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re: Back in Roman times, how did they decide who was on the front lines?
Posted on 6/29/18 at 10:27 am to rmnldr
Posted on 6/29/18 at 10:27 am to rmnldr
quote:
In the early Roman legions, the front of the line was occupied by the hastati, which were the usually the youngest and poorest of the men. The hastati would typically rotate out fairly quickly iirc and the principes, who were older and better equipped heavy infantry would finish the job. The third line was the triarii, which were the oldest and most experienced men, in their late thirties and up to fifties. "Sending in the triarii" (or something similar) actually became a metaphor for sending in older, wiser people to finish the job. Triarii were only used as a last resort, and if they had to go into battle it usually meant something went terribly wrong. These men were also typically the most fearless and bloodthirsty, and there's ample proof of these men giving Roman generals a handful with begging to join the fight.
This is why you read the thread before you respond.
Nice job, rmnldr - nice to see another Rome:Total War player on the board.
2
Posted on 6/29/18 at 11:00 am to Ryan3232
They didn't. Romans rotated front line every ten minutes or so.
Posted on 6/29/18 at 12:02 pm to Ace Midnight
quote:
Nice job, rmnldr - nice to see another Rome:Total War player on the board.
Posted on 6/29/18 at 12:56 pm to Ace Midnight
quote:
Yes and no. Before Marius, most citizens had to provide their own equipment. The truly wealthy were generally in the cavalry (Equites), as they could afford horses and the maintenance on those. They formed a social class, essentially just below that of the Senate.
Again, during the pre-Marian times, the army of the Republic was largely age stratified. The youngest, strongest fastest - 20 to 30 year olds - were the guys in front - the Hastati. Sword and shield, they had generally inferior armor to the Principes who were older - generally guys in their 30s to early 40s. The final group, the Triarii were the wealthiest because they were the oldest, longest serving. They had the best armor, usually, and were armed with spears. These guys were throwbacks to the Phalanx era and would form a solid spear/shield wall behind which the army could retire in good order should things go badly.
Conversely, the Triarii were the legion's reserve, so committing them was the last option available to the commander. There was a Roman expression "going to the Triarii" which meant you were at your final option.
So, it was class based, driven primarily by age. The only real class they "bought" into was the Equites, from the Republic era.
Now, mid to late Empire, Rome increasingly expanded citizenship and essentially had German "mercenaries" in Roman uniforms fighting German barbarians, particularly by the 4th, 5th Century A.D.
Good post. Forgot there was mention in this book (by David Gibbins FWIW) about age. What he does mention is that, as obviously effective as the Roman army generally was, there wasn't much to merit-based rising through the ranks (the super high ranks, not just a corporal or NCO). You were on that path if you were from one of the aristocratic families.
Posted on 6/29/18 at 1:02 pm to tigersownall
quote:Never said they were buddy.
You do know that the Roman’s were not at the battle of Troy right?
Posted on 6/29/18 at 1:03 pm to Ace Midnight
quote:I played the shite outta that game a decade ago. Good stuff.
nice to see another Rome:Total War player on the board.
Posted on 6/29/18 at 1:53 pm to Ryan3232
quote:
Never said they were buddy.
I mean, you ask these questions on the film. Which is during the Greek phalanx era
quote:
am wondering if anyone knows how they decided who would be in the upper quadrant of formation vs the backer portion.
For example: Do you want your strongest men up front to handle the first blow or do you want your strongest men in the back of the group to eat the leftovers?
And then your title is
quote:
Back in Roman times, how did they decide who was on the front lines?
So I mean... it’s not hard to see where he’s coming from.
And the phalanx and the legion were extremely different in damn near every aspect.
As I posted on the previous page, the most experienced men in the phalanx were positioned in the front ranks on the right most flank to stop the rightward drift that tends to occur from newer troops. Having these men at the back of the formation was absolutely detrimental to the entire premise of the phalanx as the new and raw men would break far faster.
It’s also worth noting that very few casualties actually happened in the meeting of the walls. The vast majority of the casualties happened after one line broke and turned.
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