archery

Making up a small ten percent of the Greek army’s population, archers were not such a main force within battles. Mostly, it was those of the Hoplites that took a top spot in battle, a number of them being on the front lines along with cavalry and some of the reserve soldiers. Hoplites were the main reliance, backed up by the archers and lightly armored troops (Department of Greek and Roman Art, 2000, Warfare in Ancient Greece). Archers would obviously fire from a longer distance, so they weren’t as up front with battles as others in warfare. Behind the scenes workers, if you would like to compare them to something of that sort. Less seen, yet holding their own unique impact. Archers were not the Greek’s main source of firepower, they were equally as important and used frequently in Ancient Greek warfare.

Archery was not too tough of a technique to grasp; an archer possessed a bow with arrows, which were fired at their targets during battle. The heads of these arrows were said to have originated in Africa roughly 64,000 years ago (Wikipedia, History of Archery). Arrow shafts were made from pine wood and measured roughly eight inches in length, with grooves cut to fit against the bow's string. Compared to a Hoplite or the massive cavalries, archers seemed to be less effective given that they had a certain range needing to be pertained to, yet they were just as effective in battle as anyone else. With a good range, targets could be taken out to protect other soldiers on the field. While they were great with defending their comrades as little as they could, there was little else for an archer to do while in the battle. They were limited in that aspect, and had to keep far to be useful.

As previously mentioned, archers were not close ...

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... that archers may have been quite an overlooked force in the Greek armies. These soldiers were not front linemen, they were not cavalry, but they could be protectors. Killing from the back lines, protecting fellow Hoplites and cavalry as best they could from their far distance. Archers were skillful, and accurate with their shot. Piercing through the helmet of an enemy Hoplite does not sound like an easy thing to do, yet these soldiers performed their duties, and carried their armies to many famous victories, such as the ending to the Persian Wars, as mentioned earlier. This section of Ancient Greek soldiers may not have been most effective, they may not have had high numbers, and they may not have been used as a main force, but the archers of the Greek Wars fought hard and proved themselves worthy of their places in battle, telling of their usefulness with skill.