In the East, fighting elephants have long been one of the military branches. Moreover, such troops were very traditional and went into oblivion only with the advent of a new time.
The story of the appearance of war elephants
For the first time, war elephants were tamed for military use in India. And this happened a very long time ago, presumably in the first millennium BC. The Phoenicians, with the help of the Indians, tamed animals living in northern Africa. It should be noted that the elephants of the ancient armies belonged to the now extinct North African species. They were much smaller than the famous Indian animals. In general, it is difficult to imagine that a triple tower was placed on the back of an elephant. Elephants were used in those days for both work and combat purposes. The largest individuals were selected for military operations.
Who were the elephants opposing?
In ancient India, elephants were released against cavalry, as horses are very afraid of large animals. Elephants were lined up in one line with an interval of thirty meters from each other. Following them in the intervals was the infantry. The whole system looked like a wall with turrets. I must say that the animals were not protected by any devices. But they were richly decorated with all kinds of metal jewelry and red blankets.
Nevertheless, the fighting elephants were very dangerous opponents. Under favorable circumstances, they could inflict significant damage to the enemy. But if the enemy himself turned out to be cunning and smart, then he could confuse animals, and then confusion and chaos began. In such a situation, elephants could trample each other. And therefore, the art of driving and controlling this animal was highly appreciated. Indian princes certainly taught the basics.
India War Elephants
The elephant was a whole combat unit of himself and three more people. One of the members of such a crew was a driver (in fact, a driver), the second was a shooter, and the third was an archer or dart thrower. The driver was on the neck of the animal. But the arrows on the back were hiding in a shelter from light shields. The driver had to ensure that enemies did not approach the animal from the flanks. The shooter fought a throwing battle.
However, the elephant was still the main weapon. He himself terrified enemies. In addition, animals were able to trample people, killing powerful tusks and soul trunk.
Animal armament
The main damaging factor in the elephant attack was the fear that animals overtook people with their appearance. A considerable role was played by their enormous power. Sometimes Indian war elephants armed themselves with swords. However, giving them a cold weapon with their trunk was a very bad idea. Since the trunk is not a hand, animals could not cope with swords. But the elephants used other weapons quite skillfully. Sharp iron tips were put on short tusks, thereby lengthening them. Here animals used these weapons with great dexterity.
The Hellenes, along with elephants and their leaders, also got tactics for tactical construction of animals in battle, as well as a fashion for their magnificent decoration. To all this ammunition, the Macedonians and Hellenes added a turret, covered with shields, for a crew armed with bows and spears. After the Hellenistic states disappeared under the blows of the Parthians and Romans, Europeans almost no longer met on the battlefields with war elephants.
Using War Elephants in the Middle Ages
In the Middle Ages, war elephants were used almost throughout Asia - from China to Iran, from India to Arabia. However, the tactics of their application gradually changed. In the era of the early Middle Ages, Indian and Persian war elephants marched on the enemy with whole formations, then later, already in the second millennium AD, animals rather played the role of mobile fortresses.
In the surviving descriptions of the battles of those times with the participation of elephants, there are no longer bloody scenes of mass elephant attacks. Typically, elephants were built with a barrier line and released only the most critical moment for a short attack. Increasingly, fighting elephants performed transport functions, carrying large throwing devices or shooters. Similar scenes are depicted in great detail on the reliefs of the twelfth century. The elephants also had a very honorable function.
The use of elephants as a transport for noble military leaders
All military leaders (Burmese, Indian, Vietnamese, Thai, Chinese), as a rule, were mounted on animals. But the Mongol khan, having conquered Korea in the thirteenth century, was seated in a turret, which was immediately on two elephants.
Of course, the elephant was very convenient for the commander, because from a height he could see the field far enough, and he himself could be seen far away. In case of failure in battle, a strong animal could well take its passenger out of the dump of people and horses.
During this period, the equipment of the elephants did not change at all; rather, it was an ornament rather than a combat defense. It was only in the sixteenth and eighteenth centuries that Indian craftsmen began to make shells for animals, consisting of steel plates, connected by rings.
In Southeast Asia, a special platform was invented for the crew, and therefore warriors could not only sit on the back of the animal, but also stand. Muslim warriors from Iran and Central Asia also built similar platforms, supplementing them with turrets with shields and even a canopy.
Disadvantages of War Elephants
I must say, as a fighting animal, the elephant had one very serious drawback. It was difficult to manage. Unlike horses, they did not want to blindly follow their superiors. An elephant is a reasonable animal. He will not jump into the abyss, such as a horse behind his leader. This smart animal will think carefully before doing something.
The elephant obeyed the driver, not out of fear, but rather out of friendship. These animals have no concept of totalitarianism. In addition, each elephant was guided not only by the driver, but also by its own leader. Therefore, the animals fought quite consciously, they distinguished where their own and where strangers. But at the same time, these intelligent animals did not seek to unjustifiably take risks.
They could easily go through the ranks of the infantry, but they did not do this without special need. It was very difficult to set elephants on infantry, if people did not part in front of them, then the animals simply stopped, trying to somehow clear their way. It turns out that the fighting animals, rather, had a frightening effect, rather than causing real damage. It was not at all possible to accustom elephants to fire or armed people.
It is believed that Indian war elephants, whose history is quite interesting and unusual, attacked only out of a desire to do something very pleasant to the driver, but they never had any fighting passion. And yet, this desire did not mean to take undue risk by endangering himself or his rider. The elephants considered the best protection to be the ability to take their driver away from danger as soon as possible.
There is evidence that before the fight, animals were given wine or beer, pepper or sugar for courage. Although, on the other hand, it was hardly possible to influence an already uncontrollable animal in such a way. Most likely, the military merits of elephants are significantly exaggerated, but the fact of using animals for unusual purposes is interesting. Such ingenuity of man cannot but admire.
How did they resist the war elephants?
How much time the war elephants were used as military force, as long as the search for methods to counter them took place. In the Middle Ages, all the same Indians who lived in the Marwar region, bred a special breed of horses. Such an animal was used against war elephants. There was such a cunning trick when fake trunks were put on a war horse. Elephants mistook them for little elephants and did not want to attack. Meanwhile, trained horses with their front hooves stood on the forehead of a large animal, and the rider killed the driver with a spear.
The Assyrians were not at all afraid of fighting animals; they developed their own technique for neutralizing them. A special breed of fighting dogs was bred, which entered the battlefield in armor. One such animal neutralized the rider on the horse, and three dogs could neutralize the elephant.
The Greeks generally very quickly learned to neutralize powerful animals, cutting their trunks and tendons on their legs. Thus, they completely disabled them. The fact is that one wounded leg of an animal makes him lie completely on his stomach. And in this state, anyone can finish him off. To avoid such injuries in Thailand, special warriors guarded the legs of the animal. The role of such a fighter was taken by those who were not noble enough to fight on a horse, but smart enough to protect the animal.
Hannibal's War Elephants
More than two thousand years ago, the famous commander (Carthaginian) Hannibal crossed the Alps with his army and invaded Italy. An interesting fact is that his forces included elephants. True, researchers are still arguing about whether the animals were real or just a beautiful legend. One of the questions is where did these animals come from among the Carthaginians. Presumably, it could be the extinct elephants from North Africa at the moment.
In the records of historians, information has been preserved about how the troops of Hannibal transported elephants across the river. To do this, they built special rafts, rigidly securing them on both sides of the coast. They poured earth on them to imitate the path, and drove animals there. However, some animals were still scared and fell into the water, but were saved thanks to long trunks.
In general, the transition was difficult for the animals, since it was difficult for them to walk, and even in the mountains there was no necessary food. According to some reports, only one animal survived. However, this is anecdotal evidence.
The end of the fighting career of elephants
The war elephants were very tight at the time of the appearance of firearms. Since then, they have turned into large living targets. Gradually they began to be used more as a traction force.
They finally stopped using them for military purposes since the Second World War. Air raids turned animals into a pile of bloodied meat. Perhaps the last in 1942 used elephants in Burma as part of British troops. Since then, the animals went on a well-deserved rest.
