A Companion to the Roman Army

by Paul Erdkamp (Editor)

Overview

This companion provides an extensive account of the Roman army, exploring its role in Roman politics and society as well as the reasons for its effectiveness as a fighting force.

• An extensive account of the Roman army, from its beginnings to its transformation in the later Roman Empire
• Examines the army as a military machine – its recruitment, training, organization, tactics and weaponry
• Explores the relationship of the army to Roman politics, economics and society more broadly
• Considers the geography and climate of the lands in which the Romans fought
• Each chapter is written by a leading expert in a particular subfield and takes account of the latest scholarly and archaeological research in that area

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781444393767
Publisher:	Wiley
Publication date:	03/31/2011
Series:	Blackwell Companions to the Ancient World
Sold by:	JOHN WILEY & SONS
Format:	eBook
Pages:	608
File size:	4 MB

About the Author

Paul Erdkamp is Research Fellow in Ancient History at Leiden University. He is author of Hunger and the Sword: Warfare and Food Supply in Roman Republican Wars (264–30 BC) (1998) and The Grain Market in the Roman Empire (2005), and editor of The Roman Army and the Economy (2002).

Read an Excerpt

Click to read or download

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations     x
Notes on Contributors     xii
Abbreviations of Reference Works and Journals     xvii
Abbreviations of Works of Classical Literature     xxii
Introduction   Paul Erdkamp     1
Early Rome     5
Warfare and the Army in Early Rome   John Rich     7
The Army and Centuriate Organization in Early Rome   Gary Forsythe     24
Mid- and Late Republic     43
Army and Battle During the Conquest of Italy (350-264 BC)   Louis Rawlings     45
The Age of Overseas Expansion (264-146 BC)   Dexter Hoyos     63
The Late Republican Army (146-30 BC)   Pierre Cagniart     80
War and State Formation in the Roman Republic   Paul Erdkamp     96
Roman Manpower and Recruitment During the Middle Republic   Luuk de Ligt     114
Military Command, Political Power, and the Republican Elite   Nathan Rosenstein     132
Colonization, Land Distribution, and Veteran Settlement   Will Broadhead     148
Army and General in the Late Roman Republic   Lukas de Blois     164
The Empire (Actium to Adrianople)     181
The Structure of the ImperialArmy
The Augustan Reform and the Structure of the Imperial Army   Kate Gilliver     183
Classes. The Evolution of the Roman Imperial Fleets   D. B. Saddington     201
Battle, Tactics, and the Emergence of the Limites in the West   James Thorne     218
The Army and the Limes in the East   Everett L. Wheeler     235
Strategy and Army Structure between Septimius Severus and Constantine the Great   Karl Strobel     267
Military Organization
Military Documents, Languages, and Literacy   Sara Elise Phang     286
Finances and Costs of the Roman Army   Peter Herz     306
War- and Peacetime Logistics: Supplying Imperial Armies in East and West   Peter Kehne     323
Army, Emperor, and Empire
The Roman Army and Propaganda   Olivier Hekster     339
The Army and the Urban Elite: A Competition for Power   Clifford Ando     359
Making Emperors. Imperial Instrument or Independent Force?   Anthony R. Birley     379
Soldiers and Veterans in Society
Military Camps, Canabae, and Vici. The Archaeological Evidence   Norbert Hanel     395
Marriage, Families, and Survival: Demographic Aspects   Walter Scheidel     417
Recruits and Veterans    Gabriele Wesch-Klein     435
The Religions of the Armies   Oliver Stoll     451
The Late Roman Empire (up to Justinian)     477
Warlords and Landlords   Wolf Liebeschuetz     479
The Foederati   Timo Stickler     495
Army and Society in the Late Roman World: A Context for Decline?   Michael Whitby     515
Army and Battle in the Age of Justinian (527-65)   Hugh Elton     532
Index locorum     551
Index     555

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"This book is a valuable work for the reference shelf and a bible for military buffs." (Greece & Rome, 2008)

“This volume is another in the growing range of period- or topic-focused Companions to the Ancient World published by Blackwell. The Roman army, as a central institution and influence in so many aspects of Roman imperial history, is an obvious subject for such a volume. Like other volumes in the series, this one boasts an impressive range of international authors, and the scholarship is of a very high order.” (New England Classical Journal, February 2009)

“It is no easy task to commission and co-ordinate 29 separate contributions, and the editor's energy in doing so should be recognized. The volume will happily sit on an academic bookshelf … as a handy compendium of the views of the individual authors.” (Bryn Mawr Classical Review, October 2008)

“The most extensive and likely best researched overview on the Roman army that is currently available.” (Ancient Warfare)

"Highly readable, informative, and up-to-date survey…The book constitutes an outstanding resource for many topics concerning the Roman army…there is much to interest laymen…and scholars alike.”
(Choice)

"It is particularly valuable in providing up-to-date accounts of the army's manifold aspect and the bibliographies to support them." (Scholia Reviews)

Editorial Reviews

"It is an excellent academic reference book and should prove a valuable resource for anyone interested in the development of the Roman Army as well as its interactions over a thousand years with the Empire it both served and influenced." (UNRV History, 1 April 2011)

"This book, another in the burgeoning special series from Blackwell Publishing, is an unqualified success. Rather than a simple assemblage of vaguely related, overspecialized academic papers, it is truly what its title promises—a companion." (Michigan War Studies, May 2010)

"This book is a valuable work for the reference shelf and a bible for military buffs." (Greece & Rome, 2008)

"This volume is another in the growing range of period- or topic-focused Companions to the Ancient World published by Blackwell. The Roman army, as a central institution and influence in so many aspects of Roman imperial history, is an obvious subject for such a volume. Like other volumes in the series, this one boasts an impressive range of international authors, and the scholarship is of a very high order." (New England Classical Journal, February 2009)

"It is no easy task to commission and co-ordinate 29 separate contributions, and the editor's energy in doing so should be recognized. The volume will happily sit on an academic bookshelf ... as a handy compendium of the views of the individual authors." (Bryn Mawr Classical Review, October 2008)

"The most extensive and likely best researched overview on the Roman army that is currently available." (Ancient Warfare)

"Highly readable, informative, and up-to-date survey.... The book constitutes an outstanding resource for many topics concerning the Roman army ... there is much to interest laymen ... and scholars alike." (Choice)

"It is particularly valuable in providing up-to-date accounts of the army's manifold aspect and the bibliographies to support them." (Scholia Reviews)

From the Publisher