DISCIPLINE – fought compactly, together, obedient, routine

Flexible and adaptable tactics – depending on enemy, terrain, weather etc.

Ease of travel – many roads and control of seas

Roman culture itself was quite advanced

Logistics – supply chain, map making and intelligence network, paperwork

War engineers and artillery – excellent support and cover fire

Great leaders – centurions were educated and experienced

Formation & manoeuvring was excellent

Financial power + mass of resources

Top-notch training and equipment

One of the first professional armies, not called up citizens

Organisation

Loyalty + determination to Rome/their general

Well fed and looked after

Were paid and given extras

Accompanied by specialists such as medics

They learnt from their enemies – adopted new techniques and technologies

Persistent – if retreat was necessary, their enemy would soon have a new fresh army at their doorstep.

-disciplined, ordered troops were more effective, than wild rushing at the enemy or reliance on numbers or better troops to ensure victory.

-every situation was handled accordingly, regarding terrain, weather, type of terrain and the opposition’s soldiers

-phalanxes were vulnerable to the ‘checkerboard’ system of the romans, which allowed their soldiers to move and retreat flexibly

- troops: triarii maniples, principes maniples, hastati manciples, velites skirmishers

Within this triplex acies system, contemporary Roman writers talk of the maniples adopting a checkered formation called quincunx when deployed for battle but not yet engaged. In the first line, the hastati left gaps equal in size to their cross-sectional area between each maniple. The second line consisting of principes followed in a similar manner, lining up behind the gaps left by the first line. This was also done by the third line, standing behind the gaps in the second line. The velites were deployed in front of this line in a continuous, loose-formation line.

Shield – Scutum

Armour – Lorica Segmentata

Dagger – Pugio

Javelin – Pilum

Helmet – Galea

Sandals – Caligae

Personal + miscellaneous items

Some possible aspects to be researched:

Equipment, discipline, tactics/formations, strategies, important figures – basically what their advantages were.

Since I’ve pretty much forgotten to do most of my posts, I’ll just do a quick, more detailed recap.

The week after the assessment, I’ll admit I didn’t really do anything besides reading the sheets. It felt like I had ages to do it. I decided to choose scenario 1, as it seemed like it was the easiest… Not sure if it was in the end. I thought I didn’t need to start till a couple of weeks.

2 weeks later, I started Phase 1, which was pretty lazy of me. I finished it in a couple of nights work, as it was really only one page. I had to redo it after discovering that there was a scaffold for it.

3 days after that, I decided I really needed to get started. I started and finished phase 2 in about 3 days, where I did a page a night. I also had to re-do it after discovering another scaffold. After that… the next day i started the hell of phase 3.

Phase 3 took me as long as it took a regular assignment. About 3 hours, just to draw some diagrams (which was actually the toughest part cos of all the little clicking and drawing circles with a mouse) and a couple of bits on designing. I did it in one day, and the fatigue was getting to me through it. I even had to turn down the brightness and contrast on my monitor cos it was hurting my eyes.

Then next night after that, which is today. I finished Phase 4 and 5 on the same day. As they were only a couple of pages long, I felt relaxed. About the whole assignment.. it took about 9 hours total. Felt like hell. Please don’t make any longer ones PLEASE

-reinaldo

roman-aqueducts1