03-05-2012, 09:38 PM
A good example of what you're looking for is the Battle on the island of Sphacteria during the Pel. War (written up as a fairly good novel). The Athenians took around 300 hoplite prisoners at the end so the numbers probably started out pretty small right from the start.
Also while not hoplites per se (light troops - Archers, Spear & sword men), Polycrtes raids on the Ionian Coast and the Eastern Aegean Islands from the Island of Samos prior to the Ionian Revolt wouldn't have involved any large numbers.
The real problem in answering your question, is with the exception of the Battle on Sphacteria what you're looking for really wouldn't get written up or remembered.
Anyone with any military background will tell you that armies send out patrols and those patrols sometimes meet and clash. When Sparta seiged Athens and was cutting down the olive tree's I'm sure it was small patrols that went out to the different area's to do the work and they'd bump into Athenian troops out patrolling for intelligence on who / what / where.
Also while not hoplites per se (light troops - Archers, Spear & sword men), Polycrtes raids on the Ionian Coast and the Eastern Aegean Islands from the Island of Samos prior to the Ionian Revolt wouldn't have involved any large numbers.
The real problem in answering your question, is with the exception of the Battle on Sphacteria what you're looking for really wouldn't get written up or remembered.
Anyone with any military background will tell you that armies send out patrols and those patrols sometimes meet and clash. When Sparta seiged Athens and was cutting down the olive tree's I'm sure it was small patrols that went out to the different area's to do the work and they'd bump into Athenian troops out patrolling for intelligence on who / what / where.
Ira Gossett
