HOME | DD

Description
"Noble, courageous and loyal to the end. There's not a horse I'd trust more with my life than Sergius." - Diana of Themyscira

For most of history, warriors and heroes have ascended to the heights of glory, their names remembered and reverberating throughout the centuries. Yet among their ranks are also a few animals of equally legendary fame. One such animal among their ranks is Sergius of Themyscira: warhorse of Wonder Woman who charges into nearly every battle that the Daughter of Zeus wages against evil, tyranny and oppression.

Sergius came from a long history of mounted warfare among the Amazons. Their ancient traditions of equestrianism date as far back as when the very first Amazons took to adopting the customs and culture of the nomadic steppe tribes of Central Asia during the Bronze Age. The great grass sea provided the perfect environment for the Daughters of Ares to become some of the finest horsewomen in the world which they still are to this day. As the Western Amazon Khaganate's nobility was split during the Trojan War, Themyscira and Bana-Mighdall developed their own separate equestrian traditions heavily influenced by the peoples they came into contact with. Bana-Mighdall incorporated several aspects from the Persians, Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Crusaders and Mamluks in terms of both horse-breeding and cavalry warfare. In Themyscira, however, such influence came largely from combining Roman, Chinese, Mongol, Mandinka and Spanish influences. The last influence in particular saw the Amazons acquire large quantities of powerful Andalusian horses which are both large and strong enough to carry a fully armed warrior into battle. Further, Inca refugees who resettled in Themyscira also brought with them new techniques in animal husbandry, having stolen Andalusian horses from the conquistadores in the Inca Empire's own equally long war with the Spanish Empire.

Their abilities were further enhanced by a long tradition of breeding and training. The royal stables in particular were renowned for several specimens which won several equestrian events in the Olympic Games. These excellent horses are put to use by the Amazon elites, who have been known to mount up in combat in both Themyscira and Bana-Mighdall. These traditions spawned several iconic Amazon cavalry units, such as the Cataphracts, and the Companion Cavalry. Such warriors typically own their own horses, and are rich enough to maintain their own stables and attendants. Those of lesser means, however, still own horses as a way to continue the Amazons' ancient nomadic pastoral existence. As such, there has always been a constant demand for acquiring the most prime breeds and specimens for warhorses; the Pharaohs of Bana-Mighdall and the Queens of Themyscira are some of the greatest customers in this market.

Queen Hippolyta II, like her nomadic ancestors, is an avid fan of all things equine. After all, the Great Soviet Raid she carried out in the 70s was conducted by using her iconic Amazon cavalry in a series of lightning fast hit-and-run attacks. Their successes raised Themyscira to new heights, and allowed the queen to invest more into developing more into cavalry equipment and tactics. One day, a horse breeder named Philomena came to see the queen, leading by a halter a fine Andalusian stallion. Philomena offered the horse to the Queen for 13,000 denarii, but when they brought the stallion to the corral to break him in, he proved so stubborn and disobedient that he reared up and bucked wildly whenever anyone tried to mount him, and refused to obey any command given by Hippolyta's nobles.

However, as the Queen was about to declare him utterly useless for battle and that he be sold for meat, a 12-year-old Princess Diana, who was watching the whole spectacle, stood from her seat and declared that she would ride such a fine horse. Hippolyta, fearing for her daughter's safety, was reluctant to trust the heir to the throne with such a temperamental steed, but Diana insisted she was up to the task, making a wager that if she was unable to break him in, she would pay for the horse herself. At this, the whole court erupted in laughter, but as soon as the wager was settled upon, Diana confidently approached the horse, and on taking hold of the bridle, turned him directly towards the sun. Just like with Alexander the Great and Bucephalus, Diana noticed that the horse was afraid of his own shadow. She then led him forward just a bit, while still keeping the reigns in her hands and stroked him gently when he became anxious, she placed one foot into the stirrup of the saddle on his back, and managed to mount him in one go. Little by little, she drew in the bridle, and managed to break him in without having to strike him with a riding crop or the use of spurs. Soon after, when she saw that the horse managed to calm down and trust her, but was still eager and champing at the bit, she charged him to gallop at full speed, enticing him with her commanding tone and using her heels to control his movements.

Hippolyta and her nobles looked on anxiously at the sight, until Diana came galloping back towards them and slowed the horse down to a halt, a toothy grin on her face in pride for what she accomplished. The entire court and the Senate burst into applause and celebration, while her mother, crying tears of joy kissed her daughter's forehead and hugged her tightly as she dismounted her new horse, remarking how incredibly proud she was of her daughter. From that day since, Diana was never a day apart from her stallion, who she named Sergius, in honor of Marcus Sergius Silus: a Roman Consul and war hero during the Second Punic War.

In case you are wondering, this is actually a revamped take on Serge the Horse, who featured in the Wonder Woman comics during the 1940s. In the comics, Serge was able to understand simple mental commands, and even had mental conversations with Diana. However, I decided not to go with that, and instead revamped him as having been Diana's mount since the age of 12. And, yes, I am well aware that Jumpa is also Diana's iconic mount, but since I decided to give the Amazons an origin as nomadic horsewomen, Serge was a far more suitable candidate in that regard. The story of how Diana managed to tame him was actually inspired by Plutarch's account of how Alexander the Great tamed his own equally famous warhorse, Bucephalus.

Before going on further, I'd like to take a moment to discuss the tack and equipment Sergius has on him. As Wonder Woman's personal warhorse, Sergius uses a combination of tack and equipment that were used for warhorses in both Classical Antiquity and the Middle Ages. The earliest Amazon horsewomen rode barebacked, with only a simple bridle, bit and reins to control the horse as well as cloth laid over the horse's back and fastened to its body to provide comfort for both the horse and rider. The combination made the experience of riding far more reliable. However, by the 3rd century BCE, Amazon cavalrywomen began to use the very first saddles for extra comfort, as well as both safety and stability. The version that the Amazons used would later be adopted by the Romans: the infamous 4-horned saddle. The four horns would allow the horsewoman to grip the horse with her thighs, locking her in place and allowing her more stability to use a lance, bow, sword and shield.

By the 4th century CE, however, this saddle was superseded by the rigid treed saddle introduced by the Huns: it consists of a steady wooden frame that cushions the rider with an extended front pommel and rear cantle, providing a steady base for the horsewoman to fight from, and also makes it more difficult to unhorse her. The final improvement came in the 6th century, when stirrups were introduced by the Avars. These granted cavalrywomen increased stability, which is crucial for both missile and melee cavalry.

Aside from his equipment and tack, Sergius is also decked out in partial barding - horse armor. While the cataphracts ride fully barded horses, partial barding for horses is also recommended for non-shock melee cavalry. The Greek historian, Xenophon, recommends as such in his book The Art of Horsemanship:

"As any damage done to the horse will involve his rider in extreme peril, the horse also should be clad in armour—frontlet, breastplate, and thigh-pieces; which latter may at the same time serve as cuisses for the mounted man. Beyond all else, the horse's belly, being the most vital and defenceless part, should be protected. It is possible to protect it with the saddle-cloth. The saddle itself should be of such sort and so stitched as to give the rider a firm seat, and yet not gall the horse's back."

With this in mind, the barding for Sergius is based off Greek originals that were excavated in Southern Italy. First, is the breastplate, or peytral. This is a large solid piece that protects the horse's sternum from any oncoming attacks, and is usually attached to the saddle via a series of leather straps. The second piece of barding worth mentioning is the horse's headgear, known as the chamfron. Made from a solid piece of metal lined with felt, its primary role is to protect a horse's head and eyes. However, a secondary benefit discovered repeatedly in modern reenactment circles, is that it terrifies other horses who aren't used to seeing them. This psychological effect proves beneficial in cavalry-on-cavalry clashes. Another special piece of equipment is armor plated horseshoes meant to protect the hooves. This helps against the use of caltrops, which are an incredibly cheap and common way to disable cavalry, as a downed horse usually means a downed rider.

When Diana won the Themysciran Games and escorted Steve Trevor back to the U.S., she brought Sergius along with her, which led to interesting adventures for this noble stallion. Upon first arrival in Washington D.C., Diana and Steve noticed a thief on the run after stealing a woman's purse. Not wanting to let this crime go unpunished, Diana urged Sergius on in pursuit at full gallop. While Steve was slightly mortified by the response, the thief was downright terrified by the sight of a charging horse coming straight at him! Unsurprisingly, this led him to surrender, allowing Diana to win her first yet small victory as Wonder Woman.

Although he usually stays in the Royal Stables in Amazoniapolis, Sergius has other stables to stay in when not in combat in America, such as the stables at Fort Hood, TX, where he is popular with the U.S. 1st Cavalry Regiment, or at the Embassy of Themyscira's stables in Washington DC. Whenever Diana is in New York for official UN duties, Sergius has a stall reserved for himself at the New York City Riding Academy, where she also has a few opportunities to mentor students about how to properly ride a horse as a hobby.

Disclaimer: Sergius of Themyscira belongs to DC Comics, Dr. William Moulton Marston PhD, and Harry G. Peter

Description
"Noble, courageous and loyal to the end. There's not a horse I'd trust more with my life than Sergius." - Diana of Themyscira

For most of history, warriors and heroes have ascended to the heights of glory, their names remembered and reverberating throughout the centuries. Yet among their ranks are also a few animals of equally legendary fame. One such animal among their ranks is Sergius of Themyscira: warhorse of Wonder Woman who charges into nearly every battle that the Daughter of Zeus wages against evil, tyranny and oppression.

Sergius came from a long history of mounted warfare among the Amazons. Their ancient traditions of equestrianism date as far back as when the very first Amazons took to adopting the customs and culture of the nomadic steppe tribes of Central Asia during the Bronze Age. The great grass sea provided the perfect environment for the Daughters of Ares to become some of the finest horsewomen in the world which they still are to this day. As the Western Amazon Khaganate's nobility was split during the Trojan War, Themyscira and Bana-Mighdall developed their own separate equestrian traditions heavily influenced by the peoples they came into contact with. Bana-Mighdall incorporated several aspects from the Persians, Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Crusaders and Mamluks in terms of both horse-breeding and cavalry warfare. In Themyscira, however, such influence came largely from combining Roman, Chinese, Mongol, Mandinka and Spanish influences. The last influence in particular saw the Amazons acquire large quantities of powerful Andalusian horses which are both large and strong enough to carry a fully armed warrior into battle. Further, Inca refugees who resettled in Themyscira also brought with them new techniques in animal husbandry, having stolen Andalusian horses from the conquistadores in the Inca Empire's own equally long war with the Spanish Empire.

Their abilities were further enhanced by a long tradition of breeding and training. The royal stables in particular were renowned for several specimens which won several equestrian events in the Olympic Games. These excellent horses are put to use by the Amazon elites, who have been known to mount up in combat in both Themyscira and Bana-Mighdall. These traditions spawned several iconic Amazon cavalry units, such as the Cataphracts, and the Companion Cavalry. Such warriors typically own their own horses, and are rich enough to maintain their own stables and attendants. Those of lesser means, however, still own horses as a way to continue the Amazons' ancient nomadic pastoral existence. As such, there has always been a constant demand for acquiring the most prime breeds and specimens for warhorses; the Pharaohs of Bana-Mighdall and the Queens of Themyscira are some of the greatest customers in this market.

Queen Hippolyta II, like her nomadic ancestors, is an avid fan of all things equine. After all, the Great Soviet Raid she carried out in the 70s was conducted by using her iconic Amazon cavalry in a series of lightning fast hit-and-run attacks. Their successes raised Themyscira to new heights, and allowed the queen to invest more into developing more into cavalry equipment and tactics. One day, a horse breeder named Philomena came to see the queen, leading by a halter a fine Andalusian stallion. Philomena offered the horse to the Queen for 13,000 denarii, but when they brought the stallion to the corral to break him in, he proved so stubborn and disobedient that he reared up and bucked wildly whenever anyone tried to mount him, and refused to obey any command given by Hippolyta's nobles.

However, as the Queen was about to declare him utterly useless for battle and that he be sold for meat, a 12-year-old Princess Diana, who was watching the whole spectacle, stood from her seat and declared that she would ride such a fine horse. Hippolyta, fearing for her daughter's safety, was reluctant to trust the heir to the throne with such a temperamental steed, but Diana insisted she was up to the task, making a wager that if she was unable to break him in, she would pay for the horse herself. At this, the whole court erupted in laughter, but as soon as the wager was settled upon, Diana confidently approached the horse, and on taking hold of the bridle, turned him directly towards the sun. Just like with Alexander the Great and Bucephalus, Diana noticed that the horse was afraid of his own shadow. She then led him forward just a bit, while still keeping the reigns in her hands and stroked him gently when he became anxious, she placed one foot into the stirrup of the saddle on his back, and managed to mount him in one go. Little by little, she drew in the bridle, and managed to break him in without having to strike him with a riding crop or the use of spurs. Soon after, when she saw that the horse managed to calm down and trust her, but was still eager and champing at the bit, she charged him to gallop at full speed, enticing him with her commanding tone and using her heels to control his movements.

Hippolyta and her nobles looked on anxiously at the sight, until Diana came galloping back towards them and slowed the horse down to a halt, a toothy grin on her face in pride for what she accomplished. The entire court and the Senate burst into applause and celebration, while her mother, crying tears of joy kissed her daughter's forehead and hugged her tightly as she dismounted her new horse, remarking how incredibly proud she was of her daughter. From that day since, Diana was never a day apart from her stallion, who she named Sergius, in honor of Marcus Sergius Silus: a Roman Consul and war hero during the Second Punic War.

In case you are wondering, this is actually a revamped take on Serge the Horse, who featured in the Wonder Woman comics during the 1940s. In the comics, Serge was able to understand simple mental commands, and even had mental conversations with Diana. However, I decided not to go with that, and instead revamped him as having been Diana's mount since the age of 12. And, yes, I am well aware that Jumpa is also Diana's iconic mount, but since I decided to give the Amazons an origin as nomadic horsewomen, Serge was a far more suitable candidate in that regard. The story of how Diana managed to tame him was actually inspired by Plutarch's account of how Alexander the Great tamed his own equally famous warhorse, Bucephalus.

Before going on further, I'd like to take a moment to discuss the tack and equipment Sergius has on him. As Wonder Woman's personal warhorse, Sergius uses a combination of tack and equipment that were used for warhorses in both Classical Antiquity and the Middle Ages. The earliest Amazon horsewomen rode barebacked, with only a simple bridle, bit and reins to control the horse as well as cloth laid over the horse's back and fastened to its body to provide comfort for both the horse and rider. The combination made the experience of riding far more reliable. However, by the 3rd century BCE, Amazon cavalrywomen began to use the very first saddles for extra comfort, as well as both safety and stability. The version that the Amazons used would later be adopted by the Romans: the infamous 4-horned saddle. The four horns would allow the horsewoman to grip the horse with her thighs, locking her in place and allowing her more stability to use a lance, bow, sword and shield.

By the 4th century CE, however, this saddle was superseded by the rigid treed saddle introduced by the Huns: it consists of a steady wooden frame that cushions the rider with an extended front pommel and rear cantle, providing a steady base for the horsewoman to fight from, and also makes it more difficult to unhorse her. The final improvement came in the 6th century, when stirrups were introduced by the Avars. These granted cavalrywomen increased stability, which is crucial for both missile and melee cavalry.

Aside from his equipment and tack, Sergius is also decked out in partial barding - horse armor. While the cataphracts ride fully barded horses, partial barding for horses is also recommended for non-shock melee cavalry. The Greek historian, Xenophon, recommends as such in his book The Art of Horsemanship:

"As any damage done to the horse will involve his rider in extreme peril, the horse also should be clad in armour—frontlet, breastplate, and thigh-pieces; which latter may at the same time serve as cuisses for the mounted man. Beyond all else, the horse's belly, being the most vital and defenceless part, should be protected. It is possible to protect it with the saddle-cloth. The saddle itself should be of such sort and so stitched as to give the rider a firm seat, and yet not gall the horse's back."

With this in mind, the barding for Sergius is based off Greek originals that were excavated in Southern Italy. First, is the breastplate, or peytral. This is a large solid piece that protects the horse's sternum from any oncoming attacks, and is usually attached to the saddle via a series of leather straps. The second piece of barding worth mentioning is the horse's headgear, known as the chamfron. Made from a solid piece of metal lined with felt, its primary role is to protect a horse's head and eyes. However, a secondary benefit discovered repeatedly in modern reenactment circles, is that it terrifies other horses who aren't used to seeing them. This psychological effect proves beneficial in cavalry-on-cavalry clashes. Another special piece of equipment is armor plated horseshoes meant to protect the hooves. This helps against the use of caltrops, which are an incredibly cheap and common way to disable cavalry, as a downed horse usually means a downed rider.

When Diana won the Themysciran Games and escorted Steve Trevor back to the U.S., she brought Sergius along with her, which led to interesting adventures for this noble stallion. Upon first arrival in Washington D.C., Diana and Steve noticed a thief on the run after stealing a woman's purse. Not wanting to let this crime go unpunished, Diana urged Sergius on in pursuit at full gallop. While Steve was slightly mortified by the response, the thief was downright terrified by the sight of a charging horse coming straight at him! Unsurprisingly, this led him to surrender, allowing Diana to win her first yet small victory as Wonder Woman.

Although he usually stays in the Royal Stables in Amazoniapolis, Sergius has other stables to stay in when not in combat in America, such as the stables at Fort Hood, TX, where he is popular with the U.S. 1st Cavalry Regiment, or at the Embassy of Themyscira's stables in Washington DC. Whenever Diana is in New York for official UN duties, Sergius has a stall reserved for himself at the New York City Riding Academy, where she also has a few opportunities to mentor students about how to properly ride a horse as a hobby.

Disclaimer: Sergius of Themyscira belongs to DC Comics, Dr. William Moulton Marston PhD, and Harry G. Peter