Holosideros Barracks

After the age of heroes, when fighting had been about individual valour and battles a brawl rather than a planned encounter, armies were organised into disciplined units. With conflicts between the city-states on the rise, and threats from the outside world, the Greeks created the first hoplites around 700BC. These were free citizens, fighting as infantry who provided their own armour and weapons. There was no standard equipment and these soldiers carried shields and armour emblazoned with family symbols handed down over generations. However, the name 'hoplite' derived from the one piece of equipment they did have in common: the hoplon shield. This circular shield was held so as to protect not only the bearer but also the man to his left. As a single mass, hoplites moved in the famous phalanx formation, marching towards the enemy as one solid wall.