Volume 5: The Hegemon of Southern Italy, Chapter 67: The Mesapian Alliance

But the cunning Messapian cavalry swiftly swept diagonally forward, exposing the infantry phalanx behind them.

Then the Messapian battle line halted its advance and, a hundred meters away, once again entered a stalemate with Archytas's army.

Archytas could wait no longer. With twice the enemy's numbers and a growing sense of unease, he immediately ordered: sound the attack!

In Tarentum, many envied or looked down upon the Daonia Alliance. Archytas did not. Not only was he on good terms with the Daonian magistrate Davos, but he had also carefully studied Daonian military tactics, adopting some and incorporating them into his own forces. Increasing the number of light infantry, organizing them separately, and fully leveraging their ranged attacks—this was a major change in the army he commanded.

While the light infantry launched the first assault on the enemy, Archytas took his position behind the right wing of his formation, which was far longer than the enemy's phalanx. He ordered the heavy infantry on the right to advance, preparing to outflank the enemy's left wing.

The Messapian phalanx remained motionless, but the Messapian cavalry, which had been circling the Tarentum formation on the periphery, began to move. They pressed in from all sides, hurling javelins at the Tarentine soldiers, trying to disrupt and hinder their advance.

Archytas remained unfazed. The attack horns continued to sound, and the heavy infantry would soon be within charging distance.

"Woo!... Woo!..." A deep, resonant ox-horn blast suddenly echoed across the battlefield.

Archytas was shocked: Was that sound coming from behind?!.

"Enemy behind! Enemy behind!!..." Some soldiers at the rear of the right wing of the phalanx began shouting in panic. In the distance, through the dispersing morning mist, they could already see vague figures and hear the rumble of footsteps.

Ambushed! The Messapians had set a trap here! Archytas's heart sank. A thought flashed through his mind: Continue advancing or retreat? He had to decide immediately.

Fortunately, he had learned from the Daonian army's practices: the commander did not lead from the front within the phalanx but remained outside it. Earlier, some in the Senate had criticized him for this, accusing him of adopting decadent aristocratic habits, of not fighting alongside the citizens, of being a coward.

He had not changed his ways because of the criticism, and now that allowed him to make adjustments before battle: "All troops halt! Immediately withdraw to the left rear in full formation!" Archytas immediately ordered the messengers and trumpeters. He hoped that by retreating, he could turn the dangerous situation of being caught between two forces into a direct confrontation with both enemies.

The bugle sounded. Messengers galloped behind the phalanx, shouting loudly.

For a typical Greek city-state army, a left-rear withdrawal was a complex tactical maneuver, difficult even in training, let alone on the battlefield. But Archytas believed that this army, which he had commanded for half a year and trained rigorously like the Daonian army, could manage it.

Through numerous battles with the Messapians, he knew their bravery and tenacity. He had no confidence that he could swiftly break through the smaller western enemy force head-on without being caught in a pincer. The only option was to immediately disengage from the present battlefield and reorganize his attack. Since the Messapian main force was attacking Manduria, he believed the enemy here, even if larger than his army, could not be much larger. He was confident he could defeat them in a pitched battle!

The phalanx halted and began to slowly withdraw. But as the Tarentine army stopped advancing, the Messapian infantry started their charge. At the same time, the Messapian cavalry intensified their assault, howling and even driving their horses toward the phalanx to disrupt the Tarentine retreat.

The reckless charge of the Messapian cavalry alarmed Archytas. He sensed the Messapians' determination to annihilate his army, and his calm was shattered.

Should he continue the retreat or strengthen the defenses? Once again, Archytas faced a difficult choice.

But time was pressing. The Messapian cavalry was already upon them. The light infantry hastily withdrew to the flanks. Hampered by the Messapian cavalry, the Tarentine heavy infantry, unable to fully retreat, had to turn and fight, falling on the defensive from the start.

Archytas had no time for regret. Facing this predicament, he ordered the light infantry to drive off the Messapian cavalry with arrows and instructed the officers to shorten the heavy infantry phalanx's length and thicken its depth. At the same time, he ordered the soldiers at the rear of the phalanx to quickly turn around, face the approaching enemy, and advance a dozen meters. This transformed the original "single-line snake formation" into a "two-line formation", with two parallel arrays protecting each other's rear.

Archytas believed that even if his troops were temporarily on the defensive, they could rely on sturdy defenses to repel the Messapians!

The Messapian cavalry to the rear had already withdrawn to the flanks. The rumble of footsteps and deafening war cries came clearly through the morning mist...

When the dense mass of enemies drew near, the Tarentine soldiers were astonished: not only was the enemy's number staggering, but their attire was not that of Messapian warriors. They carried wooden shields and spears, wearing simple helmets and breastplates.

"Lord Archytas, they're Peucetii! They're Peucetii!!" Upon receiving the scout's report, Archytas was equally shocked: The Messapians and Peucetii had allied! For decades, these two peoples, nursing grudges and frequently at war, had now joined forces!!

As more and more Peucetii warriors surged forward, Archytas trembled—not only for the safety of his army, but also for the plight of Tarentum...

...

"Congratulations, King of the Peucetii! The Tarentines are surrounded!" shouted Timogoras, the magistrate of Igratia.

"Yes, that Archytas, who has given you so many defeats, is now trapped by my brave warriors. Let's destroy them quickly, then march on Brundisium!" King Trellemoni of the Peucetii said with a pleased expression, not forgetting to taunt the Messapians.

Yet half an hour later, the Tarentine military banner still stood firm within the encirclement. The Messapian-Peucetian coalition had only compressed the ring tighter, making no substantial progress. In fact, because the Tarentine soldiers had concentrated their strength, the attacks met even greater resistance.

The Peucetian king had come in person, bringing over ten thousand warriors. Combined with the soldiers of Igratia, their force was more than double Archytas's army.

Despite having the enemy surrounded, the battle was proving extremely difficult.

The Peucetian king, the magistrate of Igratia, and the Peucetian generals stared intently at the dust-choked battlefield, their expressions grim.

"Fight! Tarentines, fight! Sons of the hero Taras, do not stop thrusting your spears! Remember, every enemy you kill brings safety to your parents, wives, and children!..." Archytas rode back and forth at the center of the encirclement, dodging the constant hail of arrows and javelins while shouting hoarsely to boost morale.

His voice was raw, his horse was snorting hot steam, but he was oblivious. He knew that this time he might not survive, but even if he died, he would inflict heavy losses on the enemy and reduce the threat to his mother city.

The Tarentine formation had shifted from a "two-line" to a circle. Inspired by him, the light infantry in the center kept firing arrows, ignoring the strings cutting their fingers and the strain on their arm muscles. The heavy infantry pressed tightly together, front to back, working in unison to withstand the enemy's powerful shoving. At the same time, they raised their spears high and thrust outward repeatedly over the tightly packed shield wall, retracting them again. Once a spearhead broke, they immediately drew their swords and continued stabbing and slashing... They knew there was no escape; only desperate fighting remained. Even as comrades fell around them, their will did not waver.

An hour passed. The Peucetian king's face turned grim. The Tarentine banner still stood, and his generals were requesting a halt to the attack, as the warriors were exhausted and casualties were heavy.

"Useless! A bunch of cowards! Are you still descendants of the heroic Arcadian king Lycaon? Look at the Greeks you've surrounded! They are not as tall as us, nor as numerous! If you're afraid of them, I will replace you and let true warriors lead my soldiers!..." Trellemoni cursed loudly, waving his arm, nearly sweeping his spear into the face of a general before his horse.

"Respected King of the Peucetii, Archytas is indeed a renowned general of Tarentum, and the army he commands is indeed formidable! We still need to recapture Brundisium. We should not deplete too much of our strength here!" Timogoras suppressed his schadenfreude and advised.

"You mean stop fighting?" Trellemoni glanced at him sideways with contempt.

"The Tarentines fight to the death because they have no escape. If our encirclement opens a path..." A cunning smile crept onto Timogoras's face.

"You mean—" Trellemoni was no mediocre king. In his youth, he had led armies across the land to strengthen the Peucetii. Now, too fixated on victory, he was jolted awake by Timogoras's hint. He turned his gaze to the Messapian and Peucetian cavalry waiting on either side of the battlefield. Together, they numbered nearly a thousand riders, but because the enemy was surrounded, they had become useless.

"I had the same idea!" Trellemoni puffed out his chest and said loudly, trying to cover his earlier lapse. He rode forward, pointing his spear at the Tarentine banner still standing in the chaotic center of the battlefield: "Just don't let Archytas escape!"

Because the Peucetii had many troops and the Messapians urgently needed their help, the allied force, after deliberation, chose to have the Igratian infantry on the western side open a path.