Athene's Prophecy (Gaius Claudius Scaevola Trilogy)

by Ian Miller

  "You will achieve that," the old man nodded, "but you leave the front untroubled. The enemy commander has time to work out a plan, and has reasonable freedom to get started. Any comment?"

  "Would I have been better off to split the legion, and attack in several concentrated points?" Gaius asked.

  "Possibly," the old man asked. "You don't want to get your cohorts too far apart, but equally you don't want any of your forces being spectators. Your advantage is of surprise. You must achieve as much as you can with that. Me, I would commit less to the rear, and at least try to launch a diversionary attack on the command, if for no other reason than to give the enemy commander something to distract his concentration. You'd be surprised how often a weak commander can't get his mind off his own personal and current problems. Also, if the enemy is strung out, you'd be surprised how many of the men are more concerned about what is happening 'over there'. They start to imagine things, they start to fear things are much worse somewhere else, and they're about to be encircled and killed. That's when troops with poor discipline start fleeing. So, remember, if you can do it without risking your own battle-plan, don't be afraid to send some men off to generate as much chaos as possible. Now, for some further points . . ."

  * * *

  "You hear an enemy army is approaching from the east," Timothy said, opening the exercise for the following day. "You send out scouts and establish the army is intent on conquest and at present marching speed will enter your eastern arable land in seven days. You can reach the limits of your eastern productive land in five days. Your move."

  "How big is this army?"

  "Your scouts say they have about nine thousand men."

  "Have I any other potential enemies?"

  "For the purposes of this exercise, assume not."

  "Then I march my legion towards the enemy. I maintain as many exploratores as I can afford, because I regard it as imperative that I keep track of such a force. On day five, assuming I have reached the outskirts of my territory and the enemy is still marching . . . How do I know he is an enemy?" Gaius suddenly asked.

  "For the purposes of this exercise, assume you are at war."

  "Then where are we?" Gaius asked, as he looked at the board.

  "You should know where you are," Timothy smiled. "You've been marching."

  "I have been heading in the general direction required to head off my opponent," Gaius replied, then added sourly, "My scouts have apparently told me where that is, but you haven't."

  "Then he is here," Timothy said, and placed a marker on the board.

  Gaius stared at the board, then said, "On the following day I march slowly to here, and form a defensive line."

  Timothy nodded, then left. When he returned he moved the enemy markers to oppose Gaius.

  "Why are you there?" Timothy asked.

  "There's a swamp on my left," Gaius said. "I shall fortify to here, leaving a narrow gap between myself and the swamp. There's also a small riverbed behind me, which I can use to move troops and reserves without being too visible."

  "I see," Timothy replied. "The next morning your opponent lines up for battle. Give your order of battle."

  "I order the first cohort to the centre," Gaius said, "the second and third to the left. They are ordered to make a lot of noise and look as if they're the main attack, but they're only to hold position. The fourth also goes to the left and be seen to do so, but on the commencement of battle it is to slide back to this riverbed and march to the right, unless directly countermanded. The fifth, sixth and seventh go to the right, the eighth is visibly seen as a reserve behind the centre, the ninth is a hidden reserve on the right. I deploy the archers in the riverbed, with orders to support the right. I position myself here, then when ready, assuming the enemy doesn't attack first, I order the fifth, sixth and seventh to attack, supported by archers, and assuming nothing goes wrong, once battle has commenced I order the cavalry to attempt to flank on the right. The centre and the left are ordered to hold."

  "I see," Timothy nodded, and left the room. When he returned, he said, "The enemy makes a mass attack on your centre as you initiate your attack on the right. Your attack proceeds well enough, and very soon you have broken through their first line. The enemy orders reserves to plug this gap."

  "Assuming my cavalry is engaging, I signal the eighth and ninth to advance as quickly as possible and to pass through the fifth and sixth, to give them a bit of a rest. If I think the centre will hold, I let the order for the fourth stand. When the fourth reaches, it joins the fifth and sixth, and tries to punch its hole."

  "And now?" Timothy asked when he returned.

  "Now nothing," Gaius frowned. "I have to rely on my soldiers."

  "On the contrary," the old General smiled as he entered, "you should have left some sort of order as to what everyone is supposed to do assuming you punch your hole."

  "I thought it was obvious! If I'm through the flank, I turn them, and by then they shall probably be fleeing. If not, we clean them out."

  "Yes, and your centurions will probably assume that, but nevertheless, it doesn't hurt to let them know you've thought it through right to the end."

  "I suppose not," Gaius conceded.

  "Why did you attack through the right?"

  "Because I'd left a small gap on my left, and I thought the enemy might find that side attractive. In any case, I noticed that your line was narrow, and given the fact that you have far more men, that sounds as if an attack through the centre was unlikely to be profitable."

  "That's sound," the General nodded. "The idea of using the riverbed to move troops out of view of the enemy was also sound. However, what were you going to do if the enemy massed an attack on the left?"

  "Defend as well as I can," Gaius admitted. "I send my two obvious reserve cohorts there, and keep on attacking the right."

  "Perhaps," the General said, "but assuming this plan I would do one of two other things. I would either let the left, and to a lesser extent, the centre, fall back after the initial attack begins. That presents an oblique line to the enemy, and if your attack is going well on the right, the enemy soldiers are often unsure of advancing too far, knowing if their left folds, they will be cut off and slaughtered. The other option is to wheel the left flank back, to put a bend in your line, and thus concentrate your defence thus being better able to support your attack. The enemy now has a decision to make, and unless they have good discipline, good signalling and a good commander, things now start to go wrong. Suppose the enemy follow, which is what they're likely to do? They all go charging off after the retreating soldiers, thinking they're on the verge of winning, but what they then forget is that they run the risk of leaving a thin line on the point of the wedge. A concentrated attack here cuts right through them, particularly with undisciplined or unseasoned troops because as soon as they see you are making an attack that could cut them off, as likely as not they'll turn and run, and you've effectively won from a tactic that started off as nothing more than a defensive move to shorten your lines. As an aside, that is what Parmenio did at Issus. That was particularly effective because the Persian cavalry were approaching at an angle to the infantry, making it much harder to punch a hole, and when they ceased to attack, a wedge drove right through them, and with the sea on the other side, there was nowhere to go. What resulted was a bloody slaughter, simply from the initial order to have a bend in the line. Now, a few further points . . ."

  Chapter 16

  The next operation was a surprise. His legion had advanced upon an enemy far more numerous than he, but who had retreated to a fortified position at the top of a formidable hill. It was just as Gaius was about to plan his campaign that he suddenly recognized the battle. This was exactly the layout of the battle where Julius defeated the Gauls at Alesia. The answer was easy. Julius had won the battle, so he knew how to do so too. He immediately ordered his legions to surround the hill with the massive earthworks, and to build the palisades. He also sent out scouts, and found no enem
y on the outside.

  As the days went by, at least in the game, the earthworks were making commendable progress. Then suddenly, bad news! A large enemy force was sighted from the south. This was not supposed to happen for weeks. Then the next day, worse! The external force attacked his eastern troops, while a concentrated mass of the enemy poured down from the hill to attack the northeast line.

  Following the throw of the dice it was declared that they must punch a hole at the northeast line. Those who had broken through then wheeled south to attack the Roman force from the rear, more came down from the hill to attack these Roman forces front-on and while all this was going on, Gaius realized that too many of his forces were on the wrong side of the hill. Half his force was declared to be wiped out, supplies were gone, and he was out of communication with the remaining half.

  "Well?" the older General smiled at the somewhat abashed Gaius.

  "That would have been a disaster," Gaius admitted sheepishly.

  "And why did that potential disaster happen?"

  "The enemy reinforcements weren't supposed to exist," Gaius said. "According to my scouts . . ."

  "You relied on one piece of information without verifying it," the older General agreed, "and you made no effort to check it, not that that would have made a lot of difference. But that's not the issue. What is the lesson?"

  "I don't now," Gaius admitted. "I was . . ." He stopped. What could he say?

  "Fighting Caesar's most famous battle," the General challenged.

  "I recognized it," Gaius admitted, then added sadly, "Caesar won it, and I didn't."

  "That's not the lesson," the General said. "The lesson is essentially one of defence. The Gauls had correctly found one of the best defensive spots available, and so far, they are winning. It's generally wrong to launch a primary attack up-hill. The problem for the Gauls was, Caesar did not attack."

  "Neither did I," Gaius admitted, "but I still lost."

  "Because you assumed the Gauls would adopt a passive defence," the General said. "He who maintains a passive defence eventually loses. The key to adopting a defensive strategy is to spot a critical moment and know when to turn it into an offensive one. Once the Romans began digging trenches, they generated a new problem. Can you see it?"

  "I had to dig trenches all the way around the hill," Gaius replied, "which meant thinning out my forces. Perhaps I should have kept them closer together."

  "Then I would have merely marched away down the other side."

  "That's what I thought," Gaius admitted. "So I spread out the troops, and . . ."

  "And I lead a concentrated attack from above at a perceived weaker point in the line, coupled with an external attack that Caesar did not have to defend against until his works were complete. Once through, what happened next was inevitable."

  "So what should I have done?" Gaius frowned. "The way you put it, it was a no-win game."

  "Life can be like that," the General shrugged. "Sometimes you are destined to lose."

  "That's not very positive," Gaius shook his head. "You've got to do something."

  "Yes, you do," the General said. "The object is to be more competent than your enemy, and if you're not, then at least be sufficiently competent to live and fight another day."

  "I should have run?" Gaius frowned.

  "No, but you should have had a line of retreat," the General advised. "You're seriously outnumbered, there are enemy reinforcements coming, so you can't be assured of winning. In fact, in any attack, a General should have a line of retreat thought out. You can never guarantee to win, so when it's not your day, your first priority is to salvage what you can.

  "Your next mistake was strategic," the General went on. "What was your objective?"

  "To defeat the Gauls," Gaius frowned.

  "A commendable objective," the General smiled, while a slightly amused and condescending look crossed his face. "It is, however, the overall objective of the war and is not a strategic objective, or at least not a clear current objective."

  "But if I beat the Gauls I win the war," Gaius protested.

  "Then prioritize," the General said. "There are two forces of Gauls. The ones on the hill are doing nothing, and they are in an optimal defensive position. If they stay there, you can come and get them some time later. The real problem is if they come down and attack in conjunction with the new force. I would argue that if they had done that with everything they had against Caesar, even with the palisades complete, Caesar would have lost. Too many of those on the hill sat on their arses and watched, and even then it was a close thing. Now, what you must do as soon as you hear that the new enemy force has arrived before you get your defensive fortifications in place is to bring all your forces to what you see as your best spot, which, as an aside, could be somewhere else. Try to deceive them, try to split them, and attack one part at a time. Which brings me to the next point. While your men are digging trenches, you should get a clear idea of advantages and disadvantages of the local terrain, and form a reserve plan of what to do if someone else turns up. Remember, after you heard about the additional enemy forces you had a day to implement any manoeuvres.

  "Yes, I know, in that day you might waste half an hour while inspiration came, and you had two minutes on the board game, but that's not the point. You won't learn enough playing in real time. What you should take from this is that once the situation changed so dramatically you must adapt. Forget about surrounding those on the hill. Your best move is to protect your rear, and attack the relief force.

  "But your real major fault was that you were not fighting your battle. You were lazily showing me you remember what Caesar did. I would argue Caesar was somewhat lucky in that campaign, and you cannot rely on such luck. It may be that Caesar had a plan to deal with a Gaul counter-attack before construction finished, but since, apart from continual skirmishes, one did not eventuate we do not know. However, we do know you had no such plan, and once the unexpected began, you found yourself helpless. Think about this, and we shall resume again tomorrow."

  * * *

  Once again, Gaius was staring at the board. A message had arrived informing him that the enemy had been sighted. Two separate forces were heading towards his two villages, and in five days would enter his zone of agriculture. At present they were leaving the wooded area at the head of the valley, one part was marching down the side of the river towards the northern village, while the other appeared to be marching south, presumably to attack the second village from the east. There seemed to be little alternative. He split his legion into roughly two equal groups, and sent one group to each village, with instructions to secure the villages, then to march out towards the enemy and then engage him as far from the villages as possible. He would lead the group defending the nearest village.

  Timothy took his actions to the other room, and when he returned he said with a smile, "Go back to the beginning. You have received a message that the enemy is now in a single force, and is marching down the southern side of the river towards village number one."

  Gaius shrugged, and said, "I send out more exploratores to verify this is so, but . . ."

  "Assume it is so," Timothy intervened.

  "Then I march my legion to the first village, then I head out to intercept the enemy. I aim to meet him about here," he said, and pointed to the map. "I shall line up and prevent entry to our territory, but the exact deployment will be left until I see exactly where and how he deploys."

  Timothy left, and returned with a General who was shaking his head sadly. "As I suspected," he smiled. "You have some idea of tactics, but little idea of strategy."

  "I don't understand," Gaius said, a trifle angrily.

  "Strategy is more than just going out there, meeting the enemy, and fighting. Let's look at the first scenario. The enemy has split his forces to give you two problems. You simply accepted the two problems."

  "What else could I do?" Gaius frowned. "I could hardly give up one of the villages."

  "No," the Gene
ral smiled. "You should leave some forces with each. Take advantage that you are fighting on your home ground, and recruit help."

  "The citizens pay their taxes for the legion to defend them. They . . ."

  "They don't wish to be raped and pillaged," the General countered. "They will help build fortifications. Your men may have to do most of the fighting, but you can count on a number of them standing behind protected fortifications and letting loose some arrows."

  "I suppose, but supposing the enemy is merely pillaging the farm land. I can't . . ."

  "I said leave some of your forces to defend the villages. The rest should march out, as a single unit, to form a line and separate the two enemy forces. Cut off their communications between the two of them."

  "To stop them coordinating an attack from opposite directions," Gaius nodded. "They can still get inspired and try to encircle me, though, but . . ."

  "But?"

  "I don't want to look like I'm fighting yesterday's battle, but I guess if that happens I just have to fight my way out through the weakest point."

  "Encircling is all very well when things are going your way, or if the enemy is set on defence, but against an enemy intending to attack, all you do is thin your line . . ."

  "Because his line has to be longer to get around you," Gaius nodded. Timothy would be talking about geometry in any minute.

  "However," the older General smiled, "suppose they don't encircle you? Now what?"

  "I suppose I attack one of the enemy forces," Gaius offered, then quickly added, "That was the thought, not the order of battle!"

  The older General smiled. "Then what do you do? Assume you have four cohorts, including the first?"

  "If the two forces are equal, I go for the one where I have the most favourable terrain," Gaius said, "while if they're unequal, I go for the weakest. I put the first to guard the rear, in case the other force gets inspired, and in the absence of any further information about terrain or their deployment, I attack the centre with two cohorts, and I try to turn the right flank with the last cohort."