In the fourth century BC: Rome was almost completely sacked by the Gauls. This seriously undermined his authority in central Italy. But this event entailed an almost complete reorganization of the army. It is believed that the author of the reforms was the hero Flavius Camillus, but many historians agree that the reforms were adopted centrally throughout the fourth century BC.
The original legions
Having abandoned the phalanx, the Romans introduced a new order of battle. Now the soldiers were lined up in three lines. The Gastats, who were second-class spearmen in the previous formation, the phalanxes, stood in front. Young people were recruited there, dressed in armor and carrying a rectangular shield, scutum, which remained in service with the Roman legionaries throughout history. The Gastats were armed with two 1, 2 meter darts (pilums) and the traditional smooth / gladius short sword. Lightly armed warriors were included in each gastat manipula. In the phalanx system, they were assigned to the fourth and fifth grade.
The soldiers, formerly assigned to the first class, were divided into two types: principles and triarii. Together they formed heavy infantry, the Gastats were the first to get involved in the battle. If they began to be crushed, they could retreat between the ranks of the heavy principle infantry and reorganize for a counterattack. Behind the principles at some distance were the triarii, which, when the heavy infantry retreated, came forward and brought confusion into the ranks of the enemies by their sudden appearance, thereby giving the principles the opportunity to rebuild. The Triarii were usually the last line of defense, covering the retreating ghastats and principles in the event of an unsuccessful battle.
The armament of the legionnaires has undergone significant changes. Bronze helmets did not provide good protection against the long swords of the barbarians, and the Romans replaced them with iron helmets with a polished surface on which the swords slid down (although later bronze helmets were reintroduced into circulation).
Also, the adoption of the scutum - a large rectangular shield - greatly affected the effectiveness of the legionnaires.
At the beginning of the 3rd century BC. Roman legions have proven themselves in battles against well-trained Macedonian phalanxes and war elephants. In the same century, the First Carthaginian War hardened the Roman legions in battles even more, and by the end of the century the legions thwarted the Gali's attempt to march south from the Po valley, proving to everyone that the Roman legions were no match for the barbarians who ravaged their city.
At the beginning of the Second Punic War, the historian Polubius writes that Rome had the largest and best army in the Mediterranean, 6 legions of 32,000 infantry and 1,600 cavalry, together with 30,000 allied infantry and 2,000 cavalry. And that's just the regular army. If Rome announced the gathering of allied troops, then it could count on 340,000 infantry and 37,000 cavalry.
Reform of Scipio
One of the people who made a great contribution to the prosperity and survival of Rome was Scipio Africanus. He was present at the defeat at Trebbia and Cannes, from where he learned that the Roman army urgently needed to change tactics. At the age of 25, he became the commander of the troops in Spain and began to train them more intensively. The Roman legionaries were undoubtedly the best warriors of the time, but they needed to be prepared for the tactical tricks that Hannibal used on the battlefield. Scipio was on the right track and his victory over Hannibal's troops at Zama fully proved this.
Scipio's reform radically changed the concept of legions. Now the ode relied on tactical superiority rather than the physical strength of the legionnaires. From this time onward, Roman soldiers went into battle under the leadership of clever officers who tried to outwit the enemy, not just line up and march on the enemy.
In the second century BC. the formation of the legions has changed slightly. The soldiers used the gladius, also known as the "Spanish sword". Iron helmets were again replaced with bronze ones, but made of a thicker layer of metal. Each maniple was commanded by 2 centurions, with the first centurion in command of the right side of the maniple, and the second - the left side.
As Rome conquered the east, more and more people were drawn into production, and lifelong military service became unacceptable. Rome could no longer rely on a continuous stream of legionnaires from villages to provinces. Military service in Spain caused discontent among the civilian population, and led to a series of local wars and uprisings. Human losses, injuries and a low flow of money into the treasury forced to reconsider the time-tested method of conscription. In 152 BC. it was decided to recruit citizens into the army by drawing lots for a period of no more than 6 years of service.
The use of allied troops has become more active. In 133 BC Scipio took Numantia, two-thirds of his troops were Iberian troops. In the east, during the Battle of Pydna, which ended the Third Macedonian War, the troops allied to Rome, using war elephants, defeated the left flank of the Perseus troops, thereby giving the legionnaires the opportunity to approach the Macedonian phalanx from the phalanx and upset its ranks.
Reform Mary
It is Mary who is credited with the complete reform of the army, although he structured and put the finishing touches on a process that began much earlier. Rome in general, and the Roman army in particular, have always opposed rapid reforms, considering it acceptable to gradual change. The reform of Gaius Grazia consisted in the fact that the legionnaires were given equipment at the expense of the state and it was forbidden to draft into the army those under the age of seventeen.
Mary, however, made the army available to everyone, even the poorest, the main thing is that they have a desire to serve. They enlisted in the army for a service life of more than 6 years. For these people, military service in the army has become a profession, an opportunity to make a career, and not just a return of debt to Rome. Thus, Marius became the first ruler in Roman history to create a professional army. Marius also offered special benefits for veterans, and thus attracted them to the service. It was the new army of Mary that saved Italy from a massive invasion of barbarian tribes, first defeating the Germans and then defeating the Cimbri.
Marius also redesigned the pilum, replacing the metal shaft with a wooden one. On impact, it broke, and it was impossible to throw it back (as mentioned earlier, the tip of the pilum flexed on impact, but it was very difficult to make a metal tip that deforms and at the same time causes significant damage).
Mari began to distribute land to legionnaires after demobilization - giving guarantees to veterans, for the so-called pension, at the end of their service.
The changes also affected the order of battle of the legion. The lines of battle order were abolished, depending on the armament. Now all the soldiers had the same equipment. Cohort tactics were actively used.
By the way, cohorts appeared during the reign of Scipius Africanus, so it is difficult to say here whether this was the merit of Mary. Although no one denies that cohort tactics became dominant in the army of Maria, due to the fact that the border between the estates was erased, since all the soldiers were equally armed.
Classic Legion
Under the rule of Julius Caesar, the army became highly efficient, professional, highly trained and remarkably controlled.
On the march, the legion relied only on its own supplies. To set up camp every night, each soldier carried tools and two poles. In addition to this, he carried his weapons, armor, bowler hat, camping rations, clothing and personal belongings. Because of this, the legionnaires received the nickname "Mules Maria".
The debate does not stop about how much of the reality the legionnaire was carrying. In a modern army, a fighter carries 30 kg on himself. According to calculations, including all equipment and a 16-day ration of the legionnaire, it turns out that one soldier was carrying 41 kg. The legionnaires carried dry rations with them, which, based on the rate of iron consumption by a soldier, provided it for 3 days. The weight of the ration was 3 kilograms. For comparison, soldiers used to carry with them a grain ration weighing 11 kg.
During the reign of Emperor Constantine the Great, the infantry remained the main military force of the Roman army. With the introduction of regular cavalry, Constantine abolished the prefect of the Praetorians and replaced it with two new positions: infantry commander and cavalry commander.
The rise in importance of cavalry is due to two main reasons. Many barbarian tribes avoided open invasion, but simply limited themselves to raids. The infantry was simply not fast enough to intercept the barbarian troops.
Another reason was that the superiority of the Roman legion over any rival was no longer as clear as before. The barbarians have learned a lot over the centuries. Thousands of Germans served as mercenaries and adopted the experience of the Roman military leaders and applied it upon returning home. The Roman army had to adopt new tactical decisions and provide reliable support for heavy infantry with the help of cavalry. Between the third and fourth centuries, the Roman army hastily built up its cavalry when disaster struck at the end of this period. In 378 A. D. heavy Gothic cavalry destroyed the entire eastern army led by Emperor Valens at the Battle of Adrianople. Now no one had any doubts that the heavy cavalry was capable of defeating the heavy infantry …
