Description
There is a good deal of debate as to how large ancient warships worked; the principles are understood, but the details are not always so clear. A Roman 'quadreme' or Greek 'tetreres' would seem to have four rows of oars if the name is translated literally. However, it is unclear how four sets of oars each with one rower apiece could be used without them getting in a terrible tangle even with a magnificently trained crew, or how the top set of rowers would be able to handle the extremely long oars pitched at a steep angle and still produce any power. The chances are that the term 'oar' had become synonymous with 'rower' and that the lowest bank had more than one man per oar. The other option was to go back to a double row of oars, with two men apiece. Two banks of oars would also have made for a cheaper construction task for each ship. Either way, the result was a ship that could rival the lighter trireme in speed, yet had more deck space for a large fighting contingent or artillery pieces.
Eastern hillmen tended to be light infantry skirmishers that excelled in mountainous and difficult terrain, as a result of defending their homelands against outsiders. Many hill tribes, including the Bithyni - after whom Bithynia was named - were descended Thracian migrants who crossed the Bosporus into Asia Minor; each had a fierce attachment to their own lands and a suspicion of plains folk and outlanders. Equipped in much the same manner as peltasts, they carried spears, javelins and daggers and their only protection was a shield, made from wicker, wood or hide. As a fighting force, they were fast moving and extremely manoeuvrable and not above trickery and deceit.
