Curiosities of ancient Rome (Army)
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Fimbrian legions
In 67 BCE Lucius Licinius Lucullus was recalled to Rome, and Pompey the Great became the commander of the Roman armies fighting in the east. Lucullus was disliked by the soldiers for being stingy and for limiting their ability to ... Read more
Invasions of Getae and Dacians
Dacians and Getae were related barbarian tribes that had rivalled the Romans many times throughout history. They inhabited the territory of present-day Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Moldova, Slovakia and even Ukraine. Their greatest advantage was sudden raids on Roman territories, which ... Read more
Round or square formation
Roman legion (or individual legion units) when defending, when things went too far and the enemy was gaining the upper hand, they adopted defensive formations like orbis – a circle or agmen quadratum – a quadrilateral. Vegetius (4th century CE) ... Read more
Great defensive structures of Romans
Romans were able to build great defensive structures. High walls and mighty towers were mainly of psychological importance, because the barbarians with whom the Romans fought often had no idea at all about the art of besieging fortresses, and the ... Read more
How was scutum kept?
To protect against rain scutum – a Roman shield – was hidden during the march in a special cover with goatskin or cowhide. For convenience, the scutum was worn while marching by hanging it over the shoulder or on the ... Read more
Roman soldier-farmer
As Seneca the Younger once said: “Wherever the Roman conquers, there he dwells”1. The conquests of the Roman Republic resulted, to a large extent, mainly from the need to acquire land and increase crops. A classical citizen of the Roman ... Read more
Slave revolt led by Titus Vettius
Slave revolts in ancient Rome were not uncommon. However, a more interesting event is certainly the slave uprising in Campania in 104 BCE, which was started by a Roman citizen and equestrian – a certain Titus Vettius. Titus Vettius was ... Read more
War between Rome and Kingdom of Kush
Kingdom of Kush, which was located in what is now Sudan, was a country similar in culture and religion to ancient Egypt. During the reign of the kandake (or queen) Amanirenas (reigned c. 40-10 BCE), the Kushites attacked Roman Egypt. ... Read more
Roman attempt to conquer kingdom of Sheba
In 25 BCE Egypt’s prefect Gaius Aelius Gallus began a military expedition to subjugate Rome to the Arab kingdom of Sheba. It was located on the territory of modern Yemen, and therefore was an ideal territory from which to conduct ... Read more
Names of animals in legions
Ancient Romans adopted the names of many animals for their military equipment, including: eagles (aquilae) for the legionary mark; the ram (aries) for the ram; “pig’s head” (caput porci) for wedge formation; raven (corvus) for the boarding bridge; cuniculus (“tunnel” ... Read more
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