Top Five Deadliest Armies and Hordes
by A list and description of five of the deadliest armies in history.
Many great thinkers have claimed that war is a necessity of life, from the ancient chariot wars of Egypt to the destruction of World War 2, countless battles were fought. Thousands of armies have clashed against each other throughout history, here are 5 of the most deadly armies and hordes the world has ever seen!
1. The Spartans
The Spartans were legendary warriors from Greece, they were believed to be direct descendants from Heracles (Hercules). Starting from age 7, spartan boys were sent to military barracks where they were brutally trained to the harsh conditions of war. Upon reaching their 6th year of training, Spartans were forced to survive in the wilderness with noting but their cloaks and their fists. Many boys died during the brutal training and many others were killed for their lack of strength. Eventually, Sparta created a grand army of deadly warriors that were arguably the deadliest army the world has ever seen.
Spartan Warriors
Spartan Phalanx
2. Roman Legions
When the Roman Empire was at its peak as an offensive weapon, their main success came from their legions. A typical Roman legion was mainly composed citizen armies and was made up of centuries with roughly 80 people in each century. The Roman Legions left a mark on history displaying the might of a devastating professional army. A legionary’s basic equipment consists of iron chain mail, an iron or bronze helmet with neck guard a, a tower shield called a scutum, a short sword known as the gladius, and a heavy javelin, the hasta. The legions were a terrifying force respected for their discipline and deadliness.
Captain of a Century
- Captains are distinguished by the horse hair crest on their helmets.
The Roman Army
- The Roman army was mostly composed of foot soldiers, but mercenary calvary were usually hired to accompany the legions.
3. Knights Templar
These deadly knights were among the most famous christian forces. This holy order was established during the 1st Crusade and served as elite soldiers during the wars of the cross. As the crusades continued, the order expanded in both wealth and members. At its peak of power, the Knights Templar were among the most respected fighting forces of its time. When the holy land was eventually lost to Muslim forces, the group was destroyed and its members were burned as heretics.
The Seal of the Knights Templar
The Knights Templar
4. Vikings
Vikings were legendary Norse pirates that colonized and conducted raids in large areas of Europe. The Vikings traveled throughout Europe with their longboats and struck many major cities of France, Britain, and Ireland. During the period that the Vikings were most famous, all of Europe remembers it as the “Viking Age”. All Viking warriors were expected to supply themselves with armor and clothing which were gained through raids. A wealthy Viking would carry chain mail, a helmet, large shield, long sword, small axe, and a bow.
Thor
- A pagan god of the Vikings.
Viking Longship
5. Mongols
Historians believe that until the modern era, army could compete with the Mongols in speed and effectiveness. Riding their fast steeds, the Mongols created the largest contiguous empire in history. All males between ages 15-60 were required to enlist in the military. The harsh conditions of the Mongolian plains prepared the Mongols for the rigor conditions of war. With their famed leader, Genghis Kahn leading their army, the mongols were nearly unstoppable.
Mongols Invade Europe
Mongolian Heavy Calvary
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Post CommentGon pincha
On August 5, 2009 at 8:11 am
GREAT Article!
I loved it!
Wide eyes
On August 5, 2009 at 9:30 am
wow this is great! i love history! you should be proud!
Popider
On August 5, 2009 at 9:46 am
Good article. I love things like this.
In my humble opinion, arguably the Roman Legions would outdo a Spartan army man for man. The individual skill of the spartan warriors would of course be greater, but the inflexibility of the phalanx when matched with the universally superior tactics and discipline of the Roman professionals would end in only one outcome. I’d have to plump for Caesar over Leonidas I’m afraid.
Otherwise, great read
And after making my point it appears more to be ranked chronologically than in terms of skill. I retract my previous point (if only my keyboard had a delete button..!)
Sean Harris
On August 5, 2009 at 10:38 am
Good job, this is amazing, keep it up
RS Wing
On August 5, 2009 at 10:58 am
Very interesting piece of history indeed.
J.Graham
On August 5, 2009 at 11:21 am
Very interesting article, good work.
kelbix
On August 5, 2009 at 12:08 pm
It was a wonderful piece.I like it.
Earl Schmegley
On August 5, 2009 at 12:32 pm
I’m just curious – but were these armies deadlier than modern armies? I would’ve thought that the Nazis and the U.S. forces in WW1 and WW2 were deadlier than these ancient armies. Also the Visigoths were pretty vicious, as were the Vandals. Not to mention the modern U.S. army, definitely the most elite fighting force the world has ever known.
Nice article though – I enjoyed it.
Delirioustate
On August 5, 2009 at 1:35 pm
Awesome! I love It.
check out my poem tell me what you think
http://www.authspot.com/Poetry/Miss-You.934771
hossnhousexpress
On August 5, 2009 at 1:48 pm
Indeed! The read is interesting, but, I’m guessing and betting you never heard of the “Khazars”, aka, the Jews of Khazaria? They were not very well known, nor were they confirmed to be more than fiction until about the 1930s and -40s, but, they were pretty fierce and powerful–having come to prominence on the Russian steppes somewhere toward the end of the Roman empire and the rise of the Muslims. They parleyed and partied with all the great ancient powers of those years, including the awesome Vikings, even for a time holding absolute sway and putting them to a humbling tribute.
Popider
On August 5, 2009 at 1:58 pm
Louis: Arguably the S.A.S. are the “most elite force the world has ever known”, in my opinion! But from a Scottish point of view I suppose I’m biased
A sensible point well made, all in all. With regards to modern armies, you’re right but I think the point is that at their time, these armies were absolutely peerless.
The visigoths took Rome after an internal betrayal which saw 30,000 Roman troops switch sides. The Vandals took control of Roman Africa but were wiped from the face of the earth by Belisarius less than a century later (I think). Both, as you say, hugely vicious and very successful, but their impressions were not as resounding as the Roman armies. Towards the end of the Roman empire, the army wasn’t much weaker: generally the Romans would still win in a set-piece battle with these Germanic tribes. But the ability of the empire to put soldiers in the field was becoming ever more compromised due to the plummeting Roman economy. In that respect, the Visigoths and the Vandals “kinda” won by default in my opinion..!
Stickinthemud
On August 5, 2009 at 3:53 pm
Good variety and a direct style. Good job, thanks for sharing.
cebuanaeyez
On August 5, 2009 at 5:36 pm
Wonderful article. It reminds me of the movie “300″
Vision1
On August 5, 2009 at 8:08 pm
Great Article! it was hard in those day’s your life was about killing or being killed you had to be in top shape and vary brave to go against such army’s in those day’s if you were lucky you would reach a age of 30 The art of war is simple enough. Find out where your enemy is. Get at him as soon as you can. Strike him as hard as you can, and keep moving.
Omniscient
On August 6, 2009 at 12:06 am
Very Very cool article.
I think the marines should be on this list lol
James DeVere
On August 6, 2009 at 3:05 am
The US Army is the deadliest – with Nuclear Fire and Unmanned Drones.
Wonderful article. Thank-you . j
R J Evans
On August 6, 2009 at 10:25 am
Great article: I think that on a man to man basis with nothing but their bare hands these guys would probably beat the contemporary soldier – if only because this was their LIFE!
Have blogged this at http://www.webphemera.com – hope it garners a few more well deserved hits for this article!
Ghengis
On August 7, 2009 at 12:36 pm
Mongols should be #1. The steppe warriors were invincible until gunpowder was invented. A Mongol child was riding a horse before they could walk.
If they didn’t fight so much among themselves, we would all be speaking Mongolian.
Ronald Russel
On August 8, 2009 at 7:42 pm
The reasons why the Mongols aren’t number 1 is because they lacked strong infantry support since most of their units were heavy cavalry lancers or archers and they also lacked siege technology mostly due to the fact that they were Nomads.
Stephen J. Ardent
On August 15, 2009 at 4:21 am
Great article.
batu1225
On September 27, 2009 at 1:43 pm
To Ronald Russel
Doubtful… Is there any nation that would outpace the Mongol army in terms of the size of territories they invaded? Did Spartans, Roman Army, The Knights Templar, and Vikings do it? Hmm…
To Genghis
Монголчууд номер нэг ш дээ. Тийм биз дээ? Анд минь.
Spartan
On October 3, 2009 at 12:39 pm
I have a hard time understanding how a one hit wonder like the Mongols can be listed as great warriors, given the company they keep on this list of great empires. If it weren’t for Ghangis, the mongols wouldn’t have made it into the history books. Before and after him, they were nothing but disputing tribes, scattered and unorganized. The mongols were a gang of thugs that never evolved past their own horse and bow life style. The Spartans, Romans and Templars were all well organized groups that survived through multiple leaders, not just a one hit wonder. They developed better tactics and weapons and armor as time passed and demand increased. Even the Vikings maintained some organization for several hundred years, with several leaders, although they never really carved out an “empire” and weren’t as organized…
CT
On October 4, 2009 at 2:28 pm
WTF? the Mongol already defeat the knight of Templar in battle of legnica and Mohi with the odd of 5 to 1 so how do the Templar better than the mongol?
“The reasons why the Mongols aren’t number 1 is because they lacked strong infantry support since most of their units were heavy cavalry lancers or archers and they also lacked siege technology mostly due to the fact that they were Nomads.”
why U need infantry when U have the the most effect light cavalry ? and who said they lack siege technology? who do they destroy some of the most forbidden city,castle,Walls…etc.. in Chinese and middle east like great wall ,Kiev,Baghdad..etc.. ( remember at that time Europe is really consider poor and disadvantage to those area)?
“I have a hard time understanding how a one hit wonder like the Mongols can be listed as great warriors, given the company they keep on this list of great empires. If it weren’t for Ghangis, the mongols wouldn’t have made it into the history books. Before and after him, they were nothing but disputing tribes, scattered and unorganized. The mongols were a gang of thugs that never evolved past their own horse and bow life style. The Spartans, Romans and Templars were all well organized groups that survived through multiple leaders, not just a one hit wonder. They developed better tactics and weapons and armor as time passed and demand increased. Even the Vikings maintained some organization for several hundred years, with several leaders, although they never really carved out an “empire” and weren’t as organized…”
which tactic U talking about? which of those tactic of Spartans, Romans and Templar can defeat those hit and run ,rain arrows of the Mongol ? let me 10,000 mongol cavalry and i will defeat all the combined force of those organized together
batu
On October 6, 2009 at 11:10 am
Totally agree with CT
Ronald Russel
On November 4, 2009 at 7:52 pm
I understand there is controversy over who is number one. The Mongols are my personal favorite group of warriors. One major “ideal” they were lacking was to preserve an empire rather than campaigning in foreign lands endlessly. This characteristic of the Mongols eventually lead to the fall of the Yuan Dynasty.
Night Story
On November 22, 2009 at 1:51 am
Wow, it looks like a hornets nest has been stirred up here. I think the Huns might get a nod, maybe the Tartars also, the Scythians, could also be looked at. The Mongols have a pedigree,as do most any elite groups of ancient times. In todays world, i think their are a number of candidates for the honors but as they used to say on the posters, “when you want the Best, Call the Marines!
Ronald Russel
On December 18, 2009 at 7:36 pm
If I were to have extended the list, I wold have undoubtedly included the Huns. I might have not been clear with title, but I wanted this article to feature the armies of the “ancient world”. I will certainly include another article that has the spotlight on modern day armies. Thank you for your understanding!
Sincerely,
Ronald Russel
Mongol
On January 27, 2010 at 10:16 pm
My opinion is that the Mongols should be #1. I disagree with what Ronald Russel said about the mongols lacking siege technology. When they defeated northern China they acuired siege technology from the Chinese. They also used conquered soldiers to operate their siege equipment and as infrantry. They might not of had siege weapons before Ghengis Khan but by the time they got to Europe they were already using siege weapons in their armies. I completly agree with CT on this one.
I disagree
On February 17, 2010 at 8:49 pm
@Ronald Russell. The Mongols really should be put above the Vikings and Templars. They adopted great strategic offense systems from countries they conquered such as China. The Mongols were very efficient in sieging castles. They also used catapults, diseased rats, and blocked resources from outside. The Mongols were able to successfully take over most of Asia and parts of Europe because they adapted quickly and used many tactics that are still used even today by modern armies.
lit3
On February 23, 2010 at 8:10 am
dont forget the british empire……biggest and deadliest
Ros
On March 16, 2010 at 4:32 pm
British empire? As compared to Russian?
sebastian
On February 19, 2011 at 3:05 pm
this is total wrong!! you have just disgraced history and all that it stands for!!!!