Seleucid army
4th-1st century BCE army / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The Seleucid army was the army of the Seleucid Empire, one of the numerous Hellenistic states that emerged after the death of Alexander the Great.
Seleucid Army | |
---|---|
Active | 312–63 BC |
Country | Seleucid Empire |
Allegiance | Seleucid dynasty |
Role | Army of the Seleucid Empire under the Seleucid dynasty |
Size | 62,000 (c. 217 BC) 57,000–70,000 (c. 190 BC) 22,000 (c. 160 BC) |
Engagements | Third War of the Diadochi Fourth War of the Diadochi Seleucid–Mauryan war Galatian invasions Syrian Wars Anabasis of Antiochus III Seleucid–Parthian wars Roman–Seleucid War Maccabean Revolt Parthian War Seleucid Dynastic Wars |
Commanders | |
Notable commanders | Seleucus I Nicator Antiochus I Soter Molon Antiochus III the Great Bacchides Diodotus Tryphon |
As with the other major Hellenistic armies, the Seleucid army fought primarily in the Greco-Macedonian style, with its main body being the phalanx. The phalanx was a large, dense formation of men armed with small shields and a long pike called the sarissa. This form of fighting had been developed by the Macedonian army in the reign of Philip II of Macedon and his son Alexander the Great. Alongside the phalanx, the Seleucid armies used a great deal of native and mercenary troops to supplement their Greek forces, which were limited due to the distance from the Seleucid rulers' Macedonian homeland.