Numidian cavalry IMPLEMENTED
Posted: Sun Jul 26, 2020 10:14 am
Numidian cavalry was a type of light cavalry developed by the Numidians. After they were used by Hannibal during the Second Punic War, they were described by the Roman historian Livy as "by far the best horsemen in Africa.
The Numidian cavalry's horses, ancestors of the Berber horse, were small compared to other horses of the era, and were well adapted for faster movement over long distances.Numidian horsemen rode without saddles or bridles, controlling their mounts with a simple rope around their horse's neck and a small riding stick. They had no form of bodily protection except for a round leather shield or a leopard skin, and their main weapon were javelins in addition to a short sword.
Due to their expert horsemanship and agility, as well as their lack of armor or heavy weaponry, they were most suitable for harassing tactics, charging in loose formation and lobbing their javelins before wheeling off to escape the enemy's counterattack. This harassing tactic, while rarely decisive, could be extremely frustrating to a less mobile enemy, as experienced by Julius Caesar's soldiers during the latter's invasion of Africa. At the same time they were generally unable to stand their ground against heavier types of cavalry. In one incident during the aforementioned African invasion thirty of Caesar's Gallic horsemen drove off a much larger force of Moorish cavalry, while in another a squadron of Caesar's heavy Iberian horsemen routed a large body of Labienus's Numidians, while his Gallic and Germanic horsemen stood their ground.
The Numidian cavalry's horses, ancestors of the Berber horse, were small compared to other horses of the era, and were well adapted for faster movement over long distances.Numidian horsemen rode without saddles or bridles, controlling their mounts with a simple rope around their horse's neck and a small riding stick. They had no form of bodily protection except for a round leather shield or a leopard skin, and their main weapon were javelins in addition to a short sword.
Due to their expert horsemanship and agility, as well as their lack of armor or heavy weaponry, they were most suitable for harassing tactics, charging in loose formation and lobbing their javelins before wheeling off to escape the enemy's counterattack. This harassing tactic, while rarely decisive, could be extremely frustrating to a less mobile enemy, as experienced by Julius Caesar's soldiers during the latter's invasion of Africa. At the same time they were generally unable to stand their ground against heavier types of cavalry. In one incident during the aforementioned African invasion thirty of Caesar's Gallic horsemen drove off a much larger force of Moorish cavalry, while in another a squadron of Caesar's heavy Iberian horsemen routed a large body of Labienus's Numidians, while his Gallic and Germanic horsemen stood their ground.
