"Theban Thracian contact?" Topic

Sorry I'm on a posting roll, but idk of another forum to ask this on..

Did Thebes ever come into contact with Thrace? Geographically it doesn't look impossible.

The reason I ask, is because I just recieved a theban army box from HAT as a gift… and don't have any period enemies for them…except thracians

Anybody know?

Let me know
Thanks for tolerating my incessant posting

Austin

Thucydides in Book 7 describes Thracians raiding and killing people in Boetia. Look up the Battle of Mycalessus.

Of course, this gift gives you the excuse to buy an Athenian army to oppose them also.

Given that Greeks and Thracians turned up as mercenaries everywhere in that part of the world, if that's the least of your worries you're a happy man!

It's a great box of figures! Hope you enjoy it. Sparta and Athens were the only powerful city states. Thebes fought them both at times. These figures make great allied contingents. Please post pics once you get them painted up.

A bunch of Thracians wre hired by Athens to serve as mercenaries, got there too late, were sacked and promptly plundered their way home. Thebes is on the way. I think that was at the time of Athens war with Syracuse.

Saying Sparta and Athens were the only powerful city states is very simplistic and true for a shortish period. Early on, Corinth was the major power and Thebes also had a period as the dominant power.

Units of Thracian mercenaries would not really be too inappropriate on either side (or both sides) of pretty much any internecine greek conflict, across a span of several centuries.

As for straight up Thracian-versus-X Greeks battles, any city state that had colonies that were within raiding distance of Thrace (and Thrace is a pretty big place) almost certainly fought the Thracians regularly. That said, I'm not aware of the Thebans being terribly active as colonizers (at least as compared to, say, Athens or Corinth or some other cities), but that could just be lack of knowledge on my part.

The Macedonians and Epirotes, being more in the neighborhood (so to speak) of the Thracians, fought them pretty frequently. Probably the most frequent enemy of the Thracians, though, would be other Thracians.

Doug

Didn't Persia fight Thracians at some point during the Greco-Persian wars of the 5th century BC?

Using some of my other Greeks I could recreate some of the early power struggles… and Thracian mercenaries are a must! They were to the early Greeks as the Galatians were to the seleucids.

Thebes vs Sparta would be really cool.

What should the hoplites look like in this scenario though? I know Sparta had a change in costume a few times…. during the early city-state struggles with Thebes, would they have the large crests and flat cuirass?
Or would they have moved to look more like other hoplites of the period, with their signifier being the inverted lambda?

Thanks
Austin