Skoutatoi

The Skoutatoi were heavy infantry of the Byzantine Empire, prominent from about the 7th to the 11th centuries. They appeared during a period of military transformation and continued and adapted Roman infantry traditions in a system that increasingly stressed combined-arms tactics. In battle they formed the main core of the Byzantine army, usually deployed in the centre of the line, where their task was to absorb enemy assaults and prevent breakthroughs, which made them especially effective against cavalry charges. The name comes from the Greek skouton, meaning shield, so they were those of the shield, a defensive core like the hoplites. Their equipment centred on a large wooden shield reinforced with leather and metal, oval or kite-shaped depending on the period, and a spear, designed for close-formation fighting. Shield patterns and tunic colour were matched by regiment.