Help with my Galatian force! UPDATE 19TH Feb

[Tim Haslam]

I’m building up my Galation army into a mega army ready for a large battle event next June.
Rules will be WAB2 and scale is 28mm, normal army size is 2800pts, this event will be 5000pt armies, so quite large 300+ figures!

Under WAB2 my Galation force can take Greek allies (not phalanx) representative of some of the Greeks fighting with them in the invasion of Greece in 279BC.
I believe some may have been mercenaries?

I’m after more information as to who these ‘allies’ were, please?
Also I also believe the Galatians were recorded as still fighting naked and fanatic at the time of this invasion?

[Psychlic Bob]

I recall they were Paionians? So a few skirmishing light troops on foot and mounted

The Galatians retained their fearsome reputation during the Greek invasion

[Tim Haslam]

I’ve found a reference to Thessalian’s too.
Along with some ‘nobles’?

[SJWi]

Tim, I don't know what source you are using but my recent purchase "The Galatians; Celtic Invaders of Greece and Asia Minor" mentions Thessalians, Malians and Ainianians as supporting the Galatians during the invasion.  I've never heard of the latter but a quick google shows their territory been to the West of the Malians. By the way the book I refer to is in the Naval and Military Press Christmas /New Year sale for £7.19 so may be worth buying?     

[Jjonas]

“ Celtic Invaders of Greece and Asia Minor" mentions Thessalians, Malians and Ainianians as supporting the Galatians during the invasion.”

Ainians are from the Spherichos valley in northwest Thessaly. Thessalian coins show peltasts in petasos hats. So I would favor them as peltasts.
In fact the latest issue of Slingshot has one of those coins with a Duncan Head article about Allie’s and shield designs at 2nd Mantinea which is very useful stuff for the period.

AMPW cites a source that claims Paeonians as allies.
So a small cavalry force could be argued for them.

People usually are desperate for some missile troops to support the sword dominant Galatians so they reach for any sort of javelin support.
Sadly in the battles these Allie’s don’t seem to be mentioned.
At Thermopylae the Greek psiloi seemed to snipe at the Galatians from the rocky hills with impunity. The Thessalians did not seem to dare to follow the sacking of Delphi. Not wanting that stain on their cities no doubt.

[Jjonas]

Oh and another point. I think of two “brands” of Galatians.
One- the columns that invaded Greece from the north which seems to be infantry dominant. Large masses of cavalry are reported but that may be just the fact they penetrated everywhere at once and crossed rivers and obstacles like Mongols.
But we don’t hear much about the cavalry after that.
They may have been more helpful overrunning Macedonians.
But I don’t remember references to chariots in the western groups.

The other groups went east and in Anatolia they seem to have large cavalry forces, chariots and even armored infantry. So maybe the Anatolian Galatians were more “pure” except for their Bythinian allies.

One of the fascinating dark holes in history is the Kingdom of Tylis on the Black Sea. This is where the western Galatians settled after being kicked out of Greece and Macedonia. Their kingdom was wiped out by Thracian armies.
That must have been a quite hellacious war, of which we know so little.
Rhomphia men vs. Galatian warbands- evoked the scenes of LOTR Elves scything down hordes of orcs.

[Jjonas]

“Also I also believe the Galatians were recorded as still fighting naked and fanatic at the time of this invasion?”

The Greeks fascination with the naked warriors is understandable but probably overstated for their audience. My take is Galatians (who migrated from southwest Gaul by most accounts) are just like any other Celt army. Some units of fanatics with the majority being stable warband types.

The forlorn hopes linebreaker types were common in all Celtic armies so that’s where the fearsome naked dudes stand out. The scale of WAB games makes having separate units handy. But a lot of Galatians fought naked and many clothed as well and were not fanatic as WAB labels them.

I did experiment with many versions of Galatians for the successors book. From all fanatics to a version more like the rule book Gallic list.
I also tried “fanatics” as berserkers like in Viking armies. That was fun but complicated so it was turned into an option, which of course never quite gained wings and flew.
Ultimately the main rule book list was the most fun as long as the rules for “immune to psychology” could be squared with “warband psychology” - which WAB2 I believe solved.

[Tim Haslam]

Superb as usual Jeff, thanks.

I’m adding some peltasts, some mercenary bow and some light cavalry to my Galatian force.
Main army will be a mix of normal warband and fanatics, but mostly fanatics I’m afraid!
It’s massive at 5000pts, nearly 400 figures.
I’d love to add the scythed chariots to my normal light chariots but sadly can’t get them in in V2.

It’ll be fun.

[Citizen Sade]

The other groups went east and in Anatolia they seem to have large cavalry forces, chariots and even armorer infantry. So maybe the Anatolian Galatians were more “pure” except for their Bythinian allies.

Some Galatians ended up in Asia Minor after the failed invasion of Greece. The extra cavalry, scythed chariots and armoured infantry, I suggest, are likely later developments based on their new environment and enemies.

With regards to the naked Galatian fanatic stereotype, i think it’s worth remembering the Greeks’ appreciation of the naked form and representing it in art. Also that Greece gets hot in campaigning season.

If the Galatians fielded allies during their invasion of Greece, I’d expect they’d mainly be hangers-on from the areas they invaded beforehand. So, in DBA terms, auxilia, psiloi and light horse from Illyria, Thrace etc.

[Jjonas]

They beat a number of Macedonian and Thracian armies, so they had access to some looted armor and gear, if they wished to use it. The description of "the elephant battle" is another Successor era major event that is woefully lacking in details. Some debate whether it was real, or a skirmish blown into mythological proportions. Often limited scenes get expanded and enhanced. It's kind of odd that the two major instances of scythed chariots having success were in Asia Minor (Persian against Spartans, and Pontics against Bithynians), and none seem to have been detailed as part of Galatian victories, and both were situations that would be labeled skirmishes. The tactic of driving chariots through the warbands that parted for them is an attractive idea on paper. It may have worked against other tribal forces. But the surprise elephants seem to have scattered them. Its  a popular tactic to try with them- but no mention of that in Greece.

The classic naked dying "Gaul" statues in all the books come from Pergamum so they are actually Galatians. However they are representing the warriors defeated by the Pergamene kingdom- so some Galatians probably still fought naked for both their own armies or in the various Successor forces that hired them. Duncan Head notes in AMPW that after Magnesia the Roman invasion of Galatia does not mention naked warriors, just a lot of lost battles, submission, and later being a great man power source for legions.

[Tim Haslam]

Plus you’ve got racial stereotyping and prejudice, just, if not more, as prevalent as it is today.
Galatians = hairy barbarians without grace, empathy or intellect.

I love my hairy (naked) barbarians . If slightly Hollywood in style.

[Jjonas]

Coin of a Thessalian cavalryman and infantry of 400 to 350ish BC.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pelinna#/media/File:Drachma,_Pellina,_Thessaly,_5th-4th_century_BC.jpg

By the time of the Galatian invasion more Thessalians were armored but probably not all.

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-V_Lz2CVAUzw/U3eEmytIISI/AAAAAAAAAZo/-mwQAv1TOb0/s1600/Pherai+Silver+Stater+of+Alexander+369-358+01+rider.jpg

[Jjonas]

I like my Galatians non-specific. Clothed and unclothed. Some have the blue and white shields, others random. That way they can be used as more generic sorts of Celts if need be. I find the allied peltasts useful and some line light cavalry from the Twilight Greek list useful.

Non specific Galatians:
https://ancientbattles.com/Galatians/galatian_warriors_AB_01.html

[Tim Haslam]

Great article Jeff.
I’ll post some pictures of my horde when I’ve got the last recruits added.

[Jjonas]

Plus you’ve got racial stereotyping and prejudice, just, if not more, as prevalent as it is today.
Galatians = hairy barbarians without grace, empathy or intellect.

I love my hairy (naked) barbarians . If slightly Hollywood in style.

It’s always the same theme - the winners write the history. They’re certainly truths in that history- divide and conquer. Coordinated Unified Mental Discipline beats Aggressive Random Scary Individualism. The small wiry sturdy men beat the beefy giants. Urban societies seem to win over the hillmen with only occasional randos like the Mongols burning the cities.

It’s sad that we only have fiction writers to flesh out the “barbarian” side’s story.

History that people should read.