ROMAN ARMY

THE ROMAN LEGIONS

• Citizen soldiers server for 16 to 20 years in the legions
• Typically composed of 5,400 men in each legion
• Most legions consisted of legionnaires at the center with auxillia beside them
• The auxillas, non romans, formed most of the archery and calvary
• Non citizen soldiers could earn roman citizenship after serving their years

AUXILIA

• Formed a big portion of the roman army
• Most were Non romans
• They were mostly volunteer fighters
• Were mostly on the front lines or were archers
• Also operated most of the siege equipment

COHORTS

• Was part of then center army made up of heavy infantry
• Made up of the veterens and officers,centurions,
• Ranks of the cohorts:hastati, principes, and triarii
• Can be other units as well for example, cohors alaria, allied cohort
• Made up of mostly roman citizens

ROMAN ARMOR

• The Roman shield was called Scutum, which is a rectangular , curved shield.
• The officers of the Roman army wore a Praetorian Leather Battle Armor set.
• Most of the Roman army wore the Lorica Segmentata.
• The armor is iron layered over hardened leather its segemnted in rectangles.
• The auxilia wore light armor called lorica hamata which was a mail armor.

ROMAN WEAPONS

• They used a Pugio which was a dagger.
• Roman Calvary carried Spathas for longer reach.
• The sagittarius were armed using a bow, shooting an arrow.
• Hastae were carried by early Roman Legionaries.It was a thrusting spear.
• Later in the roman army they started using the gladius ,a longer sword.

ROMAN SIEGE EQUIPMENT

• Ballistae or ballista are huge cross bows.
• They also built smaller ballistas called scorpions.
• They used battering rams to knock down walls and gates.
• They used trebuechets or catapults called onagers.