Winter attire

[Max]

Hello,Does anyone know what kind of clothing was used by Alexander, his companions and the men on campaign during the winter months? I've been wondering about this since all that is usually depicted are chitons, chlamys (sp?), himations, etc. I assume that something more substantial was needed in the snowy/icy regions through which he campaigned.They must have had animal furs to wear (at least for the upper-echelon commanders). But (and pardon the word choice) were they "tailored" garments (i.e. with sleeves) or just wraps or ponchos? Also, did they have heavier boots for the winter?Any information will be very much appreciated.Max, who is curious about such things

[smittysmitty]

Hi Max, who wonders about such things
I also have pondered the samne question to myself whilst having a smoko out in the cold and rain, and though I have no specific reference, undoubtably protective clothing had to be aquired for such conditions. I would imagine the Makedones , particularly thoser from the upper cantonal regions would have not been unfamiliar with cold (snow/ice) conditions, so perhaps the expertise to create such clothing already existed in the army. Remember, a strong element of ATG's forces were probably familiar with Balkan conditions ,so the usage, design and creation of clothing from skins/furs, would not have been a difficult task.
just my thoughts.Cheers!

[Link]

Hi smittysmitty and Max, probably the kozaki types wonder, they just need to read it. It's all in the available sources.CheersArrian
8.When he arrived at Opis, he collected the Macedonians and announced that he intended to discharge from the army those who were useless for military service either from age or from being maimed in the limbs; and he said he would send them back to their own abodes.........When the rest, stricken with terror, became silent, he mounted the platform again, and spoke as follows :9. "The speech which I am about to deliver will not be for the purpose of checking your start homeward, for, so far as I am concerned, you may depart wherever you wish; but for the purpose of making you understand when you take yourselves off, what kind of men. you have been to us who have conferred such benefits upon you. In the first place, as is reasonable, I shall begin my speech from my father Philip. For he found you vagabonds and destitute of means, most of you clad in hides, feeding a few sheep up the mountain sides, for the protection of which you had to fight with small success against Illyrians, Triballians, and the border Thracians. Instead of the hides he gave you cloaks to wear, and from the mountains he led you down into the plains, and made you capable of fighting the neighbouring barbarians, so that you were no longer compelled to preserve yourselves by trusting rather to the inaccessible strongholds than to your own valour. He made you colonists of cities, which he adorned with useful laws and customs; and from being slaves and subjects, he made you rulers over those very barbarians by whom you yourselves, as well as your property, were previously liable to be carried off or ravaged. He also added the greater part of Thrace to Macedonia, and by seizing the most conveniently situated places on the sea-coast, he spread abundance over the land from commerce, and made the working of the mines a secure employment. He made you rulers over the Thessalians, of whom you had formerly been in mortal fear; and by humbling the nation of the Phocians, he rendered the avenue into Greece broad and easy for you, instead of being narrow and difficult. The Athenians and Thebans, who were always lying in wait to attack Macedonia, he humbled to such a degree, I also then rendering him my personal aid in the campaign, that instead of paying tribute to the former and being vassals to the latter, those States in their turn procure security to themselve

[agesilaos]

I should think Alexander's men adopted the practices that Xenophon's adopted on their homeward march; furs, trousers and Thracian cloaks are mentioned I think, unfortunately I haven't that anabasis to hand.

[amyntoros]

I also have a personal interest in Alexander's clothing and have been doing some research on the subject. I doubt if Alexander's army would actually have worn trousers (or sleeves), despite the army of Xenophon sensibly adopting the garment. Alexander's soldiers were so appalled when he adopted Persian dress, yet there is no record of even Alexander wearing Persian trousers. As far as I can tell so far, the biggest difference between the Persian tunic and the Macedonian chiton was the long sleeves. (The Alexander sarcophagus shows both Alexander and Hephaistion wearing sleeves - the same as the Persians.) Both long sleeves and trousers were considered effeminate by the Greeks, which may seem strange today, but Amazons are often portrayed in illustrations from the 5th and 4th century as wearing long sleeved tunics and trousers that are very similar to Persian clothing. These were garments that only a woman would wear, and this may be one reason why a frequent insult made about the Persians was to call them effeminate. Because of all this, it seems unlikely to me that the Macedonian army would have adopted either garment, even for protection against the cold!Linda Ann

[jan]

Hi,I like this question and have often wondered about it myself. But as Alexander is so often depicted wearing a lion's skin, it is most likely that the seamstresses were put to work, making suitable wear.I noticed in Ford's Ten Thousand that the Armenians taught the Greeks to wear eye protection, bags on the feet of the animals as well as how to wear the skins on their own feet, so had Alexander been taught as a child the story of Xenophon it is most likely that that lesson would have been learned somewhere somehow.

[yiannis]

Karl, you took the words out of my mouth!
I was also thinking of Xenophon's anabasis. Just because Greece is perceived as a worm place because most people associate it with sun and beaches does not mean that the winters are not sometimes harsh, espesially in the region of Macedonia. So it seems that Alexander's troops were prepared for winter weather. Surelly they had adopted to the local clothing since their initial ones would had wear out over time.In India it is recorded that they wore Indian clothes, in the Persian mountains they would have aquired heavy clothing to cope with the weather. Most probably they would wear clothes made of wool rather than furs. Sleeves would also be in order as well as leather.In Xenophon's Anabasis we read:And the Greeks all had helmets of bronze, crimson tunics, and greaves, and carried their shields uncovered. [1.2.17]
Some of the soldiers likewise were falling behind--those whose eyes had been blinded by the snow, or whose toes had rotted off by reason of the cold. [4.5.13] It was a protection to the eyes against the snow if a man marched with something black in front of them, and a protection to the feet if one kept moving and never quiet, and if he took off his shoes for the night; [4.5.14] but in all cases where men slept with their shoes on, the straps sunk into their flesh and the shoes froze on their feet; for what they were wearing, since their old shoes had given out, were brogues made of freshly flayed ox-hides.
Or:
There was deep snow on the plain, and it was so cold that the water which they carried in for dinner and the wine in the jars would freeze, and many of the Greeks had their noses and ears frost-bitten. [7.4.4] Then it became clear why the Thracians wear fox-skin caps on their heads and over their ears, and tunics not merely about their chests, but also round their thighs, and why, when on horseback, they wear long cloaks reaching to their feet instead of mantles.

[Manny]

Stud muffins in skirts was what they were all about. Anything with sleeves and trousers was a four-letter word: MEDE----merde! in Macedonian, Greek, and pardonable French. Yet politics forced Alexander to try 'em on and thermal necessity made his soldiers bend over. And let's face it---simply EVERYONE watched out what fashion statement Alexander would make next. Such a cad. And guess who had the height to pull all these off catwalk stunts everytime: Hephaistion.Too sexy for Mediterranean winter,
Manny

[ruthaki]

What I love about this site are these moments of hilarity. Manny you are priceless. Yes. I can see it all now. And I truly believe they were not so dumb as to adapt their costumes to the local wear.
Probably wore leg-warmers of wool or fur and definitely wouldn't go prancing about in the cold in those short tunics! How dumb would that be! Leggings (0r even trousers,) yes. Chitons, No. Really they had to be practical men to survive.

[marcus]

I would just like to thank everybody for this thread. I was driving down the motorway last night and exactly the same question came into my head.Now that's spooky!Marcus

[Max]

Hello all,Thanks for your replies and for a very amusing discussion. I guess the fur coats that I had been imagining are out of the question :)Max