Roman army facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Exercitus Romanus |
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Roman soldiers on the cast of Trajan's Column in the Victoria and Albert museum, London.
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| Active | 753 BC – 1453 AD |
| Country | Roman Empire |
| Branch | romanum legio |
| Size | 28-50 legions |
| Headquarters | Budapest Bonn Enns Caerleon Alexandria Sinjar Regensburg Svishtov Busra |
| Motto(s) | 'Gloria Exercitus' |
| Engagements | Roman–Gallic wars Samnite Wars Pyrrhic War Punic War Macedonian Wars Jugurthine War Mithridatic War Gallic Wars Civil War Roman invasion and occupation of Britain Roman–Germanic Wars Domitian's and Trajan's Dacian Wars Roman–Parthian War of 58–63 Jewish–Roman wars |
| Commanders | |
| magister militum, Strategos, Stratelates | Caesar |
| Notable Commanders | Lucius Cornelius Sulla Julius Caesar Germanicus Flavius Stilicho Gaius Marius Gnaeus Pompey Magnus Scipio |
The Roman army is the military of ancient Rome, the forces used by the Roman Kingdom, Roman Republic and later Roman Empire. Its infantry for much of its history, was the Roman legion. Rome also had a navy. The size of the army in the late Roman Empire was about 128,000 – 179,200 men. It was very well organized. The main Roman soldiers in the Empire were the legionaries. The legions were separated into centuries, made up of 80 soldiers and 20 other men who remained in the camp to cook and do other chores.
Other soldiers in the army were called the auxilia. Auxilia were non-citizens who mainly came from the provinces. They were paid less than legionaries and did not usually wear armor but at the end of their service, which was a minimum of 25 years, they were given Roman citizenship.
The army had cavalry units called Equites. Their men were rich enough to have horses and more expensive weapons. Being few, they were less important in battle than the infantry.
Weapons and equipment
The soldiers of the Roman army wore helmets and body protection. In the early to mid-Republican era, legionaries usually bought their own equipment. Hastati, the first line of soldiers, usually had breastplates, called a cuirass, and some wore lorica hamata, or chainmail. The richer principes, the second line of soldiers, could afford lorica hamata but they were sometimes seen wearing the cheaper cuirasses. Both hastati and principes were each armed with a gladius - a short, 60 centimeter (two foot) sword - and each had two pila - short spears.
The third line of soldiers, the Triarii, had a hasta, a two meter long spear. They were also armed with the gladius and had an early form of the lorica segmenta or iron band armor. All legionaries had a large rectangular shield, the scutum, which had rounded corners. By the late Republican period, all legionaries carried a gladius, two pila, a new, larger scutum, and wore chainmail. Lorica segmentata was only commonly worn between the 2nd and 3rd century.
Larger weapons such as the ballista (large crossbow) and the Onager (catapult) were used in larger battles.
Training
The main thing a member of the Roman Army needed was physical fitness. Soldiers were expected to march about 36 km (24 miles) in five hours. They also had to be fit to be able to fight well and cope with any injuries.
New soldiers would do two sessions of military drill and give their oath of loyalty to their Commander and Emperor. Every day the whole of the legion would practice running, jumping, sword fighting and javelin throwing.
Images for kids
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Imperial Roman legionaries in tight formation, a relief from Glanum, a Roman town in what is now southern France that was inhabited from 27 BC to 260 AD (when it was sacked by invading Alemanni)
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God Bes as a Roman soldier. Sword in right hand and spear and shield in left hand. Limestone slab, in relief. Roman Period. From Egypt. The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London
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Boxwood relief depicting the liberation of a besieged city by a relief force, with those defending the walls making a sortie (i.e. a sudden attack against a besieging enemy from within the besieged town); Western Roman Empire, early 5th Century AD
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Levy of the army, detail of the carved relief on the Altar of Domitius Ahenobarbus, 122-115 BC.
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Bronze bust of a Young Commander recovered from the Villa dei Papyri in Herculaneum 1st century BCE-1st century CE
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God Bes as a Roman soldier. Sword in right hand and spear and shield in left hand. Limestone slab, in relief. Roman Period. From Egypt. The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London
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Recreation of a Roman soldier wearing plate armour (lorica segmentata), National Military Museum, Romania.
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Roman relief fragment depicting the Praetorian Guard, c. 50 AD
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Relief scene of Roman legionaries marching, from the Column of Marcus Aurelius, Rome, Italy, 2nd century AD
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Emperor John II Komnenos, the most successful commander of the Komnenian army.
See also
In Spanish: Ejército romano para niños
