BATTLE OF THE DENMARK STRAIT

1941

Under the conditions imposed upon Germany by the treaty of Versailles at the end of the First World War, German shipyards were forbidden to construct surface warships in excess of ten thousand tons. 

In 1935 however the Germans secretly began construction on two formidable fifty one thousand ton battleships, Bismarck and her sister ship Tirpitz.

The extra tonnage was put to good use and both warships showed a marked superiority in speed and armor in comparison to other Naval designs of the period. This also meant that on the open seas no single battleship could match them.  

Following the successes in the Atlantic achieved by the Kreigsmarine during the winter of nineteen forty forty one, the German naval high command began to formulate plans for a much more ambitious and daring operation.

The plan was to send a powerful battle group comprising the newly commissioned battleships Bismarck and Tirpitz accompanied by the battle cruisers Scharnhorst and Gneisenau into the Atlantic and attack supply convoys bound for England.

The operation however began to fall apart almost from the outset as Scharnhorst was forced to undergo major machinery repairs and Gneisenau was seriously damaged by RAF bomber strikes. The Tirpitz was then scratched from the operation as she had not yet completed her sea trials.

The commander in chief of the Kreigsmarine Grand Admiral Erich Raeder, believed it imperative to keep pressure on the hard pressed British supply convoys and decided to go forward with a revised operation. As a result the German force was greatly reduced to Bismarck and the heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen. 

BISMARCK

PRINZ EUGEN

In the early hours of May 21st both the Bismarck and Prince Eugen were sighted leaving Kattegat and later that same day identified in Bergen Fjord, the two German ships then entered more open waters and disappeared. 

On May 23rd while on patrol in the stretch of water between Greenland and Iceland the British cruisers HMS Norfolk and Suffolk sighted the two enemy ships. After notifying the British Admiralty both cruisers then began to shadow the enemy warships.

The nearest British warships capable of intercepting the German's were the newly commissioned Battleship Prince of Wales and the Battle Cruiser Hood which were both ordered on an intercept course.

HOOD

PRINCE OF WALES

On paper the balance of forces for the upcoming battle favored the British with the 44,000 ton Prince of Wales mounting ten 14 inch batteries and a top speed of 28 knots along with the 49,000 ton Hood armed with eight 15 inch guns and a top speed of 31 knots.

The German's countered with the 51,000 ton Bismarck mounting eight 15 inch batteries and a top speed of 30 knots along with the 19,000 ton Prince Eugen armed with eight 8 inch guns and a top speed of 32.5 knots.

At 05:52 on the morning of May 24th, Hood opened the battle from a distance of 12.5 miles targeting Prince Eugen, Hood's first two salvo's however fell just short of her foe. One minute later the Prince of Wales followed suit targeting Bismarck firing four salvo's in quick succession, all of which fell over and beyond Bismark's superstructure.

At 05:55 while both British warships were performing a turning movement twenty degrees to port, at a distance of 11 miles Admiral Lutjens ordered both Bismarck and Prince Eugen to break their silence and open fire against their foremost opponent, the Hood. The first German salvo's however fell short of their target as the British ships continued to close the distance between the two battle groups.

All four warships were now in full action. At 05:56 Prince of Wales fifth salvo overshot Bismarck once again, but her sixth straddled the bow of the German battleship just above the waterline leaving a gaping hole two meters in diameter which allowed two thousand tons of sea water to get into the forecastle.

At 05:57 Prince Eugen scored a hit on Hood's shelter deck near the mainmast destroying her 4 inch batteries which started a large fire that spread towards the second funnel with alarming speed.

At 0600 while the Hood and Prince of Wales were in the process of turning another twenty degrees to port, at a distance of nine miles Bismarck let loose her fifth salvo. At least one 15 inch shell struck Hood's armor belt and penetrated deep within the ship reaching her ammunition magazines where it detonated.

Suddenly the Hood was split in two by an enormous explosion. A few minutes later she had vanished beneath the waves amidst a vast pail of smoke.The entire crew of the Bismarck were awestruck by what had just unfolded before them. The Mighty Hood, for twenty years the largest warship in the world and pride of the Royal Navy, had sank in under three minutes.

This catastrophic event happened so fast that there was not even time for the Hood's crew to abandon ship. All but three of her valiant  company, more than fifteen hundred men including Vice Admiral Holland and Captain Ralph Kerr had perished.

The Prince of Wales now quickly altered her course to avoid the sinking wreckage of the Hood, a move which now forced her between the sinking Battle cruiser and the German warships, this  presented the enemy with an easy target switch.

At 06:02 Bismarck's heavy guns began to punish the Prince of Wales, within minutes she received four hits, one of which completely destroyed the bridge killing all present except for Captain Leach. Prinz Eugen now entered the unequal fight scoring three additional hits on Prince of Wales.

At 06:03 Captain Leach launched a smoke screen and ordered his ship to retreat from the combat zone. Captain Lindemann now issued orders for Bismarck to pursue and finish off  the crippled Prince of Wales, but Admiral Lutjens intervened, arguing the original battle plan was not to engage British capital ships, but to destroy supply convoys bound for England.

The battle of the Denmark Strait was now at an end, In just seventeen minutes the Hood had been sunk and the Prince of Wales had been severely damaged and forced to withdrawal from the fight.

Although the Prinz Eugen suffered no hits in the engagement, Bismarck had suffered damage to her bow under the waterline blocking the use of one thousand tons of fuel oil which reduced her speed to 27 knots and left a visible stream of leaking fuel oil.

Bismarck was also down three degrees by the bow and had a nine degree list to port. The overall damage was not entirely serious, Bismarck maintained her fighting capability, still possessed good speed, and had no casualties to report.

At 12:40 Bismarck and Prinz Eugen continued on course due south at 24 knots. Command of the British situation now passed to Rear Admiral Walker aboard the cruiser HMS Norfolk who was ordered to continue and shadow the two German warships with the Suffolk.

At 6:40 on the evening of May 24th Lutjen's ordered Bismarck to turn and engage her pursuers. Bismarck opened fire on the Suffolk who along with the Norfolk quickly retired under a smoke screen.

Sixteen minutes later the engagement was over and Bismarck turned and once again resumed her original course. This action was purely a diversionary maneuver to cover and make good Prinz Eugen's escape, which then made off at high speed reaching the French port of Brest unchallenged some ten days later.

The British aircraft carrier HMS Victorious would now enter the fight as she came within range to strike at Bismarck. Admiral Tovey knew how imperative it was to sink the Bismark and decided the situation warranted a daring and risky night operation. At 10:00 pm, at a range of one hundred and twenty miles, Victorious launched all nine of her Swordfish torpedo planes against strong head winds and driving rain.

Guided by the Norfolk's wireless, the Swordfish caught up with Bismark some two hours later and began their attack. After skillfully avoiding the first six torpedo runs, Bismarck was suddenly hit directly under the bridge on her starboard side. The damage was minimal however as the torpedo struck the main armament belt which resisted the explosion.

Despite heavy German anti aircraft fire not one of the obsolete Swordfish were shot down during their attack and all succeeded in landing safely aboard the Victorious at 0230 am in pitch dark conditions.

After the Swordfish attack, Bismarck reduced her speed to 16 knots in order to carry out repairs and reduce the pressure within the forecastle. Soon after 0300 on the 25th Lutjens saw the opportunity to break contact with his pursuers.

By taking advantage of the enemy's disposition and the darkness, Lutjens set a new course of one hundred and thirty degrees southeast and ordered Bismarck's speed increased to 27 knots in a bid to reach the French coast.

The maneuver worked as Suffolk suddenly lost contact with Bismarck.The British Admiralty's hopes of preventing Bismarck's escape were dashed when at 0400 Suffolk reported ''Lost enemy contact''.

Bismarck's disappearance caused the utmost despair and anxiety within the British Admiralty back in London, all seemed as though Bismarck had escaped. However just as hopes were beginning to fade, one of two Coastal Command Catalina flying boats out of Lough Erne in Northern Ireland spotted Bismarck at 1030 on the 26th about seven hundred miles from France and steering for Brest.

After thirty one tense hours Bismarck had been found once again. Unfortunately for the British the battleships King George V and  Rodney were 135 miles to the north and 125 miles northeast respectively and still far behind the chase. They would never prevent the German battleships escape unless her speed could be drastically reduced.

At 1450 the British aircraft carrier Ark Royal now came within range and launched her striking force of fifteen Swordfish on a attack run towards Bismarck. At 1550 they obtained radar contact with a ship and began their torpedo run.

Unknown to the pilots the ship within their sights was not the Bismarck but in fact the British cruiser Sheffield. In a extreme stroke of luck the Sheffield was not hit by one of the eleven torpedoes launched because they were fitted with faulty magnetic pistols.

At 1700 hours the Swordfish returned to the decks of the Ark Royal. Some forty minutes later Sheffield obtained a solid contact with Bismarck and skillfully held her in sight. It would be dark soon, the British knew they had one last good chance to stop or at least slow down Bismarck other wise she would escape and reach the French coast next day.

The British put every effort into this last attempt. At 1900 the same fifteen Swordfish used in the previous attack took off from Ark Royal this time with torpedoes armed with contact pistols. 

At 2047 the British found their quarry and pressed home their attack with extreme determination. By 2130 the Swordfish had completed their torpedo assault and headed for home. During the course of their attack two torpedoes had certainly hit Bismarck and possibly a third.

One or two torpedo's had struck Bismarck port side amidships while the other detonated at the stern on the starboard side. the first hits did not cause sufficient damage to Bismarck's superstructure but the second jammed both steering rudders at a twelve degree angle to port.

A shadowing aircraft later reported that Bismarck had been seen to make two complete circles and seemed to be out of control. The flooding within the stern section and other adjacent compartments meant that all repairs would have to be done underwater. Unfortunately, extremely rough seas prevented all attempts by divers to free the rudders.

Admiral Lutjens now had no illusions as to the Bismarck's fate. Shortly before midnight he cabled Berlin, ''Ship unable to maneuver we shall fight to the last shell. Long live the Fuhrer."

The Bismarck was still four hundred miles from Brest. Strong German U-boat forces were now dispatched to Bismarck's aid, however there arrival time was estimated to be too late to help. During the night the atmosphere aboard the German warship was silent and tense, each crewman knew that by dawn the British would engage them with capital ships.

At 0843, the British battleships King George V and Rodney sighted Bismarck and closed to within 20,000 meters. At 0847 Rodney opened fire with King George V quickly  following suit. Unscathed Bismarck targeted Rodney and returned fire with her forward turrets at 0849 without recording a hit. 

At 0854 the Norfolk arrived and joined the battle quickly followed by the Dorsetshire. Bismarck was now up against two enemy battleships and two heavy cruisers with herself unable to maneuver and a top speed of only ten knots.

At 0902, the British rate of fire began to tell upon Bismarck as she was hit by several shells which struck the forecastle, foremast and destroyed the fore top rangefinder. With Bismarck's third salvo she managed to straddle the Rodney but thereafter the British weight of attack became overwhelming. 

At 0908 Bismarck's forward rangefinder along with her two forward turrets were put out of action. The aft turrets now directed four salvos against King George V with no success. At 0913 the aft fire control cupola was struck by a shell from King George V and was destroyed.

The Bismarck's aft turrets continued the fight blindly firing against Rodney under local control, which at the same time Rodney launched six torpedoes at Bismarck of which none struck their mark.

At 0921 Bismarck's turret closest to the stern was hit and put out of action. Ten minutes later Bismarck's final main turret fired its last salvo before being destroyed.

Aboard Bismarck their remained but only a few secondary guns still in action, but these too were quickly silenced by the avalanche of British fire. Captain Lindemann now gave the order to prepare charges to scuttle and abandon the ship.

At 0940 the Rodney turned across Bismarck's bow pouring in a heavy rate of fire at a range of no more than 4,000 yards, at this point blank range it was impossible for the British to miss a shot as shell after shell tore into the Bismarck which was amazingly still afloat.

Just after 1000, Norfolk launched four torpedoes at a range of 3,600 meters in which two struck Bismarck's starboard side. At 1016  Rodney fired its last salvos hammering Bismarck one last time as the King George V short of fuel was forced to leave the scene.

The destruction aboard Bismarck was total as she lay wallowing in the heavy seas a flaming, smoking ruin, yet she still would not go under.

For the next twenty minutes the British patiently circled their stricken foe waiting for her to sink. German sailors now began jumping overboard to escape the carnage. Amidst the chaos and destruction Bismarck's mainmast was still standing with the German battle flag still flaying in the wind.

At 1036 Dorsetshire cruised in and delivered a spread of four torpedoes scoring at least  one hit. Captain Lindemann now ordered the remaining crew to abandon ship and detonated the scuttling charges.

At 1040, the Bismarck finally went down stern first. With her nearly 2,000 German sailors perished including the Captain and Fleet commander. Only a mere 110 survivors were later picked up and rescued by the British. This work of mercy was cut short by the appearance of German U-boat's which compelled the British to withdrawal.

In all the four British warships fired some 2,876 shells at Bismarck in which approximately 600 found their mark. For seventy four minutes the pride of the German Navy received a punishing barrage that no other warship afloat could have survived. In contrast it was a mere three days earlier that HMS Hood was destroyed and sank in only six minutes after the first German shells were fired.

 

ERICH HARTMANN

TOP SCORING FIGHTER ACE OF ALL TIME

At the age of eighteen, Erich Hartmann joined the German Luftwaffe in nineteen forty. After completing his pilot training in October nineteen forty two, he was assigned to the elite JG 52  fighter wing, based in the Caucasus region of southern Russia.

Hartmann's first aircraft assingment was in the dreaded Messerschmitt Bf 109G. Harmann then scored his first air combat victory on November fifth and in the next few months until the end of the year, he would score eighteen more victories.   

 From January nineteen forty three until July, JG 52 was tasked with covering the long Wehrmacht retreat after the German disaster at Stalingrad, fighting in hundreds of defensive actions in the region, where Hartmann scored seventeen airiel victories. 

On August third nineteen forty three during the battle of Kursk which involved nearly four thousand aircraft on both sides. Erich Hartmann achieved his fiftieth airiel victory over a Russian Lagg three fighter. 

On August thirty first after shooting down two enemy aircraft, his Messerschmitt was damaged by debris and he was forced to land behind Soviet lines. Hartmann was then captured by a Soviet patrol but faked internal injuries and was placed on a truck for medevac, where during transport he leapt off and escaped back to German lines.

After the German defeat at Kursk, JG 52 was transferred to southern Ukraine, where on September twentieth nineteen forty three, Hartmann scored his one hundredth air combat victory and was promoted to Captain at age twenty one.

In the month of October, captain Hartmann would go on to score an astounding fifty kills and was awarded the Knights Cross of the Iron Cross, by the commander of JG 52, Major Hubertus von Bonin. 

In February nineteen forty four, Hartmann scored his two hundredth  aerial victory. In response, the Soviet high command placed a bounty of fifty thousand rubles on his head. In March Hartmann was summoned to the Berchtesgaden and personally awarded the Oak Leaves to his Knights Cross by Hitler.

In May, JG 52 was transferred to Romania to protect the Ploesti oilfieds were on June twenty fourth, Hartmann shot down two American P51 Mustangs in his very first encouter with the best fighter plane the allies possessed.  

 

In August, JG 52 was transferred to Poland to face the russians once again were on the seventeenth, Captain Erich Hartmann became the top scoring fighter ace of all time after scoring his two hundredth and seventy fourth air combat victory.

Hartmann would achieve his three hundred and first airial victory when on August twenty fourth, he shot down an incredible eleven enemy aircraft in a single day. He was promoted to Major and then summoned to the wolfs lair to once again be personally awarded the diamond swords to his Knights Cross with oak leaves by Hitler.

In December, Hartmann was encouraged to join the Luftwaffe's elite JV 44 squadron which were flying the new Me 262 jet fighter under the command of Lufwaffe General Adolf Galland, but declined.

On the last day of the war, May eighth nineteen forty five, Hartmann scored his final victory over the skies of Brno Czechoslovakia, a Russian Yak eleven, bringing his war total to three hundred and fifty two confirmed kills.

Major Hartmann would land and be informed that Germany had officially surrendered and that the war was over. He then ordered his squadron to surrender to the Anglo Allies, but they were handed over to the Soviets on May fourteenth.

On December twenty seventh nineteen forty five, Erich Hartmann was spared execution and sentenced to twenty years hard labour as a war criminal and placed in the Soviet gulag system, however after ten years imprisonment he was released.

In nineteen fifty five, Hartmann was approached by the ministry of defense to rejoin the newly formed West German air force, he was reinstated the following year with the rank of colonel and given command of the seventy first fighter wing, equipt with the American F86 Sabre.

In July nineteen sixty, the West German government replaced there ageing sabre squadrons with the new American Lockheed F 104 Starfighter, of which Hartmann steadfastly described as a death trap, for his vocal opinions he was forcibly retired from the air force. 

Colonel Erich Hartmann would later die on September twentieth nineteen ninety three aged seventy two and is buried with his wife Ursula at the cemetery in Weilim Schonbuch, Germany. 

 

THE BATTLE OF AUERSTEDT

1806

One day before Napoleon's victory over the Prussians at Jena, Marshal's Davout and Bernadotte commanding the French third and first corps respectively, were following the Emperor's orders to march together and occupy the city of Naumburg. 

For many years hard feelings had run deep between the two men and as they continued there advance, Bernadotte chose to purposely distance himself from Davout by leading his corps toward the town of Dornburg, thus leaving Davout to march on alone in hostile territory.

Along third corps line of march, a dense fog had suddenly rose up and covered the entire area blinding the marshal's line of sight. And with only one of his three divisions present, Davout choose to stop near the town of Auerstadt and camp for the night. 

At 7:00am the next morning the fog abruptly lifted to reveal a large Prussian army encamped a mere one mile from Davout's position. The Marshal immediately ordered General Gudin to form his 10,000 men into square and sent urgent dispatches to his other two divisions under General's Friant and Morand, to come to his aid with all hast.

Without calling for infantry support, Field Marshall Blucher assumed command of the Prussian cavalry and charged towards the formidable French position. This uncoordinated attack had little effect on the French formation and Blucher was compelled to fall back suffering heavy casualties. 

Witnessing Blucher's rebuff, King Frederick William III and the Prussian field commander the Duke of Brunswick, now wasted an additional two hours evaluating the situation. This allowed Davout's second division of 8,000 men under General Friant to arrive at 9:00 am and take up positions on Gudin's right.

Now with 17,000 men Davout redeployed his forces in order to keep the road back to Naumburg open in the event he was forced to call a withdrawal, sending the greater part of Gudin's division to the north of the village of Hassenhaussen while leaving only one regiment to its south.

Just before 10:00 am the Prussians finally attacked in force with two infantry divisions to the north and south of Hassenhaussen. The northern attack was decimated as the Prussians were caught in a murderous crossfire as they veered to far from their objective and marched straight between Friant's and Gudin's divisions, while the southern attack easily brushed aside the lone French regiment. 

With his left flank in serious danger of being turned, Davout personally led two regiments from Gudin's division and counter attacked the Prussian breakthrough, successfully throwing the enemy back and returning some stability to the French lines. 

At this stage Davout's entire command was now heavily engaged, his third division was still to the rear and would not arrive for some time nor was their any sign that Bernadotte may be marching to his aid. 

                                                      Marhal Davout

Fortunately for Davout the Prussians failed to make use of their numerical superiority by turning his weak left flank, instead they wasted more precious time and men by launching four consecutive frontal assaults to take Hassenhaussen, all of which were repulsed with heavy losses. It was also during these failed attacks the Duke of Brunswick was shot through both eyes and killed. 

King Frederick now makes a grave error by failing to take immediate command of the Prussian army, instead allowing his troops to fight on leaderless. At 11:00am when the King does finally assume overall command, the Prussians have again lost there tactical advantage by allowing Davout's third division of 8,000 men under General Morand to arrive and take up positions on the shattered French left. 

At the same time a Prussian infantry division under the Prince of Orange also arrived on the battle field, but instead of going into action on one flank or the other, the Prince divided his force sending half his men to each Prussian wing respectively.

King Frederick now orders General Wartensleben to mount an infantry attack on Morand's flank. The Prussian assault suffered immense casualties as it was cut down by the murderous fire from French rifles. Morand's defence was so disciplined and stubborn that the Prussian attack simply melted away.

The Prussian right flank was now in serious peril of disintegrating. King Frederick still had two infantry divisions numbering 15,000 men in reserve to call upon, but Frederick was mesmerized by the thought he was facing Napoleon in person and ignored the urgent requests by his commanders to commit these troops to stop the collapse of his army.

It was now mid day and with Davout sensing victory, he formed up his three divisions and ordered a general advance. Still refusing to commit his last reserves the King of Prussia could only concede defeat and ordered his army to withdrawal. 

The withdrawal however soon began to turn into a rout, for as Davout's corps approached, the Prussian's began to panic and scatter in all directions. Davout ordered his men to pursue but they were to exhausted to continue.

Davout's victory had been now been complete some 10,000 Prussians lay dead and 5,000 more taken prisoner along with 115 cannons, French losses numbered 7,000 men. The battle of Auerstadt would be Field Marshall Davout's finest hour and history would rank him as one of the great commanders. 

The Prussian capital of Berlin would fall to Napoleon some eleven days later, in the triumphant parade that followed the honour of entering the Prussian capital first, was bestowed upon Davout and his III corps.

 

THE BATTLE OF THE MARNE

1914

By the end of August nineteen fourteen, news for the allies on the western front was not favorable and the situation deteriorating. The French had suffered three hundred thousand casualties since the outbreak of the war and several German armies had advanced to within thirty miles of Paris.

On September 1st, the French commander in chief General Joffre ordered the newly formed French 6th Army under General Maunoury to fall back on the capital and support the Paris garrison under General Gallieni. Joffre also gave standing orders to all commanders along the lower Marne River to prepare for a counter attack.

On September 5th, the Allied offensive began along a one hundred and twenty five mile front. Three French and one British army comprising just over one million men marched forward against an equal number of enemy formations in an attempt to halt the advancing German forces and save Paris from occupation.

As the fighting between the French 6th Army and the right wing of General Von Kluck's German 1st Army grew more fierce with each passing hour, Kluck ordered the transfer of two Infantry Corps from his left flank to support his right. This created a dangerous gap between his army and that of Field Marshall Von Bulow's 2nd Army.

To help Maunoury cope with the German reinforcements, General Gallieni commandeered twelve hundred taxi cabs to rush reinforcements from the Paris garrison to support the French 6th Army. 

On September 6th the British Army (BEF) marched into the gap between the German 1st and 2nd armies reporting that it had encountered virtually no resistance. Joffre now ordered his 5th Army under General D'Esperay forward to protect the British right flank and drive a wedge between the two German Armies.

On September 7th with his flanks crumbling, General Von Kluck ordered his entire army to fall back. Von Bulow's right wing now disintegrated under the intense Allied pressure and he was also forced to order his army to retire. 

With their central lines broken wide open to an extent of thirty miles, Von Moltke and the German high command ordered a general withdrawal of some forty miles, stabilizing their front behind the Vesle and Aisne rivers.

If the Allies had not themselves been so utterly exhausted and at the end of there supply's, they may have turned the German retreat into a complete route and had ended the war with a sensational victory. 

Allied casualties in the eight day battle numbered two hundred and fifty thousand French and thirteen thousand British dead wounded and missing. German losses amounted to two hundred and twenty thousand casualties.

As a direct result of the German defeat, Von Moltke was dismissed from active service and replaced as chief of staff by General Von Falkenhayn, who's first order was to launch a series of attacks through Belgium against the exposed allied left flank. 

But General Joffre and the French high command also had the same followup battle plan and began shifting forces north, this upcoming phase of the war until the end of the year would be known as ''the race to the sea''.

 

THE BATTLE OF CYNOSCEPHALAE

197 BC

The titanic struggle between Rome and Carthage during the second punic war of two eighteen to two o one B C, had prevented the republic from pursuing a policy of all out war against the Greeks. With the fall of Carthage, the Romans could now concentrate their full might against Carthage's former ally. 

Despite the war weariness of the Roman populace, General Titus Flamininus managed to acquire Senatorial approval to declare war on Greece. After some indecisive skirmishes with local militias the main Greek army under King Phillip the fifth of Macedon arrived to check the Roman's at Cynoscephalae. 

The two opposing armies would be quite evenly matched, the Roman's fielded an army of twenty four thousand infantry and Three thousand cavalry. The Macedonian Greek army countered with twenty six thousand infantry and two thousand cavalry.

The two armies would face one another on opposite sides of a series of ridges and sloping depressions. All along the staggered front advance troops from both sides began to clash. In these early stages the Greek's would prevail, driving the Romans from the slopes. 

Upon arriving at the battlefield, king Philip was uneasy with the prospect of fighting with his Phalanx's on such difficult terrain, but the reports of Roman forces having been driven back with such ease, inspired him to remain and give battle.

Although Philip's right flank was secure his left wing had not yet arrived and still trailed behind his main position. Realizing that his left flank was dangerously exposed, Philip ordered his right wing Phalanx's to lower their spears and attack before the Roman's could take advantage of this weakness. 

The Greek's quickley drove the Roman left wing back in disarray. Flaminus was forced to commit his reserves to stop the flank from collapsing. With the situation momentarily stabilized, Flaminus ordered his right wing forward to attack the disorganized Macedonian's still marching up on Phillips exposed left.

At first the Roman's forced the Macedonian light infantry to fall back, but they were hard pressed to gain further ground on the heavy infantry Phalanx's as they arrived in force. After a bitter struggle, it was now the Roman's which found themselves being pushed back. 

Phillip noticed the Roman right wing was beginning to waiver and thus ordered the last of his reserves to join in the attack on the crumbling Roman flank. With the addition of these fresh troops, the Roman flank began to buckle and was close to collapse. 

With both Roman flanks falling back and the total defeat of his army hanging in the balance, Flaminus gambles all and orders his last central Legion forward. Phillip, believing this to be a last act of desperation, orders his center Phalanx's to hold their ground and await the Roman attack. 

As the Roman advance reaches the half point on the battlefield, Flaminus halts and orders six of the Legions nine cohorts to divide into two seperate forces and fan out towards both crumbling Roman flanks, to attack the still advancing Macedonian's from their rear. 

To late, Phillip now orders his center forward in support, but the Roman's are already in position to block his advance. Now unopposed the Roman Legionaires cut deep into both exposed Macedonian flanks, killing hundreds with each advancing step. 

As the Macedonian casualties now began to rise into the thousands and with no reserves to throw in to stop his armies destruction, a horrified Phillip attempts to save what's left of his army by giving the order for his men to raise their pikes and surrender. 

Unfortunately the Roman's do not understand this gesture and continue with the slaughter. Phillip can only watch as his troops are massacred and both his flanks completely destroyed. Faced with utter defeat, Phillip orders what's left of his army to withdrawal and he escapes back to Macedonia.

At Cynoscephalae the Macedonian's and their Greek allies suffered ten thousand dead and five thousand taken prisoner, compared to four thousand Roman casualties. Philip's influence within Greece was thus forever broken and he was essentially confined thereafter within Macedonia itself.   

The battle of Cynoscephalae was a turning point in military history. For two hundred years the Macedonian Phalanx had been invincible on the battlefield. By force of arms it would now give way to the Roman Legion, which would now dominate the battlefields for the next five hundred years. 

 

THE BATTLE OF GAUGAMELA 

331 BC

 After the Greek victory at Issus, Alexander continued south down the Aegean coastline and occupied Egypt unopposed. With Egypt captured, Alexander had secured the Greek mainland from Persian naval attack and could now move inland to the heart of the Persian empire. 

On the plains of Gaugamela near the city of Arbela, King Darius had assembled another large army to confront Alexander. However besides a few regular Persian units and Greek mercenaries to form the core of his army, for Gaugamela, Darius had truly scraped the bottom of the manpower barrel.

Alexander now marched his troops to within sight of Gaugamela. The Greek army of forty thousand infantry and seven thousand cavalry, would find themselves matched by an immense Persian army of some two hundred thousand infantry and forty thousand cavalry. 

For the upcoming battle Darius placed his chariots to the front of his army. Behind these stood the bulk of the Persian cavalry extended in line to both wings with the Persian infantry to the rear.In response, Alexander placed his infantry phalanx's in the center with his cavalry supported by light infantry on both flanks. 

Darius opened the battle ordering his left wing cavalry under general Bessos to attack. The Persian horseman at first rode outward to the extreme left and then slowly wheeled right in an attempt to roll up Alexander's right flank. 

Although heavily outnumbered the Macedonian right wing cavalry commander general Ariston, led a desperate charge towards the oncoming Persians. Once engaged, Ariston found it difficult to hold the Persian attack until Alexander sent in units of the reserve infantry phalanx to stabilize the situation.

Darius now ordered his two hundred chariots forward to attack the Macedonian center. As the chariots drew closer the Macedonian infantry began to divide ranks and form corridors, simply letting the chariots pass through, only to be later surrounded and cut to peices.

Bessos's attack on the Greek right wing had created a large gap between the Persian left flank and the cavalry battle, Alexander now assumed command of his companion cavalry and charged forward into the breach against the exposed Persian left. 

With Alexander's manouvre still in progress and Bessos's attack locked in bloody stalemate, king Darius now ordered general Mazaeus and his entire right wing cavalry force of twenty thousand horsemen forward to attack the Macedonian left wing.

The Persian charge slammed into the Macedonian's under Alexander's second in command General Parmenio. The sheer weight of the assault forced the Greek line to buckle and fall back. Meanwhile the Macedonian center now prematurely marched towards Alexander in support. As a result a large opening developed separating the army in two.

With Alexander's center wide open, Darius ordered his reserve heavy cavalry supported by Greek Mercenaires forward to occupy and extend the gap. However the Persians continued to advance through the vacant center and deep into the rear areas of the enemy army. 

The attack soon began to trickle away as the Persians and mercenaires contended themselves with looting Alexander's supply train. It was with ease that they were forced to scatter when Alexander's reserve infantry phalanxes arrived to check them.

Although the Persian threat to the Macedonian center had now been thwarted, both Greek flank's under Parmenio and Ariston were exhausted and close to collapse. It is at this critical moment that Alexander's companion cavalry succed in outflanking the Persian's central positions. 

With Alexander now behind the Persian formations, he now orders a left wheel towards the Persian center. In desperation, Darius orders what remains of his infantry to fall back and form a new defensive line, but they respond to slow and Alexander simply outflank's the Persian's and continous onward towards Darius himself.

With the Persian left wing crumbling and no reserves left to throw in against Alexander's coming charge, Darius chooses to save himself and abandones his army to its fate. The Persian's now begin to disintegrate as remaining units begin fleeing in all directions, leaving only the Greek mercenaries as an orginized fighting force. 

Alexander now orders his cavalry to envelope his former countrymen still occupying the center of the battlefield to prevent their escape, while Parmenio brings up his reformed infantry phalanxes to complete the encirclement.

To Alexander, these men were traitors and were to be shown no mercy, he thus gave the order to annihalte them. Facing attacks from all sides, resistance within the pocket soon collapsed. Only when Alexander was satisfied that every man had been slain, does he give the order to halt the slaughter.

Alexander's victory at Gaugamela completely destroyed the Persian army as a fighting force. The Persians suffered fifty thousand dead and an equal number taken prisoner along with twenty thousand Greek mercenaries. Casualties within the Macedonian Greek army numbered a mere 3,000 men.

King Darius was now to become a fugitive in the vast empire he once ruled, only to be later murdered by general Bessos and his royal body guard. When Alexander discovered Darius he gave him a royal burial ceremony at Persepolis. Alexander then persued Bessos, capturing and executing him the following year.