As a Roman descendent (and practicing polytheist) Rome happens to be one of my favorite historicle topics, in paticular the republic, and her armies, and this is a damn good article I found on the subject- though I feklt the need to too add my own bits in the part about the helmt, as I find the evolution of armor an interesting subject
- note- sam is right about the troop snumbers I think- but the article was going based on the word of ceasar IIRC- but then considering that high numbers in latin could also be associtaed with just saying the word "alot" in many cases, I would think its an understandable mistake- if a mistake, as ceasar would know the number sof enemy troops far better then we ever will- that said, i niether read, nor speak latin- if I am mistakin in my juts added reference on the whole alot thing, please alert me
The New Legion
The armies of Rome that had humbled Carthage in the titanic Punic Wars did not have the leasure to rest from thear canstant war that ever embroield the Republic. In North Africa rebellious Numidian princes used the Romans' knowledge to train their troops in the image of the Legions, Spain was in constant ferment with Roman generals leading forces of fierce Iberian tribesmen,even somtime in rebellion from Rome itself, and in that case, it was with such success that teh combination of Roman citizen legionary colonist, and Iberian warband armed spainard wer ebelieved by many to be able to have defeated any pure Roman army sent at them... from Gaul and Germania came land-hungry tribes of barbarians and in the East the burdans of Roman rule hung heavy upon the populace, particuraley in asia minor, where oppressive nobles over taxed the populace, fermenting great resetnment, setting the stage for the anitics of Mithradates of the Pontic kingdom...
The old manipular Legions could no longer cope with the myriad of fighting styles they faced, the drain on manpower also became serious so a simpler, consolidated structure was required. The old Hastati, Principes and Triarii were combined into new, more flexible, cohorts. Initially a variety of armour styles were worn but as the Legions became more uniform so did their equipment.
The Romans were arch acquirers of others technology and the new Legions were kitted out in Celtic-Greek style helmets(a melding of the Athenian stlye attic helms, with larger neck gaurds, and hinged cheek pieces, more typicle of, but not nearlly limited to, the celts) and chainmail shirts and armed with the Etruscan pilum heavy javelins. Shields were still the oval convex scutum but could now have the top and bottom squared-off in Celtic fashion to lighten the burden and aid manoeuvrability in action.
Marius Mules Gaius Marius (referred to as the Arpinum ploughman by some detractors due to his less than noble birth) rose from an eques in the Roman army to attain an unprecedented number of Consulships and be recognised (not always correctly) as the Father of the Roman Legion.
What Marius did give the legions was their superb training and morale, equipment and self-sufficiency, he also taught them to dig! The average legionary now carried not only his mail armour, helmet, shield, two pila, sword and dagger but also three days rations, a bedroll, cloak, palisading materials and an entrenching tool. The whole kit weighed between 35-45kg (80-100 lbs.). It is no wonder that they became known as Marius Mules.
Defeat and Victory
The campaigns against the Cimbri and Teutones As an example of the changes in the effectiveness of the Legions it is worth comparing the changing fortunes of the Romans against a particular foe, in this case the Gallic-Germanic tribal alliance of the Cimbri and Teutones that threatened northern Italy .
From 113BC the tribes migrated through modern Switzerland into southern Gaul, in 105BC the Roman Consul Maximus gave battle with 8 Legions and their supporting troops (80,000 men) at Arausio. The tribal warbands annihilated the Roman army and then swept on to slaughter the camp followers of the army, possibly 100,000 citizens died in one day.
By 104BC Marius is Consul, he refuses to fight the tribes even though they head for Italy. He concentrates on re-training his armies, setting up a supply and logistics corp and then digs fortified positions to protect his troops and blunt the tribal assaults. Eventually the tribes split and head off towards the alpine passes that will allow them access to northern Italy. Marius cautiously follows them.
After two years of preparation Marius makes his move. In 102BC, at Aix-en-Provence, he positions his Legions carefully on a hill and awaits the Teutones. The ferocious first rush of the warbands is held this time giving a Roman ambush force the opportunity to cause mass confusion in the Teutones ranks. At this moment the Legions push forward and 90,000 warriors die while 20,000 are enslaved.
The Cimbri are meanwhile defeating another Roman force in the Adige Valley, Marius moves towards them as the over-winter in the Po Valley. The next spring (101BC) Marius repeated his strategy used the previous year and at Vercellae took a hilltop position threatening the flank of the Cimbri as they marched into Italy. Upon sighting the Romans a large number of the impetuous warriors charged uphill only to die to a man on the iron wall of the Legions. As the main force of the Cimbri massed for an overwhelming attack Marius sent a detachment to hide in the German rear. As the Cimbri roared up the hill the ambushers attacked, the Legions launched volley upon volley of pilum into their ranks, drew their swords and advanced to the slaughter.
Marius ensured that this victory would be overwhelming and ordered every man, woman and child killed or enslaved, an estimated 140,000 died and 60,000 captured that day. Never again would a Roman Legionary force be defeated by barbarian warbands in open battle, and on that fateful day the Gods declared that the war machine was born!
The Tempering of the Legions
For the next 40 years the Legions fought against and defeated a bewildering array of enemies both external and internal with increasing success. First they blunted the imperial dreams of Tigranes of Armenia, and then there came the Social War with Romes Italian allies rising in revolt because they were refused citizenship. In Asia Minor the redoubtable and resilient Mithridates of Pontus caused unending problems and at one point looked set to eject the Romans entirely from the East.
Between 88 and 82BC there was civil war between democratic (including the ageing Marius) and conservative politicians leading legion against legion. The mighty Sulla restored order over time after seizing Rome, making himself Dictator; reforming the government, crushing the democrats and then returning power to the Senate(sounds like bush...).
Fascinating side-shows included an accidental short-lived second war with Mithridates, a rebellious independent Roman state set up in Lusitania (W Spain/Portugal) with wild tribesmen fighting alongside Roman legionaries and a commander with a personal bodyguard of Numidian cavalry(All of his Praetors, or generals guard had abandond him as they were loyal). Finally there were numerous slave revolts and fascinating campaigns against Mediterranean pirates.
All these campaigns and battles gave the Legions an unparalleled training ground, all that was needed now was an individual who could merge personal ambition with military sensibilities and use the war machine to its full potential. That man was Julius Caesar and he was about to get his opportunity to prove himself and the war machine.
- note- sam is right about the troop snumbers I think- but the article was going based on the word of ceasar IIRC- but then considering that high numbers in latin could also be associtaed with just saying the word "alot" in many cases, I would think its an understandable mistake- if a mistake, as ceasar would know the number sof enemy troops far better then we ever will- that said, i niether read, nor speak latin- if I am mistakin in my juts added reference on the whole alot thing, please alert me
The New Legion
The armies of Rome that had humbled Carthage in the titanic Punic Wars did not have the leasure to rest from thear canstant war that ever embroield the Republic. In North Africa rebellious Numidian princes used the Romans' knowledge to train their troops in the image of the Legions, Spain was in constant ferment with Roman generals leading forces of fierce Iberian tribesmen,even somtime in rebellion from Rome itself, and in that case, it was with such success that teh combination of Roman citizen legionary colonist, and Iberian warband armed spainard wer ebelieved by many to be able to have defeated any pure Roman army sent at them... from Gaul and Germania came land-hungry tribes of barbarians and in the East the burdans of Roman rule hung heavy upon the populace, particuraley in asia minor, where oppressive nobles over taxed the populace, fermenting great resetnment, setting the stage for the anitics of Mithradates of the Pontic kingdom...
The old manipular Legions could no longer cope with the myriad of fighting styles they faced, the drain on manpower also became serious so a simpler, consolidated structure was required. The old Hastati, Principes and Triarii were combined into new, more flexible, cohorts. Initially a variety of armour styles were worn but as the Legions became more uniform so did their equipment.
The Romans were arch acquirers of others technology and the new Legions were kitted out in Celtic-Greek style helmets(a melding of the Athenian stlye attic helms, with larger neck gaurds, and hinged cheek pieces, more typicle of, but not nearlly limited to, the celts) and chainmail shirts and armed with the Etruscan pilum heavy javelins. Shields were still the oval convex scutum but could now have the top and bottom squared-off in Celtic fashion to lighten the burden and aid manoeuvrability in action.
Marius Mules Gaius Marius (referred to as the Arpinum ploughman by some detractors due to his less than noble birth) rose from an eques in the Roman army to attain an unprecedented number of Consulships and be recognised (not always correctly) as the Father of the Roman Legion.
What Marius did give the legions was their superb training and morale, equipment and self-sufficiency, he also taught them to dig! The average legionary now carried not only his mail armour, helmet, shield, two pila, sword and dagger but also three days rations, a bedroll, cloak, palisading materials and an entrenching tool. The whole kit weighed between 35-45kg (80-100 lbs.). It is no wonder that they became known as Marius Mules.
Defeat and Victory
The campaigns against the Cimbri and Teutones As an example of the changes in the effectiveness of the Legions it is worth comparing the changing fortunes of the Romans against a particular foe, in this case the Gallic-Germanic tribal alliance of the Cimbri and Teutones that threatened northern Italy .
From 113BC the tribes migrated through modern Switzerland into southern Gaul, in 105BC the Roman Consul Maximus gave battle with 8 Legions and their supporting troops (80,000 men) at Arausio. The tribal warbands annihilated the Roman army and then swept on to slaughter the camp followers of the army, possibly 100,000 citizens died in one day.
By 104BC Marius is Consul, he refuses to fight the tribes even though they head for Italy. He concentrates on re-training his armies, setting up a supply and logistics corp and then digs fortified positions to protect his troops and blunt the tribal assaults. Eventually the tribes split and head off towards the alpine passes that will allow them access to northern Italy. Marius cautiously follows them.
After two years of preparation Marius makes his move. In 102BC, at Aix-en-Provence, he positions his Legions carefully on a hill and awaits the Teutones. The ferocious first rush of the warbands is held this time giving a Roman ambush force the opportunity to cause mass confusion in the Teutones ranks. At this moment the Legions push forward and 90,000 warriors die while 20,000 are enslaved.
The Cimbri are meanwhile defeating another Roman force in the Adige Valley, Marius moves towards them as the over-winter in the Po Valley. The next spring (101BC) Marius repeated his strategy used the previous year and at Vercellae took a hilltop position threatening the flank of the Cimbri as they marched into Italy. Upon sighting the Romans a large number of the impetuous warriors charged uphill only to die to a man on the iron wall of the Legions. As the main force of the Cimbri massed for an overwhelming attack Marius sent a detachment to hide in the German rear. As the Cimbri roared up the hill the ambushers attacked, the Legions launched volley upon volley of pilum into their ranks, drew their swords and advanced to the slaughter.
Marius ensured that this victory would be overwhelming and ordered every man, woman and child killed or enslaved, an estimated 140,000 died and 60,000 captured that day. Never again would a Roman Legionary force be defeated by barbarian warbands in open battle, and on that fateful day the Gods declared that the war machine was born!
The Tempering of the Legions
For the next 40 years the Legions fought against and defeated a bewildering array of enemies both external and internal with increasing success. First they blunted the imperial dreams of Tigranes of Armenia, and then there came the Social War with Romes Italian allies rising in revolt because they were refused citizenship. In Asia Minor the redoubtable and resilient Mithridates of Pontus caused unending problems and at one point looked set to eject the Romans entirely from the East.
Between 88 and 82BC there was civil war between democratic (including the ageing Marius) and conservative politicians leading legion against legion. The mighty Sulla restored order over time after seizing Rome, making himself Dictator; reforming the government, crushing the democrats and then returning power to the Senate(sounds like bush...).
Fascinating side-shows included an accidental short-lived second war with Mithridates, a rebellious independent Roman state set up in Lusitania (W Spain/Portugal) with wild tribesmen fighting alongside Roman legionaries and a commander with a personal bodyguard of Numidian cavalry(All of his Praetors, or generals guard had abandond him as they were loyal). Finally there were numerous slave revolts and fascinating campaigns against Mediterranean pirates.
All these campaigns and battles gave the Legions an unparalleled training ground, all that was needed now was an individual who could merge personal ambition with military sensibilities and use the war machine to its full potential. That man was Julius Caesar and he was about to get his opportunity to prove himself and the war machine.