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thesilicontribesman · 1 year

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The best preserved 'Lorica Segmentata', Roman Plate Armour in the world to date, Corbridge Roman Site Museum, Hadrian's Wall, Northumberland

#roman #roman armour #roman soldiers #roman army #roman style #roman living #hadrian's wall #romans #roman empire #roman military #roman fort #roman town #roman design #archaeology #ancient living #ancient culture #relic #artefact #roman metalwork

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just-late-roman-republic-things · 3 months

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I'm still thinking about Mary Beard's estimate that, at any given time, about 10-25% of Roman men in the republic were in the legions.

For comparison, in the United States today, less than 1% of all men are active military. We know now that veterans have higher risks of homelessness, addiction, divorce, mental illness, trauma and suicide than civilians. And Roman soldiers didn't have dedicated support programs or social services. Unlike the USA, nearly all politicians and their sons fought in wars, too.

It makes me wonder how much of the Romans'...issues...came from all that happening, every year, for generations.

(To say nothing of the trauma inflicted on other nations, or the exploitation of the common people, too.)

#the usa has a military industrial complex #rome WAS a military industrial complex!#roman military #source is in beard: SPQR chapter 5 #jlrrt speaks #suicide mention

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ancientorigins · 9 months

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A lot of craftmanship went into making ancient military helmets. A typical Roman Montefortino was both visually stunning and a functional piece of military headwear.

#Rome #Roman #helmet #armor #Roman military #bronze #ancient #history #ancient origins

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kemetic-dreams · 5 months

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What did Roman Empire pagan soldiers think of fighting under Constantine and Christianity?

Probably not very much.

The Roman military was a world of its own. More than today, soldiers had their very identity shaped by the institution and people they served. Upon enlisting, they swore allegiance to the emperor and received new names as his servants — Valerius during the tetrarchy and Flavius under Constantine. Those who didn’t speak Latin were pushed to acquire a basic grasp of it, pretty much like the French Foreign Legion of today. Starting from the late republican period, Roman soldiers were accustomed to receiving salaries, booty and pensions from their commanders, not the state in an abstract sense. Under the empire, loyalty often lay with the emperor, as long as he was perceived as strong.

In that frame, Constantine never lost the faith of his men thanks to his talents, accomplishments and image. It surely helped that he was Constantius Chlorus’ son, but dynastic feelings were not so strong in the 4th c. What really mattered was that he was a victorious imperator, with plenty of experience both before and after his ascension. His CV included wars against, and victories over, foreigners (Franks, Goths, Alamanni) and rival emperors (Maxentius, Licinius) alike. That kept soldiers satisfied and himself secure on the throne. Besides, Constantine took care to associate his military exploits with the Christian God. On the contrary, his sons failed to live up to his legacy and had to face claims by men like Magnus Magnentius and Julian.

Another thing to consider is the role of religion in the then Roman military. In general, early Christianity wasn’t unanimously for or against military service, hence a decent minority of soliders were Christians even before Constantine. In the late 3rd c., you could find Christians like St. Marcellus holding even the rank of centurion. The statesman Cassius Dio is reported to have spoken of Christians in the comitatus of all four original tetrarchs. Cases of individual disobedience cannot be excluded, of course, but the military was, above all, a state mechanism. Under Diocletian, they persecuted Christians; under Constantine, they fought the Donatists and may have even destroyed the Asclepieion at Aegae, Cilicia.

On his part, Constantine didn’t adopt Christianity the way most people after his time imagine(d). There was a long, gradual process, for the most part inscribed into the norms of late antiquity. Nomenclature and visual language were preserved to a considerable extent. Separate Christian and non-Christian prayers are reported to have been taking place at the same time. At some point in the 320s, a group of veterans greeted Constantine with the traditional “May the gods preserve you for us” salute. Two elite army units, Diocletian’s Jovians and Maximian’s Herculians, were not rebranded, although their names recalled the gods Jupiter and Hercules whom the late tetrarchs associated themselves with.

With the benefit of hindsight, we now know that the dynamics of that complex situation ended up favouring Christianity — if anything, all of Constantine’s successors were Christians except for Julian. That, however, should not be taken out of context. Few have a panoramic view of their time or the acumen to predict the future, and the provincials who made up the bulk of the late Roman military were not among them. Even if they were, though, they may not have had particularly strong feelings about any potential outcome. At the same time, various (quasi-)henotheistic traditions like the cult of Sol Invictus and Mithraism were around. The period was transitional, hence quite fluid.

#kemetic dreams #european #europeans #western europe #christianity #roman military #henotheistic traditions #cult of sol invictus #mithraism #christians #constantine

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archaeolorhi · 1 year

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Vallum Hadriani

Currently reminiscing of my time spent at Hadrian's Wall a few years ago! Itching to get back and explore!

We visited as part of a university trip during our course dedicated to Hadrian's Wall! This segment was reached on foot after a (very long) drive, and is close to the Sycamore Gap! (which unfortunately we didn't make it far enough along to see).

We also visited various forts and milecastles, along with their assoicated museums - which will most likely recieve their own, seperate post in due course!