05-23-2005, 12:01 AM
My feeling is that 100,000 men, with assorted hangers-on, might have been achieved, provided that there were adequate naval resources and they were well organized. Armies of that general size could be assembled (i.e. the Romans at Cannae, the First Crusade later) for at least a limited period of time. Two hundred thousand soldiers is, I suspect, unrealistic. It is true the Persian Empire was vast, but it is also true that the army was being assembled at the far edge of the empire and marching into hostile territory. Gathering a huge force in the center of the empire was a lot easier - it would have saved the contingents from the farthest east maybe a 1000 mile march.
There are practical difficulties in even gathering that many soldiers. Arranging for different columns to arrive at the same point at the same time was a challenge even in the Napoleonic era. Marching and picking up contingents en route almost inevitably meant someone was sitting and waiting at a rendevous, either the main force or the additions. Sitting and waiting is not all that simple, since the army needs to be supported that whole time. Bernard Bachrach wrote eloquently on the problems that William the Bastard had when trying to invade England in 1066: http://www.deremilitari.org/RESOURCES/A ... hrach3.htm
William's army was undoubtedly much smaller than Xerxes' army, but merely the waste problem was substantial.
"As we have seen, horses eat and drink large amounts; however, they retain relatively little of what they consume. A horse each day produces on the average 4.5 lb. of feces and .56 gallons of urine per 100 lb. of body weight. Thus a horse weighing about 1,500 lb. would produce about 65-70 lb. of feces per day in a mixture that is about 75-80% liquid and an additional 8‑8.5 gallons of urine.44 These excretions, of course, are extremely dangerous to both the animals and the men whom they serve, especially when a military force is encamped for a lengthy period of time or is besieging an enemy stronghold. Urine, while not toxic in healthy animals or humans, does in the process of evaporation produce ammonia, which is highly detrimental to horses' hooves. Feces, by contrast, are highly toxic and if not adequately dealt with can lead to health problems of epidemic proportions. At Dives-sur-Mer, where William of Normandy encamped with some 2,000 to 3,000 war horses for at least a month, a mountain of from 3,600,000 to 5,400,000 lb. of horse feces and a river of from 480,000 to 720,000 gallons of horse urine had to be, and were, disposed of safely."
Having a force of even 3,000 cavalry stay in one place for a month is messy.
hock: When you are assembling forces from Bactria, India, Ethiopia, all marching over unpaved roads, through mountains and across deserts (in some cases), delays are unavoidable and thus the problems of maintaining a force while waiting must be dealt with.
There are practical difficulties in even gathering that many soldiers. Arranging for different columns to arrive at the same point at the same time was a challenge even in the Napoleonic era. Marching and picking up contingents en route almost inevitably meant someone was sitting and waiting at a rendevous, either the main force or the additions. Sitting and waiting is not all that simple, since the army needs to be supported that whole time. Bernard Bachrach wrote eloquently on the problems that William the Bastard had when trying to invade England in 1066: http://www.deremilitari.org/RESOURCES/A ... hrach3.htm
William's army was undoubtedly much smaller than Xerxes' army, but merely the waste problem was substantial.
"As we have seen, horses eat and drink large amounts; however, they retain relatively little of what they consume. A horse each day produces on the average 4.5 lb. of feces and .56 gallons of urine per 100 lb. of body weight. Thus a horse weighing about 1,500 lb. would produce about 65-70 lb. of feces per day in a mixture that is about 75-80% liquid and an additional 8‑8.5 gallons of urine.44 These excretions, of course, are extremely dangerous to both the animals and the men whom they serve, especially when a military force is encamped for a lengthy period of time or is besieging an enemy stronghold. Urine, while not toxic in healthy animals or humans, does in the process of evaporation produce ammonia, which is highly detrimental to horses' hooves. Feces, by contrast, are highly toxic and if not adequately dealt with can lead to health problems of epidemic proportions. At Dives-sur-Mer, where William of Normandy encamped with some 2,000 to 3,000 war horses for at least a month, a mountain of from 3,600,000 to 5,400,000 lb. of horse feces and a river of from 480,000 to 720,000 gallons of horse urine had to be, and were, disposed of safely."
Having a force of even 3,000 cavalry stay in one place for a month is messy.
hock: When you are assembling forces from Bactria, India, Ethiopia, all marching over unpaved roads, through mountains and across deserts (in some cases), delays are unavoidable and thus the problems of maintaining a force while waiting must be dealt with.
Felix Wang
