Bret Devereaux

Alright! Since apparently I am going to be asked about this every hour or so - let's talk about it! First, I think that protester dressing the ranks is amazing; great protest strategy which both draws attention to the force used without losing the moral high-ground. 1/23https://twitter.com/CongBaseballFan/status/1268484778405158913 …

So, is this a phalanx? No. It's a shield wall. One of the misconceptions I often run into is the idea that locked shields was a uniquely Greek one. It isn't. It shows up all over Eurasia at different times and places, unconnected with each other. 2/23

As near as I can tell, the idea of getting a whole lot of shield-bearing infantry tight together in mutual defense is intuitive enough that it was independently invented a number of times. When we say 'phalanx' we mean a Greek version of this, with some very specific ... 3/23

... cultural and tactical loading. @Roelkonijn can get more specific, but I think to be a true hoplite phalanx (and not just a shield-wall or proto-phalanx), it needs: 1) Be ancient Greeks; this is a culturally embedded institution. 2) Use the aspis shield and dory spear... 4/23

3) Be in close order, generally facing forward. 4) Have pushed all non-hoplites out of the phalanx. 5) Deploy a cohesion derived from Greek polis civic institutions, or else a professional mercenary ethnic which mimics those (e.g. Xenophon's 10k). 5/23

Why does a phalanx have to be Greek, use the aspis, and be based on polis values? The Greeks did not think so. Ancient authors happily use the word for non-Greek formations with very different equipment. We moderns just prefer words to mean one thing and one thing only...