ALEXANDERS THESSALIAN CAVALRY

Cavalry in the Macedonian army of the times of Philip II and Alexander the Great played a huge role on the battlefield. She very often stood on the wings of her own formation, the center of which was made up of soldiers of the Macedonian phalanx (Greek: sarissoforoi). Very often she was responsible for the execution of the flanking maneuver, which resulted in the victory of the battle by Philip II or his son. The Macedonian cavalry included the so-called royal companions (Greek: hetairs), who often grew up and received education together with Alexander the Great. The morale of this unit was at a very high level, as was individual training and discipline. The Hetajras used spears on the battlefield, and carried swords as a side weapon. Their body was always covered with the so-called athlete's armor or cloth armor. Most often they wore Beotian helmets, which provided them with a good overview of the situation on the battlefield. The quality of Macedonian cavalry is evidenced by its achievements, for example, in the battle of Cheronea (338 BC) or - especially - of Granik (334 BC) and Gaugamela (331 BC).