Carlos CHARIOTS
By Caceres and Rebecca Wallace
ILIAD
83 References in total: "Menelaus grinned as he hefted his gear/And stepped down from his chariot" (III) "[The Trojan leaders] drove out...onto the plain. They pulled up in the space/Between the two armies and stepped down to the earth" (III) "Nestor positioned the chariots in front...`When you make contact with
ILIAD
Hera and Athena outfit a gold and bronzed chariot with horses and poles, ride it to the battlefield, but they yoke it by the rivers (V) "`Let's drive over there/To where the real killing is going on'...the chariot's rails above/Were spattered with blood kicked up by the horses and turning wheels" (XI) Greeks hold a chariot race during Patroclus's funeral, Diomedes wins
History of Chariots
Chariots were invented in the Near East Has always been the easiest and simplest type of carriage Built in Mesopotamia as early as 3000 BC Gravestones show the Achaeans adopted the chariot for warfare in the late 16th century BC Went from the Greek mainland to Crete, but originally from Eastern contacts
Hittite chariot, from Egyptian relief
Five Achaean Chariot Designs
BoxChariot: Used since the early period of the late Helladic, small, two-wheeled, box-shaped, built for one person, usually four-spoked wheels, related to Egyptian chariots QuadrantChariot: Rare type of chariot, D-shaped floor, heatbend rails on the side, rounded profile, sides covered with ox-hide or wickerwork, wheels have either four or six spokes, related to Egyptian chariots DualChariot: Largely used in the Aegean area, semi-circular extensions on the back of the chariot box, only used by Greeks, heat-bend wood, oxhide or textile stretched across the frame RailChariot: Very light, open frame, pictured in Late Helladic vases, related to Egyptian chariots FourWheeled Chariot: Four wheels, first depicted in paintings from 1500 BC, very rarely used
Chariots in Trojan time
Main War weapon of the late Bronze Age until about 1200 BC Lightweight construct with two-spoked wheels set far back on the machine Usually made of a light wood such as cedar--sturdy and easy to work Frame sometimes left bare but usually covered with tough leather and stucco Floor made of interwoven leather strips for lightweight but strong elastic support for the riders Before chariots, wheels made out of solid wood Spoked-wheels arrived with the chariots--usually four spokes, later six Were up to 80% lighter than the solid wheels used previously
How They Were Used
Riders often had a composite bow to shoot from the chariot Opponents must be chariot's length away from each other to avoid crashing, entanglement Charioteers had fine armor that prevented mobility along with enemy arrows If chariots had spears, must have been long enough to avoid destruction in the process Lances may have been used, but probably only as secondary weapons to chase fleeing infantry Goal was to break phalanx of spearmen and scatter the warriors
Discrepancies
In the Iliad, chariots are really no more than transportation to the battlefield However, huge chariot forces would have required much time, effort and money-- makes no sense that this would have been wasted on fancy transport After 1200 BC, chariots were really no longer used during warfare. Homer would not have understood the true purpose of the chariots when documenting the Iliad. Nestor's quote is the one mention of the probable purpose of chariots when he says that strategy had worked for years before
In Our Opinion...
Chariots were used as travelling weapons in a battlefield that often depended on stagnant forces Chariots were mobile firing platforms for archers--lances and spears were too unwieldy when attached Homer was deeply influenced by what he saw in his time--describes elegant and ornate chariots which would not have been as present in the battlefield of the Trojan War