Anything that can constitute an “army” would have to consist of at least several hundred soldiers, with most armies throughout history numbering in the tens of thousands. This is what makes it all the stranger that certain armies have just vanished without a trace. The following list are 3 of the strangest disappearances in history, and to this day not a single record or piece of remains has been found of any of them.
1) The 9th Legion – 120 AD
Probably the most famous army throughout history that’s ever gone missing, The 9th legion was one of Romes finest fighting units, consisting of 5000 troops and having a number of victories under their belts, the 9th was a force not to be messed with.
This makes it all the stranger that it disappeared without a trace shortly after the year 120AD. The legion was stationed on the northern frontier of Britain along the border of Scotland, and frequently were engaged in minor skirmishes with the local tribes.
One day Rome decided it was time to conquer the land of Scotland once and for all, and who better to send in than the 9th legion. There aren’t any records of the order to march north, as it seems details regarding the 9th after the year 120 AD were either not recorded in the first place or intentionally destroyed.
Its believed the legion marched into Scotland and were ambushed by the tribes, but its unusual for such a large roman army to be wiped out without a trace. Not a single survivor or witness to the battle came forward, and to this day no one has found a single one of their remains of piece of their gear.
2) The Lost Army of Cambyses II – approximately 523BC
Cambyses II became the Pharaoh of Egypt in 525 BC after defeating Psamtik III during the battle of Pelusium. His reign was short and unsuccessful, with several failed military campaigns and more enemies coming at him than he could fight.
In 522 BC after his brother seized his throne in Persia, Cambyses died shortly after marching an army to take it back, though the cause of his death is disputed. During one of his many mistakes he decided to send an army of 50,000 men to threaten the Oracle of Amun at the Siwa oasis.
The story goes that while the army was crossing the desert, an enormous sand storm began and some how managed to bury the lot of them. Not a single trace of any of the soldiers has ever been found, leading to questions of if its even true, but this hasn’t stopped numerous searches over the years. Several million has been spent on searches so far, trying to locate the site of the buried soldiers and whatever valuables they may have been carrying, but as of yet no one has found a trace.
3) The Sandringham Company – 1915
This British army unit was named after the Sandingham estate from which the men were recruited, and like so many other army units of the war, it was made up of servants, farmers, builders and generally regular folk who knew nothing of war.
The unit was led by a man named Frank Beck who was old enough to not be drafted into actual combat, and instead was only supposed to train them. The following is a quote from Frank Beck in regards to his men: “I formed them. How could I leave them now? The lads will expect me to go with them. Besides, I promised their wives and children I would look after them”. This love of the unit he trained would ultimetly be his downfall, as he disappeared along with the other several hundred men he led into battle.
During the Gallipoli campaign of 1915, Beck and his men were on the front lines with the Turks, and for whatever reason began to advance. The unit was last seen marching into a forest as the other units they were stationed with held the line, and this was the last anyone ever heard or saw of them again.
Normally people disappearing in war isn’t anything strange, but witnesses at the point they left from reported silence after they walked into the thick fog lingering in the forest. General Sir Ian Standish Monteith Hamilton, a very high ranking commander on the front lines witnessed the the Sandringham Company walking into the fog himself and recorded various details about it in his diary.
Apart from no one hearing a single shot in the area the Sandringham Company marched in, no one found any remains of them. Before soldiers had dog tags they would be identified by their personal Id’s or belongings, but not a single soldier from the company was ever found.
When an enemy dies in battle the side that killed them would do nothing with the body, especially during the first world war. Thousands of corpses were just left where they fell, and to think that if the Sandringham Company was wiped out, why did no one hear it and why did the Turks hide all the bodies of that one particular battle and no others?
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