Battle Stack: The Battle of Pharsalus (Caesar vs Pompey) tactics

The battle of Pharsalus took place in 48bc, and was part of the Roman civil war between Julius Caesar and Pompey. With a larger force, would Pompey be able to claim victory over Caesar? Find out in this animated battle tactics video!

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[flameingo]

Amazing how Caesar's first line managed to hold back such a large group as the cavalry attacked

[y.z.]

So Caesar's cavalry fled, and came back. Pompey's *larger number of* cavalry also fled, but why didn't they come back, and attack Caesar's flanking force in the rear? Maybe it ultimately came down to troop quality, since Caesar's troops were battle hardened in Gaul, whereas lots of Pompey's were newly trained.

[henrikgustafsson]

I do not think Ceasar was all to upset with Pompejus death.
I believe he did more of a marking to the egyptian rulers that no one - NO ONE - especially not a mere vassal of Rome, take matters in their own hands and executes a ROMAN senator. Rome is above all others - bringing stability in the roman sphere of interest.

[oddyseus]

Decent quick videos. Nice and simple. Thanks

[mickmaxtube]

Caesars cavalry did not flee.
They were ordered to feign a retreat in order to expose Pompeys cavalry to the 4th lines charge. It would be impossible for the 4th line to engage the enemy while their own cavalry was in the way. There are very very few instances of cavalry being broken on the battlefield only to recover and return to the fight, horses obviously run far faster then men and by the time the rider has recovered his wits and been stung into action by shame, he's miles away from the fight and his mount is now tired from being flogged by it's panicked rider. Even victorious cavalry can pursue their opponents too far and return to the battlefield in time to see their infantry comrades be defeated in a losing battle.

[BeesNTrees]

you're brilliant mate... cheers to another great channel

[troy]

Great videos. Tbe disparity in casualties of some of these ancient battles really surprises me. With forces like these, which used similar armor, weapons, and tactics, i would expect losses to be much more even. Can't help but wonder if the victors under-reported their casualties by a large amount.

[rosicroix]

Many ancient accounts tell of 1 sides cavalry leaving/retreating only to have them reappear later when they make a crucial difference, makes you wonder if this was pre-planned. TY for another great video

[kdogg-eyet]

love your vids keep up the great work from a subscriber in New Zealand

[peterjpuleo]

I think many of the numbers used for combatants, casualties, etc. are very approximate. Accurate tallies are notoriously rare for ancient and medieval battles.

[nickoangelo]

It sounds like Caesar was lucky enough to have soldiers who were more adept to battle than Pompeii’s. This doesn’t sound like some grand master strategy tactic, just a glimpse of luck and personal collective skill from the soldiers. Wow

[Ugurcan]

Nice age of 1 graphics.Very nostalgic :)

[TrueApostle]

Those numbers of losses are way off --- remember Pompey was winning until his cavalry got beat by Caesar's 4th line, and ran off. The numbers were closer to 1200 - n- 6000.

[PolyDave]

Caesar always pulled one out of the hat.

[adamhenrywalker]

What’s that copyright free music in the beginning?

[gamingolympian]

No insult meant by this, but the "Javelins" used by the legions weren't javelins. They were pillums. These were specialized very heavy javelins with a long tip at the end designed to smash through the shields or armor of enemy forces so that they would either die, or their shields would be useless. These pillums were also very hard to pull out as they almost melded with the impacted object.

[nobbytang]

Ceaser knew exactly what Pompey would do …the expected !!…..river on one flank and so Pompey put all of his vast cavalry on his left flank with the expected 7:1 advantage being overwhelming to Ceasers far weaker cavalry force …..and so he set a trap !!…..even Ceasers 1000 cavalry meant that for a brief period both sides would come to a halt to fight before Pompey cavalry would triumph…..in this static movement Ceasers infantry using their Pilums as spears charged in amongst them and “Spooked “Pompey vastly superior Cavalry causing a Rout !!….

[jayster]

Just saw this! good commentary but!! I could have sworn that Ceaser wore red !! Because that was hiss colors and Pompey wore blue or white since his standard was water based. just asking !!

[maxmaxmax]

So basically Caesar's troops just out brutalized Pompey's.

[josephmungai]

I was there and boy were we routed. You can see my pictures as I ran away on my social