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What is interesting is that even though Flavius Vegetius Renatus, the author of "A Brief Introduction to the Art of War", put a lot of effort into compiling "A Brief Introduction to the Art of War", as a book of war to be presented to the Roman emperor at that time, in some respects, Vegtius inevitably sang the praises of the emperor at that time:

The life of people in primitive times, who were still in a state of barbarism and uncivilized, the first boundary between their interactions, and the languageless wild animals, was the presence or absence of cities. The concept of the common interest of the www.biquge.info as a city is reflected in the word "state" (the same cause). Thus, the most powerful peoples and their divine rulers regard it as the highest honor to build new cities or to enlarge the cities established by others to make them famous, and often name them after themselves. In this undertaking, the laurel is none other than you, His Majesty the Emperor of Great Benevolence and Holiness of Holiness.

Past rulers have built few cities, some of them only one in their lifetimes, and countless more have been built by your pious majesty. This city that has risen from the ground does not seem to have been built by people with their hands, but as if they were waved by the gods.

You are blessed with good fortune, humble and prudent, incorruptible, gentle, and passionate about science, all of which are better than those of previous kings. We have seen with our own eyes the fruits of your governance of the country, the resolute character of your character, and the future that our forefathers had hoped for, looked forward to, and prayed for for thousands of years. We have been able to praise the whole world for its blessings that only human wisdom can hope for, but the mercy of God can bestow blessings.

What a hard art it is to build a city. The city of Rome is a testament to this arduous art thanks to your patronage. Once upon a time, the city was able to rule the world with greater glory and prestige thanks to the Capitoline fortress that saved its citizens from the Capitoline fortress.

In order to complete in its entirety this work, which I have begun to write at the beheaval of His Majesty, I will now enumerate, in accordance with certain procedures, the teachings of Proverbs which I have gathered from the writings of many great writers. They will tell you how to defend your city and how to destroy your enemy's city. If I can do it for the benefit of all, I will be very pleased with the work I have worked so hard on.

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And in this volume, the fourth volume of the "Brief Introduction to the Art of War", there are many aspects of civil affairs.

This point is supposed to be inextricably linked to Vegetius himself as a viceroy:

1. Cities and castles, if protected by natural or hand-created barriers, or both, will make them extraordinarily impregnable.

If a city rises on high ground, on a cliff, or is surrounded by the sea, marshes, or rivers, it is considered to be protected by natural barriers, while artificial barriers are moats and walls. The former, because of its superior natural conditions, only needs to choose the terrain wisely in order to ensure safety, and in the land of a flat river, it is necessary to rely on the skill of the builder.

We have seen many ancient cities built on vast fields, and although they are not ideal, they have become unconquerable fortresses thanks to the efforts and skills of their founders.

2. The ancients believed that the outer wall must not be built in a straight line, otherwise it would be violently hit by the battering ram. When laying the foundation, the ancients often used flanges and enemy platforms to cover the city walls, and erected a number of towers at the corners of the city. If someone moved a ladder or machinery close to such a wall, the defenders could crush them not only from the front, but from multiple sides, and even hit them in the back, as if they were trapped in a pocket.

3. To save such walls from destruction, they should be built in the following manner: Two walls were to be built within the walls, 20 feet apart, and the earth excavated from the trenches was piled up between the two walls and tamped down. The outermost bastion is a little shorter, the second wall is much lower, and the terraces that rise from the rampart are like a flat slope to the foremost bastion.

If so, no battering ram could destroy the wall, because the earth held it firmly, and if the stones were smashed in any way, the compacted earth between the stones would block the attacker's passage like a wall.

Fourth, it is necessary to prevent the enemy from setting fire to the city gates. For this purpose, the gates were to be covered with damp animal skins and pieces of iron, and later the ancients discovered that a fortification could be built above the gates to reach forward. When someone enters the city gate, a grate (gate) can be lowered, which is suspended by iron hoops and ropes, and its function is to destroy anyone who burrows through it as soon as it is lowered.

There should be holes in the walls above the gates, through which water could be poured into them to extinguish the fires.

Fifth, a wide and deep trench should be dug in front of the city, so that the besieging enemy could not easily fill it up; if the trench was filled with water, the enemy could be prevented from digging tunnels, that is, such a trench could prevent the enemy from carrying out the tunnels in two ways: first, the depth of the trenches themselves, and second, the flooding of the tunnels by flooding.

6. All measures should be taken so that the numerous enemy archers would not be able to climb the top of the city, even if they drove the frightened defenders away from the fortifications and leaned up the ladders. To do this, it was necessary to have as many armor and shields as possible for the inhabitants of the city. Then pull up a double straw mat or a Cilician goatskin blanket down the perforation to block the arrows from flying, or at least to make it less easy for the arrows or javelins to penetrate the swinging shelter.

Another method was also created: a basket called a "metara" was woven from various materials, filled with stones, and stacked between two pheasants. Calculate the time and smash these "Metala" over their heads as soon as the enemy starts to climb the ladder, and when they are about to lift their feet to climb up.

7. There are many ways to defend and besiege a city, which I shall speak of in appropriate places. It should now be noted that there are two ways to carry out a siege: one is when the enemy deploys his legions in a very advantageous location (constantly disturbing the besieged with surprise attacks, and the other is when) the enemy either cuts off the besieged men's water supply or waits for them to suffer from hunger and surrender, since the enemy will not let them receive any food supplies. If a siege is carried out, the enemy himself will not have much to do and will be safer, but it will be able to exhaust the opponent.

At the slightest possibility, the locals should do their best to transport all their food reserves into the city, in order that they might have sufficient food for themselves, and that the enemy would be starved of food, and that he would be forced to withdraw. Not only the pigs, but also all the animals that could not be kept in captivity, were to be slaughtered and then salted, so that there would be more abundant meat and less food consumption. Chickens can also be raised in the city, which is not expensive and is especially necessary for the sick. Pay special attention to stockpiling the horse's feed, and burn it if it can't be pulled away. Wine, vinegar, and all kinds of fruits, such as apples, should try to concentrate on stockpiling. Leave nothing useful to the enemy. It is both advantageous and pleasant to divide or level the vegetable garden next to the house.

It would be very harmful if the harvest was good and the food was not properly distributed from the outset, with the help of the right people, so that it did not meet people's health needs. Some people can also pay attention to frugality and care for their families under the condition of abundant food and clothing, and they will not be afraid of cold and starvation.

Ordinary people are often driven out of the city, because they cannot be soldiers either in terms of age or gender, and failure to do so will lead to starvation of the armed men defending the city.

8. Sufficient bitumen, sulfur, resin, and liquid oil (petroleum) known as fuel shall be prepared for the purpose of burning the enemy's machinery. For forging weapons, there should be reserves of pig iron (for hot and cold processing) and coal in the warehouse. Deliver the wood you need to get in advance to make spears and arrows. And make every effort to go into the rivers to gather large stones, for the stones in the rivers are heavier and more effective to throw, and all the heads and towers of all sizes should be filled with stones of all sizes. The smaller ones can be thrown with a sling, a stick thrower, or by hand. Larger ones can be shot with ballistas. The heaviest can also push them to the breastwork, and if they are pushed off the top of the city, they will not only kill and injure the enemies who rush to the edge of the city, but also destroy their machinery.

Prepare freshly cut timber to make large wheels, or make cylindrical rolling logs from sawn chunks. The wheels and logs should be made very smooth to make them easy to roll, and the sudden and rapid rolling down the slope usually surprises the enemy (and can also frighten the horses).

Wood, planks and nails of various sizes should always be on hand. In order to deal with the machinery of the besiegers, it is necessary to have additional machinery ready at all times, especially when it is necessary to hastily increase the walls and increase the height of the fortified walls. Only in this way can the enemy's mobile watchtowers not be able to reach the top of the city, and it will not be possible to occupy the entire city from this.

9. Every effort should be made to stock up on ropes, without which ballistas and other projectile apparatus of all kinds would be useless. Horsehair and horsetail hair are useful for ballistas. Of course, women's hair is equally suitable for this type of weapon, as evidenced by the practice of Rome in a difficult situation. When the Capitoline was besieged, the projectors were destroyed by the long and constant use, and there were no backup ropes.

So the housewives of Rome cut off their long hair and gave it to their husbands who were fighting. The projector was fixed, the enemy attack was repulsed. These modest women preferred to temporarily shave their heads and live freely with their husbands rather than keep their hair and be enslaved by the enemy. Horns and skins should also be collected to make armor and various mechanical equipment.

10. A city with an inexhaustible source of water within its walls has a great advantage. If nature had not blessed such a blessing, it would have been necessary to dig wells, no matter how deep they had to dig, and then draw water with buckets and ropes.

Sometimes the city was located in a very dry place, surrounded by hills and cliffs, and the garrisons stationed on the hillocks had to go outside the garrison and go down the hill in search of water, and from the perforations of the pillboxes and towers they had to cover the water-bearers with bows and arrows that could reach the location of the water, and they were to be free to come to the garrison to deliver water. If the water source is out of range of the bow and arrow, as long as it is still on the slope where the city is located, small fortifications should be placed between the city and the water source, some people call it "fortress", and a number of ballistas should be placed in it, and some archers should be equipped to prevent the enemy from grabbing water.

In addition, in all public buildings, cisterns are built with the utmost care, as in many private houses, so that they can be used to store rainwater on rainy days. Those who are under siege are satisfied with the little water they have to drink during the time they are under siege.

11. If the city is on the seashore and there is a shortage of salt in the city, the plates and other utensils should be filled with seawater. When exposed to the sun, the sea water will solidify into table salt. If the enemy does not allow him to approach the water's edge, as is often the case, he can also accumulate some sand that is pushed to the shore from the sea during a storm, and wash it with fresh water, and after the sun evaporates, it can also be turned into a lump of salt.

XII. If it is decided to storm the city or to storm the fortifications, such a tragic battle will be equally dangerous to both sides, and the besieging side will be more in terms of the degree of bloodshed.

The troops preparing to break into the city must first set up their formations and arrange all kinds of mechanical facilities that can cause terror one by one, in order to break the city in one fell swoop. This will inevitably greatly aggravate the thrilling atmosphere on the battlefield, and the so-called drums, trumpets, and shouts will shake the sky and cause a lot of noise. At this time (and in fact this intimidation can only frighten those who are not accustomed to the atmosphere), if the citizens are frightened by the first onslaught and do not know how to fight in a serious moment, the enemy may take advantage of the situation to push the ladder closer to the edge of the city and break into the city. And once the first assault is thwarted by the fighters and experienced fighters, the besieged side will be emboldened. At this time, the creation of terror is no longer of much use in battle, and it is up to strength, various skills, and command art to decide the victory.

13. At this time, there will be various siege equipment such as tedines, arietes, falces, venei, plutei, muli, and turres to the edge of the city.

I'm going to give you a look at each of these devices, how they're constructed, what they're used for, and how to defeat them.

14. The turtle back car is made of rectangular wood and planks. To avoid fire, it is covered with a Cilician carpet woven from raw animal skins, goat hair, or a cover cloth sewn piece by piece. Under the top lid is placed a sickle hook pen. One end of the penny is pierced with a curved iron hook, hence the name sickle hook (because the iron hook is curved, like a sickle). Its function is to hook the stone out of the wall. Sometimes the head of the penny is covered with a layer of iron, which becomes a battering ram, so it is called a battering ram, perhaps because it has a hard "forehead" with which it can be used to destroy the city wall, or it may be that it has to take a few steps back like a big ram, and then ram forward with greater strength and speed.

The turtle car got its name because it resembled a real turtle, sticking its head out and retracting it at one moment, and it was sometimes a few steps back, and sometimes it pushed its battering ram forward to strike the walls more forcefully.

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From the above, it can be clearly seen that Vegetius has a point of view in this regard, that is, the influence of people's livelihood is closely related to the corresponding urban defense tactics.

More than that, in many ways Vegetius presents a detailed description of the offensive and defensive systems of the West at that time. (To be continued.) )

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