Mediterranean Hegemon of Ancient Greece Chapter 904: Battle of Gela (1)

Leotychides had received another urgent plea for help from Minoa. The Carthaginian army's relentless assaults over the past few days, combined with the devastating toll taken by their siege weapons, had pushed the Minoan defenders to their breaking point; the city was on the verge of collapse. At the same time, news arrived from Selinus: his naval departure from the Port of Selinus had not escaped the notice of Carthaginian coastal patrols. The very next day, the Carthaginians launched an offensive against Selinunte.

All of this fueled Leotychides's urgency to eliminate the Carthaginian army camped outside Gela. After conferring with the Geloans and the Camarina reinforcements, he decided to meet the Carthaginians in a pitched battle.

At dawn, Leotychides marched out of Gela with 8,000 soldiers of the Eighth Legion, 1,000 riders of the 4th Cavalry Legion, 5,000 Geloans, and 3,000 reinforcements from Camarina—a total force of 17,000 men. They advanced four li to the west and drew up their battle lines opposite the Carthaginian camp.

The massive fleet of troopships sailing into the port of Gela could not be kept secret from the Carthaginian army camped along the coast. Consequently, they had halted their siege efforts for the past two days. Instead, convinced by Gisco's repeated urging, Hasdrubal recalled roughly 2,000 soldiers from the garrison at Ecnomus, leaving only a skeletal force of a few hundred behind. He also dispatched orders to his subordinate forces besieging Henna, compelling 1,500 soldiers to make a grueling, day-and-night forced march through the mountains to reinforce his position.

One of Gisco's arguments had truly moved Hasdrubal: “...According to our sentries, Daionia has no fewer than two hundred troopships, which means at least ten thousand Daionian soldiers have entered Gela. This brings the city's defenders to a number roughly equal to our own. The Theonians cannot possibly be planning to just defend the city; they want to defeat us. Compared to the massive host led by Lord Mago, our army is smaller, yet we are stationed closest to Daionia's territory and pose a significant threat. If we can crush the Daionian Army here, we will swiftly achieve the goal Lord Mago promised the Senate—driving the Theonians entirely out of Sicily. And you, Hasdrubal, will be hailed as a hero by the people of Carthage! ...”

So, the moment he learned the Daionian Army had marched out of Gela, Hasdrubal eagerly began assembling his troops within the camp.

While the Daunian Allied Forces organized their ranks, Hasdrubal led his own army out of the camp, arriving opposite them to form his battle lines.

Hasdrubal's army consisted of a mixed force of 10,000 Phoenician and Numidian troops, 4,000 Iberian infantry, 2,500 Lusitanian Warriors, 600 Celtic Warriors, and over 1,000 specialized troops, bringing his total strength to approximately 18,500 men.

Because the battlefield was a flat, grassy plain where one could see clearly for several li in every direction, the earlier deployment of the Daunian Allied Forces gave Hasdrubal and Gisco an unhindered opportunity to observe them.

The Theonia Legion's distinctive black armor and helmets stood out strikingly amid the formation, immediately drawing Hasdrubal's eye. He noticed that the Daionian Army was heavily concentrated on the right side of his own perspective—the left wing of the Daunian Allied Forces. After a brief discussion with Gisco, he began arranging his own formation: 7,000 of his mixed Phoenician and Numidian troops took the left wing, directly facing the legionaries of Daionia.

This particular army had been specifically raised by the Magonid family in preparation for their expansion into Iberia. For various reasons, they had not recruited Carthaginians at the time, drafting instead a massive number of paupers and drifters from Numidia and the Phoenician Allied States along the North African coast. Starting at 20,000 men and peaking at 40,000, they were the primary instrument through which the Magonid family established their foothold and expanded their territory in Iberia. Over the past decade, led by Mago and Hasdrubal, these troops had fought countless battles against the fierce Iberian natives, becoming the Magonid family's most reliable asset. For this invasion of Sicily, Mago had brought 20,000 of them, leaving 10,000 behind to garrison Southern Iberia.

In the center, Hasdrubal placed his remaining 3,000 Phoenician and Numidian troops alongside 2,000 Iberian infantry.

The Iberian infantry consisted of natives from Southern Iberia. While not as ferociously warlike as their distant relatives, the Lusitanians, they possessed a much larger population and greater unity. They had once caused tremendous trouble for the Magonid family's conquest of Southern Iberia, and it had taken Mago roughly six or seven years to force most of their tribes into submission.

Consequently, Mago had not dared to enslave the peoples of Southern Iberia as Carthage had done to the Numidian slaves. Instead, he heeded the advice of his nephew, Haca: as long as the tribes submitted, he would not strip them of their lands. He allowed them to live freely within their territories, exempted them from taxes, stayed out of their internal affairs, and traded daily necessities with them at generous prices...

However, these tribes still had strict obligations to fulfill. They could not violate colonial law (which was not Carthaginian law, but rather a legal code tailored by Haca specifically for Southern Iberia). Whenever the Magonid family waged an external war, the tribes were required to provide manpower—though they were also rewarded with rich spoils of war upon victory. Furthermore, inter-tribal warfare was strictly forbidden, with any conflicts submitted to the Magonid family for mediation. This essentially elevated the Magonid family to the role of paramount chieftains over all the tribes in Southern Iberia. Since their core interests were protected and they reaped significant benefits, the tribes' resistance against Mago naturally plummeted.

Through these policies, Mago's domain in Southern Iberia remained largely stable. He also secured a massive pool of free recruits, sharply reducing the military expenditures needed to maintain colonial security and cutting down on the number of mercenaries required (primarily the Phoenician and Numidian troops). For this particular landing, Mago had brought along 15,000 Iberian infantry.

The right wing was composed of 2,500 Lusitanian Warriors and 2,000 Libyan soldiers. Though this wing had the fewest troops, Hasdrubal staked his hopes of victory on it precisely because of the Lusitanian Warriors.

The Lusitanians were actually a branch of the Celts. Tall and powerfully built, they sprinted with tremendous force and speed, excelling in the use of large shields and falcatas. Their weaponry was similar to that of their relatives, the Iberian infantry, but where the Iberians fought with steady discipline, the Lusitanians plunged into slaughter with absolute frenzy. They were perfectly suited for the offensive, which was why Hasdrubal positioned them on the extreme right, expecting them to tear open the path to victory.

As for the 600 Celtic Warriors, Hasdrubal kept them stationed behind the center. This was not because he had developed a habit of holding forces in reserve, but because he had faintly caught sight of a substantial cavalry presence among the Daunian Allied Forces.

Hasdrubal was nothing like Monteadno. He and his uncle Mago had meticulously studied the past battle records of the Theonians, realizing that their cavalry always played a critical role in their victories. They had even adapted this insight into their own conquest of Southern Iberia, frequently utilizing cavalry to shatter enemies and turn the tide of battles. After all, Carthage boasted an abundance of cavalry resources—Carthaginian cavalry, Numidian Cavalry, cavalry from the allied states of Mauretania, and even a sizable number of Lusitanians. During this campaign alone, Mago's grand army fielded over 7,000 cavalry.

However, because Hasdrubal had been tasked with leading his forces over mountain passes to ambush the Sicels and then strike the rear of the Daionian Army, bringing cavalry would have been a massive hindrance. Consequently, his current army lacked a single horseman. This forced him to hold back the Celts to defend another contingent and jointly protect the formation's flanks from any Daionian cavalry charges.

Of course, the Celts were arrogant and unruly. They struggled to coordinate with other units in a battle line and often ended up obstructing an offensive, which was another reason for isolating them. To ensure they stayed in line, Hasdrubal assigned Gisco to oversee the rear of the center formation, making the containment of this Celtic unit one of his primary tasks.

Once these deployments were set, Hasdrubal rushed toward the right wing. He intended to personally lead the charge alongside the Lusitanians. For the supreme commander of a Carthaginian army to array himself with a throng of native tribesmen—and to stand at the very front of the battle line at that—was utterly unprecedented among the Carthaginian nobility. Not even Mago could bring himself to do such a thing. Yet, through this very act, Hasdrubal won the deep respect of the Iberians, the Lusitanians, and even the Celts, making them all fiercely willing to obey his command.

...

When Leotychides received the scouting cavalry's report confirming that the Carthaginian army had marched out of their camp, his mind settled. Today's pitched battle was undeniably going to happen.

He began a more meticulous deployment: 6,000 heavy infantrymen of the Eighth Legion were arrayed from the right wing toward the center at a depth of only eight ranks. This stretched the Eighth Legion to cover half the entire length of the battle line. Linking up with the Eighth Legion were the Geloan heavy infantrymen, whose formation was deepened to fourteen ranks. To the left of the Geloans stood the Camarina heavy infantry, also deployed fourteen ranks deep...

The Daunian Allied Forces' formation resembled a machete—the right side acting as a narrow wooden handle, while the left side formed a thick, heavy blade. Leotychides had arranged it this way out of sheer necessity. Having fought alongside the allied armies of the Southern Coast for several months, he possessed a deep understanding of these Greek city-states' forces. Most of them had reasonably proficient heavy infantry combat skills and were brave enough in a fight, but their discipline was loose. They lacked the stamina for prolonged engagements and were prone to breaking when faced with setbacks. It was this exact concern that prompted him to deepen their ranks. By doing so, even if the front-line soldiers—encumbered by their thick Greek Heavy Infantry armor—panicked and tried to retreat, the relentless pushing of the ranks behind them would force them forward. Otherwise, they would be far more likely to die from the enemy's strikes or be trampled beneath their own comrades' boots.

(End of Chapter)