Introduction
The Persian Empire stretched from western Asia, Central Asia, northern India, across Anatolia to Egypt. It was the largest empire in the ancient world, both geographically, and by population. Modern-day Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Lebanon, Syria, Pakistan, Iran, Afghanistan, Greece, Libya, and India were part of the Empire (Allen 5). Consequently, the Persian Empire existed between 500BC and 1747AD, the largest period in the history of empires. One fundamental aspect that kept the empire integral was the size of its army. Even though Alexander III of Macedon conquered the Persian Empire, Persian forces were among exceptional troops during the ancient world (Gabriel 68).
Analysis
Herodotus referred to the Persian soldiers as the Immortals. This was a formidable force made up of more than ten thousand soldiers with differentiated roles such as standing army and Imperial Guards. They played a vital role during the conquest of Egypt, Babylon, Scythia, and Greece. The army had short spears, wicker shields, swords, strong bows, and arrows, which were beneficial sources for the empire. The Immortals had differentiated ranks, each time they went to war; moreover, a caravan of camels, carriages, and mules accompanied them. The caravan was in charge of food supplies, which was unusual for the army, and of alongside attendants and concubines responsible for the well-being of the Persian Immortals before and after battles (Warry 89).
The Immortals had arguably the vast resources in terms of finances and workforce. The Persian Gulf warfare, which entailed fighting with cavalries and archeries, was synonymous with the Immortals (Warry 89). Furthermore, the army had a guiding vision and a mission statement that were a source of strength each time they invaded other empires. Conversely, the army’s heavy artillery and huge statistical advantages did not dissuade the Greek army from conquering them. During their combat with the Greeks, the Persian army generals failed to employ the use of cavalry and missiles that their opponents did not possess (De Souza 43).
The Immortals had a unique military structure, which consisted of four levels (Gabriel 68). The first level consisted of leather-armored soldiers with shields made from bamboo. Their helmets were conical in shape, in addition to intertwining lamellar. Only their faces and hands were exposed during battlefields. Furthermore, their spears were roughly six feet. On the other hand, the second level consisted of warriors, who had medium quality gears and received medium pay. Iron lamellar and helmets identified warriors in this category. The third level consisted of the elite class. Cyrus the Great founded this army, which comprised of more than 10, 000 troops. This level was unique for after battlefields whenever a soldier died a middle-class trooper took their position. Three troops, which possessed fencers and archers, formed a group of infantry that consisted of hundred members each. The cataphracts in this group had horses and were skilled enough to use their preferred weapon on the back of a horse (De Souza 43).
Conclusion
Despite all the advantages, the Immortals had weak armors; moreover, they did not adopt the use of the phalanx and had shorter spears than their competitors had. The army consisted of different individuals from diverse cultural backgrounds, which was not reliable since it was a source of traitors. The homogeneous nature of the Persian army and poor tactics employed by the commanders coasted the army, especially during the Greek warfare. Moreover, deeper thinking and poor restructuring techniques of other leaders, for instance, Alexander the Great and Themistocles of Athens, were disadvantageous to the Immortals (Gabriel 68).
Works Cited
Allen, Lindsay. The Persian Empire. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2005. Print
De Souza, Philip. Greek and Persian Wars 499-386 BC. London: Fitzroy Dearborn, 2003. Print.
Gabriel, Richard A. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Westport, CT: Praeger. 2002. Print.
Warry, John. Alexander 334-323 Bc: Conquest of the Persian Empire. London: Osprey Publishing, 1991. Print.