Peltast the late 11th and 12th centuries. Although the peltasts of Antiquity were light skirmish infantry armed with javelins, it is not safe to assume that the troops given this name in the Byzantine period were identical in function. Byzantine peltasts were sometimes described as “assault troops”. Byzantine peltasts appear to have been relatively lightly equipped soldiers capable of great battlefield mobility, who could skirmish but who were equally capable of close combat. Their arms may have included a shorter version of the "kontarion" spear employed by contemporary Byzantine heavy infantry. Peltast A peltast (Ancient Greek: πελταστής "peltastes") was a type
Ancient Greek mercenaries me master and great king". Greek hoplites were widely admired for their skill as soldiers. The demand led many Greeks who faced poverty or exile to enlist as mercenaries in the pay of another state. Others, not so burdened with worry, became mercenaries through a desire for loot and adventure. In many Greek states, including Athens, the threats from Persia and Macedon required strong defensive forces. One of the main problems in creating and maintaining military strength was that peasant citizens could not afford to abandon their smallholdings for long periods of service and so the demand for professional soldiers