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THE ROMAN ARMY
Legion
1 Contubernium - 8 Men
10 Contubernia 1 Century 80 Men
2 Centuries 1 Maniple 160 Men
6 Centuries 1 Cohort 480 Men
10 Cohorts + 120 Horsemen 1 Legion 5240 Men *
*1 Legion = 9 normal cohorts (9 x 480 Men) + 1 "First Cohort" of 5 centuries (but each century a
LEGATUS
The Legatus was typically a senator in his 30s who had been a senatorial tribune and then gone through
the civilian government posts in Rome. He was appointed by the emperor and held command for 3 or 4 years
, although some became very good generals and served much longer. In a province with only one legion
, the legatus also serves as governor; in provinces with multiple legions, each legion has a legatus and th
e provincial governor has command of all of them.
Centurions
Then come the centurions, 59 or 60 to a legion. They have their own very confusing hierarchy
: There are six distinct steps of seniority in each cohort, from lowest to highest: hastatus posterior, hastatus
prior, princeps posterior, princeps prior, pilus posterior, pilus prior. (Note that "pilus" means "file", NOT the
same word as "pilum". In the Republic the triarii were sometimes referred to as "pilani".) The cohorts themselve
s are ranked from the First (highest) to the Tenth (lowest). In theory a centurion would start in the lowest spot in
the Tenth cohort, rise to the top of that, then move to the lowest spot in the Ninth cohort, etc. Probably it never
really happened that slowly. The centurions of the first cohort were called the primi ordines, and were
headed by the primus pilus ("first FILE"!), the senior centurion in the whole legion. From there a man
could rise to praefectus castrorum, third in command of the whole legion, and after a year in that post
he'd retire in fabulous wealth and glory.
Tribunus Laticlivus
Second in command of the legion was the tribunus laticlavus or senatorial tribune, a fresh-faced
young man on his first job away from home. He probably relied heavily on the next man down,
the praefectus castrorum or camp prefect, a grizzled veteran who had been promoted up through
the centurionate. Then came the five tribuni angusticlavi or equestrian tribunes, appointed from
the wealthy class (just below senators). These men actually had more experience than the
higher-ranking senatorial tribune, having just served about three years as independent commanders
of auxiliary cohorts. (Auxiliaries were enlisted from the provinces, and some of them were pretty barbaric
. I wonder if they ever ate their commanders?) It used to be said that the tribunes just held administrative
posts and did not actually lead troops, but now we think that each equestrian tribune commanded tw
•cohorts of legionaries. This would be a logical step up in status from commanding one cohort of auxili
•aries.
• After a term as legionary tribune, an equestrian tribune could be promoted to command of an
• auxiliary cavalry ala ("wing", 24 turmae totalling c. 512 men).
Auxiliary Infantryman
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Auxiliary Infantryman
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An auxiliary infantryman of the first century
AD. His armour and equipment is decidedly
inferior to that of the legionary. He wears a
light mail shirt and a Gallic helmet. Instead
of the sophisticated pilum, the throwing
spear of the legionary, he carries the hasta,
a more basic stabbing spear. His light shield
is flat and oval, offering no corners to snag.
It hence is a shield enabling a soldier to fight
individually or in loose formation. This is
equipment suited to a light mobile fighter,
rather than the to the disciplined heavy
infantrymen of the legions.
Republican Legionary
•
A legionary of the late Roman republic. His
armour is light chain mail, and his shield,
though curved, is not yet the famous square
shield of later days.
Vexillarius
1st century AD
•
A first century vexillarius. His armour and
helmet are covered in a bear skin, and he
would usually also carry a small circular
shield.
•
The vexillarius takes his name from the type
of standard he carries, the vexillum. The
vexillum was used as the typical standard for
cavalry or, as in this case, in the infantry for
detachments of varying sizes. Such a
detachment could be of any number of men
and is known as a 'vexillation'.
Their standard would signify which larger
unit they would belong to, in this case the
8th legion.
•
Signifer
1st century AD
•
A first century signifer. His armour and
helmet are covered in a wolf skin, and he
also carries a small circular shield.
•
The signifer takes his name from the type of
standard he carries, the signum. The signum
was used as the typical standard for each
maniple in the legion (a maniple consisted of
two centuries).
Aquilifer
1st century AD
•
A first century aqulifer. His armour and
helmet are covered in a lion skin, and he
also carries a small circular shield.
•
The aquilifer takes his name from the type of
standard he carries, the aquila (the 'eagle').
The aquila was the standard of the legion. It
was the item which had to be defended at all
cost, as it represented the legion's honour.
Bearing the legion's most prized possession
the aquilifer's position was of high standing.
In fact, part of the aquilifer's was to be in
charge of the legion's pay chest. He would
therefore also be the man to whom the
legionaries and officers would entrust their
savings.
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Cornicen
1st century AD
•
A first century cornicen. His armour and
helmet are covered in a wolf skin, and he
would usually also carry a small circular
shield.
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The cornicen is one of the trumpeters of the
legion. In battle he would use his horn,
called the cornu, to draw the attention of the
soldiers to any new order being signalled.
Imperial Legionary
1st century AD
in lorica segmentata
•
A legionary wearing the famous banded
armour, the lorica segmentata, and the
typical imperial 'Gallic' helmet. Also he has
with him the famous large square shield.
Imperial Legionary
1st century AD
in lorica hamata (chain
•
A first century legionary wearing chain mail
armour, the lorica hamata, and the typical
imperial 'Gallic' helmet. Also he has with him
the famous large square shield.
Centurion
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The centurion's armour varied widely, perhaps it
was even a matter of individual choice. The
centurion depicted wears leather. The rings (torques)
and circular plaques (phalerae) on his torso are
awards he has won in battle, comparable to medals
in modern day armies.
The horsehair crest across his helmet made him
easily recognizable by everyone, even in the chaos
of batte, as a officer of considerable rank.
The greaves he wears to protect his shins are also a
sign of his being a centurion. A cape was usually
also seen as a mark of a centurion. Although, given
that their style of dress may well have been down to
their own choice, this centurion may not be at all out
of place without such a cape.
Note also the vine rod he holds in his hand. A further
insignia of his rank and one he would happily use to
beat unruly soldiers with to enforce discipline.
Legatus
1st century AD
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The legatus was the commaner of a legion.
He would be of senatorial rank.
He wears a bronze chest plate and the
purple on his tunic points to his being of the
senatorial order.
Imperator
•
•
The term imperator strictly speaking only
befitted a victorious Roman commander.
Republican commanders such as Julius
Caesar were hailed imperator by their troops
after victories. However, it was a title which
the emperors chose for themselves as
commander in chief of the Roman imperial
army.
In this case, you see a suggested recreation
of emperor Hadrian's appearance.
Legionary in Practice
•
The soldiers of the Roman army would daily
practice their combat skills. For this they
would use shields made from wickerwork
and wooden swords in order not to injure
each othe
'Marius Mule'
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•
The soldiers of the Roman army would
carry with them a considerable abmount of
kit. When on the march they carried over
their shoulder a contraption (sometimes
described as a forked stick) which would
help them to carry some of their equipment.
Here is an of an legionary bearing this item
over his shoulder together with his pilum.
So weighed down were the soldiers by all
their stuff, that they were nicknamed 'Marius'
mules' (after the famous Roman general to
whom the invention of the very forked stick
is ascribed).
Late Cavalryman
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An example of a late Roman cavalryman, perhaps
5th century AD. His helmet and chainmail already
look very much like the armour of later medieval
knights. He bears a light, round shield and a lance
for stabbing. The sword of the Roman cavalryman
was the spatha, a long-bladed weapon, granting the
rider a much greater reach than the legionary's short
gladius.
Much of the precise armoury and weaponry of late
Roman cavalry is guesswork. In this case, spot the
quiver carried behind the saddle, holding arrows for
use with the bow.
The prefered mode of battle for the Roman cavalry
(ala) was fall into the rear or the flanks of an enemy
already deployed against Roman infantry. It proved
at its most devastating when it rode down fleeing
troops, lancing the fleeing soldiers in their backs. In
fact most of the slaughter in ancient battles is
thought to have occured, when the opposing army
broke and fell into disorder and the cavalry fell upon
the panicked and fleeing enemy.
Note that the Roman cavalry rode without stirrups.
The Tortoise
The 'testudo'
The tortoise formation was one of the prime examples of Roman ingenuity at warfare. When deployed
in such a way, the legionaries became virtually invulnerable to arrows or objects dropped from
defensive walls.
The Wedge
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The wedge was an aggressive formation used to 'crack open' enemy lines. Relatively small groups
of legionaries could form such a triangle and then drive their way into the enemy ranks. As more
Roman soldiers reinforced the wedge from behind, the enemy line could be forced apart. As
breaking the enemy's formation was very often the key to winning a battle, the wedge formation
was vitally important battlefield tactic of the Roman army.
The Skirmishing Formation
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The skirmishing formation is essentially the opposite to the closely packed line of battle used by legionaries. It is a
widely spaced line. Every second man of the line has stepped forward a few paces, effectively doubling the amount
of ranks. However, the gaps created by this formation are always overlapped by the next line to follow.
The roots of this formation are more than likely to be found with the velites, the lightly armed skirmishers who
operated ahead of the main force in the early Roman army.
The wide spaces allow each soldier great mobility. Its possible uses were manyfold.
It would make an advance over difficult terrain much easier. It could allow for swift attacks with subsequent quick
withdrawals. It would allow for any friendly units falling back to pass through the formation.
It also could be used by a victorious army sweeping over the battle field, killing all that was left in its way.
Repel Cavalry !
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The order to repel cavalry by Roman army officers brought about a defensive formation, in which the front rank
formed a tight wall of shields with their pila protruding to form a line of spearheads ahead of the wall. Undoubtedly it
would be very hard to bring a horse to break into that formation. The most likely occurrence would be that it would
come to a halt of its own will ahead of the spearheads. It was at that moment that horse and rider would be at their
most vulnerable against the ranks behind the first line of infantry which would then hurl their spears at them. Given
the short distance and the training legionaries received, it is likely such halted cavalry, frantically trying to turn their
horses around to retreat, whilst colliding with horses following in the charge, would prove very easy targets.
If one further considers the likely possibility of archers being present, as is the case on the photo above, the effect of
this formation could indeed be devastating.
The Orb
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The orb was a defensive formation in the shape of a complete circle which could be taken by a unit which had either
become detached from the army's main body and had become encircled by the enemy, or a formation which might be
taken by any number of units if the greater army had fallen into disorder during a battle.
It can hence be seen as a formation representing a desperate 'last stand' by units of a collapsing army. But also it can
be seen as a disciplined holding position by a unit which has been divided from the army's main body in battle and
which is waiting for the main force to rejoin them.
In either case, it is not a formation one would like to find oneself in, as it obviously indicates that they are surrounded
by the enemy.
Naturally any officers or archers would be positioned in the centre of the orb, as can be seen in the example above.
The Siege Tower
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A model of a Roman siege tower at the
Museo della Civilta in Rome. This collossal
tower on wheels would mainly be used to
provide height for archers and ballista
catapults. From this vantage point they
would be able to fire their arrows and bolts
at the men atop a city's walls and turrets,
thus allowing the Roman soldiers to work on
creating a hole in the wall, without being
attacked from above.
This particular model even has the ram built
into its base, so that the soldiers operating it
can work within the safety of the tower.
The Ballista
The Scorpio-Ballista
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A photo of a recreated Roman ballista-type
'Scorpion' catapult. In essence it's much the
same, but smaller than a basic 'ballista'.
The Onager
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A model of an onager catapult at the Museo
della Civilta in Rome. This machine would
be the heavy artillery to the ancient world.
The handles to the left (rear of the catapult)
are in fact levers by which the soldiers would
wind the throwing arm back. On the right
you see a cushion at the front of the
catapult. No doubt it was there to soften the
blow of the throwing arm and so help to
prevent the machine from tearing itself
apart.