Chap­ter III – The Cav­al­ry Gen­er­al begins by focus­ing on the cer­e­mo­ni­al respon­si­bil­i­ties a cav­al­ry gen­er­al must uphold to hon­or both divine tra­di­tion and civic pride. These duties include orga­niz­ing sac­ri­fices on behalf of the cav­al­ry, ensur­ing that offer­ings are made to the gods with prop­er solem­ni­ty and tim­ing. Pub­lic fes­ti­vals and parades are used not only as dis­plays of mil­i­tary grandeur but also as acts of devo­tion, rein­forc­ing the uni­ty between Athens’ mil­i­tary and its reli­gious life. Rid­ers are instruct­ed to pro­ceed in a par­tic­u­lar order, pay­ing trib­ute at sacred land­marks and tem­ples through­out the route. This struc­tured sequence does more than fol­low custom—it reflects respect, order, and dis­ci­pline expect­ed from both cit­i­zens and sol­diers. In this way, the gen­er­al becomes a cul­tur­al leader, trans­form­ing mar­tial spec­ta­cle into reli­gious homage.

The chap­ter out­lines how rid­ers must man­age their weapons and move­ments dur­ing pro­ces­sions to cre­ate an atmos­phere of dis­ci­plined force rather than chaos. Posi­tion­ing of lances is critical—not only for safe­ty but to pre­serve the visu­al sym­me­try of the unit. A rapid gal­lop toward sacred loca­tions such as the Eleusin­ion is advised, fol­lowed by a more delib­er­ate return pace to sig­ni­fy rev­er­ence. This shift in tem­po bal­ances spec­ta­cle with piety, allow­ing the cav­al­ry to embody both strength and sanc­ti­ty. The dra­mat­ic con­trast between speed and still­ness empha­sizes con­trol, which view­ers inter­pret as a reflec­tion of train­ing and divine favor. For spec­ta­tors, these per­for­mances become a visu­al metaphor for order emerg­ing from pow­er. Rid­ers, mean­while, gain con­fi­dence and cohe­sion by prac­tic­ing this chore­og­ra­phy until it becomes sec­ond nature.

March-pasts at the Lyceum, espe­cial­ly those pre­ced­ing the javelin-throw­ing con­tests, are used as plat­forms to demon­strate mil­i­tary capa­bil­i­ty in peace. Cav­al­ry for­ma­tions must remain tight and func­tion­al, giv­ing the impres­sion that the troops are always ready for deploy­ment. This readi­ness, dis­played in for­ma­tion, sends a polit­i­cal message—Athens is not just cer­e­mo­ni­al, but strate­gi­cal­ly pre­pared. Drills involv­ing steep descents at high speed are also rec­om­mend­ed, train­ing rid­ers to remain calm and respon­sive under pres­sure. These exer­cis­es are not sim­ply for show—they devel­op phys­i­cal agili­ty, sharp­en reflex­es, and fos­ter mutu­al trust between rid­er and horse. Wait­ing until real bat­tle to learn these skills is dis­cour­aged, as fail­ure in such moments could be fatal. Thus, pageantry becomes a tool of prac­ti­cal instruc­tion and strate­gic fore­sight.

The gen­er­al is also expect­ed to arrange reviews in a way that main­tains ener­gy while cre­at­ing a visu­al­ly impres­sive sequence. Dur­ing inspec­tions, a rotat­ing display—where out­er ranks keep mov­ing while oth­ers pause—helps reduce fatigue and pre­vents bore­dom among rid­ers and hors­es. This method keeps the entire unit active with­out over­strain­ing any one group. Hors­es receive brief, repeat­ed moments of rest, while the gen­er­al main­tains con­trol over the pace and direc­tion of the event. Spec­ta­tors remain engaged as they wit­ness a con­tin­u­ous­ly shift­ing spec­ta­cle that nev­er appears sta­t­ic or unco­or­di­nat­ed. It is through this rota­tion of motion and pause that sta­mi­na and ele­gance are both com­mu­ni­cat­ed to the audi­ence. By pac­ing the dis­play in this man­ner, the gen­er­al ensures that readi­ness is pre­served along­side aes­thet­ic per­for­mance.

Such spec­ta­cles are more than theatrical—they serve as real indi­ca­tors of mil­i­tary effi­cien­cy and state pride. They func­tion to raise morale among cit­i­zens and troops, remind­ing every­one of the strength, dis­ci­pline, and cul­tur­al uni­ty of their city. The general’s role, there­fore, is not lim­it­ed to bat­tle­field lead­er­ship but extends into civic rep­re­sen­ta­tion and spir­i­tu­al guardian­ship. Pub­lic con­fi­dence in the cav­al­ry depends on how well these cer­e­monies are exe­cut­ed. Each care­ful­ly orches­trat­ed move­ment rein­forces trust in the state’s pre­pared­ness. The Athen­ian peo­ple, accus­tomed to blend­ing mil­i­tary and sacred tra­di­tions, view these exhi­bi­tions not as enter­tain­ment, but as affir­ma­tions of divine and civic har­mo­ny.

Addi­tion­al­ly, this chap­ter rein­forces the idea that mil­i­tary pres­tige is not achieved sole­ly through war­fare but also through pub­lic vis­i­bil­i­ty and rit­u­al par­tic­i­pa­tion. Greek cav­al­ry, espe­cial­ly in Athens, played a dual role—as war­riors in the field and as sym­bols of cul­tur­al iden­ti­ty at home. The delib­er­ate blend­ing of train­ing, tra­di­tion, and cer­e­mo­ny ele­vat­ed the cavalry’s impor­tance in the eyes of the pop­u­lace. Mod­ern read­ers can relate this to how nation­al mil­i­tary forces today often take part in parades, state func­tions, and cer­e­monies of remem­brance. These func­tions, though sym­bol­ic, shape pub­lic per­cep­tion and rein­force nation­al val­ues. In antiq­ui­ty, this link­age was even stronger, with divine favor believed to influ­ence out­comes of war and civic pros­per­i­ty alike.

In essence, the cav­al­ry gen­er­al was entrust­ed with both the body and spir­it of the mil­i­tary. His atten­tion to cer­e­mo­ny did not dilute his strate­gic responsibility—it ampli­fied it. Each pub­lic dis­play served to sharp­en tech­nique, rein­force cohe­sion, and bol­ster col­lec­tive con­fi­dence. The bal­ance of visu­al spec­ta­cle, reli­gious obser­vance, and tac­ti­cal train­ing ensured that Athen­ian cav­al­ry remained both respect­ed and revered. Such intri­cate prepa­ra­tion, far from being dec­o­ra­tive, reflect­ed a city com­mit­ted to excel­lence in all aspects of its iden­ti­ty. Lead­er­ship, in this con­text, meant lead­ing not just soldiers—but cul­ture, belief, and civic emo­tion.