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10 animals used as weapons of war

New Delhi: We know about destructive weapons being use for war. Guns, rifles, tankers etc have been used by man to win battles. But this, might sound bizarre, man has also trained animals for war.As

India TV News Desk Updated on: November 15, 2013 6:35 IST

10. War pigs





War pigs are pigs said to have been used - at most, rarely - in ancient warfare as a countermeasure to war elephants.

The Romans would later use the squeals of pigs to frighten Pyrrhus' elephants.

Procopius, in book VIII of his History of the Wars, records the defenders of Edessa using a pig suspended from the walls to frighten away Khosrau's siege elephants.

While the above use of pigs in war is plausible, another historical reference - incendiary pigs or fire pigs - is much less so.

Aelian reported that Antipater's siege of Megara during the Wars of the Diadochi was broken when the Megarians poured oil on a herd of pigs, set them alight, and drove them towards the enemy's massed war elephants.

The elephants bolted in terror from the flaming squealing pigs often killing great numbers of the army the elephant was part of.

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