Monk
11-26-2003, 19:41
The Roman Legions and Marius’ New Roman Army
From the very start the advantage the Romans had over their enemies was organisation on the battlefield. Initially (6th century BC) this was achieved by arranging the army formations and its command according to strictly defined social classes and wealth. The Roman army at this time fought in centuries (a Centuriae meaning 100) but the style of combat was close to that of the Greek Phalanx with each century lining up along a long front. There were sixty centuries in a Legion (Legio). Little changed until early in the 4th century BC when the Consul Camillus, introduced the Maniple (Manipulus) to the Roman army. This was effectively a joining of two centuries in to a combined fighting unit, and changed the organisation of the battle line in to a checkerboard of Velites (young and poor skirmish troops), Hastati (The inexperienced or poor frontline), Princepes (the Second Line: wealthier or more experienced shock troops) and the Triarii (The Third line, who were wealthy and battle-hardened veterans used as a last resort).
A precise chain of command was imposed, with Centurions (captains of centuries) given different ranks and the introduction of Military Tribunes as superior officers. This system was used by Rome during the Punic Wars (264-146 BC).
As a result of many expensive victories, Rome found her eligible population stretched very thin. It was no longer possible to continue with the short service times of the Early Republic’s legions. Professional, long serving and standing forces were needed, and quickly.
The answer to this problem was to a great extent solved by the Consul Caius Marius, a roman citizen from the small town of Arpinum in the Volscian region. Marius was a client of the powerful Caecilii Metelli family and a “New Man” (Novus Homo, someone not of the nobility, but wealthy and politically powerful) and uncle of Gaius Julius Caesar.
Marius, an organisational and political genius, passed laws that allowed the conscription of the poor and landless (the Proletarii and Plebeian classes) into the army and set their term of service at twenty campaigns. Previously a Roman soldier had needed an estate worth 4000 Asses (each As = 12 ounces of bronze). Now, he only needed to complete basic training and collect his pay. By doing this Marius ended a crisis in recruiting from the higher social classes and gained enormous popularity with those who no longer had to face potential financial ruin caused by years of military service. This turned the army of Rome from a citizen militia into a mercenary citizen army.
This was not the only change. Marius downgraded the Maniple to an administrative division within the Legion and made Cohorts the standard tactical organisation. Each soldier was expected to carry his own mess gear and camp equipment to reduce the baggage train. The soldiers of the time jokingly (or maybe not so jokingly!http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif referred to themselves as “Marius’ Mules”.
The new Marian army was thus arranged in the following manner:
1 Century = 80 men*
6 Centuries = 1 Cohort = 480 men
10 cohorts = I legion = 4800 men
*Although a Century meant 100, in Roman military terms it now represented a fighting force of 80 men. There are a couple of reasons why this could have happened:
1. With the reorganisation of the Legion over hundreds of years the traditional names of each military unit and officer had stuck but the numbers serving had changed. It’s the same sort of thing as the British Army still having Fusileers as well as Riflemen, even though they are armed with the same gear.
2. Or that each Century still contained 100 men but only 80 were actually front line troops. The other 20 being camp and baggage train support to the 80, not counted in a unit’s actual fighting strength. These extra staff would be clerks, blacksmiths, surgeons, cooks, retainers and baggage handlers and not expected to fight except as a last resort.
Of course these numbers were ideals and not always lived up to in the real world. Combat losses, injury and illness would mean that a Legion rarely had a completely full table of organisation.
In battle this new Marian army formed 3 lines, with 4 cohorts in the first line and then 3 in the second and third lines, again arranged in a checkerboard pattern." The configuration was flexible and could be arranged as the commander in the field saw fit. It could also turn quickly to meet unexpected threats.
Now the Legions were kept together on a permanent basis, the Roman army was turned into a powerful fighting force that improved over time and would be loyal to a commander who trained them, looked after them and, most of all, won his battles.
When discharged these conscript soldiers were sometimes used as armed colonists in the new territories of the Roman Empire, but were more often left without land or money and thus relied heavily on the continued support of their generals. The long-term effect was to have a major impact on the structure and society of Rome and lead to a new figure in roman politics: The Political General.
From the very start the advantage the Romans had over their enemies was organisation on the battlefield. Initially (6th century BC) this was achieved by arranging the army formations and its command according to strictly defined social classes and wealth. The Roman army at this time fought in centuries (a Centuriae meaning 100) but the style of combat was close to that of the Greek Phalanx with each century lining up along a long front. There were sixty centuries in a Legion (Legio). Little changed until early in the 4th century BC when the Consul Camillus, introduced the Maniple (Manipulus) to the Roman army. This was effectively a joining of two centuries in to a combined fighting unit, and changed the organisation of the battle line in to a checkerboard of Velites (young and poor skirmish troops), Hastati (The inexperienced or poor frontline), Princepes (the Second Line: wealthier or more experienced shock troops) and the Triarii (The Third line, who were wealthy and battle-hardened veterans used as a last resort).
A precise chain of command was imposed, with Centurions (captains of centuries) given different ranks and the introduction of Military Tribunes as superior officers. This system was used by Rome during the Punic Wars (264-146 BC).
As a result of many expensive victories, Rome found her eligible population stretched very thin. It was no longer possible to continue with the short service times of the Early Republic’s legions. Professional, long serving and standing forces were needed, and quickly.
The answer to this problem was to a great extent solved by the Consul Caius Marius, a roman citizen from the small town of Arpinum in the Volscian region. Marius was a client of the powerful Caecilii Metelli family and a “New Man” (Novus Homo, someone not of the nobility, but wealthy and politically powerful) and uncle of Gaius Julius Caesar.
Marius, an organisational and political genius, passed laws that allowed the conscription of the poor and landless (the Proletarii and Plebeian classes) into the army and set their term of service at twenty campaigns. Previously a Roman soldier had needed an estate worth 4000 Asses (each As = 12 ounces of bronze). Now, he only needed to complete basic training and collect his pay. By doing this Marius ended a crisis in recruiting from the higher social classes and gained enormous popularity with those who no longer had to face potential financial ruin caused by years of military service. This turned the army of Rome from a citizen militia into a mercenary citizen army.
This was not the only change. Marius downgraded the Maniple to an administrative division within the Legion and made Cohorts the standard tactical organisation. Each soldier was expected to carry his own mess gear and camp equipment to reduce the baggage train. The soldiers of the time jokingly (or maybe not so jokingly!http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif referred to themselves as “Marius’ Mules”.
The new Marian army was thus arranged in the following manner:
1 Century = 80 men*
6 Centuries = 1 Cohort = 480 men
10 cohorts = I legion = 4800 men
*Although a Century meant 100, in Roman military terms it now represented a fighting force of 80 men. There are a couple of reasons why this could have happened:
1. With the reorganisation of the Legion over hundreds of years the traditional names of each military unit and officer had stuck but the numbers serving had changed. It’s the same sort of thing as the British Army still having Fusileers as well as Riflemen, even though they are armed with the same gear.
2. Or that each Century still contained 100 men but only 80 were actually front line troops. The other 20 being camp and baggage train support to the 80, not counted in a unit’s actual fighting strength. These extra staff would be clerks, blacksmiths, surgeons, cooks, retainers and baggage handlers and not expected to fight except as a last resort.
Of course these numbers were ideals and not always lived up to in the real world. Combat losses, injury and illness would mean that a Legion rarely had a completely full table of organisation.
In battle this new Marian army formed 3 lines, with 4 cohorts in the first line and then 3 in the second and third lines, again arranged in a checkerboard pattern." The configuration was flexible and could be arranged as the commander in the field saw fit. It could also turn quickly to meet unexpected threats.
Now the Legions were kept together on a permanent basis, the Roman army was turned into a powerful fighting force that improved over time and would be loyal to a commander who trained them, looked after them and, most of all, won his battles.
When discharged these conscript soldiers were sometimes used as armed colonists in the new territories of the Roman Empire, but were more often left without land or money and thus relied heavily on the continued support of their generals. The long-term effect was to have a major impact on the structure and society of Rome and lead to a new figure in roman politics: The Political General.