The Army Of The Roman Republic

The Roman Revolution is one of the most momentous periods of change in history, in which an imperial but quasidemocratic power changed into an autocracy. This book studies the way the Roman army changed in the last eighty years of the Republic, so that an army of imperial conquest became transformed into a set of rival personal armies under the control of the triumvirs. It emphasizes the development of what has often been regarded as a static monolithic institution, and its centrality to political change.

From the moment its last king was expelled (traditionally in 753) the Roman republic had to fight for its very survival. Centuries of almost continuous warfare saw Romes armies evolve in response to a wide variety of threats which were met with mixed fortunes though always with ultimate success. As defence of the homeland turned to territorial expansion, Roman forces also had to adapt to sustained campaigns in varied terrain and climates, not to mention the changes in the Roman republic itself. Michael Sage traces the development of the republics army from its foundation (having first set the context of their regal antecedents), down to the time of its most famous leader, Julius Caesar. The transition from clan-based forces, through the Servian levy and the development of the manipular and cohortal legion is examined along with the associated weapons, tactics and operational capabilities. We see how the legions shaped up against the challenges of successive enemies from the Celts and Samnites, the Carthaginians and the hitherto-dominant Hellenistic armies based on the Macedonian-style pike phalanx.

Contents: Introdution. PART I: THE EARLIEST ROMAN ARMY: The military indebtedness of early Rome to the Etruscans, E. McCartney; The legion and the centuriate assembly, G.V. Sumner; The introduction of Hoplite tactics at Rome, M.P. Nilsson. PART II: THE ARMY AND THE GROWTH OF EMPIRE: Literary sources for the pre-Marian Roman army, Elizabeth Rawson; The principes and the so-called Camillan reforms, M.C.J. Miller; Roman military forces in 223 B.C. (Polybius 2.23-4), D.W. Baronowski; The battle of Pydna, N.G.L. Hammond; The Roman general's authority over Booty, Israel Schatzman. PART III: THE ARMY AND THE END OF THE REPUBLIC: Pilum, gladius, and pugio in the late Republic, P. Connolly; Studies on Caesar's use of cavalry, Pierre F. Cagniart; The army and the land in the Roman revolution, Peter A. Brunt; The supposed manpower shortage of the later second century B.C., John Rich; The Jugurthine war: was Marius or Metellus the real victor?, M. Holroyd; Caesar and the mutiny of 47 B.C., Stefan Chrissanthos. PART IV: STRATEGY AND TACTICS: Polybius, Livy, and the 'Fabian strategy,' Paul Erdcamp; Strategy and politics in Caesar's Spanish campaign, 49 B.C.: variation on a theme by Clausewitz, Pierre F. Cagniart; Roman republican heavy infantrymen in battle (IV-II centuries BC), Alexander Zhmodikov; The Roman cohort tactics-problem of development, I. Kertisz; Tactical reform in the Roman republican army, M.J.V. Bell. PART V: EQUIPMENT, TRAINING, AND THE EXPERIENCE OF BATTLE: The five standards of the pre-Marian legion. A note on the early plebeian militaria, Dusanic Slobodan and Zarko Petkovic; Roman republican training equipment: form, function and the mock battle, I.P. Stephenson; The homogenisation of military equipment under the Roman republic, Michael T. Burns; The face of Roman battle, Philip Sabin; The reality of Cannae, M. Samuels; Single combat in the Roman republic, Stephen P. Oakley; Two Caesarian battle-descriptions: a study in contrast, Robert D. Brown; Caesar's battle-descriptions and the defeat of Ariovistus, C. Pelling.

The main source of archaeological evidence for Late Roman Republican camps is a complex of installations around the Iberian city of Numantia in Spain, excavated by Adolf Schulten in the early 1900s. This book reassesses Schulten and concludes that much of his interpretation is questionable. Radically different alternative reconstructions making use of recent fieldwork are presented for several of the sites. A discussion of dating evidence leads to alternative dates being offered for some of the camps. To aid interpreting the sites, army organisation and art of encampment for the period of the Numantine Wars is discussed. This study gives added importance to the sites at Numantia, for they not only form the main source of archaeological evidence for Late Republican camps, but provide evidence for the form of camp for both the late manipular army and the early cohort one.

This volume addresses the fundamental importance of the army, warfare, and military service to the development of both the Roman Republic and wider Italic society in the second half of the first millennium BC. It brings together emerging and established scholars in the area of Roman military studies to engage with subjects such as the relationship between warfare and economic and demographic regimes; the interplay of war, aristocratic politics, and state formation; and the complex role the military played in the integration of Italy. The book demonstrates the centrality of war to Rome’s internal and external relationships during the Republic, as well as to the Romans’ sense of identity and history. It also illustrates the changing scholarly view of warfare as a social and cultural construct in antiquity, and how much work remains to be done in what is often thought of as a "traditional" area of research. Romans at War will be of interest to students and scholars of the Roman army and ancient warfare, and of Roman society more broadly.

This study looks at destroying the gods of Rome's enemies, wartime ceremonies, the role of women in Republican warfare and even the gruesome live burials of people during times of military crisis. Religion was integral to the conduct of war in the ancient world and the Romans were certainly no exception. No campaign was undertaken, no battle risked, without first making sacrifice to propitiate the appropriate gods (such as Mars, god of War) or consulting oracles and omens to divine their plans. Yet the link between war and religion is an area that has been regularly overlooked by modern scholars examining the conflicts of these times. This volume addresses that omission by drawing together the work of experts from across the globe. The chapters have been carefully structured by the editors so that this wide array of scholarship combines to give a coherent, comprehensive study of the role of religion in the wars of the Roman Republic. Aspects considered in depth will include: declarations of war; evocatio and taking gods away from enemies; dedications and ceremonies; the cult of the legionary eagle; the role of women in Republican warfare; omens and divination; live burials of people in times of military crisis; and the rituals of the Roman triumph.

This companion provides an extensive account of the Roman army, exploring its role in Roman politics and society as well as the reasons for its effectiveness as a fighting force. An extensive account of the Roman army, from its beginnings to its transformation in the later Roman Empire Examines the army as a military machine – its recruitment, training, organization, tactics and weaponry Explores the relationship of the army to Roman politics, economics and society more broadly Considers the geography and climate of the lands in which the Romans fought Each chapter is written by a leading expert in a particular subfield and takes account of the latest scholarly and archaeological research in that area

In this new edition, with a new preface and an updated bibliography, the author provides a comprehensive and well-documented survey of the evolution and growth of the remarkable military enterprise of the Roman army. Lawrence Keppie overcomes the traditional dichotomy between the historical view of the Republic and the archaeological approach to the Empire by examining archaeological evidence from the earlier years. The arguments of The Making of the Roman Army are clearly illustrated with specially prepared maps and diagrams and photographs of Republican monuments and coins.

We are accustomed to think of the late Republic as a period in which Rome enjoyed almost uninterrupted military success against foreign enemies. Yet at the start of the first century BC, Rome, outnumbered and out-generalled, faced a hostile army less than a week's march from the Capitol. It is probable that only a swift surrender prevented the city from being attacked and sacked. Before that point, three Roman consuls had died in battle, and two Roman armies had been soundly defeated—not in some foreign field, but in the heartland of Italy. So who were this enemy who so comprehensively knocked Rome to its knees? What army could successfully challenge the legions which had been undefeated from Spain to the Euphrates? And why is that success almost unknown today?These questions are answered in this book, a military and political history of the Social War of 90-88BC. This tells the story of the revolt of Rome's Italian allies (socii in Latin—hence the name of the war). Because these Italian allies had the arms, training and military systems of the Roman army which they usually fought alongside, all Rome's usual military advantages were nullified. This brought the war down to a clash of generals, with the Roman rivals Gaius Marius and Cornelius Sulla spending almost as much time in political intrigue as combat with the enemy. The Italian leaders had to manage an equally fractious coalition of peoples. Some tribes sought negotiation with Rome, and others would settle for nothing less than the total extermination of the city and its people.The interplay of personalities (the young Cicero, Cato, and Pompey were also protagonists); high-stakes politics and full-scale warfare combine with assassination; personal sacrifice and desperate measures (such as raising an army of freed slaves) to make for a taut, fast-paced tale.

In the first century B.C., Rome was master of the world but could not control its own citizens and its own army

An extraordinary eBook. Over 800 pages, 42 full-color illustrations, out of the text, of Tancredi Scarpelli, Italian illustrator, 30 full-color illustrations, out of the text, of great painters, various illustrations black and white in the text. All the texts of this eBook are free available on the web. Why buy it? Because the book is a resource that provide to a considerable added-value: it coordinates, in logical way, to gather texts scattered on the web the images in full-color and in black and white list of films set in ancient Rome the Most Important Movies All the arguments of the eBook: The History of all roman legions: Organization, Equipment, Body armour, Tactics, Levy and conditions of service, Campaign record, Marching-order and camps, Social impact of military service. Political history of the Roman military, Roman kingdom, Roman Republic from late Republic to mid-Roman Empire, Middle Roman Empire, Late Roman Empire Other: Imperial cavalry, Privileges, Relations, Oligarchical rule, Composition of legions, Roman conquest of Italy, Pattern of Roman expansion, Benefits of Roman hegemony, Military organisation of the Roman alliance, Historical cohesion of the Roman alliance, Samnite Wars, Pyrrhic War, 2nd Punic War, Social War, Integration of socii, Causes of socii revolt, Outbreak of revolt, Roman unification of Italy, Expansion of the Roman Republic, Imperial times, Conquest of the Iberian peninsula (219–18 BC), Macedon, the Greek poleis, and Illyria (215–148 BC), Jugurthine War (112–105 BC), Resurgence of the Celtic threat (121 BC), New Germanic threat (113–101 BC), Conflicts with Mithridates (89–63 BC), Campaign against the Cilician pirates (67 BC), Caesar's early campaigns (59–50 BC), Triumvirates, Caesarian ascension, and revolt (53–30 BC). Empire: Imperial expansion (40 BC – 117 AD), Year of the Four Emperors (69 AD), Jewish revolts (66–135 AD), Struggle with Parthia (114–217 AD), Usurpers (193–394 AD), Struggle with the Sassanid Empire (230–363 AD), Collapse of the Western Empire (402–476 AD), Social War, Civil Wars. Documents: The Battle of The Metaurus, B.: 207, The War with Porsena, The Conquest of Gaul, The Cimbri and Teutones – Political Quarrels, The Battle of Chalons, A.D. 451, The First Punic War, The Praetorian Influence, The Great Enemies of Rome: Pyrrhus, Relation of the Augustan Age to other Literary Epochs, Roman Religion. Bibliography. List of films set in ancient Rome, The Most Important Movies, Source of the Texts.

The Republican Roman Army assembles a wide range of source material and introduces the latest scholarship on the evolution of the Roman Army and the Roman experience of war. The author has carefully selected and translated key texts, many of them not previously available in English, and provided them with comprehensive commentaries and essays. This wide-ranging survey of documents recreates the social and historical framework in which ancient Roman warfare took place – from the Archaic and Servian period through to the Late Republic. The topics addressed extend beyond the conventional questions of army mechanics such as strategy and tactics, and explore questions such as the army’s influence on Roman society and its economy. Complete with notes, index and bibliography, The Republican Roman Army provides students of Ancient and Military History with an unprecedented survey of relevant materials.

Fully revised and update with the latest field research, an expanded guide to further reading, and drawing on a wealth of knowledge, this examination of the Roman republic's fall is a must for all students of history and classical studies.Revised and updated to include the latest research in the field, this second edition of a popular history text examines how the Roman republic was destabilised by the unplanned growth of the Roman empire.Central discussion points include:* the government of the republic* how certain individuals took advantage of the expansion of the empire* Julius Caesar's accession to power* the rise of the Augustan principate following Julius Caesar's murder.Drawing on a wealth of recent scholarship and including an expanded and updated guide to further reading, a chronology, and a guide to the provinces of the Roman empire, students of history and classical studies will find this a helpful and accessible introduction to this complex period in history.