Tyrian Guard (Civ3)/Civilopedia

Originally, the Tyrian Guards were merely town watchmen armed with clubs and no armor. As the waterfront of this bustling
Phoenician trading center grew larger, so did the drunken brawls of the rough-and-tumble sailors. This led to many tavern brawls
in which the town watch was beaten back soundly and full rioting and looting ensued. The town elders of Tyre decided that the
only way to prevent this from happening was to armor their watchmen better, and after some nasty incidents with gaffs in the
hands of burly fisherman, a long spear was added as a complimentary weapon to the heavier armor. This superior reach allowed
the watchmen to defend themselves adequately in skirmishes with ruffians. Their first real test in combat came with the assault
and subsequent siege of the town by Assyrians starting in 701 BC. The heavy armor (for the time) and long spear of the watchmen
held back the Assyrian infantry armed with shorter weapons and their resulting victories yielded a new name for them: The
Tyrian Guard. Eventually this appellation was adopted by other, similarly armed watchmen in other Phoenician cities.