Cavalry in the Bronze Age

[Ochoin]

The concept is a little dubious but evidently, several of the Powers had small, mounted skirmishing & scouting forces.

AFAIK there are no 1/72 or 20mm examples so modifying is the only solution.

I've managed to scratch-build a Mycenaean mounted unit (which I've labelled, the 'Trojan Horse') but similar Egyptian & Hittite units elude me. I've trawled through PSR scans of available figures - nothing.

Clearly, NOT having such rare & negligible units does not mar my NKE & Hittite armies. I just want them.

donald

[steve_pickstock]

As I understand it the Egyptians had some mounted troops but they were less useful than the chariots and were relegated to scouting and messenger duties.
It has been suggested that this was down to the size of the horses, but other people have argued that that other people had bred horses up to a decent size by that time already. It could also have been because they had not yet got the equipment that a cavalry man needs - a decent saddle arrangement etc.
Chariots were a good stable weapons platform (if a little complicated, which would be what did for them in the end, one cavalry man versus a chariot team and crew is much less maintenance).
I suppose given the size that the Hittite Empire reached it might be possible that they employed some eastern nomadic types. if they did then you'd have access to Noble Heavy Cav and lighter scouty types.

[Ochoin]

Model-wise, my Caesar & Newline chariot horses aren't noticeably small but I guess it would look odd having my chariots pulled by horses the size of German Shephards.

I've also read that cavalry eventually replaced chariots because of expense- after the "Collapse", neither the remaining rulers nor their nobility had the wealth to build & maintain chariotry.

donald

[Xantippos]

Well, Egyptians before the coming of the Hyksos didn't have nor know horses, so unneeded until then.

Hence, domestication of horse was around 2200 BC around modern day Ukraine. And it arrived roughly on 1600 BC in Egypt. If bronze age ends in 1200 BC that leaves us 400 years of horse warfare.

Having said this, I believe the Hittites did use cavalry, and in considerable numbers. THe easiest thing to do woudl be buying Assyrian Cavalry from Caesar, cutting the riders in half and substitute by Hittites from the same brand. Horses should be quite small. Or use Arab Cavalry from Caesar too, discarding some horses.

About the Egyptians, it is quite well established that they did not have cavalry until 7th century BC, and this is well attested by frescoes and many other sources. Hence absolutely unhistorical. If you wished for Egyptian Cavalry of this period, then I am afraid more or less the same answer applies, you will have to chop up a few figure.

I believe I saw sometime ago, somebody had cut Greek Cavalry from Atlantic and mixed with the Egyptian sets, and it looked quite the part.