Why the Roman army was so good

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Justin Lovett 9M                                                        Word Count: 2,804

Introduction

This term we have been studying the subject ‘Roman Army’. Now we have to do a project on why they were so successful. In this short project I will be finding out three main things:

  • Recruitment
  • Equipment
  • Professionalism

Hopefully this project will help you learn more about the Romans in the past and I hope you enjoy it.

The Roman Army was the base of Rome's success because it was very well organized. It was made up of legions, groups of 5,000 troops. Each individual soldier was called a legionary. The legions were then backed by the cavalry and infantry who usually consisted of non-Roman citizens. A legionary's armour consisted of a helmet and a cuirass that protected the upper body. His weapons were a spear, short sword, and a dagger.

 

Many non-citizens and poor people chose to be soldiers because they knew they would be fed, and they could become citizens. They were taught many skills such as building and were given money and land when they retired. There were some regulations that were not so good, however; they risked dying in battle and were not supposed to marry. Nevertheless, many soldiers were allowed to have "unofficial" wives. When Rome wasn't at war, the soldiers spent time training and exercising.

Recruitment

The Roman army went from city to city or town to town to attract people to join the army. When you joined the army a new recruit would first be interviewed to ensure that he had the proper legal status, i.e. that he was a Roman citizen; he was also given a medical examination. Vegetius, who wrote a military manual, laid down guidelines for choosing recruits. Here are just a few of those quotes:

  • A young soldier should have alert eyes and should hold his head upright
  • The recruit should be broad-chested with powerful shoulders and brawny arms
  •  His fingers should be long rather than short
  •  He should not be pot-bellied or have a fat bottom
  •  His calves and feet should not be flabby instead should be made entirely of tough sinew.

In choosing or rejecting recruits there were also quotes/guidelines to follow to. Here are just a few:

  • Find out what trade they have been following. Fishermen, bird catchers, sweet-makers, weavers and all those who do the kind of jobs that woman normally do should be kept away for the army
  • People who are in the smiths, carpenters, butchers and hunters of deer and wild boar trade are the most suitable kind of recruit.

The whole wellbeing of the Roman state depends on the kind of recruits that they chose. So they had to choose men who were outstanding not only in body but also in mind.


Equipment

Arms & Armour The Roman army had the finest equipment in terms of weaponry and protective gear. They were constantly coming up with new designs to make it easier for their troops to move, to kill, and to be protected. They were not also good at arms and armour but also at decorating each piece of equipment with fine details.

Segmented Plate Cuirass and Body Armour Given the name lorica segmentata by modern historians, this was made from steel plate armor which was riveted together securely enough to withstand sword slashes yet with enough play between the plates that the armour would flex when the legionary moved about. This type of armour was much less expensive to fabricate than the fine chain mail that was more popular amongst the legions in the East.

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Long Curved Rectangular Shield (scutum) This item is probably one of the most variable of the equipment items carried by Roman legionaries throughout the 1100 year existence of the Roman army in the West and the 1000 additional years during which Romaion or Byzantine military tradition held in the East. During the last century of the Republic and the first century of the Empire, the scutum was in general use. Even so, many units preferred either a large or a small round shield, and oval shields became popular during the later Roman Empire (A. D. 330 to 600). One advantage ...

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