Pompeii: The Imperial Army

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The people who died in Pompeii lived in an advanced society. The Imperial army was set up to put use to previous enemies. It was also undefeated and put roman soldiers to constant training. The competition for status in hierarchy even let Rome control towns without any military enforcement. Roman strategies allowed Rome to control their towns with ease. The Roman imperial army was undefeated in any major campaigns. Records have even shown Roman feats when they were outnumbered. The soldiers’ desire for recognition and promotion played a big factor in this of course. The soldiers would charge off to fight by enemy forts afraid of what the other men would think of them. The auxiliary troops were a major part of Rome’s fighting capability. Originally, they were men from Italian allies but in imperial times they were taken from newly conquered land. It was this way that Rome put use to previous allies. They were put into small units of five-hundred to one-thousand men that could be infantry, cavalry, or half-mounted. One award to joining the auxiliary was Roman citizenship.…show more content…
Initially, basic training consisted of marching twenty Roman miles, the equivalent of eighteen and a half miles in five hours. This was followed by marching with a mass of units and physical training. Finally, weapons start to be used, starting with the sword. Training dummies were stakes drove into the ground, standing six feet tall. As training progressed, the recruit moved on to real weapons and people. After the sword was mastered, the recruit would be introduced to the throwing pole. Training in weapons continued for the entire the man’s entire
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