ANCIENT TIMES (20th-8th century BC)
In ancient times the infantry was the basis of the Army. Armed with defensive and offensive weapons, it fought the battle with movement and powerful attack. For this reason it maintained very dense and massive formations in order to have a strong striking force. The heavily armed infantry, usually in fairly deep formations in two lines, formed the main body of the attack. The light infantry was positioned, before the engagement, in the front or on the flanks, and when the battle began it sought to inflict as great a loss on the enemy as possible, and continued throughout the battle to harass the enemy by its own means. The Greeks during the Trojan War carried the armament of that time, which included spear, bow, spear, javelin, sling and for defense a shield, helmet and periwinkle. The chiefs fought from a low two-wheeled chariot drawn by two horses.
HISTORICAL TIME (8th-4th century BC)
Young Spartans received public education from the 7th year of age and were counted as conscripts from the 20th year. The life of each young man was devoted to gymnastics and military training, with the result that Sparta acquired an army unique for its military virtues, iron discipline, endurance and fighting ability. The armament of the ancient Spartans included a breastplate, helmet and shield (defensive armament) or long spear and short sword (offensive armament). The applied battle formation was a single line of usually eight men in depth. Spartan military doctrine was based on the individual training of the hoplite, the use of weapons and maneuvers on his absolute discipline and individual prowess.
ATHENS (7th-4th century)
In ancient Athens, after the 18th year, the young man was preached as a teenager and took the oath of citizenship. He was then given arms and sent to the city’s borders, where he was trained in warfare. The Athenian army was equipped with a helmet, a breastplate, a shield, a spear with an iron or steel point and a sword. The Athenian line-up consisted of companies of co-located companies forming a frontal phalanx of successive yokes with a man-to-man spacing and depth of one step. Miltiades invented the “Step of Ascension” which was combined with the “War Cry”, i.e. the Athenians executed an attack by shouting war cries, such as alala, eleleus, etc. Since the time of Miltiades, Strategy and Tactics have both literal and essential Greek origins and signify the dominance of the quickening inventive Greek spirit over the inanimate mass.
THEVA (379-362 BC)
After the decline of Athens and Sparta, Thebes assumed the hegemony of the Greek cities thanks to its military power, the creation of the famous generals Epaminondas and Pelopidas. At the battle of Leuctra, Epaminondas innovated:
by applying a new tactical arrangement, the famous “Sergei Fallanga”.
He was the first in history to grasp the importance of the principle of economy of forces and the tactical doctrine of the battlefield distribution of missions for the success of the intended objective.
He was the first to grasp the concept of reserve and its use to ensure the execution of the maneuver plan.
MACEDONIAN PERIOD (359-323 BC)
After the Battle of Chaeronea (338 BC), the Macedonians assumed hegemony of the Greek cities. Philip was the first reorganizer and founder of the Macedonian Army. In particular:
He abolished compulsory military service.
He abolished the compulsory military service.
He established a system of promotions, based on the personal merit and good service of the officers.
He formed the famous Macedonian Falange.
He organized the Service of Trusteeship and Transport.
In this way Philip was the forerunner of all military organizers and laid the foundations on which a National Army can be organized. The distinctive feature of the Macedonian Falanga was the individual armament and the battle array. The Falangites were more heavily armed. They carried a helmet, a heavier breastplate and a shield covering the fighter as defensive armament. The offensive armament included the sarissa (spear, 4.20-4.80 m long) and the short Greek sword. The Phalangists lined up on 16 yokes, in such a way that the sarissas of the first 5 yokes exceeded the front of the phalanges and formed an impenetrable wall. In addition to the Falagites, the Macedonian Infantry included the corps of “adjutants”, whose main task during battle was to deal with emergencies.
ROMAN ERA (753 BC – 476 AD).
The ancient Romans, with their famous “Military Organization” and the introduction of the well-known “Roman Legion”, created a new era in the whole evolution of the Art of War. In Ancient Rome, military service was compulsory and lasted from the 17th to the 50th year. After this age the Roman citizen was enrolled in a Hectonarty of Reserves and remained there until the 60th year. The military education of the new citizen was a subject which required the most persistent attention. The defensive weapons of the legionary, that is, of the foot soldier, were: the helmet, the shield, the breastplate and the shin of the right foot, to protect it in the fight with the sword. Offensive weapons were: the spear, the hyssos (a short spear 1.30 m long), the sword and the axe. Roman tactics, admitted three different formations:
The “Order of Combat”, open or unfolded, where the stacks and yokes are 1.80 m.
The ‘Manoeuvre’, parade or review, where the dimensions are reduced by half.
The ‘In Mass Arrangement’, where the dimensions are reduced to a quarter.
Byzantine period (330-1453 AD)
Initially the army was composed mainly of Barbarian mercenaries on the Roman model; but gradually the mercenary system began to be abandoned and National Forces were created. The completion of the institution of the ‘Byzantine National Army’ took place under Leo III (717AD-740AD) and coincided with the establishment of the new administrative structure of the ‘Themata’. The idea of a permanent professional Army in peace, reinforced by strong reserves in war, which is the basis of the organisation of today’s Armies, is a purely Byzantine idea. The Battalion is an independent administrative and tactical unit, which has correspondingly heavy and lightly armed personnel, capable of undertaking special missions and achieving immediate security by its own means. This Byzantine innovation has remained unchanged to this day. The battalion was of a strength of 200-400 men, consisting of 16 stacks of men in a line of 16 yokes. The Byzantine battle formation does not have the linear character of the ancient Tactics. It is an in-depth arrangement and corresponds rather to the current notions of the “all-round battle” arrangement. This order included:
The Line of Battle. This consisted of a number comprising two-thirds of the total number of Battalions and was arrayed in a certain direction.
The Line of Reserve. This was 1/3 of the total number of battalions. It was lined up about 1,000 yards behind the line of battle, with 250-yard intervals between the Battalions.
The rear guard. This consisted of two Battalions lined up 250 yards apart, behind the right and left of the reserve line.
The offensive weapons of the Byzantine Army were: spear, javelin, saber, axe, korinne, bows (heavy and light), sling, while the defensive armament included shield, helmet, breastplate, handcuffs, shinbones.
MEDIEVAL AGE (5th-16th century AD)
During the Middle Ages the infantry, despised by the Knights, takes a back seat to the cavalry. But the English quickly understood this error and during the Hundred Years’ War (1447-1453) gave the Infantry, which always remains the King of Arms, its proper place.
LATER TIMES (17th-19th centuries)
The above tactics were maintained in the 17th and 18th centuries. In the 18th century there is a tendency to revert to phalanx formations, with the use of the phalanx for marching and advancing and linear deployment for combat. The Napoleonic era brings a new change. The infantry battle formation is mixed, preceded by a sparse line, which has the capacity to develop its full firepower, followed by small flankers which formed the support of the front line, and followed by a third line in dense formations, which forms the shock mass. This tactic was maintained during the first half of the 19th century and beyond. Later, the line of battle is formed by a line using fire and movement (acrobatic formation from 1870). Under artillery fire, the sections advance in sparse formations of small phalanxes and as they enter the zone of infantry fire they deploy in a sparse acrobatic line. That is, much more importance is given to movement than to fire. The infantry seeks to advance as far as possible and approach the enemy without making use of their weapons. Gradually, however, the value of fire began to become apparent, and the wars of the early 20th century proved that the Infantry can only advance by fire. In Greece, until the declaration of the Greek Revolution, there was no organized military department. A regular corps was formed in February 1821 by Alexander Ypsilantis, the Ieros Lohos.
Modern period (20th century)
In modern times, the increasing destructive power of the various machines brought about, as a natural consequence, the growth of the Artillery and the creation of a new weapon, the Air Force. The proportionate numerical reduction of the Infantry which has taken place has not been at the expense of its value, but in enhancement of its capacity; it is undoubted that it is possible to invent machines which will have not only this material destructive power, but much greater than that of the Infantry, but these cannot provide even a small part of its moral power. It is also well known that war as a whole is a conflict not only of material but also of moral forces. Consequently the Infantry will remain the only complete ‘Weapon, of the clustered fight, the only one fit to fight on any terrain, day and night, by the combination of fire, movement and impact.
KOREAN CAMPAIGN
Greece accepted the invitation of the United Nations and was among the first nations to participate in the Korean struggle. The EkkSe formed in Lamia landed in Korea on 9 Dec 50 and from 1 Jan 51 participated in the Korean campaign alongside the Allied Army. It distinguished itself in the capture of heights 381, 325, and 655 and then in the major attack to capture the vital height 313 (Skoch), very important because of its location, which it achieved despite strong enemy resistance. This success of the EOC, which improved the Allied defensive line, was honoured among the Allied units involved and was morally rewarded by the Presidents of the Republic of the United States of America and South Korea. The remarkable action of the EOC continued with unabated pace and intensity with successful attacks against KELLY and 167 Heights. Likewise, its splendid action in the major attack against the vital high ground of GREAT NORTH, to restore the lost defense line, sealed among the Allied Army the “very worthy” of the EOC. The last battles of the EOC in repulsing fierce enemy attacks, which attempted to capture the HARRY Heights and to break through the Battalion-occupied YOMING defensive line, crowned its glory and secured for it a place of honor among the expeditionary corps of the various participating States.
CHANGES IN THE 1951 CAMPAIGN ARMY
In 1951 from the Infantry side we have the following changes:
The Infantry Brigades were renamed “Infantry Regiments” with the same composition.
The Infantry Division includes three Infantry Regiments.
THE FORMATION OF THE 1951 EXPEDITIONARY ARMY
The Army in terms of Infantry included:
10 Divisions, of six Battalions except the Fifth, of three Battalions.
11 Light Cover Regiments (27 Battalions).
The changes in the year 1953 as regards the Infantry were as follows:
Divisions
The Infantry Divisions did not have at peace the same number of Infantry Battalions, but varied from 3 to 9, of uniform composition. The composition of the Infantry Battalion was improved by the addition of a Heavy Weapons Company, and the Division’s firepower was also improved by the addition of 4.2″ mortars.
Army units
Three Light Infantry Regiment Commands (LERCs) and three Light Infantry Battalions (LEBs) were disbanded. Two Cover Battalions were converted to Divisional Battalions and assigned to Divisions, thus increasing the number of Infantry Battalions from fifty-seven to fifty-nine.
Other Substantial Changes up to 1953
Increased the number of Infantry Battalions in the II Division to provide nine Infantry Battalions. Correspondingly, the number of Infantry Battalions of the VI and IX Divisions was reduced by one Battalion.
CHANGES 1954-1960
The main developments, during the above period, in terms of the Infantry are as follows:
In 1957 the A/T PAO Battalions of 106,000 were formed, their subordination being one to each Infantry Division.
In 1957 the Heavy Mortar Companies 4,2″ of the Divisions were formed as LBOs of Infantry Regiments, with the same composition.
To the Heavy Weapons Companies of the Infantry Battalions was added the 3.5″ A-T Launcher Platoon.
CHANGES 1960-1995
The evolution of the Infantry after 1960 followed the general evolution of the Army.
The reorganization of the Infantry Units gradually began with the introduction of new equipment and assets to meet the existing threat and with the aim of creating an Army of quality rather than quantity.
In the last decade, a number of Battalions, Brigades and Infantry Divisions have been mechanised. The current picture of Infantry Units shows that the Infantry is modernising and steadily moving towards creating a weapon capable of dealing with modern threats wherever they come from (securing national space – asymmetric threats) and successfully providing assistance to Peace Support Operations within the EU and NATO.