Chariots like the scale model shown here changed the face of battle.
We’re told Archimedes’ heat ray
terrorized Roman ships blockading the Greek city of Syracuse in the third century B.C. Some accounts show the intense heat instantaneously set the ships’ riggings and masts on fire, dev- astating the Roman fleet and forcing Marcus Claudius Marcellus to take the city by other means. But whether the technique really caused wooden ships to burst into flames is a matter of debate. Researchers have attempted to replicate the technique with varying degrees of success, and most histori- ans now agree it most likely was less effective than its reputation.
Impeding success The superweapons of antiquity often had a dramatic effect on war- fare, but as is still the case today, opposing armies inevitably devel- oped countermeasures. An effective countermeasure against chariots, for example, was the use of shields to deflect enemy arrows while your forces moved close enough to cut the reins or attack the horses pulling the vehicles, says Roth. When faced
OS/IMAGES: TKTK
with scythed chariots, as Alexander the Great learned, an army simply could open its ranks and allow the chariots to pass through harmlessly, then pick off the charioteers from behind. Similarly, once the terrifying novelty of war elephants wore off, opposing armies realized they could counterattack by moving out of the way of the rampaging beasts and then using javelins to kill or wound the animals. Another problem with many ancient superweapons was their unpredictability. Indeed, if circum- stances were not absolutely perfect, they could wreak just as much havoc among your own troops as with the enemy. “Superweapons, by their very nature, are often difficult to control,” Roth says. Problems associated with friendly
fire and accidental self-injury can be found in Greek mythology, according to Mayor. In the myth of the Trojan War, for example, Achilles’ spear scratches Heracles’ son and causes a wound that won’t heal. In the same story, Philoctetes accidentally drops
PHOTO: SARATOGA SPRINGS PUBLIC LIBRARY/SCIENCE MUSEUM/ART RESOURCE
a poisoned arrow on his foot, result- ing in a wound that keeps him out of the action for several years. Equally important in slowing
the spread of certain superweapons was their degree of technological advancement. “As technology be- comes more sophisticated and more expensive, there are more barriers to technological spread,” Roth says. “Making a chariot was complicated but not that complicated. Making an atomic bomb, however, is so compli- cated that very few people would be capable of doing so even if you gave them the blueprints.” Many concerns expressed over modern superweapons also were ex- pressed in antiquity. “Every culture I studied that had a written history of the use of poisons or biological weapons expressed qualms about their use,” says Mayor. “It presented an ethical quandary similar to the use of nuclear weapons today.”
MO
— Don Vaughan is a freelance writer based in North Carolina. His last feature article for Military Officer was “A Driving Force,” February 2011.
MONTH 2005 MILITARY OFFICER 61
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