Roman army

The Roman army is the military of ancient Rome, the forces used by the Roman Kingdom, Roman Republic and later Roman Empire. Its infantry for much of its history was the Roman legion. Rome also had a navy. The size of the army in the late Roman Empire was about 128,000 – 179,200 men. It was very well organized. The main Roman soldiers in the Empire were the legionaries. The legions were separated into centuries, made up of 80 soldiers and 20 other men who remained in the camp to cook and do other chores.^[1]

Other soldiers in the army were called the auxilia. Auxilia were non-citizens who mainly came from the Roman provinces. They were paid less than legionaries and did not usually wear armor but at the end of their service, which was a minimum of 25 years, they were given Roman citizenship.

The army had cavalry units called Equites. Their men were rich enough to have horses and more expensive weapons. Being few, they were less important in battle than the infantry.^[2]

1. ↑ Southern P. 2007. The Roman Army: a social and institutional history. Oxford University Press.
2. ↑ Dando-Collins, Stephen. 2010. Legions of Rome. New York: St. Martin's Press.