AnExplanation
ofMilitarySlavery
89
when a ruler
founded a
military
slave
corps in the second
generation
orsoof
thedynasty.
Control
Newly
recruitedsoldiersfrom
marginal
areasenteredastotal
aliensandoutsiders,withoutaffiliation
eithertothe
rulingpow-
ersortothe
members
of
the
polity.
Howcould
theirmasterbind
themtohimselfandhis
dynasty?Mercenariesorallies
retained
theirown
loyalties,culture,andmethodsofwarfare,but
slaves
were
subjectedtoreorientation; the
government
couldsecure
their
loyalty,imposecultural
changes,
andfit
their
military
skills
totheneedsof
the
army.
Mercenaries andallies
imposedtheir fickle
loyalties
onthe
ruler.
They
could
always
desertand
they
constantly
threatened
to
mutiny:
"an
ally
was
always
a
potential threatto
indepen-
dence
’’n
and
a
mercenary
even more so. Since
these
troops
oftenconstitutedthemost
powerfulforceinthe
kingdom,
little
could
prevent
themfrom
becoming
an
unmanageable
andde-
structive
element,indifferentto
anyallegiancethatblockedthe
way
to
booty.
If
dissatisfiedwiththeir
plunder
from
warfare,
theyreadily
attacked
theirown
employer
or
ally.Militaryslavery
provided
ameans
by
whichtocontrol
marginal
areasoldiers.
Unlike mercenaries andallies, slaves couldbe
compelled to
undergo changes
in
identity;
these
changes
were effected
through
the
complementaryprocessesofderacination,isolation,
andindoctrination. Deracination
exposedslavestoloneliness
andnew
relationships;
isolationfurtheredtheir
susceptibility;
andindoctrination
transformedtheir
personalities.
Unlike
mercenariesandallies,who
usually
arrivedin
tribal
unitsand
stayed
in
them,
retaining
theirold
loyalties, slaves
cameasindividualsandhadto
buildnewattachments.
Deprived
of
theirown
people,
thesesoldiershadto
acceptthenewaffilia-
tions
offeredthem.The
military
slave
corpsdevelopedintoa
substitutetribeand
replaced
thetrue
kinshipgroup
in
many
76.Smail,
p.
70.