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Life in the Roman Empire

ROMAN HISTORY

One of the most popular historical cultures today continues to be the ancient Roman Empire. Romans enjoyed over 1101 years of dominance (from 625 BC to 476 AD), and are accredited with being the first ancient culture to "conquer the known world". Although most of the Roman Empire fell by 476 AD, the Eastern Roman Empire remained until the end of 1453 AD (a total of 2078 years).

Clearly a superior culture, Roman achievements are the basis for many advances in technology, architecture, warfare, and more.

ROMAN CULTURE

The Roman culture in Italy was based in dry farming (no construction and maintenance of irrigation systems). Many native Italians were either landowners or hired farm workers. As Roman civilization evolved, the Roman culture thrived with markets, and skilled laborers, roads, arts, and many other achievements.

Ancient Roman architecture Interestingly, as Legionnaires returned home to Rome from all parts of the world, they brought a variety of religions, beliefs and cult practices with them from other lands. The Orient, Egypt and the Persian Mithras were some of the most noted influencers. In addition, a Jewish colony settled in Rome at the end of the Roman Republic bringing with them the Israelite "Yahweh".

Initially, the Roman authorities tolerated religious varieties, but the introduction on Christianity outraged Romans because it refused to acknowledge the existence of any other gods. Persecuting Christians only strengthened the faith of the followers of Christ and increased their determination.

Early in the 4th Century, Constantine The Great (Emperor) became a Christian himself. He made Christianity the official (but not the only) Empire religion. It wasn't till the reign of Theodosius (380 AD) that all pagan and rival worship was forbidden. This action helped assure the survival of Christianity.

ROMAN CLOTHING

Roman clothing was much more elaborate than just a bunch of people in "bed sheet togas" as depicted in Hollywood adolescent movies. Remember this was the most advanced culture of the time… and the rich were very much enthralled with fashion trends. Roman clothes also separated the social structures. Slaves, merchants, nobility and Roman Senators could all be easily identified at a distance by their Roman clothing.

Roman dress for men and women did not have significant changes over the years. Ancient Roman clothing incorporated beautiful materials and accessory items just as we do today. Women had a wide variety of Roman dress styles to select from, and the wealthy had custom made Roman clothing (which is still the trend today in most cultures).

ROMAN WARFARE

The Romans were great military strategists and utilized multiple tactics to ensure victory in Roman warfare. Everything that happened on the battlefield was carefully orchestrated. An elaborate signaling system was developed which allowed for quick changes in legion formation or the direction of attack.

Roman soldiers Some of the best assets of Roman warfare included the soldiers themselves. Unlike most of the armies the Romans fought against, the Roman legions were well fed, rested and professionally trained in the arts of one–on–one combat and drilled on Roman warfare techniques. Practice and training were a part of the daily routine for Roman soldiers while the Roman army was not engaged in active battles.

One of the best Roman weapons was the use of psychological warfare. In one–on–one combat, the soldier to become afraid first, who would turn to retreat, was the first to die. The Roman military leaders knew that the "backside" of any soldier (Roman or other) was the most vulnerable area to deliver a fatal blow and exploited it in the training of each Roman soldier. To ensure that the Roman legion did not fall victim to this strategy, it was the policy of all Roman soldiers to immediately kill anyone who turned to retreat. The message was basically, "the only chance you have to survive is to fight the enemy, for if you turn to retreat, you will surely die".

The Roman legion would march in perfect formation and perform grand movements to restructure the troops during an advance. Part of these movements was to position the Roman soldiers and also increase the fear within the enemy. The constant proceeding march of the Roman legion would weaken the resolve of many who foresaw their defeat at the hands of the world–conquering, undefeatable Roman Soldiers. Once the one–on–one combat began, the Roman soldier remained alert for the opponent to turn to retreat, so a fatal blow could quickly be delivered.

ROMAN ARMY

The Roman military was especially disciplined, adaptive and innovative which allowed them to be almost invincible. Literally undefeated throughout most of Roman history, the Roman army was considered to be a "well oiled fighting machine". The secret to the success of the Roman military was their ability to adapt the weaponry, armor and defenses of opposing forces.

By studying the technology of other ancient cultures and their weapons, the Roman army was able to improve upon them by developing a better version through reverse-engineering. The history of the Roman sword includes many adaptations of swords from Spain, the Greeks, and other ancient cultures, as well as how Roman swordsmithing accidentally discovered high–carbon steel.

ROMAN LEGION

The Roman legions are still admired today as an incredible fighting machine. They had cavalry (also known as the "pretorian"), infantry, archery and more, all who were all orchestrated together for a maximum affect.

Roman Legion The early Roman legion had adopted the Greek "phalanx" as a formation for troops to use in battle. Typical armament included a shield, long spear and some would be issued a sword (but not all). The phalanx was best for level ground warfare and consisted of each Roman soldier combining to make a forward wall with their Roman shields. Very long spears were used to protrude between the shields at multiple angles to give additional protection.

If the legion opened this wall of shields at any point, an enemy armed with short swords and short weapons could easily slaughter the Roman soldiers. This vulnerability was exposed when the Romans fought in mountainous areas and as the Roman soldiers parted to go around rocks, the enemy successfully penetrated through the phalanx.

To answer problems of poor maneuverability and other phalanx weaknesses, the Roman legion developed a new formation called the manipular system. This is what people see most in Hollywood movies of Roman military scenes. The manipular system is based upon several companies of Roman soldiers ranging in size from 60 Roman soldiers (called Centuries) to between 4000–6000 Roman soldier (called a Legion). The table below will outline the various groups on more detail:

One of the distinctive features of the legion was its separation of skills. Within the formation of a maniple could be found three separate groups of infantry soldiers, which were separate from the legion auxiliaries (archery, cavalry, etc...). These infantrymen were comprised of:

These three rows could retire behind each other as needed. This allowed for enemies to begin their attack against inexperienced Roman soldiers who would eventually retire behind the highly skilled veterans. These veteran Roman soldiers were fresh and took over the battle. The enemy, having already spent a great portion of energy on the Hastati, now found themselves tired and fighting fresh Roman soldiers – who were much more skilled than their previous opponents. This strategy, combined with siege warfare, allowed the Roman army to dominate and capture the known world.

ROMAN SOLDIER

The Roman soldier was heavily trained and well disciplined. It's said that the Roman military developed the best disciplined soldiers in the world. This has been proven true as evident by the hundreds of years of military success.

The armament of each soldier included, among other things Roman armor, Pilum, Roman sword, Roman shield, and the famed Roman helmet. Initially, the Roman soldier was a landowner and citizen of Rome. Unlike most soldiers of the time, the early Roman soldier was driven by a deep honor, pride and a raging desire to avenge the Greeks (and all others) for the Gallic sack of early Rome in 390 BC. They were committed to seeing Rome (and the later Roman Empire) never defeated again and would adopt a new philosophy of attacking any country that was determined to be a threat to Rome.

FALL OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE

To understand the fall of the Roman Empire you must understand several major changes that took place. They include over–indulgence, corruption, pride, and piety (among many other things). One of the significant changes occurred within the Roman military. As the Roman Empire grew and the early Roman soldiers completed their tour of duty (released from service to Rome and the legions), the Roman army became in need of new replacement soldiers. Soon mercenaries (Barbarians) were hired and combined with the defeated captive soldiers of other countries to serve in the Roman army. Desertion meant immediate execution. To survive in battle meant extended life, good food, and training.

But the hired Barbarians and captive "Roman soldier" would contribute to the fall of Rome itself. (The Romans had hired Barbarians to fight against Barbarian tribes!) Soon the famed discipline of the Roman military was gone. Complaining and bickering infested the Roman army and soon the Roman soldier was to forever change. One of the major weaknesses that developed was in response to complaints that the Roman armor, weapons, and standard "pack" carried by each Roman soldier was too heavy. A decision was made to allow the Roman soldiers to wear leather armor and put their packs and weapons on carts. Not only were they significantly less protected, but they could not respond to a surprise attack.

As well, most of the Roman military was actively engaged in local protection within the many cities that comprised the Roman Empire. No longer well trained as Roman soldiers, and many having never been in battle before, the Roman army became a mass of undisciplined, disgruntled men forced into battle for a country they were not a part of (and likely hated). Germanic tribes (the Huns) advancements in the compound bow combined with the inferior Roman military quickly lead to the defeat of the Roman army and eventually Rome.

By the year 410 AD, Alaric (leader of the Visigoths) besieged and sacked the city of Rome. The Roman military machine was in shambles and could not present itself as a formidable adversary. Things that contributed to the poor state of the Roman army included: no field exercises, the Pilum was replaced with by a short spear, metal body armor was no longer used, and a heavy reliance on catapults and siege weapons. In 452 AD, the Huns invaded Italy. Two decades later, the last presence of Roman rule in the Mediterranean world was at an end.

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