Latin II Stage 25 Culture
Who was the praefectus castrorum?
the commander of the camp, the highest ranking officer to serve his entire career in the army
Who was the primus pilus?
the most senior centurion who was at least 50 yrs old and worked all the way up through the various grade of through various grades of centurion
How many cohorts were there in a legion? How many centuries were there in cohorts two to ten? How many men were there in a century?
10 cohorts. 6 centuries. 80 men.
Which was the most prestigious unit? Describe its makeup.
1st cohort: five double sized centurions, commanded my 5 first rank commanders
What 2 things might a soldier receive on being discharged?
3000 denarii or an allocation of land
How many of these officers were there? What were their duties? What item symbolized their rank?
60 Discipline centurions Cane
What 2 details about a possible recruit did the inquisitio have to confirm?
A new recruit was a Roman citizen He was given medical examination
Approximately how many men were in a legion? Give 3 capabilities of a legion, excluding fighting wars.
About 5000. Constructing forts and camps, manufacturing weapons and equipments, and building roads
According to Vegetius, what were 4 of the desirable characteristics of a recruit?
Alert eyes, head upright, broad chested with powerful shoulders and brawny arms, long fingers
What fighting skills did the various auxiliary troops have? What type of auxiliary troop was the most important? List 3 ways in which this auxiliary troop was used.
Archers from Arabia and slingers from Majorica and Minorca. Calvary. Protect the center, launch attacks themselves, pursue defeated enemy forces.
List at least 6 items the legionary soldier had to carry on route marches.
Body armor and weapons, dishes, water bottle, woolen cloak, several days' ration of food, equipment for making an overnight camp
Who formed the backbone of the legion?
Centurions
Define and give one detail about each of the following pieces of equipment: gladius, pugio, scutum.
Gladius: short stabbing sword worn on the right Pugio: dagger worn on the left Scutum: 3 foot long legionary wood shield covered w/ hide
What were the duties of the optio, the signifer, and the tesserarius?
Optio: Assist centurions Signifer & Tesserarius: Organize the guards
How would a soldier's life change if he were promoted?
Paid more and exempted from certain duties
What did the fully trained legionary soldier spend much of his time doing?
Peacetime duties
What did the legionary soldiers have to do at the end of each day's march?
Proper construction of the camp
Give 2 characteristics of a miles. How long was his tour of duty?
Roman citizen and full time professional who had signed on for 25 yrs
List and describe 6 items the legionary soldier wore at the time of our stories.
Segmented armor of metal strips with leather strips and buckle fastenings The military belt Short leggings Legionary helmet Strong military sandals Woolen tunic
Describe the weapons training of the new recruit.
Starting w/ a wooden sword, wicker shield, and dummy targets and progressing to actual equipment.
List at least 3 peacetime duties that have been recorded in inscriptional evidence.
Stationing fortress Build bath house Stoking fires
How do we know they were important to the army?
They were paid very high
What was the reward for an auxiliary soldier on being discharged?
Those who weren't Romans were grant citizenship
What did Vegetius advise as the best way to use a sword?
Thrust a sword
What was a pilum? How long was it? How was it constructed? Describe how its construction made it an effective weapon.
javelin 5ft long with a bendable, pointed iron head It can't be thrown back but made the encumbered shield difficult to manage
List 5 types of physical training for the new recruit.
marching, running, jumping, swimming, carrying heavy packs
What was the rate of pay during the reign of Domitian? List 4 of the deductions from that pay.
pay for his food, clothing and equipment leave savings in bank