“We romanticize swords so much. Imagine everyone is swinging tire irons at each other.”
– John Dolan
Anyone who tries to conceptualize military engagements from a millenia or two ago is going to have their impression heavily shaped by influences that themselves were heavily influenced by fantasists, such as pulp fantasy painter Frank Frazetta. It’s difficult not to imagine berserker Vikings axing their way through villagers caught off guard, vast Chinese or Japanese ranks struggling amidst forests of arrows, or Spartans plowing their way through, well, anybody. And all of it is done for optimal cinematic effect. People with a need for escapism will want to picture themselves in that situation, usually on the winning side.
While it’s no surprise that real life is very different from re-creations done for show, we often get the very basics wrong. So let’s take a look at what combatants from the distant past actually had to look forward to, and hopefully better appreciate how far removed we are from that reality. Not only was the past more horrifying than fiction wants us to believe, it was also often (and surprisingly) far more mundane.
This is an encore of one of our previous lists, as presented by our YouTube host Simon Whistler. Read the full list!