Takabara was a unit in the Persian
Achaemenid army. They appear in some references related to the
Greco-Persian wars
The Greco-Persian Wars (also often called the Persian Wars) were a series of conflicts between the Achaemenid Empire and Polis, Greek city-states that started in 499 BC and lasted until 449 BC. The collision between the fractious political world ...
, but little is known about them. According to Greek sources they were a tough type of
peltasts.
Takabara nevertheless were more garrison warriors than front line fighters as proved against the well-armed
Hoplites
Hoplites ( ) ( ) were citizen-soldiers of Ancient Greek city-states who were primarily armed with spears and shields. Hoplite soldiers used the phalanx formation to be effective in war with fewer soldiers. The formation discouraged the soldi ...
of Greece where they were easily defeated in hand to hand conflict.{{Citation needed, date=August 2011 They tended to fight with their own native weapons which would have included a crescent-shaped light wickerwork
shield
A shield is a piece of personal armour held in the hand, which may or may not be strapped to the wrist or forearm. Shields are used to intercept specific attacks, whether from close-ranged weaponry like spears or long ranged projectiles suc ...
and a type of light-axe called the
Sagaris as well as light linen cloth and
leather
Leather is a strong, flexible and durable material obtained from the tanning (leather), tanning, or chemical treatment, of animal skins and hides to prevent decay. The most common leathers come from cattle, sheep, goats, equine animals, buffal ...
. The Takabara were recruited from territories that incorporated modern Iraq and parts of Iran.
References
Military units and formations of the Achaemenid Empire