The Roman Army was a valued
part of the Empire. They had many tactics that helped them win battled but also
land. An example of this was, divide and conquer. A consequence of this was:
this helped the Roman empire to grow rapidly.
The Roman army was made
entirely of men. To become a Soldier you had to be 17 or older, healthy and
fit. The men were split into two groups: Legionaries and Auxiliaries. A Legionary
had to be a Roman Citizen, they were thought to be the very best. All fighters
signed up for at least 25 years of service. However, if they survived that
long, the outcome of their reward was different. An Auxiliary was a Soldier
that was not a Roman citizen. They were chosen from countries that the Roman
Empire conquered. Auxiliaries were mainly put in the front line of
battles, where it was most dangerous, and guarding forts. After the 25 years, a
Legionary retired and would be presented with a piece of land to farm. Old
soldiers often settled together in small towns called, 'Colonia'. An auxiliary
would get a third of the Legionaries final wage.
Training was intense in the
Army. Days the men were not in battle they were training. A standard Roman soldier
was expected to: March 20 miles a day, swim, cross rivers in boats, smash into
forts, build bridges and camps. When all this was done, it was taken down and
completed the next day too. Stubbornness was not accepted in the army. All
rules were to be followed. If you were caught sleeping, you could be sentenced
to death.
In the complete army, the
Romans had around half a million men. Keeping them in order was difficult, so
they were sectioned into legions of 4,000-6,000 soldiers. Again the men were divided
into groups of 80 called centuries, the man in charge was called the centurion.
He carried a short rod and wore a special helmet to show his importance.
Some soldiers were selected because of their special skills with weapons such
as arrows, bows, slingshots, cannons, swimming etc. Tight formations were a
common choice in the Roman Army along with a steady pace, last-minute attacks
and the use of soldiers on horses to chase runaway enemies.
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