QuoteReplyTopic: Romans = great warriors??? Posted: 26-Jun-2007 at 08:58
the germanic tribes were bigger but were really not very intelligant they put on markings/tattos to protect them .. .... lol armor would have been alot beter ... like the defeat of queen budaka w/e the BLEEP her name is lol. Roman commander finds a good area wich has only one entrance to it. sp they cant be flanked or anything so then when the celtics try to attack them the romans have a awsome formations VVVVV best i could do but lol like a huge row of V SHAPED troops and when the celtics charge in theyin the gap between ech v and therefore can just be hit continuisly by the roman legions they all have there huge shields up like a wall so celts are trapped so chaotic lol also cool one for when its just an open plain battlefield get like bunch of men in a row and have more rows behind them so if the man at the front is tired man behind him can go up and soforth very cool and also funny part at budaka battle was when celts are charging romans have spears there just throwin at them like crazy and with basicly no armor its a horro seen for the celts ... im done talking
Romans poor warriors! You are so off base. Only Hannibal and the Persians really made Rome pay. Tuetinberg forest is questionable..3 legions strung out and and betrayed by A Roman soldiers(German origin), they really thought most German tribes were pacified because of the horrendous defeats)Germans) they suffered I will mention and they were not even armed when attcked. However three legions was not anywhere near the biggest loss for the Romans..not even close! Also, there is question now that perhaps the Romans really didn`t loose but fought the Germans off.(albeit great loss of lifeand stolen standards) Dan Peterson, American Army, historian, went over there investigating. He seen the sites and by analyzing burial mounds(Romans) there were even animals buried. How could the Roamns have had time to bury the dead? These were made by Romans and dated exactly at that time and from Varus`s forces. Becuse they drove off the Germans. How could they drive off them when so trapped and most likely outnumbered at leat 10 to one? Simple. Look at the stats from the Cimbrian wars. These will astound you. Dan Peterson feels that later German historians warped accounts of the trap and diminshed accounts of the true battles: Marius,Drussus and Germnaicus had so many victories against the Germans and agaist such odds that he concludes the Germans were not good fighters just all show.(as Caesar indiacted earlier) Look at the the numbers we are talking about at these battles: Battle of Vercellae: 50,000 Roamns(8 legions) against OVER 200,000 Germans. Result:140,000Germans dead, over 60,000 prisoners. Roman loss of life- less than 1000!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!* Wikpedia and German historian Theodor Mommsen. ( he was not drawn in to the German history distortion fro propaganda, according to Petersen) There were many such battles where the Romans were so outnumberd,always outnumberd. Mow how could there be less than 1000 Roman deaths(many recorded accounts) and why was this battle not glorfied! Answer mentioned by Petersen. Trurh is the Germans were pitiful warriors and only attcked the Roamns when they knew they were vulnerable or trapped and when they had great numbers on their side. Think that Ameriacn boyscouts with Swiss army knives could do a better job if there were over 200,000 of them against just 50,000! These are the facts. Conan was a myth. Petersen feels the Romans were the most amazing specimens there were. Not as tall as some(even though you had to be 5 ft 10 inches minumum,Mike Tyson would have just made it) but he feels they had enormous strength coupled with quick reaction time and agilty. Hand to hand victories require this besides formation discipline. Being so outnumbered all the time Petersen feels that the indivdual Roman soldier is way overlooked. I agree with him. Roamns loss gainst superior bows and horseman(Persians,etc.) and Haniiball(Rome did not have a professioanl army then) ,Goths- Baltic or German or other origin.(late Rome was a shell of otself and legioanires were not Roman anymore). Conclusion:Roman foot soldier best infantryman ever...well perhaps American Marines are
Rome have great army, but they are not great worrior. 1 on 1 PK they can not defeat barbarians. They beat Guals because Phanlanx and weapons. not cause of strong.
What a load of utter BS that is...
The whole notion that the Roman legionary had no individual fighting skill is completely ludicrous, and is certainly not backed up by the surviving evidence.
We know from Flavius Renatus Vegetius' Epitoma Rei Militaris that legionary recruits received rigorous training in swordfighting and other weapons skills, in the system known as the armatura, which was based on gladiatorial training methods. The recruits were instructed in their skills by a doctor armorum. Training methods included working various thrusts and cuts at the pallum (6-foot target stake), while using a weighted wooden sword (rudius) and wickerwork shield. Later, recruits were paired off and engaged in some sort of free-bouting, with real swords covered in leather.
The emphasis on realistic training was perhaps best summed up by the Jewish historian Jospeh Ben-Matthias, aka Flavius Josephus:
"Their drills are like bloodless battles, and their battles are like bloody drills."
And the legionaries had individual skills other than swordplay. Their use of combative grappling has been documented:
Cassius Dio 71.7:
The Iazyges were conquered by the Romans on land at this time and later on the river. By this I do not mean that any naval battle took place, but that the Romans pursued them as they fled over the frozen Ister and fought there as on dry land. The Iazyges, perceiving that they were being pursued, awaited their opponents' onset, expecting to overcome them easily, as the others were not accustomed to the ice. Accordingly, some of the barbarians dashed straight at them, while others rode round to attack their flanks, as their horses had been trained to run safely even over a surface of this kind. The Romans upon observing this were not alarmed, but formed in a compact body, facing all their foes at once, and most of them laid down their shields and rested one foot upon them, so that they might not slip so much; and thus they received the enemy's charge. Some seized the bridles, others the shields and spearshafts of their assailants, and drew the men toward them; and thus, becoming involved in close conflict, they knocked down both men and horses, since the barbarians by reason of their momentum could no longer keep from slipping. The Romans, to be sure, also slipped; but in case one of them fell on his back, he would drag his adversary down on top of him and then with his feet would hurl him backwards, as in a wrestling match, and so would get on top of him; and if one fell on his face, he would actually seize with his teeth his antagonist, who had fallen first. For the barbarians, being unused to a contest of this sort, and having lighter equipment, were unable to resist, so that but few escaped out of a large force.
The particular throw is clearly a Roman version of judo's tomo-nage.
So, to draw this artificial line between "warriors" and "soldiers" is a bit misleading.
Did the Romans train to fight in an organized unit? Of course. Does that mean that they didn't have individual fighting skills? No. They clearly had plenty of ability in that regard.
So many people love to play up the supposed greater individual swordfighting skill of the barbarian peoples (Celts, especially), and while their swordplay was praised in some circles, it was also criticized. Dionysius of Halicarnassus wrote about the downside of barbarian swordplay--things like "crosswise blows aimed at no target" and cuts "which were aimed too high". In addition, Polybius criticized Gallic sword design, which appears to have had a negative impact on swordplay--he commented that the slash was "the peculiar and only stroke of the Gauls, as their swords have no points". Examination of La Tene II period Gallic swords does reveal many blades with ends that are rounded or even squared off (some almost resemble later executioners' swords in blade form).
Contrast the above with what Dionysius of Halicarnassus said about the Romans who fought the Gauls--he even points out that legionaries made use of cuts to the hamstring (which later became a specialty of Renaissance-era Mediterranean swordplay). Dionysius wrote about the Romans:
...holding their swords straight out, they would strike their opponents in the groin, pierce their sides, and drive their blows throught their breasts and into their vitals. And if they saw any of them keeping these parts of the body protected, they would cut the tendons of their knees or ankles and topple them to the ground roaring and biting their shields and uttering cries resembling the howling of wild beasts.
Were the Romans "warriors" or "soldiers"? I'd say that they qualified as both.
Thus, in the final analysis, this notion of
1 on 1 PK they can not defeat barbarians.
is sheer nonsense.
"Who despises me and my praiseworthy craft,
I'll hit on the head that it resounds in his heart."
--Augustin Staidt, of the Federfechter (German fencing guild)
Rome have great army, but they are not great worrior. 1 on 1 PK they can not defeat barbarians. They beat Guals because Phanlanx and weapons. not cause of strong.
PS:barbarians always have no order. many battle they should win but they lost.
First off, the Romans used the legion, not the phalanx. Secondly, the Romans were effective fighters, which is why they managed on successfully conquering Gaul and the entire Mediterranean world. That's quite an achievement, especially since at that time, the Mediterranean was full of powerful, diverse nations. Rome was a tiny city-state, if they were incapable fighters, how in the world did they manage on occupying and maintining such a vast land, lasting for a 1,000 years? Plus, what do you mean the barbarians "had no order"? They were quite organized and effecient by the time the Roman Emprie was in decline, they arleady formed their own kingdoms, they just needed territory to secure one in. That's why they targeted Rome.
Let there be a race of Romans with the strength of Italian courage.- Virgil's Aeneid
Its basically their fault the founder of Christianity died
Funny you mention this, because many people annoyingly insist on this matter, but the fact is Christ was supposed to and had to die! Otherwise there wouldn't be any crosses on the Churches or on the necks of the believers. So if you still feel sorry for Jesus' crucification, you've got only the Almighty to blame for.
killed and crucified those who didn't believe in what they believed
Actually, they crucified thieves and such. It wasn't a matter of belief (Romans were the most practical and tolerant you can find in Ancient and Modern times), it was a matter of order and law.
[and pleas do not bring up the Hans into this, because when the Huns came, Rome was already at its weakest, the Empire was fallen apart already, but keep In mind, no Chinese dynasty lasted longer or other empires lasted as long as the Romans did, and is not including the Byzantines or the holy Roman empire.[/QUOTE]
Say sth off the topic. It is not fair to compare the lifespan of Roman Empire with any Chinese dynasty, because their system of heirdom is so different. In a view of Chinese History, almost every Roman emperor after Augustus would be a founder of a new dynasty. In imperial China, the crown must be inherited by the emperor's son or (very rarely) his younger brother, unless he has no offspring, which was scarce because the Chinese emperor usually has thousands of wives and concubines lol. In some dynasties, the crown could only belong to his eldest son. In the case that the heir of the emporer is not the late emporer's son, even he is a kindred guy, it would be counted by Chinese Historian that a new dynasty is being set up. However, the Roman emperors usually had no kin with their precessors. To compare the two great power, if you really wanna to do that, the China Empire should be as a whole instead a single Dynasty. Then the Chinese will be the winner, whose history should be from the beginning of the Qin Dynasty (246 BC) to the end of the Qing Dynasty (1911), more than two millennia.
And BTW, to my knownadge, in the era of the Han Dynasty (206 BC-220), Roman Empire was also at its height.
Some of Rome's victories belong to the very barbarians they latter fought with,and were later overun with.Rome was one of the greatest empires in history,really depends on your depiction of great.I say,they were not great.It is just an opinion.Sure,they established an administrative system still used today,and were one of the great civilizations.To me,the romans were no more than barbarious,arrogant fools.
They enslaved thousands of people,because either they did't believe in their religion,because they were pagans.Sure,I know many Empires had slaves,but these guys took it to the next level.Its basically their fault the founder of Christianity died,they had gladitorial combats,killed and crucified those who didn't believe in what they believed,also their church was corrupt.Maybe to many they were great,but to me,they were not.
However,they were nonetheless effective warriors,like most giant,longstanding empires had,and their civilization lasted for centuries.They were great,in a sense of military and administrative accomplishments,but not in common sense.
you said about the Romans is right, but you got to see is that back then thats how it was, the civilization they conquered did the same, every civilization in this time did the same.
In other words there is no good or bad guys back then, only strong guys (but there are few good people thow.)
I am not saying that was right, but thats how was
Perhaps Athens were a good civilization.
There were one other one that I know and they did not have an army, they were the most peaceful people in ancient history, but they got conquered by Sparta in a week or so.
Rome have great army, but they are not great worrior. 1 on 1 PK they can not defeat barbarians. They beat Guals because Phanlanx and weapons. not cause of strong.
PS:barbarians always have no order. many battle they should win but they lost.
Some of Rome's victories belong to the very barbarians they latter fought with,and were later overun with.Rome was one of the greatest empires in history,really depends on your depiction of great.I say,they were not great.It is just an opinion.Sure,they established an administrative system still used today,and were one of the great civilizations.To me,the romans were no more than barbarious,arrogant fools.
They enslaved thousands of people,because either they did't believe in their religion,because they were pagans.Sure,I know many Empires had slaves,but these guys took it to the next level.Its basically their fault the founder of Christianity died,they had gladitorial combats,killed and crucified those who didn't believe in what they believed,also their church was corrupt.Maybe to many they were great,but to me,they were not.
However,they were nonetheless effective warriors,like most giant,longstanding empires had,and their civilization lasted for centuries.They were great,in a sense of military and administrative accomplishments,but not in common sense.
Not really so, they did have a lot of civil wars, but you got to see that they conquered north Africa, pretty much all of Europe , and a chunk of Asia.
There were so many tribes or civilizations in Europe and other places the Roman had fought.
The Chinese in this time period were mainly fighting each other, like the Greeks city states.
there were lots of kingdoms In China, so they mainly Fought each other. And of course they did fight barbarians.
One more thing almost forgot to put is that, the Romans did not need to use walls to protect themselves from the Barbarians they crush them, only later on in the empire they started using walls on a vast scale and that I guess around when the Huns came or after.
Im putting this again: Im pretty sure that the Chinese destroyed some barbarian tried that went up against them, because the Romans have, they also conquer some barbarian tries.
Just because the Romans or the Chinese as suffered big defeats that dos not mean their army is bad, every great army has suffered bad defeat.
The Romans army were soldiers not warriors, there is a big difference.
Warriors were like Roman Gladiators, Japanese Samurais, or Celtic Warriors while the Roman Legion are professional soldiers.
Soldiers fought like a machine, while the Warriors fought on their own, soldiers were more like engineers theyve built forts trenches, ditches and other things, while the warrior didnt do none of this they spend their time perfecting there skills and not fighting as a whole. And one more thing about soldiers and warriors, soldiers were more mechanized, and warriors werent.
Im pretty sure that the Chinese destroyed some barbarian tried that went up against them, because the Romans have, they also conquer some barbarian tries.
Just because the Romans or the Chinese as suffered big defeats that dos not mean their army is bad, every great army has suffered bad defeat.
Why have the romans earned the reputations as great warriors, when they in fact constantly suffered terrible defeats? Cannae, Carrhae, Gergovia, Teutoburgerwald, Arausio, Adrianople, Sarmizegetusa, the battles against the helvetii, Arretium, Rhandeia, Hatra, Nisibis, Abrittus, Edessa, Placentia, Reims, Amida - the list is of defeats is never-ending. Most roman "victories" were in fact victories against other roman armies or against other mediterranian armies who fought in an old-fashioned way. Most times when the romans engaged in battle with "barbarians" they were bested, and the occasional victories over the "barbarians" were small and pathetic in comparison with their huge and catastrophic defeats
To me the romans were lousy warriors. Despite their extraordinary training, great numbers, discipline and organisation they were crushed. Just like the equally advanced Chinese were crushed time and time again by nomad hordes or other foreign powers. The greater the civilisation and culture are - the lousier the warriors were...
first off.
if you read history at all, all great army suffer a major defeat, that does not mean they are bad army or stock.
The Romans fighting diverse cultures. The Chinese are fighting each other much more often.
I do not understand why you think that the Romans had a bad army if they never been conquered for over 1000 years. there were the longest empire ever in history so that got to tell you something.
second off
the Romans were soldiers not warriors there is a big difference.
Warriors were like gladiators or samurais while the Roman legion are soldiers.
soldiers fought like a machine, while the Warriors fought on their own, soldiers were more like engineers theyve built forts trenches ditches and other things, while the warrior didnt do none of this major spend their time perfecting your skills and not fighting as a whole.
and pleas do not bring up the Hans into this, because when the Huns came, Rome was already at its weakest, the Empire was fallen apart already, but keep In mind, no Chinese dynasty lasted longer or other empires lasted as long as the Romans did, and is not including the Byzantines or the holy Roman empire.
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