Боевые собаки в древности
Battle Dogs in the Ancient World

Summary/Abstract: According to Classical sources, the Greeks knew about the military use of the dogs in Greece better than in the rest world. And so there is no clear understanding as to the use of battle dogs among the Hyrcanians, the Celts and the Garamantes. The earliest mentions of battle dogs come from Asia Minor, where in the early 1st millennium B.C. the chase from the chariot for deers and lions was very popular. Later on, even when a horse replaced a chariot, the passion for it preserved. Apparently, this chase function developed into battle one. First, the same chasing dogs were employed in battle, but subsequently dos were specially trained to fight against the men. In action, such dogs, like in European Medieval times, must have attacked the hostile horses which represented for them as a kind of game. As long as in the second quarter of the 1st millennium B.C. in Anatolia, at least in its western part, the riders dominated on battle-field, the dogs’ assault against the mounts prevented the horsemen for some time from fighting efficiently, as they had to repulse the dogs. From the autochthons the use of battle dogs was accepted by the local Greeks. When in the 6th century B.C. the phalanx had finally forced out archaic Greek riders and mounted hoplites, then the employment of dogs on battle-field came to an end. It is to be thought that in the 4th century B.C., in the course of the permanent wars between Greeks, followed with frequent sieges and, as a result, the appearance of poliorcetics as a special branch of warfare, dogs were used again with military purposes, in particular, in auxiliary service: guarding, patrolling and even delivering messages. At the Hellenistic age, there were established especial units of huntsmen who dealt with the breeding and training of dogs intended for chasing, catching and fighting (mainly for defending fortifications). The system of defense was perfecting itself: in the 4th century B.C. dogs were tied outside the fortifications in order to catch deserters and to give the signal as soon as possible by barking about the approach of the foes; later on, they were placed inside, on towers, together with the huntsmen who had to determine why the dog is barking and to notify, if necessary, the guards to give alarm.

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