You and what ARMY !?!
 

If you had to fight for/with one army of history BEFORE the twentieth century..... where would you enroll?

Can you expand this question,
and describe the concept you are trying to relate here?

And how does this apply in philosophical terms?

I was hoping to encourage a bit of historical/ideals/interest of people. Hmmm, not sounding good.... let me give an example:

"Bob would of liked to have fought with Gen. Ulysses S. Grant of the North in the Civil war because I believe in ........... the battle would have been .............. and to stand victorious with such men as ......"

Hmmm, now that I'm giving an example this may not be a very good thread after all. Feel free to pull it, I won't be offended.

Mongolian. Safety in numbers. btw Rogue, with all due respect, Philosophy means 'passion for thinking' or 'love of ideas', so any thought-provoking question deserves a place on the philosophy board, especially when it's one of the few non-theological, non-semantic ones. Don't get me wrong, I'm not anti-semantic or anything, but...

anti-semantic... *chuckle*

Actually...I was just trying to draw out his question,
and make him explain his own thoughts a bit more.

Rather than just leaving a brief question out in the middle of nowhere.

Now to the topic...
While I can understand the interest of lighting raids of Genghis Khan,
and I would have liked to know how Alexander made his run

I think the only nobel force that I would volunteer for,
would be the American rebels against the British Empire.
There has to be meaning to my sacrifice
and a goal in mind other than just conquering.

I agree. For my part it would be the Ogalala and Brule Sioux against the U.S. Army.

I would want to stand with King Leonidas and his 300 spartans in the battle of Thermopylae. There is something about that self sacrafice, knowing that you have no hope of winning but still standing your ground to the last man..there is honor in that

I don't want to sound like a total geek, but I would love nothing better than to fight in feudal Japan, around the Tokugawa era. Please forgive my naivéte in the matter, but I feel as though their sense of honor was beautiful... the pride of their culture, their people, and their family name that only death could take from them. And if need be, to take one's own life to avenge that honor.

Among the forces of King Menelik of Ethiopia, which repulsed an Italian invasion in the late 19th century. Hopefully, I'd try and assist in Ethiopian modernisation after the conflict, somehow.

I'd rather fight with a modern army, given the relative lack of fatalities today. Sure, them olden days with real "honor" may sound nice, but when one simple flesh wound can kill you (through infection), it's not quite that healthy. Also, the common soldier generally had a miserable life.

But if I *had* to choose an olde army: given that I'm Jewish, I'd go for the Jewish brigade in the British army of WW2...

Minoan; they didn't actually have an army, just marines of a sort because they were a sea and trading power. And they weren't into the war/conquest thing, because they didn't have to be; they were the most advanced civilization around, and they dominated based on their knowledge, their seamanship, and their trading acumen. Phonecians on steroids, but with more class.

yea i agree

I would enroll for the Russan infantery in WWI! If I got lucky, I would be orderd to charge well equiped German forces without a gun, and perhaps even without real boots! Ah, those were the days...

Seriously though, I've always liked vikings, so I guess a viking archer would be something for me. Either raiding the English countryside, or fighting among the pagan pesant army that defeated and killed Olav the Holy at the battle of Stiklestad in 1030, or perhaps as one of King Sverre's birchfeeters fighting the pope backed southern Norwegian forces during the Norwegian civil war in the 12th century.

But as Dragonlich pointed out, even a flesh wound could kill you those days. And if you didn't die in the battlefield, there were all kinds of other diseases that there was no known cure for, ready to kill you once you got off it...

So, in order not to get killed, I'd join the brave Cortez in his glorious slaughtering of the Aztecs!

Holy crap... good question! Ummmmm, I'd say I'd wanna be a samurai. Don't think I idolize samurai or anything. People see them as honorable, but in reality, they would cut the head off a peasant who didn't bow when the samurai walked past. However, I can't think of a better role to play in an army. And their armor and weaponry looks so frickin' cool!