At the turn of the 5th century the backbone of the Greek army was the Hoplite. He was a foot soldier, and his weapons were a long spear and a sword. For defence he carried a round bronze shield. Hoplites fought in lines or ranks. Eight to ten ranks made a formation called the phalanx. Each soldier held his long spear underarm. Enemy soldiers saw only a mass of spears and shields, that was hard to break through - and hard to stop once it started moving forward.

Archers were used in Greek warfare from the earliest times, however Greek armies concentrated on soldiers of the phalanx, and archery was neglected, except in Crete. Archers carried bows and arrows as well as a sword and small shield. Archers in Greek armies were therefore often mercenaries, usually Scythians or Cretans.

The Hamippoi were lightly armed infantry trained to fight alongside the cavalry. They would go into battle holding on the tails of the horses. The Hamippoi were particularly useful in a straight cavalry fight, when they would hack at the enemy horsemen with their swords.

This set of 4 Greek Warrior figures, each measuring 4cm tall, are made from lead-free pewter. The information card is full colour on the front and has historical information on the reverse.