The arsenal of the Mycenaean warrior was completed by the heavy breastplate. The elite warriors initially carried very heavy breastplates, of the Dendra type – from the location where it was discovered in a Mycenaean tomb, in Dendra of the Argolis. Tree-type armor provided excellent protection to th
Amida, todays Diyarbakir, in todays Turkey, was, since ancient times, an important passage from Mesopotamia to Asia Minor. In 502 AD the Persian (Sassanid) King Kavad declared war on the Byzantine Empire. After capturing Theodosioupoli, Kavad continued his march towards Amida. The Persians appro
At the start of the war the Greek Army had 12,200 machine guns of three types. The Model 1915 Chauchat submachine gun was by far the worst submachine gun of all time, although it was used by almost all Allied armies in World War I. The Greek Army procured them in 1917 (about 3,500 of them). The r
Today is the birthday of the Hellenic Air Force. On this day, in 1912, the first four Henry Farman 50 hp military airplanes were named during a ceremony at the zoo in Paleo Faliro, in the presence of the Holy Synod, the government and other state authorities. The contractor was Prime Minister El
In our childhood, many of us learned the legend of the Marble King. It has been 566 years since the City had fallen to the most barbaric people the world has ever known. As a child, the scribe heard the legend from his grandparents, both of whom had embraced the same vision, which they almost realiz
Dimitrios Paleologos was probably born in 1407. He was the 5th son of Emperor Manuel II Paleologos and Eleni Dragatsis. From an early age he showed that he would develop into a great wound for Hellenism, which was living through tragic times. Ambitious and selfish, he was not satisfied with the i
Andronikos IV Paleologos was a prince and emperor of those who contributed the most to the definitive collapse of Byzantine power. He was the first son of the emperor John V Palaiologos, a not particularly charismatic ruler. Andronikos was born in 1348 and was proclaimed co-emperor in 1352 at the
On Thursday, April 4, 2019, a presentation of the two-volume work of GES/D4 (Directorate of Army History), entitled The Greek Army during the First World War, took place at the Armed Forces Officers Club (LAED). The event was attended by active and retired officers of the three branches of the E
On Sunday, April 7, 2019, the 78th anniversary of the Battle of the Forts, which took place from 06 to on April 9, 1941 During the anniversary celebration of the Battle of the Forts, a memorial service was held and wreaths were laid in memory of all the Officers and Soldiers of the Greek Army, wh
Georgios Tsolakoglou, from the moment he took over as occupying prime minister, made sure to pursue the Metaxikis. Among them was the commander-in-chief of 1940-41, Lieutenant General Alexandros Papagos. By order of Tsolakoglou, the infamous Katheniotis Report was drawn up. The main accusation at
The second half of the 30s is the final stretch for the start of the second world war. The rise of fascism mainly in Europe is obvious. Mussolini in Italy, Hitler in Germany, but also other smaller or less extreme movements develop, as for example the Romanian Legion of the Archangel Michael, an ant
Radar is a British invention. However, few people know that even small Greece had attempted in this field. Experiments using radio waves had begun since the end of the 19th century. they intensified during World War I and especially on the eve of World War II. General Konstantinos Bakopoulos , co
When the great Xerxes arrived before the strait of Thermopylae with his huge army he could not even imagine what was about to happen. A few Greeks partially blocked his way, humiliated him and tens, if not hundreds of thousands of his men – Herodotus mentions 1.5 million soldiers. But he took it
The defeat at Salamis dismayed Xerxes. Mardonius, the mastermind behind the Persian invasion of Greece begged Xerxes to withdraw. He himself would remain with 300,000 elite soldiers behind and conquer Greece the following summer. Xerxes was soon convinced and left, with the army suffering terribl
The Macedonian army of the Antionid period (277 – 167 BC) was just the memory of the mighty army of Philip II and Alexander. The constant wars had exhausted the human resources and the economic potential of the Macedonian kingdom. When Antigonus Gonatas assumed the throne in 277 BC. he found the
In both cases of barbaric attacks against Delphi, the ancient writers all agree that miraculous phenomena occurred. Rocks were detached from Parnassos, after first thunder was heard and smoke was coming out. The rocks that came off the mountain collapsed, in 480 BC. the Persians, while those of them
Ioannis Troglitis is one of the relatively unknown generals of the Justinian period. he is thought to have been born in Macedonia, rather in the region of Serres, or in Thrace. It is believed that he had relations with Belisarius since childhood and was a member of the first unit of elite Bucellaria
Water is one of the most precious goods for sustaining life on the planet. The ancient peoples knew this truth and many times they tried to deprive their opponents of this precious good, or even worse, to use it as a weapon against their opponents. The rationale was simple. In any case, either t
Manuel Palaiologos was born in 1350, when the empire was already collapsing. The two civil wars that preceded Andronikos II and Andronikos III, and even worse, between his father John Palaiologos and John Kantakouzenos, had removed the last vestige of life from the dying empire. Especially, the s
When the Byzantine Empire first used firearms is not known. There are indications that cannons were used in 1390 in the civil conflict between John E and John Z Palaiologos. Cannons and early rifles apparently reached Byzantium from the West, probably via the Venetians and Genoese. There is much
There was no shortage of absurdities in old Poland. One of them was undoubtedly the organization of the cavalry. It meant that there were never a hundred horsemen in the officially 100-person unit. At best ninety of them served, but often only ... 20-25. In historical books, we often find the s
That there have been prostitutes, prostitutes or women of dissolute life throughout the history of humanity, is something undeniable. This is confirmed by the saying that prostitution is the oldest profession in the world. We can know what was charged in ancient Rome for these services, how much a
Entry taken from the book The Plantagenets Life appears happy for the future Edward III of England. He is the grandson of two of the most formidable monarchs of his time and the eldest son and undisputed heir of Englands King Edward II. It seems that it is enough for him to calmly wait for his fath
The Battle of Villalar was not a great battle, but the War of the Comuneros was of great importance as it was the last revolution of the late Middle Ages or the first modern revolution. After the death of Fernando el Católico and the regency of Cardinal Cisneros, Carlos I, grandson of Fernando, a