Roman Warriors
10 Facts About The Roman Army
1.
A group of about 4000 - 6000 roman soldiers was called a LEGION. The roman army consisted of about 30 LEGIONS. A COHORT contained about 40 - 50 soldiers, and a LEGION is about 10 COHORTS.
2.
To be a roman warrior, you had to: be a MALE, a ROMAN CITIZEN, and at least TWENTY years old. You also had to be well-organised, well-trained and highly disciplined.
3.
The roman soldier who had control of an entire LEGION was called a LEGATE. A soldier who controlled groups of about 80 soldiers was called a CENTURION. These groups were called CENTURIES.
4.
The WEAPONS that the LEGIONARIES used for training were WICKERWORK shields and WOODEN swords. The WOOD and WICKERWORK were twice as heavy as the actual weapons that they used in battle, so they believed that if a soldier could handle these heavier weapons, they would be twice as good with the actual weapons.
5.
The roman soldiers had to pay for their MEALS and CLOTHES, and half of their WAGES went towards a RETIREMENT fund for after they had served their time as a soldier.
6.
Roman soldiers were not permitted to marry during their service as a roman soldier. They had to serve as a roman soldier for twenty-five years before they could retire.
7.
The roman LEGIONARIES wore armour made from IRON and LEATHER strips, they wore a metal helmet called a GALEA. Their shields were made so that the soldiers could be protected and still fight at the same time. The GLADIUS SWORD was particularly good for stabbing and fighting in close combat. Soldiers also carried a JAVELIN.
8.
All regular roman soldiers were roman citizens, but this did not mean that they had to live in Rome. There were roman soldiers from AFRICA, BRITAIN, SPAIN, GERMANY and FRANCE.
9.
Roman soldiers were known for their DISCIPLINE in battle. They always followed orders, and that is the reason that they lost so few soldiers.
10.
Some soldiers were trained to have special roles. Some had to operate large crossbows called BALLISTA'S, and some were trained to fight on HORSEBACK.