guarded the two flanks of the phalanx, while the Macedonian cavalry was also most probably arrayed on both flanks. The stronger contingent was on the Macedonian right, where Perseus commanded the heavy cavalry (including his elite Sacred Squadron), and the
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The
Macedonian kingdom was dissolved, and its government was replaced with four republics which were heavily restricted from intercourse or trade with one another. In time, these were also dissolved, and Macedonia became a Roman province. In 167 BC, Paullus received orders to attack
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The battle is often considered to be a victory of the Roman legion's flexibility over the phalanx's inflexibility. Nevertheless, modern conclusions are that the loss was actually due to a failure of command on the part of
Perseus, as well as the peculiar stance of the
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Livy scribes that the start of the battle erupted due an escaped mule that ran across the river, which was then captured by
Thracians who were killed by pursuing Romans, this angered the Thracian guard on the bank what started a skirmish leading to the battle
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The victory was celebrated in Athens, where an inscribed decree passed by the
Council and People in 168 BC honours Calliphanes, an Athenian citizen who had been present with the Roman and Attalid armies at Pydna, for bringing news of the victory to Athens.
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This was not the final conflict between the two rivals, but it broke the back of Macedonian power. The Battle of Pydna and its political aftermath mark the effective end of Macedonian independence, although formal annexation was still some years away.
878:, resulting in the enslavement of 150,000 Epirotes and the sacking of 70 cities. This took place because the Molossians, one tribe of the Epirote League, had sent aid to Perseus, but all the Epirotes suffered alike in the Roman attack.
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incited Rome to declare war. At first, the Romans won a number of small victories, largely due to Perseus' refusal to consolidate his armies. By the end of the year, the tide changed dramatically and Perseus had gained a success at the
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in Rome in chains. He was then imprisoned. The Senate's settlement included the deportation to Italy of many of the king's friends and the imprisonment (later house arrest) of Perseus at
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cavalry were deployed. However, other sources state that the cavalry did not participate in the fight, as there was a strike against Perseus by the nobles.
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Not so different: individual fighting techniques and small unit tactics of Roman and Iberian armies within the framework of warfare in the Hellenistic Age.
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and lighter shields of the Macedonians. They were soon joined by the Roman right, which had succeeded in routing the Macedonian left.
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distinguished himself in the battle by his personal prowess in a combat in which he first lost and finally recovered his sword.
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The Romans had at least 28,600 men, up to 37,000, of which 22,000 to 34,000 were infantry: Romans, Italians, and allies from
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for the year. To force Perseus from his position, Paullus sent a small force (8,200 foot and 120 horse) under the command of
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was thought to be lost for a while, but he and some friends had been pursuing the retreating Macedonians. The son of
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The political consequences of the lost battle were severe. Perseus later surrendered to Paullus, and was paraded in
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100 Decisive Battles from Ancient Times to the Present: The World’s Major Battles and How They Shaped History
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100 Decisive Battles from Ancient Times to the Present: The World’s Major Battles and How They Shaped History
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Seeing the tide of battle turn, Perseus fled with the cavalry on the Macedonian right. According to
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was the result of some Roman foragers getting a little too close and being attacked by some
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A Military History of the Western World: From The Earliest Times To The Battle of Lepanto
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II 1 1334: Honours for the soldier Kalliphanes, messenger of the Roman victory at Pydna"
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to the coast, a feint to convince Perseus that he was attempting a riverborne
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and regained most of his losses, including the important religious city of
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This article is about the 168 BC battle. For the 148 BC battle, see
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Johstono, P. and M. Taylor. "Reconstructing the Battle of Pydna."
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The next year, command of the Roman expeditionary force passed to
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sword and heavier shield easily prevailed over the Macedonian
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started in 171 BC, after a number of acts on the part of King
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There were several heroes among the Romans. Paullus's son
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894:, commemorates the Roman victory in the Battle of Pydna
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forces were roughly equal, up to 4,000 Macedonians and
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march, they encamped to the west in the foothills of
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915:(Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999), 51.
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16:Battle of the Third Macedonian War in 168 BC
842:Perseus surrenders to Paullus. Painting by
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720:. The night before the battle there was a
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1130:. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999.
945:. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999.
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227:Learn how and when to remove this message
125:Learn how and when to remove this message
1177:London: Methuen, 1935. Reprinted 1980.
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980:Fernando Quesada Sanz,
678:Lucius Aemilius Paullus
358:Lucius Aemilius Paullus
109:more precise citations.
1119:A History of Macedonia
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402:Casualties and losses
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659:Battle of Callinicus
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626:Alexander the Great
616:and the end of the
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732:in Perseus' army.
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638:Macedonian phalanx
516:Roman–Seleucid War
82:list of references
1251:160s BC conflicts
951:978-0-19-953738-9
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962:commencing.
868:Alba Fucens
846:from 1802.
766:phalangites
608:during the
524:Thermopylae
107:introducing
1245:Categories
1218:22°36′47″E
1215:40°21′55″N
1183:0416714803
1160:0306803046
1136:1576070751
1099:25 October
1074:Livy 45.34
1065:Livy 45.42
1056:Livy 45.32
1029:Livy 44.42
1020:Livy 44.32
1011:Livy 44.20
1002:Livy 42.52
993:Livy 42.51
899:References
559:Callinicus
395:43,000 men
385:38,600 men
187:newspapers
154:references
46:improve it
834:Aftermath
774:Thracians
730:Thracians
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539:Myonessus
534:Eurymedon
484:2nd Lamia
479:1st Lamia
474:Apollonia
217:July 2024
115:June 2011
52:talk page
1143:42579288
939:Plutarch
886:See also
852:Budapest
805:Plutarch
786:Odrysian
783:Thracian
779:peltasts
762:Hispania
702:Katerini
620:line of
544:Magnesia
489:Mantinea
380:Strength
296:Location
1190:6969612
864:triumph
770:cavalry
758:Liguria
754:Numidia
710:phalanx
694:Pythion
682:consuls
644:Prelude
606:Macedon
529:Corycus
407:Unknown
369: (
367:Perseus
346:Macedon
318:victory
201:scholar
103:improve
1271:168 BC
1188:
1181:
1158:
1141:
1134:
949:
876:Epirus
768:. The
756:, and
750:Greece
736:Battle
671:Greece
667:Elpeus
410:31,000
309:Result
203:
196:
189:
182:
174:
1166:Pydna
798:Kopis
706:Pydna
622:kings
564:Pydna
316:Roman
302:Pydna
300:Near
208:JSTOR
194:books
88:, or
1186:OCLC
1179:ISBN
1156:ISBN
1139:OCLC
1132:ISBN
1101:2022
1047:who?
1038:who?
947:ISBN
663:Dion
648:The
604:and
602:Rome
596:The
504:Aous
288:Date
180:news
632:'s
389:22
372:POW
156:to
1247::
1173:,
1150:.
1126:,
1092:.
1088:IG
870:.
850:,
818:,
752:,
712:.
673:.
167:.
92:,
84:,
55:.
1103:.
1086:"
928:.
854:.
443:e
436:t
429:v
375:)
248:)
242:(
230:)
224:(
219:)
215:(
205:·
198:·
191:·
184:·
161:.
128:)
122:(
117:)
113:(
99:.
62:)
58:(
23:.
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