PR-2237IRE Ancient Rome

Roman Legions
We know much about the armour worn by legionaries from excavations, particularly the wellpreserved
finds from Corbridge, once a Roman fort in the north of England. Other information
comes from relief carvings on Trajan’s column.
Apart from his weapons, a soldier also carried tools for digging fortifications around temporary
camps. He also carried personal possessions, such as a mess tin for his food. A legionary was responsible for
his weapons and if he lost them he had to pay for new ones.
At the start of each year in Rome the strongest men in an approximate age range of 25–50 were selected for
the army by senior military officers called Tribunes. The Praetorian Guard, a force of about 10 000 men, were
special soldiers who were responsible for protecting the emperor, though at times they overthrew an emperor
and replaced him.
The Auxiliaries in the Roman army (who carried oval shields) were captured soldiers from conquered nations
and were often used for their special skills (as archers like the Syrians, slingers from Crete, cavalry from Spain
etc). However, the legionaries had to be citizens of Rome for they were the backbone of the legions and their
loyalty to Rome was paramount.
When not fighting, soldiers built bridges, roads and walls to keep out hostile tribes.
Sometimes, when attacking walled cities or heavily armed opponents, Roman soldiers would hold their
shields overlapping edge to edge over their heads and down their sides (a testudo—‘tortoise’) to deflect
arrows, spears, rocks etc. fired by the enemy.
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