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  • 2 - Military forces

  • from Part I - The Late Republic and the Principate
    • By Boris Rankov, Professor of Roman History, Royal Holloway, University of London
  • Edited by Philip Sabin, King's College London, Hans van Wees, University College London, Michael Whitby, University of Warwick
  • Book:
    The Cambridge History of Greek and Roman Warfare
    Published online:
    28 March 2008
    Print publication:
    06 December 2007, pp 30-75

  • Summary

    The period of the late Republic and early Principate is one in which Rome's military forces underwent a transformation in almost all aspects. C. Marius, a senator, used the popular revulsion against the aristocratic mismanagement of Rome's armies, obtained the command in Africa for himself. The army he employed to win his African victories had been subject to better individual training than before. In the course of Augustus' reign, a standing Roman army was set up on a permanent basis, under the command of the reigning emperor and the direct control of his appointed legates. The legions of the Principate were equipped with 120 cavalry. In the middle Republic, each legion had had 300, drawn from the very wealthiest members of society, including senators. Octavian, Caesar's great-nephew, stationed troops in Rome on a standing basis for the first time, although both he and his successors were careful as far as possible not to offend lingering Republican sensibilities.