the origin of nomadic warefare

[Anonymous]

Does any of you know, which people actually "invented" this kind of warefare? (you know, these guys with their fast horses, equipped with bows and arrows etc.) Were Iranian tribes - like the Scythians - the ones, who attacked their enemies like that or was that a kind of warefare introduced by altaic speaking nomads like the Huns? <p>---------------<br>
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<img src="http://home.nexgo.de/berzelmayr/hadrian.gif"/> Est vita misero longa, felici brevis.<br>
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</p><i>Edited by: <A HREF=http://pub45.ezboard.com/bromanarmytalk.showUserPublicProfile?gid=hadrianus@romanarmytalk>Hadrianus</A> at: 6/17/03 6:08 pm<br></i>

[Goffredo]

I believe that nomadic warfare is older than organized army warfare which was "invented" when people started to build cities around vast farmlands; i.e. with domesticating crops. Until then nomadic warfare was the only warfare, or am I missing something in your question?<br>
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My impression is that nomadic warfare stands out as a concept and may even assume some definite characteristic only when there is a organized way army it is up against that forces it to assume form. <p></p><i></i>

[Robert Vermaat]

Hadrianus,<br>
I agree with Goffredo that 'nomadic' warfare surely predates 'civilized' warfare (I mean the warfare between organised forces based on states).<br>
However, you should realise that 'nomadic' warfare is not 'invented' because it is not organised warfare. By this I mean that 'nomadic' warfare is essentially raiding. Move fast, hit fast and disappear fast, is developed from cattle-raiding, which by many societies was seen as a normal lype of warfare. There is no manual on 'nomadic' warfare, whereas 'organised' warfare is far more complex.<br>
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Usually, raiding and 'nomadic' warfare are very much alike, even if the raiders are a band of thieves and the 'nomads' a well-armed cavalry force engaging a large infantry army. Both need surprise, both hit fast before the defenders can react, and both evade fast. In both cases, the attacker may have far fewer forces. Likewise, the need for bows & arrows lies with the raiders. If the defenders have these as well, the raiders are usually unsuccessfull, same with 'nomadic' warfare.<br>
maybe you'd best compare the attacked armies in 'nomadic' warfare with the attacked farm in raiding.<br>
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This kind of warfare may therefore be very, very old, and in existance long before cities were developed. Raiding was done by nomads and early communities before the dawn of time, I imagine.<br>
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Valete,<br>
Valerius/Robert <p></p><i></i>

[John Maddox Roberts]

I believe Hadrianus's original question might refer to something more correctly called "steppe warfare," the sort practiced by the Parthians and Huns and perfected by the Mongols. This required mounted archers so it could not have originated before the horse was bred up to the size required to carry a rider. Does anyone know when that happened? <p></p><i></i>

[Anonymous]

For nomadic warfare, and every other sort of warfare from the stone age to the present times, I can only recommend John Keegan's "A history of Warfare".<br>
It's all in there.<br>
It seems this type of warfare is based on cattle herding techniques which were themselves greatly improved after people stopped eating horses and began riding them.<br>
"nomadic" or "steppe" warfare itself changed a great deal too. There was very little in common between the bands of warriors gathered around Gengis Khan when he became the ruler of the Mongols and the powerful and very well equipped Mongol armies of later periods, although the tactic was still based on quick maneuvering by large bodies of cavalry, feigned retreats and the like. <p></p><i></i>