| Spanish Tercios | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Founded | 1 January 1534; 492 years ago (1534-01-01) (de jure establishment) |
| Country | Spain See details
|
| Type | Infantry |
| Role | Close combat Hand-to-hand combat Hedgehog defence Pike square Raiding Volley fire |
| Part of | Spanish Armed Forces |
| Patron | Ferdinand II Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor Philip II of Spain Philip III of Spain Philip IV of Spain Charles II of Spain Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor |
| Mottos | Spain my nature, Italy my fortune, Flanders my grave[citation needed] |
| Equipment | Arquebuses,muskets, andpikes |
| Commanders | |
| Gran Capitán | Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba |
| Comandante | John of Austria[1] Emmanuel Philibert, Duke of Savoy[2] |
| Insignia | |
| War flag | |
Atercio (pronounced[ˈteɾθjo], Spanish for '[a] third') was a military unit of theSpanish Army during the reign of theCatholic Monarchs of Spain andHabsburg Spain in theearly modern period. They were the elite military units of theSpanish monarchy and essential pieces of the powerful land forces of theSpanish Empire, sometimes also fighting along with thenavy. These forces were among the most dominant in theEuropean battlefields for more than a century and a half.
The Spanishtercios were some of the finest and most influential professional infantry forces in the world due to the effectiveness of their battlefield formations, and were the crucial step in the formation of modern European armies, made up of professional volunteers, instead oflevies raised for a campaign or hiredmercenaries typically used by other European countries of the time.The internal administrative organization of thetercios and their battlefield formations and tactics grew out of the innovations ofGonzalo Fernández de Córdoba during theconquest of Granada and theItalian Wars in the 1490s and 1500s, being among the first to effectively mixpikes and firearms (arquebuses).
Thetercios marked a rebirth of the use ofinfantry forces comparable to theMacedonian phalanxes and theRoman legions. Such formations distinguished themselves in famous battles such as theBattle of Bicocca (1522) and theBattle of Pavia (1525). Following their formal establishment in 1534, the reputation of thetercio was built upon their effective training and high proportion of "old soldiers" (veteranos), in conjunction with the particular elan imparted by thelower nobility who commanded them. Thetercios were finally replaced by other regiments in the early eighteenth century. From 1920, the name oftercio was given to the formations of the newly-createdSpanish Legion, professional units then created to fight colonial wars inNorth Africa, similar to theFrench Foreign Legion. These formations were actuallyregiments bearing the name oftercio as an honorary title.
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During theGranada War (1482–1491), the soldiers of theCatholic Monarchs of Spain were divided into three classes:pikemen (modelled after theSwiss),swordsmen withshields, andcrossbowmen supplemented with an earlyfirearm, thearquebus.[citation needed] As shields disappeared and firearms replaced crossbows, Spain won victory after victory in Italy against powerful French armies, starting under the leadership ofGonzalo Fernández de Córdoba (1453–1515), nicknamedEl Gran Capitán (The Great Captain).[3] The military organizational and tactical changes made by Córdoba to the armies of Spanish monarchs are seen as the precursors of the tercios and their methods of warfare.[citation needed] The combat effectiveness of the Spanishpike and shot armies pioneered by Córdoba was based on an armament system that effectively united the pike with the compact firepower of the arquebus. An advantage of the Spanish pike and shot formation over its inspiration, the Swiss compact frame, was its ability to divide into mobile units and even individual melee units without the loss of cohesion.[citation needed]
Initially, the termtercio denoted not a combat unit, but an administrative unit under a general staff, commanding garrisons throughout Italy for battles on various distant fronts.[4] This peculiar character was maintained when it mobilized to fight the Protestant rebels in Flanders. Command of a tercio and its companies of soldiers was granted directly by the king, and companies could easily be added or removed and moved between tercios.[citation needed] By the middle of the 17th century, the tercios began to be raised by nobles at their own expense, patrons who appointed the captains and were effective owners of the units, as in other contemporaneous European armies.
From the conquest of Granada in 1492 to the campaigns ofEl Gran Capitán in the kingdom ofNaples in 1495, three ordinances laid the foundations of Spanish military administration. In 1503, theGreat Ordinance reflected the adoption of the long pike and the distribution of infantry in specialized companies.[citation needed] In 1534, the first officialtercio was created, that ofLombardy, and a year later it helped in the conquest of theDuchy of Milan. Thetercios of Naples and Sicily were created in 1536, thanks to the Genoa ordinance ofCharles V.[5][6]
At theBattle of Mühlberg in 1547, the imperial troops of Charles V defeated a league of Protestant princes in Germany, thanks mainly to the action of the Spanishtercios.[citation needed] In 1557, the Spanish army completely defeated the French at theBattle of San Quentin, and again in 1558 atGravelines, which led to a peace greatly favoring Spain. In all these battles, the effectiveness of thetercio units stood out.
The origin of the termtercio is doubtful. Some historians believe the name was inspired by thetercía, aRoman Legion of Hispania.[citation needed] Some[who?] think that it designated the threefold division of the Spanish forces in Italy. Others[who?] trace it to the three types of combatants (pikemen, harquebusiers, musketeers). According to an ordinance for "people of war" of 1497, where the formation of the infantry is changed into three parts.
The pawns [the infantry] were divided into three parts. The one tercio with spears, as the Germans brought them, which they called pikes; and the other had the name of shields [people of swords]; and the other, of crossbowmen and spit bearers. [later replaced by arquebusiers].
Yet others[who?] derive the name from the three thousand men mustered in the first units. This last explanation is supported by the field masterSancho de Londoño in a report to the Duke of Alba in the 16th century:
The tercios, although they were instituted in imitation of the [Roman] legions, in few things can be compared to them, that the number is half, and although formerly there were three thousand soldiers, for which they were called tercios and not legions, already it is said like this even if they do not have more than a thousand men.[7]
Although other powers adopted the battle formations and tactics perfected by thetercios, their armies fell short of the fearsome reputation of the Spanish army, which possessed a core of experienced professional soldiers.[8] This army was further supplemented by "an army of different nations", a reference to the varied origins of the troops from theGerman andItalian states, theSpanish Netherlands, and smaller units from other countries such asIreland. In 1621, for example, of the 47 military units of the Spanish army, counting together the larger Spanish, Spanish Netherlands, and Italiantercios, and the much smaller German,Burgundian, and Irish regiments,[9] only seven were manned by troops of Spanish origin.[10] Such international musters were characteristic of European warfare before the levies of theNapoleonic Wars. However, the core Spanish troops were Spanish subjects, admired for their cohesiveness, superior discipline, and overall professionalism.[11]
Initially, eachtercio that served in Italy and the Spanish Netherlands was organized into:
The companies were later reduced to 250 men and the ratio of arquebusiers (later musketmen) to pikemen steadily increased.
During the early actions in the Netherlands, thetercios were reorganized into threecoronelias ("colonelcies"), led bycoronels ("colonels") each composed of a headquarters unit and four companies each (the predecessor of today'sbattalions), but as a whole continued to be subdivided into the same 10 companies of 250 personnel each: two of arquebusiers and 8 of pikemen. Colonels were also of royal appointment.
Similar to military organization today, atercio was led by amaestre de campo (commanding officer) appointed by the king, with a guard of eight halberdiers. Assisting the maestre was thesergeant major and afurir major in charge of logistics and armaments. Companies were led by acaptain (also royally appointed), with anensign in charge of the company color.
The company non-commissioned officers weresergeants,furrieles (furirs) andcorporals. A sergeant served as second-in-command of a company and transmitted the captain's orders; furrieles provided weapons and munitions, as well as additional manpower; corporals led groups of 25 (similar to today'splatoons), watching for disorder in the unit.
Each company hadcorps of drums made up of drummers and fifers, sounding duty calls in battle, with thedrum major andfife major being provided by thetercio headquarters.
Thetercio staff included a medical component (made up of a professional medic, a barber, and surgeons), chaplains and preachers, and a judicial unit, plus militaryconstables enforcing order. They all reported directly to themaestre de campo.
Within atercio's squares, ranks of pikemen assembled into a hollowpike square (cuadro) containing swordsmen – typically with short sword, buckler, and javelins. As firearms rose in prominence, the swordsmen were phased out. The arquebusiers (later, musketeers) were usually split up in several mobile groups called "sleeves" (mangas), typically deployed with onemanga at each corner of thecuadro.[citation needed] By virtue of this combined-arms approach, the formation simultaneously enjoyed the staying power of its pike-armed infantry, the ranged firepower of its arquebusiers, and the striking power of its sword-and-buckler men. However, as the formation matured in practice, the number of swordsmen was reduced, then eliminated and the ratio of gunmen to pikemen increased over time. In addition to its defensive ability to repulsecavalry and other forces along its front, the long-range fire of its arquebusiers could be easily shifted to the flanks, making it versatile in both attack and defense.
Groups of squares were typically arrayed in dragon-toothed formation, staggered, with the leading edge of one unit level with the trailing edge of the preceding, similar tohedgehog defence. This enabledenfilade lines of fire and somewhatdefiladed the army units themselves. Odd units stood forward, alternating with even units stepped back, providing gaps for an unwary enemy to enter and expose its flanks to rakingcrossfire from the guns of three separate squares.Tercio companies also conducted some operations independently of the main formations.
Tercios were deployed all over Europe under theHabsburg rulers. They were made up of volunteers and built up around a core of professional soldiers and were highly trained. Sometime latertercios did not conform to the all-volunteer model of the regular Imperial Spanish army – when the Habsburg kingPhilip II found himself in need of more troops, he raised atercio ofCatalan criminals to fight inFlanders,[12] a trend he continued with mostly Catalan criminals for the rest of his reign.[13] A large proportion of the Spanish army, theTercio of Savoy and theTercio of Sicily were deployed in the Netherlands to quell the increasingly difficultrebellion against the Habsburgs in the later half or the 16th century. By this time, the Spanish army was entirely composed oftercio units. Ironically, many units of the Spanishtercios became part of the problem, rather than the solution when the time came to pay them: with the Spanish coffers depleted by constant warfare, unpaid units often mutinied. For example, in April 1576, just after winning a major victory,[specify] unpaidtercios mutinied and occupied the friendly town ofAntwerp, in the so-calledSpanish Fury at Antwerp, and sacked it for three days.[14] Completely reliant on his troops, the Spanish commander could only comply.[15]
On 24 February 1537, theTercio de Galeras (Tercio of Galleys) was created. Today, theReal Infantería de Marina (Spanish Marine Infantry) consider themselves successors of the legacy and heritage of the GalleysTercio, making it the oldest currently operating marines unit in the world. There were other units of navaltercios such asTercio Viejo de Armada (Old NavyTercio) orTercio Fijo de la Mar de Nápoles (Permanent SeaTercio of Naples). Such specialized units were needed for the protracted war with theOttoman Empire over the entireMediterranean.
Mosttercios were named according to the place where they were raised or first deployed:Tercio de Sicilia,de Lombardía,de Nápoles (Tercio of Sicily, of Lombardy, of Naples) and so on. Othertercios were named for their commanding officer, such asTercio de Moncada for its commander Miguel de Moncada (whose most famous soldier wasMiguel de Cervantes). Some tercios were named by their main function, such asGaleras orViejo de Armada.
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Portugal adopted the Spanish model oftercio in the 16th century, calling itterço. In 1578, during the reorganization of thePortuguese Army conducted by KingSebastian, fourterços were established:
Each had about 2,000 men, formed into eight companies.
The infantry of the army organized for the expedition toMorocco in 1578 was made up of these fourterços, together with theTerço of the Adventurers (made up entirely of young nobles), three mercenaryterços (the German, the Italian, and the Castilian), and a unit of elitesharpshooters of the Portuguese garrison ofTangier. This was the Portuguese force which fought theBattle of Alcácer Quibir.
Whileunited with the Spanish Crown, from 1580 to 1640, Portugal kept the organization ofterços, although the Army had declined. Several Spanishtercios were sent to Portugal; the principal of them, the Spanish infantryTercio of the City of Lisbon, occupied the main fortresses of the Portuguese capital. TheTerço of the Navy of the Crown of Portugal, the ancestor of the modernPortuguese Marines, was created in this period.
After the restoration ofPortuguese sovereignty in 1640, the Army was reorganized by KingJohn IV of Portugal. The terços remained the basic units of the Portuguese infantry. Two types ofterços were organized: the paidterços (first line permanent units) and the auxiliaryterços (second line militia units). Portugal won theRestoration War with theseterços.
At the end of the 17th century, theterços were already organized as modern regiments. However, the first lineterços were only transformed into regiments in 1707, during theWar of the Spanish Succession – after the Spanishtercios were transformed into regiments in 1704. The second lineterços were only transformed into militia regiments in 1796. Some of the oldterços are direct ancestors of modern regiments of the Portuguese Army.
The first real challenge to the dominance of the Spanishtercios on the open battlefield came at theBattle of Nieuwpoort (1600). The victor of Nieuwpoort, the DutchstadtholderMaurice, Prince of Orange, believed he couldimprove on thetercio by combining its methods with the organisation of theRoman legion. These shallower linear formations brought a greater proportion of available guns to bear on the enemy simultaneously. The result was that the tercio squares at Nieuwpoort were badly damaged by the weight of Dutch firepower. Yet the Spanish army very nearly succeeded, in spite of internal dissensions that had compromised its regular command. TheEighty Years' War (1568–1648) in theLow Countries continued to be characterized by sieges of cities and forts, while field battles were of secondary importance. Maurice's reforms did not lead to a revolution in warfare, but he had created an army that could meet thetercios' battle formations on an even basis and that pointed the way to future developments. During theThirty Years War (1618–1648)tercio style battle formations of the Holy Roman Empire suffered major defeats at the hands of more linear formations created and led by the Swedish soldier-kingGustavus Adolphus. However, the tried-and-true tactics and professionalism of the Spanishtercios played a decisive role in defeating the Swedish army at theBattle of Nördlingen.[16]
Throughout its history, thetercios' composition and battlefield formations and tactics evolved to meet new challenges. The classic pike and shot square formations fielded by the Spanishtercios and good cavalry support continued to win major battles in the 17th century, such asWimpfen (1622),Fleurus (1622),Breda (1624),Nördlingen (1634),Thionville (1639), andHonnecourt (1641). It was not untilRocroi (1643) that the Spanishtercio's reputation of invincibility in open battle was shattered. Still, the Rocroi defeat was precipitated by the collapse of the supporting cavalry rather than the failure of thetercios' infantry. Even then, thetercios continued to win battles immediately after Rocroi, such as atTuttlingen (1643) andValenciennes (1656), although their composition and battlefield style had continued to evolve. In this period steady improvements in firearms and field artillery were increasingly favoring the linear style. By the late 17th century thetercios had adopted so much of the linear style that their battlefield formations and tactics often had little resemblance to the battle formations and tactics a century earlier.
In 1675 the first modernRoyal Military and Mathematics Academy of Brussels was founded inBrussels by its sole-director DonSebastián Fernández de Medrano, at the request of theGovernor of the Habsburg Netherlands,Carlos de Aragón de Gurrea, 9th Duke of Villahermosa, in order to correct the shortage ofartillerymen and engineers from the Spanishtercios.[17]
This Royal Military and Mathematics Academy in Flanders was renowned for the diverse origin of its officer cadets, for the innovative features of its plan of studies produced by Sebastián Fernández de Medrano, the theoretical and practical basis of its learning process apart from the relevant assignments given to its officer cadets who were also known as the “Great Masters of War” coined by the treatise writer, Count of Clonard. It was created in Brussels to train the most distinguished officers in the peninsula in the Art of War.[18]
The Royal Military Academy of Flanders was an educational institution to train military engineers with various fields of education such as arithmetic, geometry, artillery, fortification, algebra, cosmography, astronomy, navigation, etc.[19]
In 1704, the regular Spanishtercios were transformed into regiments and the pikeman as an infantry type was dropped. Those of the reserves and the militia would later be transformed into similar organisations.
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