Presentation on the history of the Roman army. Project work on the history of ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was one of greatest empires. empire that conquered most then known world. This state had a tremendous impact on the entire further process of the development of civilization, and the perfection of some of the structures and organizations of this country has not been surpassed so far.
We can safely say that since its inception, the words Roman Empire and the concepts of "order", "organization", "discipline" have become synonymous. This fully applies to the ancient Roman army, the legionnaires, who inspired awe and respect for the barbarian peoples ...
A fully equipped and equipped fighter was armed with a sword (in Latin “gladius”), several darts (“plumbatae”) or spears (“pila”). For protection, the legionnaires used a large rectangular shield ("scutum"). The battle tactics of the ancient Roman army were quite simple - before the start of the battle, the enemy was thrown with spears and darts, after which hand-to-hand combat began. And it was in such hand-to-hand fights, in which the Romans preferred to fight in a very dense formation, consisting of several rows, where the back rows pressed against the front rows, simultaneously supporting and pushing forward, and the advantages of the legionnaires' sword appeared, i.e. gladius
gladius and spatha
The fact is that the gladius was an almost ideal weapon for working in close formation: the total length of the weapon (not exceeding 60 centimeters) did not require room for a swing, and the sharpening of the blade itself made it possible to deliver both chopping and stabbing blows (although preference was given to strong stabbing blows from behind the shield, which gave quite good protection). Also, the gladius had two more undoubted advantages: they were all of the same type (in modern terms - “serial”), so a legionnaire who lost his weapon in battle could use the weapon of a defeated comrade without any inconvenience. In addition, usually ancient Roman swords were made from fairly low-grade iron, so they were cheap to manufacture, which means that such weapons could be made in very large quantities, which in turn led to an increase in the regular army.
Very interesting is the fact that, according to historians, the gladius is not originally a Roman invention and was most likely borrowed from the tribes that once conquered the Iberian Peninsula. Around the 3rd century BC, the ancient Romans borrowed from the barbarian tribes (presumably the Gauls or Celts) a straight short sword called Gladius Hispaniensis (i.e. "Spanish sword"). The very word gladius quite possibly comes from the Celtic “kladyos” (“sword”), although some experts believe that this term may also come from the Latin “clades” (“damage, wound”) or “gladii” (“stem” ). But, one way or another, it was the Romans who “immortalized” this short sword.
Gladius is a double-edged sword with a wedge-shaped tip, used for stabbing and cutting blows to the enemy. A strong hilt was a convex handle, in which there could be recesses for fingers. The strength of the sword was provided either by batch forging: joining together several steel strips with the help of blows, or by the diamond-shaped cross-section of the blade when made from one high-carbon steel billet. In the manufacture of batch forging, a channel descending down was located in the center of the sword.
Very often, the name of the owner was indicated on the swords, which was knocked out on the blade or applied by engraving.
Stab wounds had a great effect during battles because stab wounds, especially in the abdominal cavity, as a rule, were always fatal. But in some situations, cutting and chopping blows were inflicted with a gladius, as evidenced by Livy in the accounts of the Macedonian wars, which speaks of the frightened soldiers of Macedonia when they saw the chopped bodies of the soldiers.
Despite the main strategy of the infantrymen - to inflict stabbing blows to the stomach, during training they were aimed at obtaining any advantage in battle, not excluding the possibility of hitting the enemy below the level of the shields, damaging the kneecaps with slashing and cutting blows.
There are four types of gladius.
Spanish gladius
Used no later than 200 BC. before 20 BC The length of the blade is approximately 60-68 cm. The length of the sword is approximately 75-85 cm. The width of the sword is approximately 5 cm. It was the largest and heaviest of the gladiuses. The earliest and longest of the gladius, it had a pronounced leaf-like shape. The maximum weight was about 1 kg, the standard one weighed about 900 g with a wooden handle.
Gladius "Mainz"
Mainz was founded as a Roman permanent camp at Moguntiacum around 13 BC. This large camp provided a population base for the growing city around it. Sword-making probably began in the camp and continued in the city; for example, Gaius Gentlius Victor, a Legio XXII veteran, used his demobilization bonus to start a business as a gladiarius, arms maker and dealer. Swords made in Mainz were sold mainly to the north. The variation of the gladius "Mainz" was characterized by a small waist of the blade and a long tip. Blade length 50-55 cm. Sword length 65-70 cm. Blade width about 7 cm. Sword weight about 800 gr. (with wooden handle). The Mainz-type gladius was designed primarily for stabbing. As for the slasher, clumsily applied, it could even damage the blade.
Gladius Fulham
The sword that gave this type its name was excavated from the Thames near the town of Fulham and must therefore date from after the Roman occupation of Britain. This was after the invasion of Auliya Platia in 43 AD. It was used until the end of the same century. It is considered an intermediate link between the Mainz type and the Pompeii type. Some consider it a development of the Mainz type, or simply that type. The blade is slightly narrower than the Mainz type, the main difference being the triangular point. Blade length 50-55 cm. Sword length 65-70 cm. The width of the blade is approximately 6 cm. The weight of the sword is about 700g. (with wooden handle).
Gladius "Pompeii"
Named in modern times for Pompeii, a Roman city that lost many of its inhabitants - despite the efforts of the Roman fleet to evacuate people - which was destroyed by a volcanic eruption in 79 AD. Four examples of swords were found there. The sword has parallel blades and a triangular tip. It is the shortest of the gladiuses. It is worth noting that it is often confused with the spatha, which was a longer slashing weapon used by auxiliaries on horseback. Unlike its predecessor, it was much better suited for cutting with the enemy, while its penetrating ability during stabbing decreased. Over the years the Pompeii type has become longer and the later versions are referred to as semi-spaths. Blade length 45-50cm. The length of the sword is 60-65cm. The width of the blade is about 5cm. The weight of the sword is about 700g. (with wooden handle).
By the third century, even the Pompeii-type gladius was not effective enough.
The tactics of the legions became more defensive than offensive, as in earlier centuries. There was an urgent need for longer swords suitable for single combat or fighting in relatively free formation. And then the Roman infantry armed with a cavalry sword, known as "spat".
A long sword invented by the Celts, but actively used by the Roman cavalry. Initially, the spata was created and used by the Celts as a sword for infantrymen, which had a rounded tip and was intended for inflicting slashing and cutting blows, but over time, appreciating the gladius tip, intended for stabbing blows, the Celts sharpened the spata, and the Roman horse warriors admired with this long sword, they took it into service. Due to the center of gravity shifted closer to the point, this sword was ideal for mounted battles.
The Roman spata reached 2 kg in weight, the width of the blade varied from 4 to 5 centimeters, and the length was approximately from 60 to 80 centimeters. The handle of the Roman spatha was made in the same way as that of the gladius, made of wood and bone.
When the sword appeared in the Roman Empire, first the cavalry officers began to arm themselves with it, then the entire cavalry changed their weapons, they were followed by auxiliary detachments that did not have a formation and they participated in the battle more in a fragmented form, that is, the fight with them was divided into fights. Soon, the officers of the infantry units, appreciated this sword, over time, not only armed themselves with them, but also armed ordinary legionnaires. Of course, some legionnaires remained loyal to the gladius, but it soon completely faded into history, giving way to a more practical spatha.
Pugio
A dagger used by Roman soldiers as a personal weapon. It is believed that the pugio was intended as a secondary weapon, however the exact combat use remains unclear. Attempts to identify the pugio as a utility knife are misguided because the shape of the blade is not suitable for this purpose. In any case, there were many knives of various shapes and sizes on the Roman military installations, in this regard, there was no need to use the pugio alone for universal purposes. Officials of the Roman Empire wore richly decorated daggers while on duty at their workplaces. Some wore daggers discreetly, to protect against unforeseen circumstances. In general, this dagger served as a weapon of murder and suicide; for example, the conspirators who dealt the fatal blow to Julius Caesar used the pugio to do so.
The pugio was ultimately derived from Spanish originals of various types. However, by the early 1st century AD, replicas of this Roman dagger typically had a wide blade that could be leaf-shaped. There could also be an alternative shape of the blade with a narrowing towards the tip of the wide blades of the tip from about half the length of the blade. Blades vary in size from 18 cm to 28 cm in length and 5 cm or more in width. The central rib ran the entire length of each side of the blade, either in the middle or forming an extension on both sides. The shank was wide and flat, the handle plates were riveted on it, as well as on the shoulders of the blade. The pommel was originally round, but by the beginning of the 1st century AD, it acquired a trapezoidal shape, often topped with three decorative rivets.
The pugio was fitted with its own scabbard. In the second quarter of the 1st century AD, three types of scabbards were used. All had four fastening rings and a bulbous extension to which a large rivet was attached. Judging by the samples of wearing examples that have survived to us, the two lower rings were not used to secure the scabbard. The first type was made from curved metal (usually iron) plates. These plates were located on the front and back sides of the scabbard and, as it were, sealed the wooden “lining”. The front part was usually richly decorated with brass or silver inlay, as well as red, yellow or green enamel. A sign of these scabbards was the free movement of ring pendants attached by riveted bifurcated fasteners. Modern reconstructions of these scabbards, which are made of copper plates fixed with rivets, are not correct, samples of this type have never been found. This common error occurs due to a misinterpretation of the line drawing in an archaeological report of the "A" iron scabbard type, which was only decorated with silver inlay and decorative rivets.
The second type of scabbard was made of wood, and also, presumably, covered with leather. Metal plates (almost always iron) were attached to the front of such scabbards. This plate was made quite even and richly decorated with inlaid silver (sometimes tin) and enamel. The hanging rings resembled small Roman military buckles and were hinged to the sides of the case. The third type (“frame type”) was made of iron and consisted of a pair of curved skids that went together and expanded at the lower end of the scabbard, forming a spherical end. The runners were connected by two horizontal stripes in the upper and middle parts of the scabbard.
gasta
The main type of infantry spear in ancient Rome, although at different times the name gasta denoted different types of spears, for example, the Roman poet Ennius, around the 3rd century BC, mentions gasta in his works as a designation for a throwing spear, which actually had time conventional meaning. Following the modern judgment of historians, it was initially customary to arm the legionnaires with heavy spears, which are now commonly referred to as just the same gasts. At a later time, heavy spears were replaced by lighter darts - pilums. Ghasts are divided into three types, each of which can be safely called a separate type of spear:
1. Heavy infantry spear, intended exclusively for close combat.
2. A shortened spear, which was used both as a melee weapon and as a throwing weapon.
3. A light dart designed exclusively for throwing.
Until the 3rd century BC, gasta was in service with heavy infantry soldiers who were on the front lines. These soldiers were called so, in honor of the spear with which they went into battle - hastati, although later the spear went out of general use, the soldiers continued to be called hastati. Despite the fact that ordinary soldiers were replaced with gasta by pilum, the heavy spear remained in service with the principles and triarii, but this also lasted until the beginning of the 1st century BC. There was light infantry (velites), which did not have a combat order, which was always armed with light throwing hasta (hasta velitaris).
The gasta was about 2 m long, of which the lion's share was taken by the shaft (a completely different ratio compared to the pilum), which was about 170 cm long, and was made mainly of ash. The tip was originally forged from bronze, but later bronze was replaced by iron (as in many other cases related to weapons in the ancient Roman army), the length of the tip was on average 30 cm. assignments, had spears of a special form, emphasizing their status. The tips of their spears were decorated with iron rings. It is known that the Romans had a special military award - a gold or silver spear (hasta pura). In the era of the Empire, they were awarded, as a rule, to officers of the legions, starting with senior centurions.
Pilum
Polearms of the Roman legionnaires, a kind of dart, designed to be thrown from a short distance at the enemy. Its exact origin has not yet been clarified. Perhaps it was invented by the Latins, or perhaps borrowed from the Samnites or the Etruscans. Pilum gets its distribution in the republican army of Rome and is in service with legionnaires until the beginning of the 4th century AD. e. It is mainly used by foot soldiers, and during the period of the existence of the Republican army (the end of the 6th century BC - 27 BC), it is used by a certain type of troops - lightly armed velites and heavy infantry hastai. Around 100 B.C. the general Marius introduces a pilum as part of the armament of each legionnaire.
Initially, it consists of a long iron tip, equal in length to the shaft. The shaft was half driven into the tip, and the total length was about 1.5–2 meters. The metal part was thin, up to 1 cm in diameter, 0.6-1 m long and with a serrated or pyramidal point. During the reign of Caesar, there were various variants of the original type - the tip either lengthened or shortened. Pilums were also divided into light (up to 2 kg) and heavy (up to 5 kg). Its main difference from the spear was the long iron part. This served to ensure that when it hit the enemy's shield, it could not be cut with a sword.
The tip of the pilum could be fastened with a tube at the end or a flat tongue, which was fastened to the shaft with 1-2 rivets. For many darts with a “tongue” along the edges of the flat part, the edges were bent and covered the shaft so that the tip fit better to it. ) and in Oberraden (northern Germany). Thanks to these finds, it is confirmed that by the middle of the 1st century BC. the pilum becomes lighter. Earlier copies of it were found in northern Etruria, near Telamon. The tips of these samples were very short - only 25-30 cm in length. There were also pilums with a flat part 57-75 cm long. During the well-known military reforms of the commander Gaius Marius, he noticed that the spear did not always bend upon impact, and the enemy could pick it up and use it. To prevent this, one of the rivets is replaced by a wooden pin, which breaks on impact, and the sides of the tongue did not bend.
Heavy pilums have a shaft tapering towards the end, at the junction with the tip there is a round heavy counterweight, which should increase the impact force of the spear. This type of pilum is depicted in the relief of the Cancilleria in Rome, which shows the Praetorians armed with them.
Basically, the spear was intended for throwing at the enemy, as a piercing weapon was used much less frequently. Threw it before the start hand-to-hand combat at a distance of 7 to 25 meters, lighter samples - up to 65 meters. Even despite the fact that the pilum simply stuck in the enemy's shield, without causing significant damage to him, it made it difficult for the enemy to move in close combat. At the same time, the soft core of the point often bent, excluding the possibility of quickly pulling it out or cutting it. Using the shield after that became inconvenient and had to be discarded. If the shield remained in the hands of the enemy, the legionnaire who came to the rescue stepped on the shaft of the stuck pilum and pulled the enemy's shield down, forming a convenient gap for striking with a spear or sword. Heavy pilums could, with the force of impact, pierce not only the shield, but also the enemy in armor. This has been proven by modern tests. From a distance of 5 meters, a Roman pilum pierces a three-centimeter pine board and a two-centimeter layer of plywood.
Later, the pilum gives way to a lighter spiculum. But there is a possibility that these are different names for the same type of weapon. With the decline and collapse of the Roman Empire, regular infantry - legionnaires - disappear into the past, and with them the pilums disappear from the battlefield. The era of dominance on the battlefield of heavy cavalry and a long spear begins.
lancea
Spear of the Roman cavalry.
Josephus Flavius mentions that the Roman cavalry defeated the Jewish one thanks to the long lances. Later, after the crisis of the 3rd century, new models of spears were introduced in the infantry, instead of pilums. Throwing spears of new types (which appeared after the reforms of Diocletian), according to Vegetius, are vertullum, spicullum and plumbata. The first two were 1-meter darts, and the plumbata was a 60-centimeter lead-weighted feathered dart.
Praetorians were supplemented by detachments of lanciarii (lanciarii) - spear bodyguards, similar units appeared in the legions to protect especially important persons. The lancea was a service weapon, but they did not use a spear indoors, and the lanziarii were not limited in the choice of additional weapons; during the collapse of the empire, such a guard was an attribute of any important commander or, less often, a senator.
Plumbat.
The first mention of combat use Plumbats date back to ancient Greece in which plumbats were used by warriors from around 500 BC, but the use of plumbats is best known in the late Roman and Byzantine armies.
In the description, Vegetia Plumbata is a long-range throwing weapon. The heavily armed warriors who served in the Roman legion, in addition to traditional equipment, were equipped with five plumbats, which they wore on inside shield. Soldiers used plumbats as an offensive weapon during the first onslaught and as a defensive weapon during an enemy attack. Constant exercise allowed them to achieve such prowess with weapons that the enemy and their horses were struck down before it came to hand-to-hand combat, and even before they came within the flight range of a javelin or arrow. Thus, at the same time, the warriors on the battlefield combined the qualities of heavy infantry and shooters. The skirmishers, who fought in front of the formation at the beginning of the battle, also had plumbats in service. Departing with the beginning of hand-to-hand combat back under the cover of their own, they continued to fire at the enemy. Plumbats at the same time threw them along a high trajectory, over the heads of their front ones. Vegetius specifically stipulates the need to arm the triarii standing in the back rows of the formation with plumbats. He also recommended to his readers the use of plumbats in siege work, both in protecting walls from enemy attacks and in storming enemy fortifications.
The appearance of the plumbata is due to the development of the same tendency to increase the mass of the weapon to increase the energy of its throw. However, if the pilum, equipped with a lead sinker, could be thrown only 20 m, and at this distance it pierced through the shield and the shield-bearer hiding behind it, then lightened by reducing the size of the shaft and the massiveness of the iron part of the tip of the plumbate, it flew 50-60 m , which is comparable to the range of a light dart throw. The plumbatu is distinguished from the latter by its smaller size and a special throwing technique, in which the warrior took the shaft with his fingers by the tail and threw it with a shoulder swing of his hand, like throwing a throwing club or club. At the same time, the shaft of the plumbate became an extension of the thrower's hand and increased the throw lever, and the lead sinker imparted additional kinetic energy to the projectile. Thus, with dimensions smaller than that of a dart, the plumbata received a larger initial supply of energy, which made it possible to throw it at a distance at least not inferior to the distance of throwing a dart. Moreover, if the dart at the end almost completely wasted the initial energy of the throw communicated to it and even when it hit the target could not cause any noticeable damage to it, then the plumbata, even at the maximum range of its flight, retained a supply of energy sufficient to hit the victim.
An important advantage of the opponents of the Romans was the possession of more long-range weapons, with which closely lined up legions could be shot from extreme distances. The damaging effect of such a shelling was probably quite insignificant, and the effectiveness was achieved by weakening the enemy's stamina and his self-confidence. An adequate response from the Romans was the use of projectiles that had a greater distance than the enemy, the distance of the shot and the force of destruction. As noted earlier, the plumbata was thrown at a distance equal to the range of the dart. But if the dart at the maximum distance turned out to be completely powerless, then the plumbata, even at the end, retained enough energy to hit its victim and incapacitate it. In particular, this property of the plumbata is pointed out by Vegetius when he says that the Romans "wounded the enemies and their horses before it came to hand-to-hand combat, and even before they came within the flight distance of a dart or arrow."
The short shaft of the plumbate and the throwing technique, which did not require much space, allowed the rear ranks of the formation to fire at the enemy during hand-to-hand combat as well. In order not to hurt those in front, the shells were sent upwards at a high angle. Due to the high angle of incidence, the plumbat pierced the target from top to bottom, at an angle of 30 to 70 degrees, which made it possible to hit the head, neck and shoulders of a warrior hiding behind a shield. At a time when all the attention of the combatants was turned to the enemy, the shells falling from above were especially dangerous, because "they could not be seen or evaded."
During the African campaign of 530, a plumbat thrown by the spear-bearer of Belisarius John of Armenia pierced the helmet of the nephew of the Vandal king Gaiseric and inflicted a mortal wound on him, from which he soon died, and it was from the armor that the helmet was made of metal of the greatest thickness.
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Second war between Rome and Carthage
Plan: 1. Hannibal's troops invade Italy. 2. Battle of Cannes. 3 . End of the war. Key concepts: Sicily, Carthage, Hannibal, Cannes, Scipio, Zama
Consider a map. - Which countries were leaders in the Mediterranean? - What territories belonged to these powers? What were the reasons for the wars between Rome and Carthage?
Locate the island of Sicily on the map - Where is Carthage located - Find the borders of the Roman Republic?
Punic Wars First Punic War (264-241 BC) Second Punic War (218-201 BC) Third Punic War (149-146 BC)
Write down the reason for the war between Rome and Carthage: The war for the possession of new territories on the coast of the Western Mediterranean.
Carthage lost the first Punic War. - Sicily went to Rome. Both sides began to prepare for a new war. Compare the armies of the participants in the wars. questions Army of Rome Army of Carthage Composition Strengths Weaknesses
1. Hannibal's troops invade Italy. Hannibal decided to get ahead of his rivals and strike first. To do this, he personally led the army and left Spain in 218. BC. After 5 months, he approached the Alps.
Follow the path of Hannibal's troops on the map
HANNIBAL crosses the Rhone.
Hannibal gave the order to cross the snowy mountains. For 15 days the army climbed up and then went down. Hannibal lost half of his army.
The tribes of the Gauls helped Hannibal and joined his ranks
The first serious battle took place at Cannae in 216 BC. Independent work. Consider the battle plan. - Why Hannibal's army (40 thousand people) was able to defeat the Roman (80 thousand people)
Hannibal built 40 thousand infantrymen: a crescent moon facing the enemy with a convex side.
Why do you think the Romans were defeated? There was no unity in command Hannibal carefully thought out tactics
3. End of the war. Independent work: Write down the reasons for the defeat of Hannibal's army. feared that Hannibal would seize power in Carthage.
D.Z. §47, write out dates, names
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Organization of the Roman troops Public order and the political structure of the Roman Republic determined the features of the organization of the Roman army. Every Roman citizen was required to perform military service. Slaves were not allowed in the army. For carrying military service in the field army, people were selected between the ages of 17 and 45 years. Citizens of the years during the war carried garrison service. Only those persons who participated in 20 military campaigns while serving in the infantry or in 10 military campaigns while serving in the cavalry were exempted from military service.
According to the established signal, all those liable for military service were to gather on the Field of Mars (such a signal was usually the red flag that was hung on the Capitol). According to the method of manning, it was a militia, and not a standing army. The Roman slave-owning militia gathered to wage war; at the end of the war, it disbanded to go home and convened only for training.
The command staff of the army In tsarist times, the king was the commander. In the days of the republic, the consuls commanded, dividing the troops in half, but when it was necessary to unite, they commanded in turn. If there was a serious threat, then a dictator was chosen, to whom the head of the cavalry was subordinate, in contrast to the consuls. The dictator had unlimited rights. Each commander had assistants who were entrusted with individual parts of the army. Individual legions were commanded by tribunes. There were six of them per legion. Each pair commanded for two months, replacing each other every day, then giving up their place to the second pair, and so on. The centurions were subordinate to the tribunes.
Each centuria was commanded by a centurion. The commander of the first hundred was the commander of the maniple. The centurions had the right to punish a soldier for misconduct. They carried with them a vine - a Roman rod, this tool was rarely left idle. The Roman writer Tacitus spoke of one centurion, whom the whole army knew under the nickname: Pass another! After the reform of Marius, an associate of Sulla, the centurions of the Triarii gained great influence. They were invited to the military council.
Training of the Roman army The training of the fighters of the Roman manipulative legion was primarily to learn the soldiers to go forward on the orders of the centurion, to fill gaps in the battle line at the moment of collision with the enemy, to hasten to merge into the general mass. The execution of these maneuvers required more complex training than in the training of a warrior who fought in the phalanx. The training also consisted in the fact that the Roman soldier was sure that he would not be left alone on the battlefield, that his comrades would rush to his aid.
Only well-trained soldiers (trained) could overcome fear and get close to the enemy, attack from the rear on a huge mass of the enemy, feeling only a cohort nearby. Only a disciplined soldier could fight like that. Under Mary, a cohort was introduced, which included three maniples. The legion had ten cohorts, not counting the light infantry, and between 300 and 900 cavalry. The appearance of legions divided into cohorts, the complication of maneuver required more complex training. It is no coincidence that after the reform of Mary, one of his associates, Rutilius Rufus, introduced into the Roman army new system education, reminiscent of the system of training gladiators in gladiatorial schools.
Discipline The Roman army, famous for its discipline, unlike other armies of that time, was entirely in the power of the commander. The slightest violation of discipline was punishable by death, as well as failure to comply with the order. So, in 340 BC. the son of the Roman consul Titus Manlius Torquata, during reconnaissance without the order of the commander-in-chief, entered into battle with the head of the enemy detachment and defeated him. He talked about this in the camp with enthusiasm. However, the consul condemned him to death. The sentence was carried out immediately, despite the pleas of the entire army for mercy.
Ten lictors always walked in front of the consul, carrying bundles of rods (fascia, fascines). AT war time an ax was inserted into them. The symbol of the consul's authority over his subordinates. First, the offender was flogged with rods, then they cut off their heads with an ax. If part or all of the army showed cowardice in battle, then decimation was carried out. Decem translated into Russian means ten. This is what Crassus did after the defeat of several legions by Spartacus. Several hundred soldiers were flogged and then executed. If a soldier fell asleep at his post, he was put on trial and then beaten to death with stones and sticks. For minor infractions, they could be flogged, demoted, transferred to hard work, reduced salaries, deprived of citizenship, sold into slavery.
Roman camp Known since the Punic Wars (32nd century BC). It was arranged by the troops of Ancient Rome when making military campaigns after each day's march; had the shape of a square, later a rectangle, part of it was assigned to accommodate the consuls and those who were with them, as well as to build legions. Leather tents of soldiers (in winter, insulated rooms such as barracks) were placed in a strictly defined order in several lines.
Each side of the camp had large gates guarded by guards. During the siege of the enemy's fortified points or during the establishment of a permanent, usually winter, camp, a double ditch was torn off and a high earthen rampart was poured, reinforced by a palisade. Sometimes wooden towers were built, less often stone towers, which made it possible to fire at the approaches to the camp, which were defended with the help of notches from cut down trees and wolf pits.
Types of troops Velita Light foot soldiers in Roman. legion. During the camp disposition of troops, they performed guard duty, and during the campaign they set up front and side chains; when approaching the enemy, they engaged in skirmishes with him and, using throwing weapons, covered the construction of the legion in battle order. With a strong pressure of the enemy, the velites retreated into the intervals of the hastati and opened their front. During the battle, the vlites could act on the flanks, watching the enemy, and thus guarding the legion from unexpected attacks and detours, supplying it with spears and taking the wounded out of the battle.
After the battle, Velites, together with the cavalry, pursued the enemy or tried to cover the retreat. The velites consisted mainly of young recruits and were armed with a leather or felt helmet, a small wooden shield, a sword and 7 light darts, with a point so thin that it bent on impact, which is why the enemy could not send the darts back.
In the legion, the Velites did not constitute separate maniples, but their entire number (1200) was divided into equal parts (30 40 people each), and attached to the maniples of the line infantry. Velites first appeared in 221 BC during the siege of Capua. Under Maria Velita, they were destroyed and replaced by light squads of shooters, with bows and slings. These arrows were recruited from subject peoples.
Centurion Centurions had silvered helmets, had no shields and wore a sword on the right side. They had leggings and, as a distinctive sign on the armor, on the chest they had the image of a vine folded into a ring. During the manipulative and cohort construction of the legions, the centurions were on the right flank of the centuries, maniples, cohorts. The cloak is red, and all the legionnaires wore red cloaks. Only the dictator and high commanders were allowed to wear purple cloaks.
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