Gondorian Professional Army

Looking at the map, the urban areas of Gondor would be dis-proportionally in areas ruled directly by the Stewards. These include Minas Tirith and Osgiliath. But urban people tend to not be natural soldiers. But urban areas do tend to produce more tax revenues that fund a professional army. When people have better security hiding behind walls and more income opportunities not fighting, there is less incentive for them to be fighters. Which then means salaries would be needed to induce people to become soldiers. When one is paying for troops, there is an incentive to then train and outfit them so they are of more value to the government hiring them. This means that the training, pay, equipment, discipline and command would all be much higher than the feudal levies. But their numbers would be much smaller.
Now, lets look at the rank and file troops coming from Minas Tirith for a second. In military terms Gondor appears to be much closer to what we would consider to be a traditional military with some elements from the ancient times and some from medieval Europe. Gondor was founded by Numenorian refugees, as such had a military tradition based on strong military discipline and tight, layered ranks. The front used big shields planted in the ground to protect a line of spear men. Behind them were placed archers who would fire over the heads of the front ranks to pelt charging enemies. Both apparently carried swords as a side arm.
Mercenaries were common in the early modern period. However they cost more money and the death of their captain often led to the entire group leaving the battle. Those recruited by a noble tended to have better cohesion. However, in both cases, loyalty was to the noble or mercenary captain, not the wider nation or its cause. This was a factor all leaders needed to contend with. The cavalry remained dominant on the battlefield. But there was an expectation that commanders in the early modern period would supplement with mercenaries. All of this was added to the reliance on nobles in the case of Gondor. The uncertain and varied mix of units, equipment, training, loyalty and experience meant that all wars would be an uncertain affair. This was in part due to the limited power and revenue of the central government. Many times the king had to rely on private citizens to finance the supplies and training of the company they led.

Composition

Manpower

Per 1,000 men on the battlefield, the Byzantine Army had 400 heavy infantry, 300 archers, 200 lancers and 100 pike men. On the battlefield, cavalry formed a 12 row wedge formation. Heavy Cavalry appears to have formed units between 384 and 504. This mix meant that the Themes and Banda grew increasingly more of an administrative unit rather than actual battlefield formation.
Now, the regiments of the Byzantine Empire were called Tagma. These were estimated between 4,000 and 1,000. The biggest one is close to the size of what I think is the whole army, so the 1,000 number is closer to what Gondor can be expected to have. Each Tagma would have 5 banda in it. As a result we can expect 5 Tagma for the whole army. The leaders would probably be the main generals that report directly to Denethor. These units had staffs that were capped at 300. There were discipline officers, roughly 6 clerks, at least two accountants, billeting masters, scouts, surveyors, medics and so forth.
Thematic troops could choose to pay taxes instead of going to war. At first, the Thematic troops had to train and equip their replacement. Then they just had to pay 4 or 5 nomismata. This helped fund the hiring of mercenaries. Over a long period of peace, budget crises and demobilization led to a decline in the fighting power and number of Themes. Foreign troops became even more vital as a result. Foreign mercenaries also were popular in economic hard times or labor shortages, as the population would need as much native manpower to be productive. Mercenaries were not ever really going to produce for the local civilian economy. This is especially true should the government have some revenue left over from better times. This allowed the soldiers to essentially become civilians with military training while the government hired mercenaries to pick up the slack.
Now, in battle, how would we expect them to be organized? Well, I will be looking at the early modern and Napoleonic periods, as the armies at this time were the first to use modern academies and general staffs. Yet they were closer to the feudal model than any other model I know of. By “general staff”, I mean a group of officers that came up with war plans, running training and recruitment, analyzed intelligence, purchased war supplies, organized logistics and issued pay. All armies had staff in the sense of generals having clerks and formations having other support positions in them. It wasn’t until the Napoleonic Wars that you saw a state level agency aimed at providing clear centralized direction and standardization to orders, equipment, doctrine and so forth.
Landsknechts were an attempt to replicate the Swiss pike formations in the Holy Roman Empire. A “gentleman of war”, or Kreigsherr, would be authorized to form a regiment or company. Recruiting agents were sent out to find potential soldiers. Famous commanders could find thousands in a few weeks. They met at an appointed area and were inspected to see if they were fit for duty. If they passed, they were given a month’s pay in advance.
The theoretical strength was 400 men per company with 10 per regiment. Most soldiers were armed with 14 foot pikes. Like many other units, the norm was helmets and breastplates for armor. Front lines, as per the norm, had greater arm and thigh protections. This was normally plate armor.
One hundred of each company were supposed to be more experienced people who volunteered for the more dangerous jobs, such as being the first to charge an opening in a city's walls. This section was named the Forlorn Hope because they were not expected to survive the battle. But those who did were often on the fast track to promotions. Thus, this part of the formation was popular with volunteers looking for advancement and criminals looking to redeem themselves or die trying. Drawing lots was used when the volunteers were not enough. In normal pitched battles, they deployed in thin lines ahead of the main group. They were armed with swords or halberds, seeking to break into enemy lines so that their friendly pike men can have a gap to exploit. They were paid double the average rate. Between 25 and 50 were armed with early guns who were placed in small groups at the corners as skirmishers. They would retreat inside the ranks of pike men when threatened. The rest of this group had halberds or swords. They were placed at the extreme front and backs of the formations to protect them.
The Dutch formations that were modeled off of this concept were 550 men each. They had 250 pike men per unit. 300 were armed with firearms. 60 were placed out front as skirmishers. The other 240 were put on the wings of the army. Pikes formed the center. Pike ranks were between 5-10 deep while those with guns formed ranks 8-12 deep. The firearm groups would rotate to the rear after each volley to reload. Then the formerly second file would fire and retreat back. By the time the first group to fire was back up front, their guns were reloaded.
Now, how many active duty troops could be expected in this system? Well, we know that Gondor was inspired by the Byzantine Empire and is in a state of serious decline. In the 8th century, the Byzantine Empire was going through a profound military emergency. Some estimates suggest that between 559 AD and 773 AD, the Army lost 52% of its strength – going from 150,000 to 80,000 men. At the time, the population was estimated to be 7,000,000 for an area of 546,806.6 square miles. Gondor is about 432,401 square miles according to the Atlas. The Fall of Constantinople was in 1453 and what helped inspire the Battle of Minas Tirith. At this time, the main Byzantine Army was between 3,000 to 4,000. By the time of the Fall of Constantinople, it was down to 1,500. With this in mind, the 10,000 strong garrison from the movies and 2,000 in the books appear to be consistent with what we can expect.
So, I will blend the two a bit here. I’ll take the 1,500 figure to be a basis for the main garrison attached to Minas Tirith or the Steward’s personal army. Keep in mind Mordor has been openly growing in power in the years before the battle. Denethor also was not totally crazy for most of his reign. It was only at the end (when it mattered most) that his despair hit critical levels. This leads me to believe he may have started his reign with 4,000 troops but started a rearmament program to increase the total size to 5,000 men. Keep in mind, a lot of primary sources for the Byzantine Empire, especially during the 8th century, did not count the frontier troops and irregulars that the troops of the Southern Fiefs would count as.
From what I have read, the Byzantine Army had roughly two thirds of its army infantry and one third cavalry. Though the same source states that in some areas in the 4th century it was 50% mounted and some areas had no infantry at all. But the 2:1 infantry to cavalry ratio seems to be the norm for the army as a whole. Translating this to the Gondorian army means that the main army by the time of Minas Tirith would be 3,334 infantry and 1,667 cavalry.
It must be noted that in some areas of the Byzantine Empire, the cavalry was as high as 50%. But those were irregular frontier troops – not considered part of the main army. These areas were controlled by local nobles who had to handle the border raids, criminal groups and so forth. Thus, patrolling and police work rather than full pitched battles. This is similar to the feudal armies of Europe, reliant on their knights and more concerned with small scale local threats. These required more mobility than traditional armies on campaigns. But when Byzantium did go to war, it pulled out is main field armies with its greater emphasis on infantry.
But most armies – including the Byzantines – preferred increments of 5 or ten. The Byzantine Banda was a unit of 200 soldiers for infantry and between 50-100 for cavalry. It appears that the cavalry units of the Roman Empire tended to be closer to 30 troops, so I will use the 30 number for their unit size. Using the above numbers, add in some rounding to eliminate partial units gives us 60 cavalry banda (at 30 soldiers) and 17 infantry (at 200). This gives us a regulation strength for the Gondorian army of 3,400 infantry and 1,600 mounted troops. The result is a nice happy medium for us to work with. In the Byzantine Empire, the wedge formations used in heavy cavalry charges were 500 men. Given the fact that they were meant to be the game winner and densities needed to be high, I could expect that 1,000 of the cavalry would be heavy and the remaining 600 light. Per 500 men, there were roughly 20 higher officers and 150 junior officers.
If the Byzantine Army (with 3 spearmen per archer) is the model, we get 850 archers and 2,550 spearmen. The Byzantines also used formations with 650 heavy infantry and 350 archers. Applied to Gondor, this gives 2,210 melee troops and 1,190 archers. Using the ratio from the Landsknecht formations I discuss of 4 ranged to 3 melee troops, we would get an army with about 1,943 archers and 1,457 spear or pike men. Given the fact that firepower proved to be so devastating even with simple archers (see the Hundred Years War), guns are not needed to see Gondor move more and more to archers. Similarly, since the professional army will be financing the weaponry and armor of the soldiers, the cheaper bows will be preferred to the pike or sword. As a result, I would expect that the Gondorian Army would start off with the first Byzantine ratio and end by the Battle of Minas Tirith with the Swedish numbers.
The Tourma had about 2,500 people in them, so we can expect Gondor to have two major subdivisions within the Royal Lands. If we remember, a village averaged around 150 people. This includes family. As a result, I would expect the Gondorian version of the 50-100 person Byzantine Kontoubernia to form the basis of the Themes. The commander of each level of the army would also control the entire territory. For a 5,000 person army, we can expect that there would be 100 towns controlled and settled directly by the Army.
The Tagma are relatively easy to figure out the placement of. The Tagma are primarily from the professional army, which would probably be focused on the core of Gondorian territory and not that under direct noble control. This means near Minas Tirith and between Minas Tirith and Mordor. The northern border is much closer to Minas Tirith and where the Easterlings would approach from. This means that at least one Tagma Theme would be located on that border. Two would probably be placed near Osgiliath – most likely on the far side of the river. You would want to defeat your enemies before they got too close. Plus too many troops too close to the capital makes coups easier. This leaves us with 2,000 troops for the southern border – still leaving us 2,000 men short if we are optimistic with our numbers.
Sheppard Frere (1980). Britannia. Routlege & Kegan Paul. pp. 158–160. ISBN 978-0-7100-8916-8.

Equipment

Now, for their equipment. Tower shields would be the best bet, as these would be able to provide cover to Gondor’s archers. They can then take a position and dig their shielding into the ground. This provides cover for the troops while also freeing up both hands to shoot their arrows. There are actually historic shields that have a gutter like thing in the middle that allow them to stand on their own. The idea is that the troops can run up and just drop their shield on the ground and it will stay upright. Now, to make them thick enough, they can be rather heavy. But, troops in the medieval period were not marching long distances with their own supplies – foraging was much more common. So, the strength a modern soldier would normally have to devote to some basic rations and other supplies would not be an issue here.
Their shields evolved over time. Originally they were massive curved affairs that had a rectangular top potion protecting the torso with a triangular bottom covering the legs. This allows them to embed the shield into the ground and use their spears with two hands. Later shields were more rectangular with semicircles at top and bottom. It was wood with a leather face and metal trim on the edges. This was meant to be wielded with one arm.
This shielding was reinforced with pretty solid full body armor. A thin gambeson formed the inner layer. Mail then was the middle layer. The outside was some of the most solid traditional plate armor in Middle Earth. Pretty much the entire soldier’s body was covered in plate with gaps filled in with the mail. This was made of steel with bronze or gold trim. They were the only soldiers from human culture with full plate armor of high grade steel. This was interesting to me as it actually mirrors what I have seen regarding historical armors.
Now, I am not entirely sure if the main rank-and-file infantry would use this full armor in field battles. Care for plate would be much more difficult on the march. The Roman Army was a well financed and professional (at least at its height) and used mail. Add in the high cost of plate and this would mean that the Gondorian army would likely prefer to not waste perfectly good plate armor on the march. Using strictly the mail layer would save weight on the march and not risk rust. For those on garrison duties, the full plate seems entirely logical. Exhaustion on march would not be an issue, and the greater down time could be used for proper care of the plate.
In terms of armor, the Numenorian army had a mail coat that covered down to the elbows and knees. Steel breastplates, vambraces, greaves and helmets were used on top of gauntlets of leather. The helmets had plates extending down to protect the neck and cheeks. Gondor added in many more plates, so pretty much just the hands and thighs were covered in mail. It must be noted that such plate armor for common soldiers was only possible due to large iron reserves and smith skills learned from the Elves. The skill also meant that one handed swords had singularly unimpressive luck in penetrating Gondorian armor. Maces and two handed swords though still could be lethal. Angles were smooth and curved to help deflect blows away. This means that Gondorian soldiers were some of the best protected in the established lore.
How does this hold up to the historical inspirations? Well, the Byzantine armor did have a steel cap for a helmet, but mail or padded cotton covered the neck. Gambesons covered in leather or mail would form the main body armor. A kite shield was used. The heavy infantry in the front ranks had a 4 meter long spear, while everyone had two swords. One was double edged, 70-80 cm long and apparently quite heavy. The other was a single edged saber. Light infantry had cloth armor at best and carried a composite bow and a small ax for self defense.
Now, the Byzantine Army managed quite well for itself across its history. This equipment does not appear to have hindered its performance at all. Meanwhile, the Gondorian Army seems to have actually gotten better equipped over time, even when the rest of the state appears to be in decline. This makes no sense to me at all. Perhaps the Gondorian arms and armor we see in the books and movies would be reserved for the officers – possibly even low level officers. But the rank and file troops would most likely use the cheaper mail and leather based armor of the Byzantines. Historically, another option was cloth and leather used to cover gaps in plate. This would mean that the outer layer of plate could be retained, but not the mail. The mail’s utility could not be expected to be made up entirely with this system, but it is much cheaper and not entirely ineffective either.

Weaponry

Lets now look at the equipment of the main Gondorian army to start the discussion of the normal units. The spears were 9 feet long, with the tip making up the last two feet. Later this would shrink to 8 feet. This tip was sharpened on both sides and came to a fine point, more designed for thrusting. Primarily it was seen as a sidearm. As its primary use was against enemy charges, it was probably more of the main weapon for the front ranks.
The swords are more general purpose than the elven swords, sharpened on both sides to allow for backhand and forehand slashes and thrusting. Granted, such a sword would be adequate in most contexts but never really excellent in any. Thus it works well as a solid side arm. It was 28 inches long (three feet in Gondor’s early days) and single handed. This fits with the idea that it was intended as a backup weapon rather than the primary one. Often it was in specialist troops like rangers but most rank-and-file troops used it one handed in conjunction with their single handed shields.
The Forlorn Hope appears to use a quite impractic sounding sword that actually worked well for its intended use - called the Zweihänder. The ones used in battle appear to be between 4.4 and 7.1 pounds and up to 84 inches long. These swords were so big that they no longer functioned as traditional swords. Instead, they were more sword like polearms.

Structure

But, the combination of academies, permanent military formations like the Citadel Guards, plus the clear feudal nature of most of society means that there would be a weird mix of modern and medieval military structures. First, I would expect that the reserve system similar to the dwarves would be used, but only related to the residents of Minas Tirith. I would also expect the creation of a semi professional officer corps and possibly a general staff. This would be important as the larger armies that conscription produces have greater needs for maps, planning, communication and logistics.
Now, it appears that there would be some form of general staff growing up around the Stewards. We see this with the academy systems that Gondor is described as having. This requires some sort of professional officer corps and often academies are used to produce the sort of military thinkers that populate general staffs. So, how would this General Staff system work for Gondor? Well, there does appear to be a limited version from Ancient Rome that might prove useful. This would not be too much of a logical leap. The level of technology is roughly the same. Plus, Rome was the predecessor to the Byzantines who inspired Gondor.
First, we have to recognize that there was no general staff in the way it exists today. Instead, there was a formal imperial council of magistrates and senators in rotation to advise the emperor on all matters and to prepare decrees for votes in the Senate. Real decisions were made by a semi-formal group of other senior officials, plus the emperor’s close friends. Now, many of these people in both groups would be experienced in military affairs, as all careers for the Roman elites required military service. But there was no official body whose job was to receive and analyze military intelligence and advise on strategy. Commanders of the Praetorian Guard, could become the predominant influence in military decision-making.
Even by the time of World War One, there were general staffs that operated surprisingly similar to this. Russia was a prime - but not sole - example of this. Patronage and elite backgrounds often were as important in becoming a member of the general staff in part because only the wealthier could afford the better education needed. Its roles often were more bureaucratic in nature. It did not focus on actual war games, making plans and looking at intelligence to see who were the main threats and how best to meet them. Instead, it handled mobilization plans, appointments of commanders, payroll matters, supply purchasing and distribution and similar paperwork related jobs. Membership was based on seniority, patronage and political considerations. But still, once these institutions are set up, it is a matter of time before they take over actual planning.
Though Gondor has one agency that is functionally different than anything I know Rome had – the Rangers. They would provide scouting and intelligence on the enemy in ways that could make a more modern general staff work. Add in a council of nobles, feed them information from the Rangers and make the head of the Tower Guards the chief of staff and you have a solid foundation. So, Gondor appears to be somewhat better placed to have an ancient general staff than the Romans, which had a sort of rough draft version. Gondor would probably have a sort of transitional version between the Roman and Napoleonic era versions of general staffs.
Devolving authority to the Banda level eliminated some of the problems with Themes. First, it allowed for much more rapid mobilization for drills, offensive campaign or the surprise arrival of a raiding band. It also allowed for smaller conquests - one only needed to take enough land to support 200 men compared to the 1,000 or more of larger formations. This reduced many of the Theme’s problems. But there is no substitution for actual campaigning. So I suspect Gondor would use a similar devolved structure due to the effectiveness of it and the larger ability to sell offices that results. But, the cautious, risk adverse nature of a Gondorian government in decline, the loss of battlefield experience would still set in and cause its ill effects.
Now, how would the above mentioned officer corps be selected? Well first, we have to contend with the overall atmosphere of decadence and decay Gondor is experiencing. The Hapsburg Empire towards its end was very similar in that deep rot was infecting its military. In that military, slow promotions and nobles shunning less glamorous or profitable enterprises meant that they tended to avoid military positions way more than most. Officers – especially in the technical branches – were dominated by the lower classes and families with a tradition of military service. Many would use battlefield glory and loyal service as a tool for social and economic advancement. Officers also frequently came from other nations. Adventuresome elites would go from nation to nation seeking promotions. Russia and Austria were the most frequent users of foreign adventurers as officers. By the time of World War One, the British Army also used non traditional sources for officers as well. Traditional nobles were still in the officer corps, but so too were more landed gentry, traditional military families and the politically ambitious.
However, the low pay of the Hapsburg officers and their even slower promotions had two damaging effects on the officer corps. First, the above mentioned shunning of military service was reinforced. It was much easier to make more money or advance quicker in the private sector than it was in the rest of Europe. Thus, a higher percentage of the best and brightest did not enter the military. Secondly, corruption was more rampant. Whenever people face financial stress and few legitimate means of escape, corruption will flourish.
In the light cavalry, this was a recipe for war crimes. During the Napoleonic Wars, light cavalry often found themselves far away from the main commanders and the discipline they could met out. Therefore, cases of looting murder and rape were more concentrated in light cavalry. The officers present would ignore or take part in these crimes. Local civilians thus would fear their arrival.
This could then be the basis of the career for these nobles. The Roman Army had a sort of standard career for the senatorial (cursus honorum) and equestrian order (tres militae). Now, as Ancient Rome retained many republican features that Gondor does not appear to have, they cannot be adopted perfectly. But they can be used as a foundation for us.
The senatorial class could stand in for the nobles for us, as they were functionally the ancient Roman landed aristocracy and literally the precursor to the sort of nobles the Feudal system is built around. Now, the cursus honorum involved elections and positions generally associated with public administration. In our look into Gondor, we can replace these elections with appointments to the administration of royal lands. First, as suggested above, there is likely to be a deficit of higher and qualified nobles wanting to take part in this career path. This means that those from the lower noble houses and the sons who did not feel they have the opportunity to succeed in the private sector or inherit their family lands and titles will be the ones entering this path.
The first step was to serve as a servant to a commanding officer in the army for ten years. Alternatively, they could become Tribunes. For Gondor this could be part of the staff for a Tagma or as the head of a banda. The next step, after these 10 years were up, was the Quaestors. This position handled the public treasury – tax collection, paying people, contracts for public works and dividing the spoils of war. By the Byzantine Era, the position came to also have control over judicial proceedings and police. Next was the aedile, who was in charge of public works, the food and water supply and maintaining public buildings. After serving as aedile, people could become Praetor – essentially a judge. After this, appointment to a governorship of a province came next. The pinnacle of a career in the cursus honorum was the Consul. This was the head of the Senate and in Gondorian terms probably the equivalent to the Steward. Instead of the two consuls with real political power, I would imagine Gondor would use their consul position to run the day to day administration of the government.
Belliotti, Raymond Angelo (15 August 2009). Roman Philosophy and the Good Life. Lexington Books. p. 231. ISBN 9780739139714.
Kazhdan, Alexander, Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium, Oxford University Press, 1991, retrieved 1 May 2017
Thompson, L. A. (1962), "The Relationship between Provincial Quaestors and Their Commanders-in-Chief.", Historia: Zeitschrift Für Alte Geschichte, JSTOR 4434751
Shelton, Jo-Ann (1998). As the Romans did: a sourcebook in Roman Social History (2nd ed.). Oxford University Press. pp. 207–215. ISBN 9780195089745.
The equestrian order was basically the Roman version of knights, literally getting their name from the fact they were rich enough to supply their own horse during war. Their public service career was called the tres militae, and can serve as a basis for how the middle classes, traditional military families and urban merchants would get ahead. The first post was the leader of a cohort. Then they could move up to Tribute and finally the head of the auxiliary troops. After their time in the army, they could lead the Praetorian Guard or essentially lead government departments. They usually would only reach the second in command positions in legions, so the Tagma of Gondor would retain noble commanders.
We can expect this course to be the one knights would take if they enter the professional army, though this is unlikely due to their obligations in the noble lands. Often the “graduates” of the tres militae for Gondor could be expected to take over the middle management and more technical positions in the Gondorian government. As noted above, they would also likely take over higher ranking positions in the infantry, where nobles would be less interested in leading.
In France, many noble families were dispossessed of land and titles. After, they sought glory and riches at the service of the French kings during the Hundred Years War. This patterned continued throughout the Italian Wars and the religious conflicts in the country. The role of the Junkers in northern Germany also grew as the princes in this region started their own standing armies. They felt that a lack of natural defenses or strong central government required strong and well disciplined standing armies for their defense. The devastation of the Thirty Years War led to the king of Prussia granting control over Junker Estates in exchange for military service. The quality of these troops meant that the commanders that led them could count on them more than their own hastily organized units. Meanwhile the poverty of the junkers in the wake of the Thirty Yeas War meant that they would often hire out their regiments. This too can serve as a solid basis for the origins of the Gondorian officer corps and a tool to bridge its hybrid military.
In the Early Modern period, when standing armies began to appear, other strange things started to appear. In France, the King had to wait until the high level nobles to die to retire. Then he began to replace them with people from mid level noble families that had less independent power. In Russia, a meritocracy was implemented from the very beginning of the standing army, even if the promotions did not elevate people past NCO ranks. But, the nobles still retained a lot of power – sometimes the commander was of lesser noble rank than a colonel or the junior officer had connections at court. The result was dual commanders appointed to armies. Other times junior officers would demand to place their troops in an ideal place or refuse to have them placed next to rivals or social inferiors.

Tactics

Infantry are generally the most general purpose formation in any military. They can be used in all terrain, more weather conditions and in both ranged and melee combat. They are generally much cheaper than all other branches - especially compared to cavalry or artillery. This meant they were the most common, most heavily relied on branch. They also tended to come from the poorer demographics. They also suffer the most in terms of deaths, injuries and the costs of mobilization.
Line infantry was primarily deployed in close order formations while skirmishers tended to be in open order ranks (i.e. larger gaps between troops). Line infantry relied on volley fire that delivered a larger volume of fire, but was generally less accurate per shot. It was more reliant on strong discipline, cadence marching and rigid maneuvers in formations. Its focus was on taking and holding ground. It aimed to do the main damage to the enemy ranks with its ranged fire. After that, a charge reliant on melee combat was used to drive the enemy from the field.
Both of these needed as many troops concentrated into as small of an area as possible to do the most damage. But it also made them better targets for line infantry of the enemy employing the same tactics. Line formations in the Napoleonic period tended to be quite wide but very shallow. This had the benefits of making artillery fire less effective while making flank attacks harder. But at the same time, moving over terrain was harder. It was more likely that there would be some impediment that would break up these ranks. Meanwhile, flank attacks that could occur were more devastating and any enemy charge could puncture the shallow line easier.
To counter this, columns were used for marching and attacking. It was mainly only when firing did Napoleonic era troops form the long thin lines. This provided more protection against flank attacks and more power during assaults. But it was more vulnerable to artillery and the percentage of the firepower of a unit able to shoot was reduced.
The compromise was a combination. The army marched in columns. Once on the battlefield, a front line would be formed in the thin, literal line formation. Columns were held back on the flanks to protect them and be ready for charges. Skirmishers were placed in front of the line infantry. But this did require more training to pull off successfully. Changes in formations were also the time when a unit was weakest against an attack - any commander with the right position, luck and initiative could destroy the enemy when it was changing formations.
Accuracy and range were huge issues. The British came up with tactics that helped them get around that. First, they held their volley fire until the last possible moment. This meant the enemy was closer. They also had better trained men - which increased effectiveness and discipline under fire. But there was no getting around the reality. The higher the number of soldiers shooting, the better your odds were. The same was true for the rate of fire per soldier. After all, accuracy was so limited that only a huge number of guns generally pointed at the enemy could be considered likely to be effective. Rate of fire could only be expected to be 4-6 shots per minute at the beginning of the battle, then dropping to at best 2 per minute later.
The fire did most of the damage to the enemy, but battles were decided by the melee charge. This is similar to how cavalry charges worked. By the time the charge occurred, morale and formation cohesion were already broken. The result was the charge was primarily to capitalize on the state of the enemy rather than create the weakened state. An army broken up by volley fire could theoretically reform. But if it is charged before or during the reformation, it would be screwed. The impact was mainly mental. It effectively a coup de grace, confirming the state of affairs and turning a weak point into defeat. Often the enemy was shot to pieces before contact was made and was not able to resist. Or its morale was too weak, so the enemy retreated in the face of a charge. Thus actual contact was surprisingly rare. Like all elements of combat, the timing and execution of tactics matters as much if not more than the tactics themselves. Thus knowing when to charge matters a huge amount.
Light infantry requires more speed out of its members. Light infantry relies more on high accuracy per shot, individual initiative and skill, flexibility, exploiting terrain, seeking cover and individual fire. The objective was to disrupt and harass the enemy or to provoke them into premature actions. Skirmisher formations were generally to avoid major confrontation due to their lower numbers and total firepower. But they were trained to look for and exploit openings that present themselves. They not only exploited these openings in the enemy but also acted as an early warning system that kept the enemy from doing the same to them. Taking terrain too difficult for line infantry and scouting were perfect roles for light infantry.
It must be noted that they were not uncontrolled taking random pot shots at the enemy. Cover was essential for them as they could not be expected to have enough allies to protect them against enemies. Meanwhile, fire could expose their position. Thus waiting for and knowing how to recognize the best time to attack was key.
So, how did the Napoleonic armies fight? First, light cavalry was placed on the edges of a massed infantry formation, like the sort Gondor used. Infantry was to take the front in rough terrain or ambushes and assume the brunt of the defensive. A large heavy cavalry formation was placed behind this. This force would charge into gaps in the enemy line once the combined impacts of artillery and infantry fire formed them. Once the enemy was broken, the light cavalry would attack. Should the enemy rout as intended, the light cavalry would take over. Their job was to attack stragglers, isolated units and ideally maintain contact with the retreating forces. When this worked, it kept the enemy from rallying for a counter attack. More deaths and POWs were secured, thus making the defeat even more total.
But it must be noted that technological limitations prevent the exact translation of Napoleon to Gondor. The two most obvious is Gondor has no gunpowder – thus no muskets or cannons. So, what changes can we infer from this? I don’t think that the cavalry placement and use would be fundamentally changed. However, artillery as such would probably be eliminated. Catapults and trebuchets do not really work in battlefield environments.
Infantry tactics would have to be modified, but not a great deal. One thing that the British did was have their riflemen form two ranks instead of three. The result was a more powerful opening volley. However, this struggled to sustain fire or defend against attacks. Their doctrine had two major responses to that. The first was a light infantry screen in front to provide some protection. The second was a small number – often only one – volley followed by and infantry charge.
We actually have a model for similar tactics in the ancient world – the Roman use of the Pilum. Pila were 6 feet 7 inches long with a 24 inch metal shank on the end with a pyramid shaped head. This tip was intentionally made softer so that it would bend on impact. This, with the shape of the point, made it harder to pull out of flesh or shields and throw back. It was between 4 and 11 pounds, depending on time period, so the weight alone would do damage. Sometimes weighted balls were added to increase penetrating power. Now, their range was at most 50 feet, and normally only effective in the 50-70 foot range. This is important.
Legionnaires would carry one or two of these depending on time period. The idea was they would throw them into the enemy ranks to break up their shield walls before charging. So, we have a one or two volley attack followed by infantry charge. This was used by an army that used Auxilia – units that mainly used in light infantry and cavalry roles. Sound familiar? Basically, I see the pike/spear units having the pila as part of their arsenal to either defend against enemy charges or prepare for their own.
Now, it seems like the original Gondor equipment would have been incredibly beneficial in conjunction with the later versions and applied in this context. The first 3-5 ranks could have the spearmen with the 9 foot spears and the 24 inch sword and larger original shielding. The swordsman ranks should have the later and smaller shield but the longer 3 foot sword, plus one or two pila. Once they got close, the swordsmen would throw the pila then charge.
Swedish refinements to the Landsknecht system shortened the firearm units to 6 files. As the enemy approached, the command to “double the files” was given. This meant the rear files would step up and mix with those in front - forming 3 instead of 6 files. The front ranks would kneel, the second would crouch and the third would stand upright. All three would fire at once. This was repeated until the enemy formation broke, then an infantry charge would be ordered to finish off the enemy. Pike men would be called up to protect them if needed. This tactic could be devastating, leading to changes in formations to increase the number of muskets that could be fired into an enemy at the same time. The Spanish went from 3 to 4 pike men per musketeer to closer to 1:1. The Swedish formations eventually became 4 musketeers to 3 pike men. This appears to be the limit at which going beyond meant it became too hard for musketeers to hide behind pike men. Many attempts were made to find ways around this, but they were all quite cumbersome while having limited offensive power.
The Prussian version used platoons firing together, followed by the next in the succession until all 8 of the unit’s platoons fired. Theoretically, this could take as little as 15 seconds, after witch the first platoon to fire was ready. The major variation here is that all platoons were on the front lines. The concentration of fire came from different sections of the line instead of a solid line of fire across the entire front. This would often be 1/8 of the front line, three files deep per platoon. Other important aspects of their use of firearms was firing at close range. Melee would be switched to once ammunition ran out or enemy ranks broke due to the volleys of fire. It did not matter if this breaking of ranks was due to severe numbers of deaths or of morale cracking under the stress.
The invention of faster loading muskets and the bayonet proved to be technological fixes. Attempting to replicate this in the ancient or medieval period would be difficult. At best these periods could manage would be to arm archers with swords. Crossbows were too slow and pikes would be too big for archers to carry as well. But swords are much weaker against mounted charges. This meant that some form of pike or spear unit was still needed dedicated to those weapons. This means something more akin to the tercio or what I call the Swedish Landsknecht. I assume there is an actual term for that, but I don’t know it. The main other change would be the use of bows instead of muskets. The extreme rapid fire of skilled bowmen means that Prussian platoon fire would be substituted for the counter-march system. Each platoon would probably consist of the entire 25-50 of the archers per company, with their officer giving orders to fire to their specific group.
It must be noted that these developments essentially destroyed the old ways of fighting. These formations described above grant significant power to the defense. More importantly, the commoner became dominant in military affairs. Archers, crossbowmen and eventually musketeers were commoners. Yet their firepower could kill the heavily armored nobility. Meanwhile, they couldn’t even get to those raining arrows down on them as the ranged troops were hiding behind walls of pikes wielded by other commoners. Bullets were even more devastating.
One possible variation here involves the deployment of the light infantry. We can have a light infantry unit with 50 to 200 people in it stretched out across the front lines. They would probably be taken from the ranks of the 1,943 archers. They would have 2 pila, a pelta and composite short bow. Tactically they would act as screens for the main army, advancing in front and firing into the enemy using platoon fire. When one side got close to the other, the pila would be thrown. In an infantry attack, they would retreat to the rear before the main clash. In this tactic, they would either break up the enemy ranks before the infantry or cavalry charge, or slow down the enemy attack. Either way, the screen would make the enemy less effective. Behind them would be 4 ranks of heavy infantry and the remaining archers in 2-3 ranks.
Infantry assaults tended to involve two wedge formations aimed at breaking the enemy ranks. Another formation would attempt to envelop the enemy unit while protecting the center. Another tactic that was a bit risky but effective was for infantry to seize the high ground then bait the enemy into attacking there. This would expose the enemy flanks, which would be smashed with the cataphracts. Or infantry would be given a command to open up gaps in their own ranks to let the cataphracts out, like the interlarding of horse move. Should the cataphracts create gaps in the enemy lines, the infantry were trained to follow up and exploit them.
Now, I am no expert on unit formations despite what it looks like given my commentary. So there is likely to be some variations on the relationship between Gondorian spear and sword troops. But one thing is likely clear – the front and backs. Skirmishers would be in front as a screen. Behind them would be at least three ranks of archers. Remember the greater depth of normal Napoleonic armies allowed for greater sustainability of fire, important to a dedicated archer section.
Defensively, the Numenorian successor states used the Thangail - a two rank deep shield wall. It appears to be kinda good in practical terms, but not great. After all, the only confirmed use in Middle Earth is the Disaster of Gladden Fields - where Isildur and his entire company was killed. To be fair though that group was out numbered ten to one and the One Ring's effects cannot be overstated. But lets be honest here, in real life all the shield walls I know of were much deeper. But it being this thin did allow it to bend, making it harder to outflank. Or to in fact flank the enemy if an opening came.
Offensively, the Dirnaith appears to be quite effective if used properly. It is a wedge formation launched at full speed. It apparently is quite effective when the enemy is effectively unprepared. Should the targeted enemy be on the field but not properly in formation yet, the dirnaith worked well. Same for when the enemy was on open ground. But the downside is that it relies on the power of the Numenorian soldiers. Should this be used by less impressive soldiers, after morale had declined or exhaustion set in, it would not work. The way it was described, a decently trained and equipped army would be able to withstand this. As would one with good warning, time to prepare or ground to fight on. Thus, like the phalanxes I model the dwarves on, the dirnaith is amazing in a super specific and specialized role. Outside that it is okay at best.

Training

The military culture of the Byzantine Empire also prioritized intelligence and discipline more than strength or bravery. But training did focus on melee skills. Even with the heavier emphasis on mounted and archery combat, close quarters skill with a sword was important. The fact that the Byzantine Army and more heavy cavalry and missile troops and fewer “barbarian” troops is seen as part of the reason it survived the collapse of the Western Roman Empire.
Where the German model aimed for the obedience and courage, British training aimed for skill. The average British soldier was trained to fire 15 shots per minute that hit a target 300 yards away. Bonuses were paid to soldiers that could reach 30 shots per minute that hit that same target. Like the German ideal of corpse like obedience, this skill was the target. Especially in battlefield conditions it held up much less than officers would have hoped for.
In the case of the Roman Army, the shift to a professional force came as greater amounts of territory came under its control and Rome found itself confronted by more powerful enemies. This demanded higher regulation of equipment, better training and longer terms of service than what could be provided with temporary and seasonal conscription. Once the Empire reached its greatest extent, strategic threats were less common, so preservation of gains became the main goal. As a result, the army’s main focus was preventing invasions and putting down revolts, rather than large scale offensives. At this point, fixed, long term garrisons became the norm.
Rome’s professional means of waging war was unique as far as I can tell in the ancient world. As a result, it is worth looking into. It was built on standardization, adopting the good ideas from outsiders, tactical flexibility, strong discipline and a ruthless pursuit of comprehensive victory.
In Rome, training required soldiers be able to march 18 to 22 miles in roughly 5 hours with their equipment - all in the summer heat. Swimming and gymnastics were included in this initial training. After this, the recruit was given weapons instruction. Training weapons were twice as heavy as the real thing, so when they were better able to use the real equipment. Poles in the ground were used to practice thrusting, so recruits were forced to hit smaller targets than they would expect in combat with weapons much heavier. This trained for precision and strength at the same time. Thrusting was essential for the soldier as it was the fastest attack with a sword and maximized the weapon’s reach. More important was the fact that it required less of the body to leave the protection of the shield and less range of motion, allowing for closer ranks. Well, that and a good stab wound to the gut would prove deadly just from blood loss.
The last level was one-on-one sparring, obeying commands and assuming formations. Introductory training lasted 4 months, but it never really stopped. Thus, even in this model, the 6 month range suggested else can still fit. Ideally it would confer on new recruits a combination of skill with their weaponry, agility and endurance. The trait of being aggressive while still in formation was the most prized as it was this that the Romans felt would bring them victories. Maintaining ranks instead of fleeing or attacking on impulse was vital in a heavy infantry formation, just as keeping enough space between men so as not to inhibit range of motion was.
Another model could be found by looking into the early modern period between 1500 and 1763 where professional armies were first established. Here, the structures and tactics were still somewhat amateurish as it had been over 1,000 years since there was a major standing army – Rome. The advent of standing armies allowed for standardized training and equipment. Also, not discharging units in the off season allowed for the army to become more effective in the long term. Codification of drills were started along with the first training manuals. This meant a more uniform army. Other works were written to educate officers on the science of war and the philosophies that governed successful operations. Marching in cadence, usually using drums for time, was only possible with the greater training of professional armies. The Prussian Army was the most disciplined army of the day and could only get good cadence marching through corporal punishments. Yet it allowed for much more efficient marching and forming lines for battle - the ease at which this happened could be decisive in the right contexts. An army that formed up quickly enough could theoretically attach an enemy formation while their lines were still forming, which meant they were at a severe disadvantage.

Logistics

Logistical Support

The urban centers had more people and thus were a source for infantry. The workshops that made these weapons were more often in urban areas. The wealth needed to maintain standing armies were found in urban areas. The result was these developments undermined the power, prestige and military utility of nobles and their mounted attacks. Mounted archers could breach these formations and enough density in a charge could break through, but few commanders were willing to risk the deaths that would result. Change was slow, but proved irreversible. We can expect the War of the Ring to accelerate this process.
The Roman Army had one of the best logistics structure in the ancient world. Special agents would secure provisions for the army during the campaign. They would also organize the construction of roads and supply depots or the shipping of the supplies by sea. The Army would also construct fortified camps at night. This is a tactic I suspect both Gondor and the Easterlings to copy. The Easterlings because they would gear their entire society to war, with such organizational models fitting right in with this. After all, they fit the Roman Army in most other respects. This also fits well with Gondor’s “bite and hold” tactics by a professional army run by a pseudo general staff.
Typically, the Byzantine Empire was able to produce enough via state owned factories to arm the entire military. Uniforms however were only partially covered. The private sector ended up providing the remaining uniforms, food, fodder and horses. This was originally taken via taxes in kind, but eventually citizens paid their taxes in gold. This money was then used by the government to directly buy the needed supplies or given to troops so they could buy it themselves. Rations were given on campaigns, but after the introduction of Themes peacetime food came from the farms ran by the soldiers.
This transition from levies of supplies to the allowances occurred once there was enough coinage in circulation to allow it. Soldiers liked it as they could buy the goods they liked and keep the rest. This rarely led to poor equipment because the troops knew their lived depended on quality. Plus, inspections were a possibility. This also prevented the costly distribution of of supplies and was in fact cheaper overall. However, these allowances were all that kept the soldiers equipped. After the introduction of Themes, pay was cut to the point that equipment sometimes cost more than pay could cover.
Most likely, the state run supply network would be run by a group of officials whose responsibilities include selling state owned slaves, the products of public factories and the administration of the Imperial Estates. They might operate their own networks in a region, buying up local products needed by the army, then selling it to the troops. Payments from the troops could come in any form, sometime cash or possibly food as well. Goods bartered for the equipment could then be sold.
Basically the sort of system I would suspect that would work well if we already have the "government monasteries" set up to administer Royal Lands. Seems like these would be perfect to handle state run arms manufacturing and supply storage. This gets rid of cumbersome peacetime logistics networks. It could also provide a nice way for private citizens to get rich by supplying the army, with the officials possibly able to pocket the difference between market prices and what the soldiers paid. Or their own factories could provide the goods in question. This system appears like what a poor and inefficient government could use, and provide decent amounts of local corruption as well.
Another tactic was essentially granting soldiers allowances for food and equipment that was double what those things actually cost. This basically turned the difference into standard pay. Still, by the late 5th century, field troops nominal pay was about 9 nomismata and garrison troops it was 5. When allowances was combined with land grants, the nominal pay was dropped to 5 across the entire army. In the Byzantine Empire, nominal pay of 10 nomismata appeared to be the rate at which they achieved their best performance, with the period before that being marked by greater numbers of desertions and mutinies.

Auxilia

Even with the decline in battlefield power, the Themes had their use. One is that they functioned as police at a time when there was no police as we think of them today. Escort duty, protecting roads and manning watchtowers fell on the Legions of Rome. They also had arrest powers and were sent to capture wanted criminals. Major way stations had 10 soldiers at them. These would protect against highway robbers, collect taxes, inspect cargoes and so forth.
Troops were also disciplined, trained, fit men already paid by and under the command of the government. This made them perfect for government infrastructure projects. In the Roman Empire, troops spent more time as construction workers than actually fighting. Public buildings, roads, bridges and so forth obviously fell under their mandate. But whole cities were built by them too. Then, the army would drain swamps to increase the land available to farm. On top of that they would supervise slaves mining for the raw materials the army needed for weaponry – or even do the mining themselves when needed.
While I have no evidence that the Thematic troops filled similar roles, the Byzantine Empire was Rome’s successor state and the inspiration for Gondor. Thematic troops lend themselves to this and Gondor is short on funds. So it would make sense for them to use troops for other government projects as well.
Goldsworthy (2003), pp.146-8
One other professional military element that Rome had that was lost until the modern era was a medical corps. Apparently, the Roman medics were better than the 17th and 18th century medical professionals. In fact, a Roman medic wrote a textbook that became the standard for centuries. Legionary bases had fully staffed and well supplied hospitals. The Medical Corps had a formal and army wide hierarchy to run these facilities. Medical plants were well understood and used at the time. These medics were able to handle a wide range of complex tools, clean and disinfect wounds, remove arrow heads and so forth – even while the battle was going on.
We know that there are important healing herbs in Middle Earth and Aragorn was able to prove his legitimacy in part through his healing power. Plus, the Rangers would be operating without support, so some form of military medicine would be needed to prevent the loss of such elite troops. A stable base of operations where each unit would be tied to a specific area would also allow for a more formalized medical corps to develop in Gondor as well.
Goldsworthy (2003) 100
Davies (1989) 220
One possibility – especially for a country like Gondor – would be border walls. Hadrian’s Wall was a solid 73 miles long. Depending on where on the wall you measure, it was 10-20 feet wide and 11-20 tall. It also was made with turf in some areas and stone in others. It also had a ditch in front of it. Like the rest of the walls on Rome’s frontiers, Hadrian’s Wall was not meant to actually stop armies coming in. Though even a low level palisade along the border would have stopped some raids. It would not be surprising that a larger and better manned wall would have better impacts against barbarian raids. More likely is that the wall was built to channel trade across it into gates where tariffs and customs could be more easily collected. When the stone walls were added in areas, they were whitewashed - making them highly visible. This and the legions in the area made it an effective demonstration of Roman power.
Raiding parties would be forced to fight its way through one of the well-defended gates and possibly abandon its loot. Or be trapped against the wall by the now alert troops. Large army would have been able to force a crossing using siege equipment. Value came in the form of simply being in the way and slowing down the enemy. Once this happens, troops are much more likely to be able to respond in time.
The key to the wall was the mile castles and watchtowers. The Mile-castles were nominally placed every Roman mile, though this does not appear to be strictly followed. They were manned by a few dozen men responsible for that section of wall. There appears to be fluctuations in size, but 16 by 20 yards internally appears normal. The stone walls were normally 10 feet thick and 17 to 20 feet high, to match the height of the adjacent wall. There were 80 mile-castles and 158 turrets. This translates to one fort every 4,818 feet and a tower every 2,429 feet. The estimated 20-30 men per fort was the historical range for garrisons. If we look at the Limes Arabicus, there is a legion base every 62 miles.
Now, looking at the Atlas, it appears possible to form such a wall 250 miles long. The path would start at the mountain border with Mordor and run along the River Poros until it meets the Anduin – then from there to the sea. This would have 274 mile castles and thus 5,480 to 8,220 men. 544 towers would be on the wall. Then, 4 forts would have been located on the length of the wall. Along the norther border, one could enclose most of what looks clearly part of Gondor with a 100 mile wall – with its single fort, 110 mile castles and 218 towers.
In Ancient Rome these forts would have been manned by a legion – a formation I don’t think Gondor would have. The question becomes what unit this would be – Tagma or Banda? A full tagma would require the entire Gondorian army, so that seems unlikely. A Banda means that the professional army would have 800 men in the area. It would be possible to have the nobles pick up some of the slack, but only 2,800 were sent to Minas Tirith by the nobles. Aragorn brings another 1,000 with him. This means that between 1,800 and 4,600 men. Rome would have had 27,420 if it fully staffed the same wall on the southern border and 8,100 for the north. This would be within the reach of an Empire with between 33 and 50 legions.
But Gondor is an entirely different ballgame here. We are talking about a government in decline. These numbers would make sense. With the Corsairs able to bypass a wall, it seems likely that they would not be willing to devote huge numbers to manning a wall. Then, there is the fact that such mobilization would hurt harvests at a time when every person was needed to farm. It is possible that mercenaries were used to fill in the gaps, but that would further strain the government. Gondor was hit by plague, attacks from all angles and significant loss of territory. It is entirely possible that at the time of Gondor’s founding, such a wall would have been easy to build and properly garrison. Now, it seems likely that the former anti-invasion wall meant to keep out attacks would be reduced to being an expensive early warning system should invaders approach.

Upkeep

Then there is the issue of pay. As the medieval British soldier got $37.45 to $56.29 a day. Payroll for this regular army would be between $37,450,000 and $102,729,250. This is based off the lower rate at 200 days of work and the higher at 365 days to capture both the fluctuations in pay and the likely variability of days worked.
The Roman Marian reforms meant that compensation included citizenship for those who were not at time of enlistment, land grants and a pension at retirement and pay during service. Pay for officers is between 2 and 17 times what the average foot soldier earned. This would depend of course on time period, rank and to a certain degree on the sources you look at. The pay range for regular foot soldiers was 225 to 500 denarii per year, with deductions for food and clothing.
The Byzantine Army was often defined by poor wages. Only at the highest ranks and in the best units could glory be enough to compensate. The Byzantine currency in the 9th century was the Nomismata - 1/72th of a pound of gold. The officers were paid in pounds of gold - 40 for the top levels down to 6 at the bottom. The junior officers tended to get 1-3 pounds of gold per year. The officer pay even tended to decline between 1 and 6 pounds of gold depending on rank between 840 and 910. The rank and file troops I would imagine would receive closer to the 18 nomismata per year. We can assume that the officers would receive between the two - probably averaging out at 72.
While rank and file troops did get respect due to their service, the army was not prestigious enough to overcome poverty. Military lands were required to compensate for poverty wages. Rank and file soldiers received between 12 and 18 nomismata, or between one sixth and one fourth of a pound of gold. Also keep in mind that for the first 12 years of service, the pay started at one nomismata and increased every year. This means the low pay level of 12 nomismata required 12 years to get to. Then, the 18 nomismata level appears to be specialists and low level officers. These positions appear to require 12 years of service.
The Tagmata and Imperial body guard units were provided with free rations and fodder for horses each month. In the 9th century, these were provided in kind and valued at 9 nomismata a year. The arms and uniform were valued at 5 nomismata, 4 nomismata for fodder and 1 for the horse. For militia units, this would be all they were given. Though militia duty was part time and horses could be used for civilian and thus private sector use. The government also provided weapons, uniforms and horses to these units and the Thematic troops. This means that these units were much better off even with technically the same pay. I suspect that Gondor would provide similar benefits to at least the cavalry, staff and technical positions and officers.
At the same time, security could be provided through agricultural surpluses. I would imagine that the Gondorian Government would take a portion of food production to make the rations given to troops or to store for sieges. The rest would be available for the soldiers to sell at a profit. This is just speculation though - I have no historical source for this occurring, but it would be a good release valve for troops living on the edge of poverty. Now, the Byzantine Government did try to increase pay when it could, the lower levels of roughly 10 nomismata with basic food, weapons and land provided can be what we would expect for Gondor. Now, 9 or 10 nomismata was the minimum a family could live off if all the soldiers received. But with the provision of lands to farm and allowances for equipment, 5 would not have been entirely unreasonable. Most families would have benefited in the feudal economy, as they had to rely entirely on the product of their land.
Now, the book Byzantium and it Army actually has a breakdown of different units and their total pay in 842. The Theme of Cappadocia had 4,131 men and a payroll of 42,300 nomismata ( 10.24 per man). The Theme of Paphlagonia had 5,162 men and a 52,254 nomismata payroll (10.12 per man). Peloponnesus had 2,069 men and paid 20,592 nomismata in salaries ( 9.95 per man). Hellas had 4,399 and paid 43,452 nomismata ( 9.88 per man). Using an average taken we get an average of 10.05 per man. This means that for an army the size of Gondor with similar pay scales should have a payroll of 50,250 nomismata, or 697.916 pounds of gold a year. On December 27, 2018, the price of gold was 15,238.20 per pound, so the nomismata is $211.64. As a result, the main army had a payroll budget of $10,634,983.59 per year. We can assume this is the combination of 5 nomismata and the value of the equipment they were issued. I know that this is half the rate I stated would produce the ideal motivation based on pay. But Gondor is supposed to be on its last legs, and the Byzantine Empire did have a enough loyalty and motivation in its troops to not get destroyed in civil unrest and invasions at that time. Though the Byzantines tended to have more issues paying soldiers than recruiting them.
When a government faces a budget crisis, there are two solutions - increase revenue and cut spending. On the cutting spending side, medieval and ancient societies much more frequently refused to pay people – including soldiers. The Byzantine Empire did this a lot and suffered many mutinies when the soldiers became justifiably angry. Now, in times of crisis, the Byzantine Army accepted a pay cut of half. But outside of that, pay reductions also had a habit of producing unrest in the Army.
If we look at the fact that Gondor seems to be suffering from a bit of a budget crisis, how would Gondor provide for its soldiers? Well, land is a logical place to start. The Themes gave land grants to the soldiers to farm but remained under state control. The soldiers simply worked it while they were completing their term of service. As they were still active duty troops, they were still under the command of their superior officers. The commanders of the Theme had not just military authority over the troops but also civil and political authority over the land and civilian population there. In exchange for use by their families, children were required to join the army as well. This system allowed for lower pay for soldiers and less of a need for disliked conscription. The normal levels of pay needed to cover food and housing did not need to be given out in this system, reducing overall payroll expenses. Almost as important is that it allowed for the settlement of areas after conquest by a cadre of trained and professional soldiers that became self perpetuating.
Themes ran into difficulty for a couple of reasons. They create a military that is very inclined to protect their homes and families – to the death if needed. As soldiers were very interested in protecting their homes, they fought well on the defensive. Yet, they did not want to go on offensive campaigns that took them far away from home. This system also requires heralds being sent all across a Theme in order to mobilize the nominally standing army. As a result, Themes worked well against larger conquests. So while enemies found it easy to raid a Theme, it was much harder to conquer or be conquered by Themes. In areas that had been free from invaders for long periods of time, Thematic troops began to see their ability to fight pitched battles or even march or ride decline from lack of practice.
Overall, the Theme system provided a cost effective and local defense system that protected against strong outside pressures. They were more than just garrisons. These troops could provide mobile forces to render aid to neighbor Themes or provide the backbone for offensive actions. Part of its effectiveness is to what is considered its flexibility and resilience.
At first, only part time frontier troops were allowed to farm land around the fort they were stationed at. This was critical for troops who could not afford to live off the wages provided. Veterans were also given lands after retirement. This was eventually discontinued though. Active duty troops were supposed to be mobile and certainly could not farm or manage farms when on campaigns. The Themes were essentially new creations.
It is possible that they came from the confiscations of land from nobles, allotments from imperial estates or from legitimate purchases by soldiers. This last one is unlikely given the poverty of troops makes it difficult at best to by enough land to live off. Not to say a few could not supplement the grants given to them – just all buying enough land to live off and finding it all together in the same area. Confiscations of land led to overthrowing of emperors at much lower thresholds needed to create Themes. But it is entirely possible that some of the land came from sales to cover debts, confiscations for high crimes, payment for taxes, abandonment or owners dying without heirs. This could easily supplement the land in other areas that were not sufficient for the Theme.
The last was imperial estates. In the Byzantine Empire, these lands could be one fifth of the entire empire and could be scattered across it. This would allow for the distribution of troops effectively and could provide more than enough land. After all – this 20% of the land needed to support at most 14.4% of the population (counting 2.4% of the population as troops and 6 dependents). England could have had as high as 30% to 45% of the land held by the Royal Family. These lands also provided a lot of the revenue going to the government. It would make sense to use the troops to both protect imperial lands and provide the manpower needed to make them as productive as possible. This is also financially possible and does not risk large scale dissatisfaction within the aristocracy. Otherwise, serfs and slaves would have had to be found to fill the gaps. Granted, this would have generated revenue in the form of rent.
So, how much land are we talking here? Well cavalry were required to hold lands worth minimum of 4 pounds of gold. Two pounds was the minimum for normal soldiers. This was the legal minimum though – 5 and 3 pounds were more common per soldier. Cavalry could average 16 pounds of gold worth of land. This however is possibly due to four people would pool their resources to finance the requirements of just one cataphract to campaign for the whole group. But if we factor in the fact that the equestrian class was a thing in Ancient Rome, it would not surprise me that this could apply to Gondor as well. I would imagine that this would be the source of the cataphracts.
The price of land in the Byzantine Empire was about one nomismata for two fifths of an acre, or $529.10 per acre. This means that each mounted troop would have between 115.2 and 144 acres of land. It must be noted that there are no real numbers for normal soldiers, but some estimates are 30 acres. This is at the time when and place where peasants had between 5 and 10 acres of land. Cavalry lands could have supported 30 families and employed 7 people. The infantry grants could provide one or two jobs supporting 6 families. The 16 pounds of gold for the heavy cavalry I established would be 460.8 acres. This would support 96 families and provide 22 jobs. Now, this could easily be family members of the soldiers for smaller landholdings. It is also entirely possible that the soldiers could become minor landlords in their own right – with their own tenants, slaves and hired hands.
The families are likely to be a blend of this in Gondor. Smaller infantry holdings that require only a small people to run could manage with the soldier and their family. Perhaps they would have a slave or two to make up the extra work load and hire a person in busy seasons or during campaigns. Perhaps combat bonuses would be paid to infantry to help cover this extra expense. Larger landholdings would likely rely more on serfs and renting lands to tenants or become some of the largest slave owners in Gondor.
This has important implications. One, the soldiers would be well off, but not overly so. Concerns were raised in the Byzantine Empire that the cavalry would sell off their military equipment to get money needed for their farms. Even the largest farms would still be small enough for the soldier to have to be actively engaged in the daily operations. Infantry would probably be more like actual farmers while the cavalry could take on more managerial roles. The second comes from the fact that these lands could have easily one or two serfs or hired hands per plot. Even up to the US Civil War, laws existed that allowed people called up for service could pay to have someone else take their place. Here, soldiers could easily find people in their area to take their place and corrupt, inefficient and poor government agencies are responsible for mobilization. We should not be surprised if many nominal members of the military would pay and equip their employees and serfs to take their place so the soldier could stay home with their own families.
Part of the reason for the decline in the effectiveness of the Themes was not just troops getting out of practice. Relatively speaking, that could be easy to fix. Instead, men in financial difficulty could sell off their land. Some of their holdings were certainly not needed for their immediate survival, but were needed to fill their military obligations. As time goes on, this means that the availability of effective troops would decline below regulation strength. This would only get worse and economic conditions decline and the power of the state weakens. Meanwhile, the large landowners can more easily evade taxes. I would expect this is part of the reason why the Gondorian Army could have shrunk over time. This accounts for the decline in the face of it losing little to no land for long periods and populations and GDP tends to go up over time.
Now, in the Byzantine Empire, cavalry sized plots would generate 324 nomismata worth of wheat, while an infantry plot would produce about 67. Most of this for infantry would go to feeding themselves and their family. This still left most of their income from official salaries to cover other expenses. This also meant that we can expect some profit for the cavalry. But this is not likely to be as high as one would expect, as they had a squire and possibly an additional servant whose wages needed to be paid. Though after 24 years of service, a cavalryman could be expected to have saved 216 nomismata mainly from the sale of wheat.
If we a apply this to the size of the army, we get around 102,000 acres for the 3,400 infantry. They would provide 3,400 to 6,800 jobs and support 20,400 families. The 1,000 heavy cavalry would own 460,800 acres. This would be home to 96,000 families and provide 22,000 jobs. The remaining 600 light cavalry would then own 86,400 acres, house 18,000 families and employ 4,200. In total this is 649,200 acres. If we look at the families supported (estimated at 7.5 times the number of families) just by the Theme land, that is 135,000 people, or just short of 10% of the entire population of Gondor. This is entirely feasible in a nation where 20% of the land is owned by the government. We can expect based on the above numbers that the Thematic lands would produce 1,460,700 nomismata worth of wheat, or the same as 20,287.5 pounds of gold or $416,656,560.
The retirement payments In the post Marian Roman Army were between 3,000 and 5,000 depending on the era. Farmland was granted in recently conquered areas so that the settlement of army veterans in the area would solidify control. The general rule is that the pensions were equal to 13 years of pay. The land appears to be between 5 and 50 acres. If we take the Byzantine numbers for a moment and convert them to the Roman framework and take lower figures to allow for Gondor’s poverty, we can begin to get an idea of the scale of the Gondorian retirement packages. First, I would assume that the lower 5 acres per person would be given. Based on the figures from above, the value of 13 years of salaries would be on average $27,513.20. This would mean a retired solider would probably not be entirely destitute, but would probably have to get another job to survive. If we remember from above, the average self sufficient peasant had between 10-15 acres of land in medieval England and the rough estimate of land prices in the Byzantine Empire was $529.10 per acre. It would only cost $2,645.50 and $5,291 out of the $27,513.20 payout to secure the remainder of that land. We can assume that a decent number of these veterans would buy more land with their pensions. Other likely options would be the veterans founding trading companies, becoming government suppliers or becoming local craftsmen.
To give an impression of the impacts this would have, lets turn back to the Byzantines for a second. The Byzantine Army was 645,000 men in the 4th century. At that same time, the normal bureaucracy was only 30,000. The Church was the second largest employer, but the clergy did not have dependents. Meanwhile, soldiers has wives, children, servants and relatives of the extended family to support. thus, to assume that the army supported 4-6 times the number of people on the official payroll would not have been a stretch. Looking at the data for the Byzantine Empire, the army employed between 1.2% and 2.4% of the population. Meanwhile, the full time, professional army was only between .3% and 2%. The remainder was part time troops. Military families thus constituted between 5 and 10 percent of the total number of households. Add to this the need for supplies not needed in civilian life means the military families were relatively heavy spenders. This is especially true in a society that was mostly self sufficient and measured wealth in acres.
However, this was a huge burden on the economy. The Roman Army spent between 4.1% and 2.5% of GDP on the military. Given that the US spent 3.5% in 2003, that might not sound too unreasonable. But this represented a solid 75% to 80% of government revenues. In the Roman Empire, 90% of the populace lived on subsistence wages. The ranges for the Roman Empire were a much higher percentage of what could be diverted away from the mere survival of the population. It has been estimated that the average American worker in 1998 was 73 times as productive as the average First Century AD Roman.
Derived from historical GDP estimates in A. Madison The World Economy: a Millennial Perspective (2001)
Such a large population paid in cash would generate a lot of consumer spending where the soldiers are stationed. Due to the demand for food, clothing horses and so forth, the local economy could become dependent on army spending. We can assume that the switch to granting military lands to soldiers would have profound economic impacts. Military lands were a means to support the troops, not to increase agricultural production across the general economy. Troops became farm workers - spending more than half of their time in the field. This would depress the demand for civilian farm products. Meanwhile, cavalry did not have to work their fields. We can assume that this meant hired field hands. This then provided jobs for local civilians. A lot of trade and production was generated based on the needs of the Army in Byzantine and Roman provinces.

Recruitment

After the Marian Reforms of 107 BC, the Roman Army became much more professional. This means pay, provision of equipment and fixed term of service. This term was between 16 and 20 years. more importantly, this created the first Roman standing army in peacetime with standardized training and equipment. The side effect was an army kept at peak strength, with soldiers constantly drilled and kept fit.
It seems unlikely that the full conscript system of the dwarves would be affordable to Gondor. So, I would expect the reserves to be filled with essentially a modified landwehr. Once World War One broke out, the financial and logistical strain of training such huge numbers of men led to shortening the training period to 6 weeks instead of six months. The British also used a reserve system that mandated 2 weeks of extra training every year with some more modest drills every week. This seems like a plausible base system to use for Minas Tirith. People would be required to attend their 6 weeks of training at the start of the year they turn 20, then be “on call” essentially until 45.
This leaves us needing to figure out the active duty troops. Given the running theme of Gondor’s poverty, I doubt a full conscript system would be used. This too was similar to the British prior to World War One. Essentially it felt its large navy and geographic isolation meant it did not need to use conscription to match the huge continental armies of the time. Their army was based off 7 years of service and exceptional training.
I suspect that Minas Tirith, its surrounding lands and the "Royal" manors would provide most of the professional army. Given the fact that Gondor was inspired by Byzantium, the Roman term of service for rank and file infantry of 20 years would probably be the term used. They would probably be recruited between the ages of 18 and 23.
This system tended to serve as a sort of poverty draft though. Criminals could join the Army instead of go to jail. Among the rest of society, the poor, unemployed and low skill workers primarily joined. So like Hapsburg officers, the best and the brightest stayed out. But, the training system and longer terms for rank and file troops meant this was less of a problem. Then, like today, the social status gained from military service plus skills gained during it was seen as a way for those with no prospects to get a leg up.

Type

Infantry

Assumed Veterancy

Trained

Used by

• Gondorian State