Clibanarius

Attempted reconstruction of a Clibanarius of the Equites Persae Clibanarii , a late Roman elite unit of the Vexillationes palatinae (palace army ) of the Eastern Empire, mid-5th century AD.

Rock relief of the Sassanid king Chosrau II in the armor of a Clibanarius, Kermanshah

Antique incised graffito of a Parthian clibanarian from Dura Europos

Clibanarius (plural clibanarii , from Latin clibanus : protecting the neck) was the name the Romans called riders with full-body armor for rider and horse.

The heavily armored cavalry of the Parthians served as a model , with which Rome from the middle of the 1st century BC. Became increasingly in conflict. Later "Panzerreiter" were taken over by the Persian Sasanids and further developed by the Eastern Romans and shaped many armies of late antiquity . Both the Persian and the Roman heavy riders were subject to the - much more agile - light cavalry of the Arab tribes in the 7th century.

definition

In ancient times, the name was traced back to the Greek-Ionic word klibanos ("oven"). This interpretation seems obvious at first glance, since the fighters in their armor in the warm and dry climates of Persia, Asia Minor and the Levant certainly suffered from the great heat in action. In recent research, it is assumed that the origin of klibanos is to be found in the Middle Persian word grīwbān ("iron neck protection", "throat piece"). The Latin clibanus is a dissimilation (double meaning) for stove, but also neck protector and can also be derived from the Persian language via the Greek klibanos .

The earliest known mention of a clibanarian in the Roman army comes from the tombstone of Valerius Fuscianus from Klaudiopolis (today Turkey) made in Bithynia around 300 AD and labeled in Latin and describes the deceased as catafractarius clibanarius. That the clibanarii were viewed as a form of heavily armored cavalry originating from the Orient, emerges from various contemporary texts. So we read in Ammianus Marcellinus :

"[...] cataphracti equites, quos clibanarios dicticant Persae [...]"

The following words have come down to us from Emperor Severus Alexander from the author of the Historia Augusta from the turn of the 4th to the 5th century :

"We have defeated the Persians, [...] the cataphracts that they call Clibanarians."

According to Mariusz Mielczarek, the clibanarian differs from the cataphract not in his armor or armament, but solely in his fighting style. This would also explain why no clearly recognizable Clibanarians can be found on Roman armored riders. Since they do not seem to be significantly different from the cataphracts, this cannot be recorded figuratively, but can be stated in the inscriptions, as the stele of Valerius Fuscianus from Klaudiopolis proves.

The Greeks and Persians also referred to armored riders as:

• kataphraktos ("thrown with iron"), or
• bargustuwān-warān (Middle Persian for "rider on armored horses"),

designated.

armor

Including the weapons, the full armor of a Clibanarian weighed an estimated 40 kg, a weight that the plate armor of the late 13th century did not regain . Maybe they also wore a special kind of armor. This led in research u. a. to the view that the Clibinarii , introduced by the Romans much later , in contrast to the Kataphrakten, had a more modern, more developed armor. According to the Notitia Dignitatum, there were four fabricae (one in the west, three in the east) in the late Roman Empire , which, according to their names, were responsible for the production of clibanaria . The ancient chroniclers often equated the armored riders with statues made of iron. This is how Ammianus Marcellinus describes the heavy cavalry of Emperor Constantius II when they entered Rome in 357:

“Thereupon another division of heavily armed men with round shields and fluttering helmets moved in, radiating flashing light from their shimmering armor, and between these marched the cataphract riders, who the Persians call clibanarii, with masks in front of their faces, their bodies wrapped protectively in them iron shells of their armor that one might believe that they were statues of gods created by the Praxiteles master hand and not equal to any living man. The small scales and rings cling to the curved contours of the body, cover all limbs, and wherever a joint moves, the seamlessly fitting shell gives way. "

Armament

It is believed that the Clibanarians were a particularly heavily armored (Asian Minor) variant of the ancient armored riders, armed with a bow and long lance, while the cataphracts also had heavy armor, but in combat they were mainly the combination common in the West of lighter lance and shield (Jon C. Coulston). Since Clibanarians obviously fought with bows and arrows and a long lance wielded with both hands, they could either use no shield or only a very small one. This fact made it necessary to wear particularly massive armor. However, some contemporary reports describe the clibinarrii and cataphractarii exclusively as lancers.

tactics

The Roman clibanaries were probably used together with mounted archers, while the cataphracts operated in closed - that is, unmixed - units. Cataphracts were used against the infantry, Clibanarians preferred against the cavalry. Their use in battle was otherwise dependent on the respective enemy and the local situation.

Armored infantry units in the late Roman army

The clibinarii in the Roman army were superior to the cataphracts in rank. Of the three previously known units, one belonged to

• schola , d. H. Palace Guard, the other two to the
• palatini , the field army directly subordinate to the emperor (cf. Comitatenses ).

However, one of the Roman clibinarians does not correspond to the usual contemporary descriptions of Roman lancers. The Equites Sagittarii Clibanarii are listed in the Western Notitia as members of the field army of the Comes Africae or the Magister equitum praesentalis. These units are likely to have been set up after the Persian model, mounted archers also advanced to the standard Roman cavalrymen in the 6th century. However, it is not known whether their horses were also armored. Some of today's specialist authors see the existence of this unit as evidence that all clibinarii were armed with bows and therefore must have been lighter armored than the cataphractarii . But maybe it was just a kind of special force, as this unit is specially designated as a Sagittarii .

In the Roman army, the number of clibanarian and cataphract units was never particularly high. As with the mounted archers, it can be assumed that there were several smaller companies that were assigned to the regular cavalry units only for special tasks and therefore did not appear on behalf of their associations. Not all cataphracts and clibanarians came from the east. The names of their relatives found on tombstones also suggest recruits in the western part of the empire.

The Clibinarier and Kataphrakten units in the late Roman army (western and eastern empire)

Commanding Officer	Garrison or headquarters	Surname	Number of units	Team strength (highest level)
Comes domesticorum equitum	Constantinople	Schola scutariorum clibanariorum *	01	0500
Magister militum praesentialis I.	Nicea	Comites clibanarii * Equites cataphractarii Biturigenses Equites I clibanarii Parthi	03	1500
Magister militum praesentialis II	Adrianople	Equites Persae clibanarii * Equites cataphractarii Equites cataphractarii Ambianenses Equites II clibanarii Parthi	04th	2000
Magister militum per Orientem	Antioch (Syria)	Comites cataphractarii Bucellarii iuniores Equites promoti clibanarii Equites IV clibanarii Parthi Cuneus equitum II clibanariorum Palmirenorum	04th	1750
Magister militum per Thracias	Marcianopel	Equites cataphractarii Albigenses	01	0500
Dux Thebaidos	Pambane	Ala I Iovia cataphractariorum	01	0250
Dux Scythiae	Arubio	Cuneus equitum cataphractariorum	01	0250
Eastern Empire as a whole			15th	6750
Magister equitum praesentalis	Mediolanum	Comites Alani * Equites sagittarii clibanarii	02	1000
Comes Africae	Carthage	Equites (sagittarii) clibanarii	01	0500
Comes Britanniarum	Londinium	Equites cataphractarii iuniores	01	0500
Western empire as a whole			04th	2000
Guard units are marked with *.

Klibanophoros (Byzantium)

Attempted reconstruction of a Byzantine Klibanophoros, 9. – 10. Century AD

The Byzantine armored riders appeared for the first time in the early days of the empire and were reorganized as an elite formation from the Middle Byzantine period. They were equipped similarly to the Kataphract (Kataphractos), but were further perfected by the Byzantines and armored much more massive. Emperor Nikephorus II. Phokas (960–969) introduced the Klibanophoroi to the Tagmata regiments. These were professional soldiers who were stationed directly in the capital, Constantinople . Nikephorus II waged many wars during his short reign and was therefore particularly successful in the eastern areas , which opened up new recruiting areas for riders (they were mainly excavated in south-eastern Europe, Asia Minor and the Middle East), Byzantium was still here until 1071 very active. In the Battle of Manzikert , however, most of the Klibanophoroi were possibly destroyed or scattered and were thus lost to the empire; After this catastrophic defeat, the expenses for the reorganization of heavy armored infantry units had probably become too great to be borne by the now considerably weakened Byzantium.

armor

The armor consisted of an iron helmet with neck, face and neck armor made of chain mesh, a padded tunic (leather, cotton or felt) that was worn over lamellar armor ( epilorikion ) , two or three layers of chain armor with a slit at the waist, waisted greaves, chain mesh gloves and iron-reinforced shoes. As with other Asian peoples (especially the Avars ), lamellar armor was particularly popular with the Byzantines. It is also often depicted on contemporary frescoes of Orthodox saints. It was much more complicated in its structure than the chain mail. The upper extremities were completely protected with iron plates and splints ( manica ). Otherwise the Klibanophoros used the same type of shield as the Kataphractos. Such armaments were in use with minor innovations until the twelfth century. Innovations from the west were rarely adopted.

Armament

All Klibanophoroi wore the standard armament of sword (spathion) and dagger, officers mostly had a more elaborately decorated version that was carried in a leather scabbard on the saddle. The Klibanophoroi should be versatile, so many units used a combination of lance and bow armament . The lance ( kontarion ) was about twelve feet long and was wielded by the battle cavalry . The archers used the composite bow , which was between 49 and 58 inches long. It was glued together from pieces of wood, horn and often bone. It was a far more powerful weapon than the Scythian version that had been used before. In addition, it was much smaller than the longbow and could easily be shot from a horse. Some Klibanophoroi also fought with light javelins (eight to nine feet long), others possessed short, complained with lead darts, called marzobarboulon, by the ancient Romans as late martiobarbulus referred. These arrows were attached directly to the saddle.

Horse armor

The horse armor consisted of linen ceilings on which hardened lamellar or horn plates were sewn. They covered the whole body down to the knees and the neck of the animal. Some horses wore a metal chanfron as additional head protection .

tactics

Klibanophoroi often set up in a wedge formation on the battlefield. 20 riders in the first rank, 24 in the second and an additional four men for each of the subsequent ranks. The last rank could consist of up to 64 riders. That would result in a total of 504 riders per unit, but generally 300–400 men per unit were common. Their mere presence on the battlefield decided many a battle in advance. Only very disciplined and well-managed infantrymen could withstand a massed attack by the Klibanophoroi.

Bargustuwān-warān (Persia)

The most detailed description of the armor of a Parthian-Persian clibanarian is found in the 3rd century novel Aithiopika (Αἰθιοπικά) by Heliodorus . The cavalry warrior

“Wears a perfectly fitting helmet, embossed in one piece, which simulates a man's face like a mask. This helmet covers the head from crown to neck with the exception of the eyes. In his right hand the man holds a polearm longer than a normal lance, with his left hand he holds the reins and on the side hangs a saber. The armor not only protects the chest, but the whole body. "

The tank is made as follows:

“Square forged plates, about the span of a hand, are joined together so that they overlap horizontally and vertically, and they are nibbled together at the edges. The result is a scaly shell that hugs the body comfortably, encloses the limbs and contracts and expands without hindering movement; it has sleeves and reaches from the neck to the legs, with it being only divided between the thighs to enable the seat on the horse's back. [...] The greaves provide protection from the soles of the feet to the knees, where they connect to the large armor. [...] Stuck in his armor, the rider does not get on by jumping on the horse himself, but has to be lifted by others because of his weight. If it comes to a fight, he lets the reins go, gives the horse the spurs and storms at the enemy with full force, looking like an iron statue in motion. "

The Persian-Sassanid Clibanarians were after mp. Sources equipped with the following equipment:

• Helmet (mp. Targ ),
• Neck / throat (mp. Grīwbān ),
• Breastplate and chain mail / ring armor (mp. Zēn / zrēh / gurdīh ),
• Hentze / gauntlet (mp. Off ),
• Belt (mp. Kustīg),
• Thigh armor (mp. Rān-ban ),
• Lance (mp. Nēzag ),
• Spear (mp. Fraš / sel )
• Sword (mp. Sneh / šamšēr ),
• Battle ax or mace (mp. Gad / warz ),
• Bow container with two bows (mp. Drōn / kamān / sanwar ) and two tendons (mp. Zīh ),
• Quiver (mp. Kantigr ) with 30 arrows (mp. Tigr ), two extra bowstrings, and the
• Horse armor (mp. Zēn-abzār or bargustuwān ).

Some riders also carried a lasso (mp. Kamand ) or a sling with the matching stones.

literature

• Kaveh Farrokh: Shadows in the Desert. Ancient Persia at War. Osprey, Oxford et al. a. 2007, ISBN 978-1-84603-473-2 .
• Mariusz Mielczarek: Cataphracti and Clibanarii. Studies on the heavy armored cavalry of the ancient world (= Studies on the history of ancient and medieval art of warfare. 1). Oficyna Naukowa MS, Lodz 1993, ISBN 83-85874-00-3 .
• Ortolf Harl: The Cataphractarians in the Roman Army - Panegyric and Reality. In: Yearbook of the Roman-Germanic Central Museum. Vol. 43, Part 2, 1996, ISSN  0076-2741 , pp. 601-627.
• Ian Heath, Angus McBride: Byzantine Armies, 886-1118 (= Men at Arms. 89). Osprey Publishing, London 2002, ISBN 0-85045-306-2 .
• David Soria Molina: Cataphracti y clibanarii. La caballería pesada del ejército romano, de Severo Alejandro and Justiniano. In: Aqvila legionis. Cuadernos de estudios sobre el ejército romano. No. 15, 2012, ISSN  1578-1518 , pp. 117-163.
• Franz Altheim: Decline of the Old World, an investigation of the causes , Volume 1, Die Ausserromische Welt, Verlag V. Klostermann, Frankfurt am Main, 1952, pp. 137–142.

Web links

• History of Iran - Sassanian Army (English)
• Army in pre-Islamic Iran (English)
• ARTĒŠTĀR (English)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ AE 1984, 825 .
2. ^ Mariusz Mielczarek: Cataphracti and Clibanarii. 1993, p. 193.
3. ↑ ND occ., IX, 30, ( Insignia viri illustris magistri officiorum ): Fabricae infrascriptae in Galliis: Augustodunensis loricaria, balistaria et clibanaria , ND or., IX, 19, 23 and 25, ( Insignia viri illustris magistri officiorum ): Fabricae infrascriptae: Clibanaria Antiochiae, Clibanaria Caesarea Cappadociae, Clibanaria Nicomediae.
4. ↑ Milczarek, note 33, pp. 48–50
5. ↑ ND occ. XXV or VI, 27
6. ↑ Theodor Nöldeke : History of the Persians and Arabs at the time of the Sasanids. From the Arab Chronicle of Tabari. Translated and provided with detailed explanations and additions. Brill, Leiden 1879, p. 248 f. (Reprinted ibid 1973, ISBN 90-04-03624-5 ).

Remarks

1. ↑ Klibanophoros : composed of gr. Klibanos ; "Dinnerware", "(baking) oven", "pan" and phoros "carrier".
2. ↑ grīwbān : composed of grīw "neck" and -bān "protector" ( Vendidad 14.9). F. Rundgren went from the neo-Persian reconstruction * grīwbānar <mp. * grīwbānwar <ap. * grīva-pāna-bara "neck protector" from (Frithiof Rundgren: About some Iranian loanwords in Latin and Greek. In: Orientalia Suecana. Vol. 6, 1957, ISSN  0078-6578 , pp. 31–65, here pp. 48 ff .).
3. ↑ ai. grīvā- ("neck"), aw. grīuuā- ("neck") and ultimately mp. grīwbān for "neck protection" or "throat piece". As gardan-band ("collar", "necklace") and garībān ("collar", "uniform skirt"), the mp. grīwbān has also found its way into New Persian. The Latin clibanus “protecting the neck” is also derived from the mp. grīwbān off. The suffix - arius turns a clibanarius into one "provided with clibanus or grīwbān ". According to F. Rundgren, a development in the significance of neck protectors to mail shirts cannot be ruled out in this context (Frithiof Rundgren: About some Iranian loanwords in Latin and Greek. In: Orientalia Suecana. Vol. 6, 1957, pp. 31-65, here p . 31-52). In Latin there are two similar words that can easily be confused with each other:
   • clibanum ( mail shirt) and
   • clibanus (oven).
   This means that their derivatives must also be separated from one another, i.e. H.
   • clibanarius (armored shirt carrier) in contrast to
   • clibanarius (baker).
4. ↑ The names of the Persian riders are also varied:
   • aswārān (sg. aswār , "rider"; ap. asa-bāra ; "horse" and "carry"; np. suwār ),
   • artēštārān (sg. artēštār ; "(cavalry) warrior"; originally "charioteer") with a
   • artēštār could also mean a foot fighter who
   • ğawānmardān are “young men” who follow a kind of knightly code of values, are of nobility and already experienced in the war.
5. ↑ Also stands for "armored horses".