Everybody was shieldwall fighting ....?

[Erpingham]

Here is a spin off from the thread on the battle of Chalons.  I think we can take it as read that close-order formations creating a wall of shields are commonplace of European history.  Gauls do it, Greeks do it, even educated fleas do it.  But once we get to the early medieval warfare (500-1100 ish) we see a particular formation of men in close order , often so close their shields overlap, primarily with spears but missiles shot or thrown from the back, rolling into each other or forming circles to resist cavalry.  What is the evolution of the formation commonly called "the shieldwall"?

Once upon a time, the shieldwall was considered the ancestral Germanic military form.  It slowly evolved from the time of the Roman through to the 12th, maybe the 13th, century.  In passing it influenced late Roman/early Byzantine tactics, because of the large numbers of barbarians recruited into the late Roman army.

Now , however, there is more uncertainty.  Did Germanic armies form shieldwalls  before confronting the tightly ranked armies of the Romans?  Did the fact that archaeology suggests that the long shields of the early Germans gave way to smaller round shields by the 3rd or 4th century mean that looser formations were the norm?  Were shieldwalls of big round or oval shields in fact introduced in imitation of late Roman infantry?

[Imperial Dave]

Are shieldwalls (and hence large oval shields) reflective of defensive formations? If so doesnt that actually make sense with regards to the chronology of arms stated in your passage above

Early Imperial arms (offensive infantry) using rectangular curved shields gave way to oval flat shields in the 3rd,4th and 5th centuries as infantry became more defensive. Also the importance of the offensive cavalry arm grew at the same time (chicken and egg?). As Roman infantry tended to become more defensive, did Germanic tactics change to allow for more offensive armaments (smaller more maneuverable shields etc)?

There is certainly archaeological evidence around to support.

If we then take the hyposthesis further, as cavalry arms in Germanic armies (late and post roman) increased and the settlement of established kingdoms took hold, did they slowly switch back to shieldwalls and large oval shields as a defensive force in parody of the Roman model? 

[Patrick Waterson]

Exhibit One

Gaul, 58 BC

Accordingly our men, upon the signal being given, vigorously made an attack upon the enemy, and the enemy so suddenly and rapidly rushed forward, that there was no time for casting the javelins at them. Throwing aside [therefore] their javelins, they fought with swords hand to hand. But the Germans, according to their custom, rapidly forming a phalanx, sustained the attack of our swords. There were found very many of our soldiers who leaped upon the phalanx, and with their hands tore away the shields, and wounded the enemy from above.  - Caesar, Gallic War I.52

The Germans, after a very rapid assault, close hand-to-hand.  At about this point, they 'form a phalanx' (phalange facta) and receive the Romans.  That this is a static 'phalanx' (which we can understand as a shieldwall) is evident from the fact that Roman soldiers could time their leaps to get hold of the shields and pull them away.

A similar static shieldwall was formed by the Gallic infantry in the last stages of the battle of Sentinum (295 BC).  The Romans destroyed this one with a bombardment by pila.

[Erpingham]

As I said in the first sentence, there was a lot of it about   But there is 500 + years from the beginning of the period in question and the later of these examples.  What happens between?  And how important is the size and shape of the shields?

[aligern]

A point I make frequently, if you hold a smaller shield  out at arms length it covers as much of the body as a large shield held close .

That troops with a shield of from 18 inch to over 3ft diameter or spine length form a wall of shields when they close up is surely a commonplace as Anthony says. It would also seem to be usual that men in the back ranks will throw or shoot missiles over the 'shield wall' to degrade the opponents as they come on.
I thought the ancestral German formation was allegedly the keil?
Roy

[Patrick Waterson]

Exhibit 2

Media, 36 BC

Day was already dawning, and the army was beginning to assume a certain order and tranquillity, when the arrows of the Parthians fell upon the rear ranks, and the light-armed troops were ordered by signal to engage. The men-at-arms*, too, again covered each other over** with their shields, as they had done before, and so withstood their assailants, who did not venture to come to close quarters. [2] The front ranks advanced little by little in this manner, and the river came in sight. On its bank Antony drew up his horsemen to confront the enemy, and set his sick and disabled soldiers across first. And presently even those who were fighting had a chance to drink at their ease; for when the Parthians saw the river, they unstrung their bows and bade the Romans cross over with good courage, bestowing much praise also upon their valour. - Plutarch, Anthony 49

*'hoplitai' - heavy-armed troops, in this case legionaries.

** 'katerepsantes' - covering over, roofing

[tadamson]

Exhibit One

Gaul, 58 BC

Accordingly our men, upon the signal being given, vigorously made an attack upon the enemy, and the enemy so suddenly and rapidly rushed forward, that there was no time for casting the javelins at them. Throwing aside [therefore] their javelins, they fought with swords hand to hand. But the Germans, according to their custom, rapidly forming a phalanx, sustained the attack of our swords. There were found very many of our soldiers who leaped upon the phalanx, and with their hands tore away the shields, and wounded the enemy from above.  - Caesar, Gallic War I.52

The Germans, after a very rapid assault, close hand-to-hand.  At about this point, they 'form a phalanx' (phalange facta) and receive the Romans.  That this is a static 'phalanx' (which we can understand as a shieldwall) is evident from the fact that Roman soldiers could time their leaps to get hold of the shields and pull them away.

A similar static shieldwall was formed by the Gallic infantry in the last stages of the battle of Sentinum (295 BC).  The Romans destroyed this one with a bombardment by pila.

I would be very surprised if that's what Caesar meant by 'phalange facta', he used testudo for that sort of  formation.  Here he means an ordered formation of ranks and files.  The leaping over the top is a literary tropos that he frequently uses to show how brave and fearless his men were.

Tom..

[Patrick Waterson]

I would be very surprised if that's what Caesar meant by 'phalange facta', he used testudo for that sort of  formation.  Here he means an ordered formation of ranks and files.  The leaping over the top is a literary tropos that he frequently uses to show how brave and fearless his men were.

Some examples to back up these statements would be nice. 

[Mark G]

The thing about having shields, it becomes pretty obvious that it can be used to form acollective barrier between us and them.  Even
Egyptians and Persians do it, everyone does.

Its the armament that determines whether its an offensive or defensive thing. And that armament affects the shape and size of the shield, but as Roy says,

[Mark G]

The size is less important theman how far out you hold it, which is likely a function is weapon length.

Unless you are talking about individual fighters in loose formations, or light shields fitmr evaders, all shields are part of a collective unit defense

[Erpingham]

I thought the ancestral German formation was allegedly the keil?
Roy

Fair comment - certainly Delbruck would say so.  But what did it look like?  Some relate the keil directly to the Roman cuneus, which would suggest relatively small groups.  But we also see huge deep columns (Patrick will doubtless quote the details ) and at one point we get Franks in a large triangular formation (we also get Iron Age Scandinavians in large wedges at Bravellir).

[aligern]

I love it. that you think Bravellir worthy to be cited as an example of Iron Age Scandinavians. I use it as an example of the use of massed bows by Scandinavians, but ut is sometimes criticised for being in a much late source saxo Grammaticus, I think, is 13th century... I am happy ut is oral tradition.
Keils. have been criticised as being actually the result if a standard column miving forward and the flank men getting a bit left behind so becoming wedge shaped rather than a wedge. However I wonder if that isn't sophistry as the Early Germans could just as well form wedge.
The example of Franks in a wedge is presumably Casilinum and there I would suggest is that we have a central wedge with two linear formations as wings and that, as the firmation advances the wings do get left behind itherwise, as Agathias defines it such an arrowhead formation would be extremely complex to form. the formation has a solid head, gut is holliw after that as the flanks stretch back.
Roy

[Erpingham]

I love it. that you think Bravellir worthy to be cited as an example of Iron Age Scandinavians. I use it as an example of the use of massed bows by Scandinavians, but ut is sometimes criticised for being in a much late source saxo Grammaticus, I think, is 13th century... I am happy ut is oral tradition.

Saxo doesn't originate the story (there is another version from the same original).  It would appear to have been one of those battles which was the focus of a lot of attention.  It wouldn't, therefore, be unlikely it had a poetic tradition.   I have to say reading it does seem very much of an earlier rather than 13th century tradition. 

[aligern]

And I think so too Anthony and the bit that interested me about bows is the sort of thing that the men of the region praised for their skill would remember and passed down.
Roy

[tadamson]

I would be very surprised if that's what Caesar meant by 'phalange facta', he used testudo for that sort of  formation.  Here he means an ordered formation of ranks and files.  The leaping over the top is a literary tropos that he frequently uses to show how brave and fearless his men were.

Some examples to back up these statements would be nice. 

Persius will give you all the stats and references for usage by Caesar. 
Fearless men leaping over an enemy formation goes right back to Homer and Virgil. It's so ingraned in the culture that several comedies have someone looking up and seeing the awful truth as they are leapt over (shades of Scotsmen, kilts and carry on up the Khyber!)

Tom..