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naraburns  nihil supernum  1yr ago (text post)   3929 thread views

Small-Scale Question Sunday for February 12, 2023

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Its a strictly military manual, but the Strategikon is pretty good.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strategikon_of_Maurice

It was attributed to Maurice but there isn't good evidence he wrote it, or even a single author did. While there are a lot of similar guides for military issues produced throughout the Roman period, the Strategikon comes from time and place of incredible pragmatism. Things weren't going great for the empire and they needed smart and effective, no bullshit professional officers. Its an interesting historical text as well as it is much concerned with educating future officers about the neighboring peoples they were mostly likely to fight, their dispositions and technological levels, the terrains of the empires, and economics.

He describes Persians as deviant but obedient and "persistent in work and fighting in the name of their homeland".

Scythians, Turks and Avarians and similar are nomad people; sinewy, superstitious, reckless, committed to a desire for abundance. They are good at horse riding and archery. Also, they own a lot of horses. They can stay on horseback for a very long time, but they are not skilful while they are walking, nor very hardy.

Francs, Lombards and their lookalikes value their freedom very much. They are fearless and bold in battle. They are dissolute in attack and disobedient to their leaders. They are greedy and bribable. They can't stand the heat as much as cold, they are easily ambushed, their camps are very unorganized.

Slavs, Ants and their lookalikes have the same customs and don't let be enslaved. Slavs act with slaves better than other nations; after certain period of time a slave will be released and he can go back home or stay and live as an equal member of the Slavic community. They easily bear extreme weather conditions and a shortage of food; they are good at crossing water, as well as hiding under the water (by using concave canes). They are friendly with foreigners and their hospitality is well known - revenge for the guest is considered a duty. They are easily bribed, they are discordant, and they cannot stand each other. Slavs are skilled with arms and nimble in tight and wooded areas, but unorganized in more open battles. The author praises Slavic women who are honorable after their husbands died"

My fellow Slav friend and myself, also a Slav, concur.

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