I heard that an additional point was that horses where expensive and cavalryman where supposed to have their own. But the most important roles for cavalry are scouting and manoeuvring which involves being far away from camp and sleeping in makeshifts location while hiding, which the rich romans thought was beneath them. So they where able to field some heavy shock cavalry (the equites) but had no native cavalry for scouting or harrasment.
You missed that Rome was initially based on the Hellenic military tradition of hoplite warfare which had a large infantry focus, they later adapted this to the sword/shield legionary style they became famous for but that's the origin of the infantry focus. Early Roman cavalry wasn't really poor, but it wasn't good either. Wealthier citizens who could afford a horse and at least modest equipment some time training to use them and work together they lacked the horseback warfare/raiding/warrior heavy lifestyle (at least by comparison) of the mounted "barbarians" around them, they lacked the extremely expensive heavy equipment and lifelong training of the noble/heavy cavalry of some states and they lacked the extensive training and discipline of later Roman cavalry. Essentially they were just kind of mid in everything, better equipped than the average Gaul on a horse, better trained and led than an average militia and a social culture of "do your duty" but lacking everything that made the other more famous cavalry forces stand out.
The same hilly, mountainous terrain of Italy making it not ideal for raising a lot of cavalrymen was also the same reason why the Romans ditched the Hoplite fighting style. Their Samnite rivals fought in a more flexible style in their wars against them and the Romans took their idea and went with it. Also during the Principate, the Romans had seen enough of the Parthian Cataphracts that they did slowly start to add them into the army. They weren't abundant at first but by the later periods of the Western Empire they showed up more. The Eastern Roman Empire continued that trend and had plenty of their own Cataphracts. The Roman mail armor, helmet designs had heavy inspiration from the Gauls. The Gladius' origins are from Spain. The Manipular fighting style of the Legions came from the Samnites. The Cataphracts from Parthia. Before that they were fond of recruiting Gallic and Germanic cavalrymen during the Republic. The Romans weren't shy about copying, incorporating something foreign if it was good.
Look at a topographical map of Ancient Macedon and the Greek peninsula and you'll see why. Macedon's center was supposed to be great for horses. However, it's Philip II that improved on the Macedonian horse tradition and got them the Companion cavalrymen. Greece, like the Romans, had cavalry but it was never extensive for them. There's one exception in Greece for cavalry and that's Thessaly. Why? Again, look at the topography of Thessaly. Look at a topographical map of the Italian peninsula. It's way worse until you get to the far northeast... Where the Gauls were.
I heard that an additional point was that horses where expensive and cavalryman where supposed to have their own. But the most important roles for cavalry are scouting and manoeuvring which involves being far away from camp and sleeping in makeshifts location while hiding, which the rich romans thought was beneath them. So they where able to field some heavy shock cavalry (the equites) but had no native cavalry for scouting or harrasment.
Until the late period when After being defeated by parthian heavy cavalry the romans finally made their own version of It : "the clibanarii"
You missed that Rome was initially based on the Hellenic military tradition of hoplite warfare which had a large infantry focus, they later adapted this to the sword/shield legionary style they became famous for but that's the origin of the infantry focus.
Early Roman cavalry wasn't really poor, but it wasn't good either. Wealthier citizens who could afford a horse and at least modest equipment some time training to use them and work together they lacked the horseback warfare/raiding/warrior heavy lifestyle (at least by comparison) of the mounted "barbarians" around them, they lacked the extremely expensive heavy equipment and lifelong training of the noble/heavy cavalry of some states and they lacked the extensive training and discipline of later Roman cavalry.
Essentially they were just kind of mid in everything, better equipped than the average Gaul on a horse, better trained and led than an average militia and a social culture of "do your duty" but lacking everything that made the other more famous cavalry forces stand out.
What about range infantry?
The same hilly, mountainous terrain of Italy making it not ideal for raising a lot of cavalrymen was also the same reason why the Romans ditched the Hoplite fighting style. Their Samnite rivals fought in a more flexible style in their wars against them and the Romans took their idea and went with it.
Also during the Principate, the Romans had seen enough of the Parthian Cataphracts that they did slowly start to add them into the army. They weren't abundant at first but by the later periods of the Western Empire they showed up more. The Eastern Roman Empire continued that trend and had plenty of their own Cataphracts.
The Roman mail armor, helmet designs had heavy inspiration from the Gauls. The Gladius' origins are from Spain. The Manipular fighting style of the Legions came from the Samnites. The Cataphracts from Parthia. Before that they were fond of recruiting Gallic and Germanic cavalrymen during the Republic. The Romans weren't shy about copying, incorporating something foreign if it was good.
But isn't Greek/Macedonian geography even less conducive to developing cavalry?
Look at a topographical map of Ancient Macedon and the Greek peninsula and you'll see why.
Macedon's center was supposed to be great for horses. However, it's Philip II that improved on the Macedonian horse tradition and got them the Companion cavalrymen. Greece, like the Romans, had cavalry but it was never extensive for them. There's one exception in Greece for cavalry and that's Thessaly. Why? Again, look at the topography of Thessaly.
Look at a topographical map of the Italian peninsula. It's way worse until you get to the far northeast... Where the Gauls were.
@@Warmaker01 Thanks for the explanation.
Thessaly plains were cavalry intensive,
No stirrups? (Okay, true, but not what the video is referencing.)
Huh
Stirrups are for amateurs
Only pansies usinf stirrups to ride the horse
Too much time in choir practice.
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