Heavy Cavalry (advance) (Civ3)/Civilopedia

The Byzantine Empire faced a problem the Western Empire had not had to contend with: mounted enemies in great numbers.
The speed of the eastern horse-archers was such that no infantry could keep up with them, and any that tried were quickly
surrounded and massacred. The legions had always had some cavalry support in the form of auxiliaries that acted as scouts
and screening troops, but something better was needed if they were to be an effective counter to the hordes of mounted
warriors that Byzantine commanders faced. The development of the cataphract was the answer to this problem. The
cataphract was a heavily armored horseman equipped with shock weapons and also a bow. The heavy armor of both man and horse
protected the cataphract from arrow fire from the eastern enemies, the bow allowed them to return fire, and the lance and
sword allowed them to charge and decimate the enemy at close range. This heavy armor also protected the horsemen from enemy
infantry. The cataphract was the inspiration for the heavily armored knights that flourished later in the Middle Ages in
western Europe.