Start Date
4-28-2015 1:00 PM
End Date
4-28-2015 2:15 PM
Disciplines
Ancient History, Greek and Roman through Late Antiquity | Military History
Subjects
Rome -- Army, Military art and science -- Rome, Rome -- Army -- Organization
Abstract
The Roman Empire at its peak covered millions of square miles of ground, encompassing a vast variety of cultures of people. In order to ensure continued peace and stability in such a mammoth multiethnic empire, the Roman Army was forced to engage and repel a variety of foreign opponents utilizing different tactics across a wide spectrum of terrain, from Macedonian phalanxes on flat plains to Gallic barbarian hordes on forested ground. Simultaneously, the Roman Army also had to avoid compromising internal stability and maintain a force capable of putting down a large range of insurrectionist forces. Even today, with the improved mobility, communication capability, equipment, and logistical infrastructure that modern technology provides, such a task seems dauntingly difficult. This paper will examine the factors that allowed the Roman Army to effectively accomplish such a task, namely the Army’s tactics and formations, adaptable troop composition, and flexible strategic deployment.
Rights
© Copyright the author(s)
IN COPYRIGHT:
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
DISCLAIMER:
The purpose of this statement is to help the public understand how this Item may be used. When there is a (non-standard) License or contract that governs re-use of the associated Item, this statement only summarizes the effects of some of its terms. It is not a License, and should not be used to license your Work. To license your own Work, use a License offered at https://creativecommons.org/
Persistent Identifier
http://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/15229
Included in
Ancient History, Greek and Roman through Late Antiquity Commons, Military History Commons
The Roman Army: Strategy, Tactics, and Innovation
The Roman Empire at its peak covered millions of square miles of ground, encompassing a vast variety of cultures of people. In order to ensure continued peace and stability in such a mammoth multiethnic empire, the Roman Army was forced to engage and repel a variety of foreign opponents utilizing different tactics across a wide spectrum of terrain, from Macedonian phalanxes on flat plains to Gallic barbarian hordes on forested ground. Simultaneously, the Roman Army also had to avoid compromising internal stability and maintain a force capable of putting down a large range of insurrectionist forces. Even today, with the improved mobility, communication capability, equipment, and logistical infrastructure that modern technology provides, such a task seems dauntingly difficult. This paper will examine the factors that allowed the Roman Army to effectively accomplish such a task, namely the Army’s tactics and formations, adaptable troop composition, and flexible strategic deployment.