Roman Civilization

CMS 206 /History 206

• The monarchy -
  • We know and Roman historians knew relatively little about the Roman army under the kings. What we do know:
  • Organization:
    • Cavalry - supplied by wealthy Romans (who may have had honorific roles as royal bodyguards and retainers). Because Romans outfitted themselves for military service, and because horses were very expensive, members of the Roman cavalry would have to have been from the elite class. The cavalry probably number around 300.
    • Infantry - Each of the three tribes was divided into 10 groups. Each of these groups provided 100 men (century). The Romans referred to their population when gathered and organized for war as the comitia centuriata on the Campus Martius ("field of Mars") outside the pomerium [reconstruction and map]. Originally a military assembly, the comitia centuriata developed political functions during the course of the Republic. Thus, each tribe supplied 1000 men and the 3,000 were referred to as a legio (legion - or "levying"). Historians believe that Rome was capable of fielding 4 legions (and 2 groups of cavalry at 300 men) under the monarchy.
• The early and middle republic -
  • Romans believed that one of the last kings, Servius Tullius, conducted the first census of the Roman people. During the census, citizens were classified according to wealth to determine their eligibility for military service and voting rights. Historians think the 6 census divisions attributed to Servius Tullius probably developed later than the monarchy. This elaborate system of classification determined what sort of armor and arms each citizen would be required to supply and within a class, distinguished between the seniores (47-60) who would serve in Rome as a last defense if the army failed in the field and the iuniores (17-46) who fought outside Rome. The Servian census system also identified a last class of citizens, the capite censi ("registered by headcount"), who were eligible to vote, but could not serve in the army because they owned no property (and so could not afford arms). The capite censi would not serve in the army until about the year 100 BCE, when Marius, one of the greatest Roman generals, reformed the army to meet Rome's growing military demands.
  • During the early and middle republic, Roman soldiers were led by elected magistrates (one of the duties of a consul was to lead Roman armies in the field). Every year, at the end of the campaigning season, the legions were disbanded, and had to be reformed with new officers for the next campaigning season.
  • As Rome's area of political and military activity began to expand, the Roman government began to support cavalry and infantry financially (i.e., help them buy weapons and horses). Because the campaigning seasons were growing longer, and because Roman was acquiring land some distance from her own boundaries, the nature of military service began to change significantly. Soldiers who could not get home every year could not farm, and if they could not farm, they could not afford the weaponry that military service required.
  • After the sack of Rome by the Gauls, the Romans also reorganized the class system into which the population had been organized for military purposes. Now, membership in a class was a function of age not wealth. Rome also developed the maniple as a unit of military organization. By the beginning of the Punic Wars, Rome's army was divided into 4 legions. Each legion contained 60 centuries, and 30 maniples (two centuries working together comprised a maniple). It is very difficult to estimate the actual numbers of the army, however. Although in theory a century was 100 men, in practice, there were times when Rome couldn't field full centuries. Finally, as Rome expanded, she obtained the services of her allies in military campaigns. Allied with every two Roman legions were two alae sociorum ("wings of allies") as well as extraordinarii (elite allied troops).
  • According to Polybius, during the 2nd Punic War, the normal strength of a legion was 4,000 infantry and 200 cavalry. Legionaries were chosen from citizens between the ages of 17 and 46 who owned property worth 400 denarii. It was during this period that Rome's army became semi-professional (from the rank and file point of view) in practice. Soldiers re-upped every year, in anticipation of booty won by generals against Rome's enemies, and a growing alienation from life on the farm.
  • Military command:
    • Consuls and praetors had overall control of the army.
    • The senate might also appoint legates to whom a provincial governor could delegate command of sections of the army.
    • The consuls elected 24 tribunes (6 per legion) to serve as an officer corps. At least 10 of the 24 had to have at least 10 years of military experience. The remaining tribunes had to have at least 5 years of experience. It was a prestigious position and you had to be at least an equite to be chosen.
    • Tribunes selected 10 centurions (primii pilii - first spears or prior centuriones) who served as the equivalent of modern non-commissioned officer corps and participated with the tribunes in military councils. These centurions each picked a partner (posterior centuriones) to help them fulfil their duties and take their place if they fell in battle. Each maniple had two centurions.
    • The centurions picked optiones (who were rear-guard officers) and sgniferi (standard bearers). Each century was divided into 10 units of 8 men who shared a tent (contubernia) and pack-mule on campaign.
• Marian Reforms: (2nd century B.C.E.)
  • Marius didn't do much about the formal organization of the army, but he did make profound changes:
    • the capite censi could now serve and the state paid for their armor
    • cohortes (10 in total) replaced the maniples (30 in total) as the principal subdivision of the legion. There were nominally 600 men in a cohort, but the actual number varied between 300 and 600.
    • Armor became uniform across classes of the army (everyone had a sword and pilum [a kind of javeline], a mail shirt and shield ).
  • One effect of the Marian reforms was political. Soldiers, especially those in the capite censi, were completely dependent on their generals for long term financial security. Their generals, who were also Roman politicians, began to have clear incentives a) to seek the kind of military campaigns that would guarantee booty; b) seek the kind of political settlements that would benefit their veterans (Rome had no pension plan for soldiers). Accordingly, the army increasingly became an independent social institution whose members first loyalties were to military commanders, not the state.
• Civil Wars: (1st century B.C.E.)
  • During the first century B.C.E., Rome finally granted full Roman citizenship to Italians living south of the Po (although it took them a war - the Social War, to do it). Thus, the alae sociorum were no more.
  • The cost of arming and maintaining the army now rested entirely on the state and soldier's pay doubled in the course of the century.
  • The number of legions increased. Troops were increasingly recruited from Roman provinces.
  • Military Command:
    • In an effort to prevent the politicization of the army, Rome passed a law in 52 BCE requiring a 5 year period between the holding of elective office and military command. As a result, the armies ceased to be commanded by elected magistrates
    • Layers of command between commander and tribune developed (prefect and legate).
• The Principate: (31 B.C.E. - 100 C.E.)
  • After the wars, Augustus settled many of his troops in colonies and reorganized and increasingly professionalized the army and the navy.
  • Augustus also instituted the Praetorian Guard. It had been customary since Scipio Aemilianus' siege of Numantia (although Carthage had surrendered Spain to Rome after the 2nd Punic War, someone forgot to tell the Spaniards and took the Romans until 133 to subdue oppostion to their rule), for Roman generals to be attended by a personal bodyguard called a praetorian cohort. Augustus, in 27 B.C.E., institutionalized this practice by forming the Praetorian Guard, an elite legion comprising 9 cohorts and a small cavalry (4,500 men total). The PG was recruited mainly from Italy (unlike the legions which were recruited from throughout the Roman world) and stationed in Rome.
  • Military Command:
    • Augustus began the practice of appointing a legionary legate who would have command of an individual legion for several years (the 6 tribunes reporting to the legate who reported to the Emperor). The post of tribune became increasingly administrative and Augustus added the post of praefectus castrorum - the equivalent of quartermaster. These posts became less prestigious for members of the Roman elite, but furiously sought after bar ordinary citizens who sought careers as professional soldiers.
    • The infantry corp fell into 3 groups of soldiers - the principales, immunes and milites. Principales included officers like the signifer and optio, who recieved extra pay. Milites were ordinary rank and file soldiers. Immunes were skilled craftsmen/engineers who were exempt from most ordinary military duties and included, surveyers, equiment makers and menders, doctors, carpenters, smiths, accountants, and clerical staff.
• The Soldier's Life
  • By the time Rome was fielding armies throughout the year (3rd century), a soldier could expect to serve a term of 6 years, and could re-up for a period of 16 years or so of total service. Once a soldier served his initial term, he could be recalled to service (although once you had done 16 years total, you were supposed to be exempt).
  • Augustus increased the term of service to 16 years, followed by four years in the reserve. After your 20th year you got a retirement bonus, but were required to live near the army camp you retired from for another 5 years (as an emergency reserve).
  • Although soldiers were originally unpaid (the idea was only folks who afford to defend Rome should be her citizens), by the 4th century, soldiers were receiving a stipendium and equites were receiving payments to cover the expenses maintaining a horse involved. By the time of the Civil Wars, Roman soldiers had come to regard the stipendium as pay, not coverage of expenses. The amount of the stipendium increased dramatically during the wars as generals competed for soldiers. After the wars were over, Augustus did not cut back on the stipendium (although he did retire a lot of soldiers). Instead, he radically increased the pay of centurions relative to ordinary soldiers. The Praetorian Guard always received a lot more money than ordinary legionaries.
  • In addition to pay, soldiers expected to receive a share of captured booty, occasional cash payments from emperors and retirement gifts (which sometimes included the grant of a nice little farm to retire to in a new colonia).
  • Technically, soldiers didn't have the right to get married while serving. But most had common law wives and children aquired in the regions were there army camps were located. After retirement soldiers tended to setttle down where they had served and get formally married. We happen to have a lot of wills of Roman soldiers (drafted by legionary officers) in which explicit provisions were made for these women and children and which Roman courts enforced. So although technically the soldiers couldn't marry, effectively they did and Septimius Servius (a career soldier) finally lifted the ban in 197 C.E.

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Web Resources on the Roman Army:

• The Roman Army page
• VROMA's page on the Roman army
• The Legio page
• The Roman Army in Britain
• The BBC Roman Army Page
• Warfare in the Ancient World
• Catapults in the Roman Army
• A Bibliography on the Roman Army
• The Roman Army of the Middle Republic
• The Roman Way of Declaring War
• Methods of Military Communication