What Do We Know About Ancient Greek Warfare?

[@wattoucheng]

I'm a simple person: I see Roel, I drop a like, and start digging my ditches

[@hansolowe19]

Roel Konijnenlike?

[@DharianGames]

Same

[@DakotaFord592]

omg!!! This man is so beautiful!!! I want to put my face next to the arch of his foot!!!

[@DharianGames]

@@DakotaFord592 Well alright! :D

[@DakotaFord592]

The most beautiful part of a man!!! His feet!!!

[@WeltgeistYT]

31:44 "What happened after the Peloponnesian War? Kind of a long story, I mean all of history technically..." Amazing

[@siggyvdz8213]

All of *occidental/mediterranean* History....

[@VictorVæsconcelos]

I had a brilliant wordplay to make here, but I decided to ditch it.

[@macfilms9904]

A very trenchant comment

[@DakotaFord592]

Omg!! This man is so beautiful!! I want to put my face next to the arch of his foot!!!

[@ilmari1452]

​@DakotaFord592 Well that is certainly a comment... 😨

[@MaxHohenstaufen]

🤪

[@DakotaFord592]

@@ilmari1452 the most beautiful part of a man!!! His feet!!!

[@dusan-renat]

I love the fact that he is aware of the reputation that he earned on KZbin as "The Ditch Guy". 😀

[@Aradhrin]

He addresses it in one of the videos 😂

[@Unknown-jt1jo]

He's definitely aware! He's a long-time moderator and contributor on the AskHistorians subreddit, has done many online videos, etc. He's tech-savvy and spends a lot of time online.

[@wedgeantilles8575]

His videos are so good, I love them. Such a pity he doesn't have his own channel :(

[@Izma9]

The Ditch -Guy- Lord

[@pawea1347]

​@@AradhrinOh, where did he addressed that? In what channel?

[@luckyspurs]

Roel is an excellent example of the quiet charisma you need to have to be a great university lecturer. Very compelling.

[@gunver79]

Men of the shovel, we meet again.

[@ClaiireeLiizz]

And Women of the shovel 🙋🏻‍♀️

[@TheAsdasy]

and my axe

[@ClaiireeLiizz]

@@TheAsdasy And now I’m envisioning Gimli digging ditches with Legolas and Aragorn in front of Helms Deep. Lolol

[@madlaughter6792]

Salud

[@Marshy94]

Men of the shovel hahahahah brilliant

[@myrelaionredux5134]

"If you're having siege problems I feel bad for you son, I got 99 problems but a ditch ain't one" 9:50

[@joem9528]

That was awesome dude well done

[@geoffdewitt6845]

Genuinely amazing!

[@michaeljudd5384]

I'm absolutely digging this new video! I wouldn't ditch it for anything.

[@Salih-t5r]

Groovy Greek warfare

[@DakotaFord592]

Omg!! This man is so beautiful!! I want to put my face next to the arch of his foot!!!

[@KS-xk2so]

Ditch, please.

[@anonymus390]

Ha!

[@coldlakealta4043]

Simply the best presenter. Also digs great ditches!

[@xDJGEASx]

The BBC needs to give this guy a show. He's so entertaining.

[@Eagle-eye-pie]

They won’t. He isn’t political enough.

[@HaesslichG]

1:40 - "Who did the Greeks fight?" "YES."

[@KasumiRINA]

Yeah it's hard to throw a stone in Europe and not bump into a place that wasn't Greek or Roman at some point.

[@sarahmusk7793]

Roel is one of the most engaging presenters I have ever watched. I always love his presentations.

[@wedgeantilles8575]

And the most important thing: He DOES know what he is talking about. And he does not put "modern stuff" into history, e.g. interpreting and judging history from a modern point of view. That makes him a historian and that is a very rare treat today. That his personality and the way he presents his stuff is highly entertaining and very engaging is the icing on the cake :)

[@Vishnujanadasa108]

@@wedgeantilles8575 This pasty barbarian envies Greeks. The Spartans and Greeks were the most famed sought-after mercenaries in that part of the world and he says they weren’t good warriors. They beat all the mightiest empires around them-much more numerous than tiny Greece-Persia, Rome, Illyrians, Paeonians, Indians, Scythians, Carthaginians etc. he should stick to the history of his miserable depressing foggy Britain and keep the Greeks out of his envious barbarian mouth.

[@shannondouglass3044]

Roel "The Ditch" Konijnendijk strikes again! Always love his videos.

[@pyroxblaze]

I love this little super-niche corner of the Internet where this professor dude and ditch in-jokes reign supreme

[@freddyz3359]

This guy is awesome, can you imagine going to the pub with him

[@VictorVæsconcelos]

He'd just ditch you.

[@catherinemerrill5511]

I would rather go to class and see a multimedia presentation, take notes, and go to a museum to see artifacts. Thank you, Dr. K.

[@canchero724]

We'd all dig him, no question.

[@kelseylogas1580]

Many thanks to History Hit for recognizing how knowledgeable, entertaining and effective his communication is. I so enjoy every one of his videos. More!

[@Bendesho]

"Did the Greeks dig ditches, I wonder if this question was meant for me?" Bro, everyone knows very damn well that question was totally meant for you

[@KS-xk2so]

YES! He has returned! The slow plan to convert History Hit into a channel exclusively focused on the life and times of Ditch Guy continues to succeed!

[@homerthedoomer]

I immediately ditched all my plans and watched the video. I love everything that has this guy in it!

[@antoniousai1989]

Ah yes, the dutch Flying Ditchman has sailed again into historical analysis

[@harryrabbit2870]

I am a college graduate. If you asked me to conjure up an image of what a college or university professor looked like, I wouldn't think of a guy with a beard, tweed jacket and spectacles. It would be more like Dr. Konijnendijk: young, hair out place, casually dressed, animated and passionate about his/her area of expertise.

[@Unknown-jt1jo]

Neither image is accurate. Tenured professors often work into their 60s and 70s, so there are lots of older professors around. As I recall, the average age of a tenured professor in the US is around 55.

[@emreyurtseven23]

I raise my shovel, and salute this man. He who digs with me, shall be my brother!

[@Matt-go7ss]

Ditch guy! My man 👍

[@hansolowe19]

Ditches and stakes, yo!

[@miscellaneaural2487]

That's Dr. Ditch to you

[@cas1994]

quick boys, break time from the ditch digging and time to listen to our prophet roel....then, straight back to work!!!!

[@northwall9243]

This was great, would love some deeper dives with Roel into the Corinthian war and such.

[@stamatiskon3049]

I see ditches in the screenshot, I click the link. It's that easy!

[@awesomehpt8938]

How many ditches should we dig? Ditch guy: yes

[@samael7867]

all of them :)

[@VictorVæsconcelos]

If you have time to ask that question, you should be digging ditches.

[@DakotaFord592]

omg!!! This man is so beautiful!!! I want to put my face next to the arch of his foot!!!

[@philipphogerl140]

If your own ditches start providing cover for the enemy, and hinder your cavalries maneuvers, you probably have too many ditches.

[@dieusonmalcomson7335]

At the end of these it would be cool if you had him recommend a couple specific books he enjoyed on the topics.

[@KasumiRINA]

+1 to add bibliography and book recommendations to these videos.

[@anegaute]

+2

[@jordanbooth4470]

When you see Roel, you know two things are guaranteed. A great video because he’s a total legend, and ditches will be dug.

[@mohammadvahidi5483]

hey Dr.Ditch huge fan here, can you do a video on Persians specifically? and not just theirs wars with the greeks, an in-depth detailed exploration of Persia, its political and bureaucratic system, civil rights of different people and castes and ancient Persian society in general and how it was different from greeks. thanks a lot love your ditches keep digging

[@benoitbergeron8858]

I would prefer if there was no music in these videos. As soon as I start paying attention to it (and I got ADHD, so its often), I can't help but to notice that it quite a short loop and hearing it repeat itself over and over kind of makes me crazy. I loved the video, otherwise!

[@fuferito]

Before KZbin caught on, I remember watching some updated archeological finds in Troy in a documentary where they said that they had, indeed, found ditches in front of the citadel walls opposite the plain of the Troad, just like the good professor says here.

[@forestgirl22]

Yay, it's Roel again!! Time for ditches and deep diving but easily understood history!! 😄😄 edit: damn not many ditches in Greek warfare. Dang.

[@patrickb1303]

This guys reaction to the Winterfell battle in GoT has been show to each of my family members. To explain why I was yelling “you gotta be kidding me” like 5 times during that episode. And my wife ratted me out to all of them. 😂

[@wedgeantilles8575]

All videos I've seen from Roel are amazing and great to watch. And this is no exception. As always, I love his enthusiasm and the way he presents his knowledge. But the most important thing for me is: He knows his stuff and he never tries to insert our todays politics and views into his assessment. That makes him a great historian and a trustworthy source. I just wish he had his own channel!

[@Jon.A.Scholt]

Whoever created that thumbnail knew what they were doing

[@spookyboi8446]

The Ditchlord

[@villu667]

😂😂😂

[@DakotaFord592]

Omg!! This man is so beautiful!! I want to put my face next to the arch of his foot!!!

[@Krystal109]

It's interesting to me that even tho Roel is a professor of Ancient Greek Warfare... he also has to be proficient in Greek mythology too thanks to things like the Trojan War. Basically, a master of two fields.

[@GWB184]

This guy is practically family at this point

[@jamesscott9818]

Every time I see the ditch dude, I have to watch it....EVERY TIME

[@archibaldchuzzlewit1848]

Absolutely fantastic video. Super engaging, informative, and entertaining. A+.

[@nicolaslorenzo746]

I would find it so interesting to see his reaction to a game like Rome Total War 2, and his opinion on the different campaigns and Greek city states involved in it!

[@dabombgiggity123]

I love Dr. Konijnenditch

[@H2O4S]

That was a super interesting video! Thanks for this Mr. Konijnendijk!

[@erinrivera1194]

We bought this trailer last week and just accidentally stumbled on this video. Thank you Johnson RV 😊

[@davidturner6280]

I digged 3 ditches around my house while waiting for another Doctor Ditch video.

[@oohmyjooy]

Welcome back Ditch king.

[@RoyalDog214]

I love this historian! I would enjoy watching Professor Roel give historical account and accuracy in every episodes.

[@DanSmith-j8y]

He's actually a jerk.

[@Unknown-jt1jo]

@@DanSmith-j8y Nah. He's answered hundreds of questions for free on the AskHistorians subreddit--he's generous with his time and knowledge. So he was rude to you one time on Twitter. Who cares?

[@DanSmith-j8y]

@@Unknown-jt1jo I care because he blocked me and I can't really understand why. You'll have to just take my word for it, I guess, but I wasn't rude or anything myself. So, I don't know.🤷‍♂

[@Unknown-jt1jo]

@@DanSmith-j8y Well, I'll take his track record of answering hundreds of history questions (without any financial compensation) over one interaction with one person on Twitter. He's also a moderator on AskHistorians--another thankless, unpaid job. Also, Twitter/X is a nasty, toxic place. Maybe he's gotten a lot of crap from other users, and he was feeling defensive. Who knows?

[@DanSmith-j8y]

@@Unknown-jt1jo Or he's just an asshole.

[@User-54631]

I hope the algorithm doesn’t ditch this guy.

[@jeroenwubbels7824]

Julius Ceasar said he had won more battles with a shovel than with a spear

[@A0A4ful]

@@jeroenwubbels7824 Veni, vidi, dici, vici.

[@liger1411]

⁠@@A0A4fulveni, vidi, *fodi, vici

[@Davidosconnolos]

The Man, The myth. The ditch digger!

[@A0A4ful]

Like trades based names like 'Blacksmith', 'Cook', 'Mason', etc, was there a 'Ditchdigger'?

[@nazirkazi2588]

Ditch-digging is not a skilled job so there wouldn't be. It's probably not until the Sappers that you'd see specialisation of digging-related activity.

[@goncalosoares4818]

absolutely love this guy

[@VladimirLukele]

"All of history, technically" Legend I love his spontaneous answers :D

[@DharianGames]

Saw Roel's face and didn't even read the title. I just clicked.

[@TaylorLiam87]

Love these episodes

[@lilith7572]

Dr. Konijnendijk is my favorite historian 😍

[@him050]

You can tell what a brilliant lecturer Roel is by his frequent use of the phrase, "that's a great question."

[@DanSmith-j8y]

I've interacted with him a bit on Twitter, and he's much less personable there - I imagine he's not praising the quality of questions among his students, but is probably rather dismissive and insulting as I've found him to be.

[@Unknown-jt1jo]

@@DanSmith-j8y Twitter is a toxic/confrontational medium. Maybe he's dealt with a lot of assholes. I've been following him for years on the AskHistorians subreddit, which is heavily moderated. I've always found him to be civil, helpful, and generous with his time.

[@Unknown-jt1jo]

@@DanSmith-j8y I've followed him for years on Reddit, and he was always pleasant and generous with his time. X is a toxic place, so maybe his guard was up.

[@DanSmith-j8y]

@@Unknown-jt1jo I guess. I don't know. It was to do with the movie Troy, and I wondered if later Greek attitudes, who took it as a given (according to Roel) that Achilles and Patroclus were lovers, if that attitude was held in Homer's day or in Mycenaean times (if we can know). Maybe he just figured I was one of the conservative anti-gay people he says in his Troy video that relationship was "sanitized" for. Ah well. I'm not going to stop watching his videos, but I'm a little soured on the dude himself.

[@Unknown-jt1jo]

@@DanSmith-j8y I see. Yes, as a moderator on AskHistorians he's had to swat away a lot of questions by holocaust deniers and other idiots, etc. so maybe he incorrectly pigeonholed you as one of those.

[@nachtschatten8710]

Gosh, how could I have been one day late and didnt see this new vid as soon as it dropped?! Wouldnt have ditched it for the world! 😅 Now, finally I can lean back and listen to our most cherished Lord of the Fortifications and the Ditchman himself, Dr. Roel! ❤ Yay!

[@Andrew_Stephenson]

When you see this guy, you know its going to be a banger

[@canchero724]

I was busy with something else but decided to ditch it the second I saw this uploaded.

[@timmccaffery4826]

Awesome presentation of historical information!

[@salemxxx5007]

I never get enough of Roel Knonijnenijk, and I never get enough of digging ditches

[@jablessfables]

always love listening to this man explain stuff

[@ShadowofFenrir]

Varangian Guard i wanna hear more about :(

[@EnlightenedPigeon]

I see ditch guy, I click like

[@annavogel7625]

Would it be okay for Roel to talk about Asterix at the olympic games? It's a movie from 2008 and if I remember correctly the don't have a lot of ditches but a few nice roman formations

[@pavelgl5926]

Please don't mind the poor jokes competition in the comments. Thanks for the great narrative, I can't wait to see your next video.

[@littleraeofsunshine]

My sister decided to write a stage adaptation of Robin Hood for the children’s theater she produces. Since she asked me to help her come up with characters, there is a castle drudge walking around picking up rocks and digging ditches.

[@cariboubearmalachy1174]

Just one dude is responsible for the ditches?

[@littleraeofsunshine]

@@cariboubearmalachy1174 Small cast 😂

[@marissahammer2229]

I just love Roel! Any video with him in it, I’ll watch and like 😁 (Also I’ll probably start digging a ditch, just to be safe)

[@stalker-anoniem3515]

Great video!

[@TSkillz407]

I love how he is the most popular and constantly brought back. And I hope he is every month 😂

[@noodlechild666]

Honestly, until i started watching this channel and this guy, i had no idea that people like Achilles never actually existed. We didnt study Greek history when i was at school and its not something ive ever considered or looked into over the years. I like feeling more educated.

[@steve8610]

Love Doctor Ditch! Very frustrated by these questions tho, lol

[@GreenFalcon926]

Ah, hello there General Ditchobi. Good to see you again! Great video.

[@ryanflynn3861]

These videos are amazing, using them with my kids!

[@Grayman720]

This video needs one billion views NOW

[@ohsosmooth01]

I think the Trojan War is to the Greeks as King Arthur and Camelot is to us Brits. An amazing legendary yarn. Lancelot, the round table, Merlin Excaliber... none of which we have any evidence for.

[@FunbobbyJ]

Definitely intelligent, telling cool history.

[@raychumon]

yesss can't wait for the next part! now i just need a series like this on rome too and i'll be happy

[@michaeltelson9798]

Cuneiform tablets with tales of war suggest that parts of the Iliad were stylized from earlier tales. Actually a common practice in that period.

[@Dalexb]

It ain't much, if it ain't Ditch.

[@alicennet1636]

Always worth watching Mr. "Dig Ditches"

[@daniel_p94]

These videos are the bomb-diggity, bro!

[@SheilaS-x6v]

Roel is amazing watched every video

[@Martinor21]

Pls do a series on the peloponesian war

[@RainKoepke-ic3gf]

I love all his content Its fascinating for me as a historian and hes hilarious lol

[@kmvoss]

Thank you for this content.

[@ChattieGrayParker]

Good luck, roel🎉🥂 you're smart guy

[@ArvidNielsen]

Loved this!

[@martineden7075]

Finally ditch guy from Oxford educates googlers

[@chaneygolden3278]

amazing timing

[@wag0NE]

My favourite ditch guy, the OG !

[@vanceaadrian6217]

The Digging Dutchman returns 😀

[@raifield]

Okay, Part 2: let's discuss the Corinthian War and Greco-Roman relations 🙏 Wish I could enroll in his classes!

[@tripsaplenty1227]

Cage match: This guy vs The keeper of firearms and artillery guy

[@azarisLP]

Tired: The Trojan War is made up because the Hittite sources don't mention it. Wired: The Hittites are made up because the Iliad doesn't mention them.

[@freeman35423gs]

Great guy!

[@jarrodbright5231]

Absolutely looking forward to the video on the rise of the Macedonians, Phillip the Great and Alexander the So-So :)

[@Davidwv97]

His English is so good, I'm amazed he can still properly pronounce his own name