7th Post

I have found some more intriguing information about the roman army recently about how they train, the discipline required and the clothing/equipment they used.

Physical Training:

• Marching (every month soldiers had to march 29.6 km in less than 5 hours carrying heavy armor and weapons which weighed around 60 pounds)
• Running
• Long and high jump training
• Swimming (All recruits were made to swim if their campsite was near a sea or lake)
• Chopping down trees
• Obstacle courses

Weapon Training:

After the soldiers completed their physical training, they were required to practice how to handle and use weapons more accurately. They mainly used wooden swords and wickerwork shields that were twice as heavy as the original weaponry. Soldiers performed many attacking techniques with their sword against a wooden stake that was dug into the ground which would eventually help them improve their skills. When a soldier believes they are ready for a moving target they are allocated with another soldier were they both have a 1v1 battle. Once a warrior learns how to use heavy weapons correctly, they become twice as efficient when they are using the real ones.

Discipline:

The leader of the group would walk around with a very thick stick that was used to beat up people not following their task. All soldiers had to carry out their responsibilities or else they get punished by getting flogged or receiving a fine. If someone did something really bad like mutiny then the Centurion would walk around slaughtering every 10th man he touches including the one who committed the crime.

Clothing and Equipment:

Every Roman warrior had to wear leather sandals, breeches and wool tunic around their legs. Body armor, shoulder plates and a bronze helmet were the only armor they wore to protect them. For their equipment each soldier carried a sword, shield, 2 javelins and used a dagger for close combat.




References:

Websites:

LearningAlive 2010, The Roman Army, viewed 22nd March 2010
[http://atschool.eduweb.co.uk/nettsch/time/rarmy.html]

History on The Net 2010, The Romans - The Roman Army, viewed 24th March 2010
[http://www.historyonthenet.com/Romans/roman_army.htm]

The Roman Empire 2009, Military Training, viewed 24th March 2010
[http://www.roman-empire.net/army/training.html]