THEBAN ORDER OF BATTLE. 34 Arcadians, Messenians, Euboeans, Sikyonians and otKer allies in the centre. 1 It was his purpose to repeat the same general plan of attack which had succeeded so perfectly at Leuktra ; to head the charge himself with his Boeotians on the left against the op- posing right or right-centre, and to bear down the enemy on that side with irresistible force, both of infantry and cavalry ; while ha kept back his right and centre, composed of less trustworthy troops, until the battle should have been thus wholly or partially decided. Accordingly, he caused the Boeotian hoplites, occupy- ing the left of his line in lochi or companies, with the lochage or captain at the left extremity of each, to wheel to the right and form in column fronting the enemy, in advance of his remaining line. The Theban lochages thus became placed immediately in face of the enemy, as the heads of a column of extraordinary depth ; all the hoplites of each lochus, and perhaps of more than one lochus, being ranged in file behind them. 2 What the actual depth was, or what was the exact number of the lochus, we do not know. At Leuktra, Epaminondas had attacked with fifty shields of depth ; at Mantinea, the depth of his column was probably not less. Himself, with the chosen Theban warriors, were at tho head of it, and he relied upon breaking through the enemy's pha- lanx at whatever point he charged ; since their files would hardly be more than eight deep, and very inadequate to resist so over whelming a shock. His column would cut through the phalanx of the enemy, like the prow of a trireme impelled in sea-fight against the midships of her antagonist. 1 Here again, we know from Xenophon that the Thebans were on the left ; but the general arrangement of the other contingents we obtain only from Diodorus (xv, 85). The Tactica of Arrian, also (xi, 2) inform us that Epaminondas formed his attacking column, at Leuktra, of the Thebans at Mantinea, of all the Boeotians. About the practice of the Thebans, both at and after the battle of Leuk- tra, to make their attack with the left, see Plutarch. Quaest. Roman, p. 282 D.
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