Why Was the Roman Army so Successful?

This is part number 4 of the course Rome 101. In the first episode, I explained the Rise of Rome. The second was about the Roman Republic. In the third, I have delineated in 19 tweets, What it was like to live in Ancient Rome.

The bulk of the Roman army was made up of foot soldiers known as legionaries. To become a legionary, a man had to be a Roman citizen between 17 and 46 years old, tall, and very fit. A fully equipped legionary, bristling with weapons, would have made an intimidating sight.
At first, Rome didn’t have a full-time army. But, in 107 BCE, a general named Marius made the military a permanent force. He gave all legionaries the same equipment and training and hired men from rich and poor families.


How was the Roman army organized?

The Roman army was divided into regiments known as legions. All well-bred young Romans served a spell in the army, and the soldiers were well equipped and often highly motivated. The pay was good, and when the soldiers retired, there was the chance of a big lump sum plus a bit of land to farm. However, a legion that failed in its duty could be decimated. One man in every ten was taken out and killed, which certainly concentrated the soldiers’ minds.

The Romans were too victorious on the battlefield, even though the ancient world was full of grand armies and fierce warriors such as the Carthaginians, Macedonians, and Gauls. The army was better organized than their enemies’ fighting forces.

Training and Tactics of the Roman Army

The soldiers trained three times a month to march at a pace of 100 strides a minute. This meant they could cover about 32km (20 miles) in five hours.

Before being accepted into the legions, every new recruit had to undergo four months of intensive training. This involved daily drills in weapons-handling, running, jumping, and carrying heavy packs. The first thing they were taught was how to march inline ad at speed.

Recruits tried out swordcraft and javelin-throwing against tall wooden poles. Once their weapons-handling was perfected, the soldiers competed against each other in mock fights until the fighting was second nature to them.

As a battle opened, legionaries put their training into use as they threw their javelins at the enemy. This attack was used to stop the enemy from advancing and breaking their ranks.

The usual way to use a sword is with a broad, swinging action, but the Romans thrust their forward with a powerful jab, which was better suited to close combat.

What were the Roman military units called?

Roman soldiers were known as legionaries because they were grouped into enormous legions of up to 6.000 men, including officers and non-fighting staff such as surgeons. In the 1st century CE, around 28 Roman legions were serving the Empire: that’s 168.000 soldiers!

Legionaries were typically paid relatively well. They could get promoted up through the ranks and receive bonuses in times of military success. Some of their earnings were used to pay for the food and standard kit and weaponry. 

The word salary comes from salarium. This was the amount given to a Roman soldier to buy salt, an expensive necessity.

Soldiers came from all over Rome’s vast Empire. Once a soldier had signed up, he had to stay in the army for 25 years.

Organization of the Roman Soldiers

The Roman army employed many different types of soldiers at various levels of importance or rank. The prominent soldiers include:

  • A general commanded several legions.
  • A legate was in charge of a legion.
  • Six tribunes helped each legate to run the legion.
  • The camp prefect was in charge of building and training.
  • The primus pilus was the most senior centurion in a legion.
  • A centurion led a century.
  • A legionary was a citizen foot soldier.
  • A cavalry soldier fought on horseback.
  • A non-citizen fighter was called an auxiliary.
  • An archer fought with bows and arrows. Archers came from the Middle East and dressed differently from the Romans.

How was organized an imperial legion

Under Emperor Augustus, each legion comprised over 5.000 men, organized into small groups in which every man knew his place. The legion was made up of the first cohort of 800 men and nine ordinary cohorts of 480 men. Each standard cohort contained six centuries of 80 men. A century was divided into 10 contubernia of 8 men each.

Equipment for the battle

Being a soldier gave men an excellent job and a high-status life, but it was hard work. Legionaries marched up to 30 km (20 miles) each day, hauling 40 kg (90lbs) of heavy equipment such as tents, food, cooking equipment, and weapons. Plus all of their own personal kit and armor.

Legionaries carried two javelins (called pila) to be thrown when charging at the enemy. They also wore a short sword (gladius). This was for close combat, and if it broke or got lost, they’d reach for their small dagger (pugio). A shield was held on their left arm, while a helmet protected their head.

Soldiers fought in different formations. In the tortoise formation (testudo), the man overlapped their shields to the sides and above to provide all-around protection. This was useful in battles where weapons might rain down on them from above. The wedge, or triangular formation, was designed to barge through lines of enemy troops.

Some legionaries had remarkable skills. There were archers, heavy weapons operators, horsemen (in the cavalry), and swimmers who could get into surprise attack positions.

What artillery did the Romans use?

Legions used various powerful war machines to expand their territory, crush rebellions or fight enemies on the Empire’s borders. Since Roman military campaigns could carry on for years, their devices had to be built to last.

Some of these machines were flat-packed (like IKEA furniture!) so that they could simply be wheeled to the battles on carts and then put tighter. Others had to be built on-site, which meant the soldiers had to cut down nearby trees to get the wood they needed.

The onager was a giant catapult that fired rocks or balls of burning tar. Its name probably comes from its sudden motion, a bit like the kick of a wild donkey. Apparently, it could sling objects up to 300m (984 ft) over the enemy fortification walls. These rocks weighed as much as a grown man.

The Romans also used a powerful ballista, which was like a wind-up crossbow. It fired stones and spears. The one-man catapults were known as “scorpions.” But some were giant machines that needed ten legionaries to operate them.

If the legionaries were attacking a fort or city, they would roll tall, wooden ‘siege towers.’ Right up to the walls and use battering rams, ropes, hooks, and ladders to force their way through. There was simply no escaping the Roman army!

How did the Romans conquer so much land?

The Romans were always trying to conquer new lands and make their Empire bigger. But they had to work hard to win and keep those lands. Along the Empire’s frontiers, they built massive, impressive forts to defend the borders and send out a loud message to all around: We are the Romans. Beware, We are mighty!.

Once the fort had been built, they became mini-towns. In here, between 500 and 1.000 soldiers, officers, and other army-related people could live and work, doing a wide range of jobs and crafts.

One of the most remote outposts of the Roman Empire was Britain, invaded by the Romans in 43 CE. In 122 CE, the conquerors built Hadrian’s Wall across northern Britain, which had 16 forts. The wall marked the northernmost limit of the Roman Empire and protected them from attacks by northern tribes.

Life was insensitive for the soldiers based in Britain. Their letters home reveal how much they missed their families. One soldier asked his family to send warm socks. The bitter northern winters were hard to get used to!

What was the Roman army known for?

Being a Roman soldier wasn’t just about discipline and training. It could also be full of surprise and danger. Here are some of the more fascinating facts about the army and what they did.

The Roman army often kept sacred chickens. Before a battle, Roman generals fed the chickens. If they ate, the gods were on their side. But, it was seen as a bad omen if the chickens refused to eat. On one occasion, when the chickens would not eat, a general called Pulcher threw them into the sea, exclaiming, “If they do not eat, then let them drink!”. He lost the battle.

After their victory against the Carthaginians in the Second Punic War, the Romans took the prows, rostra, and Carthaginian ships back to Rome as trophies. These were displayed along the front of the speakers’ platform in the forum, which was later named the rostrum.

Some legionaries were trained to perform basic surgery on wounded men. It was a painful experience for their patients – the Romans didn’t have anesthetic, and their skills were limited. They were experts at setting broken bones and amputating limbs, but they didn’t know how to cure infections or diseases.

Romans were such good engineers that they even designed a ballista that reloaded itself to fire several arrows one after the other. This was the Roman equivalent of a machine gun.

In Roman times, stirrups hadn’t been invented, and saddles had only recently been introduced. So, staying on the back of a horse in the thick of a battle was quite a skill for a cavalry soldier.

Centurions all carried a stick, which they used to bet unruly soldiers. One centurion earned the nickname ‘Bring me another’ because he beat his men so hard that he was always breaking his cane over them and calling for a new one,

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