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Origins of Roman Infantry Equpiment: Innovation and Celtic Influence

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Origins of Roman Infantry Equpiment: Innovation and Celtic Influence ORIGINS OF ROMAN INFANTRY EQUPIMENT: INNOVATION AND CELTIC INFLUENCE Ian A. Martin Dissertation Prepared for the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS December 201 9 APPROVED: Christopher J. Fuhrmann, Major Professor Walter Roberts, Co-Major Professor Guy Chet, Committee Member D. Keith Mitchener, Committee Member Reid Ferring, Committee Member Jennifer Jensen Wallach, Chair of the Department of History Tamara L. Brown, Executive Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences Victor Prybutok, Dean of the Toulouse Graduate School Martin, Ian A. Origins of Roman Infantry Equpiment: Innovation and Celtic Influence. Doctor of Philosophy (History), December 2019, 276 pp., 1 table, 35 figures, 1 appendix, bibliography, 23 ancient sources, 176 secondary sources. The Romans were known for taking technology and advancements from other peoples they encountered and making them their own. This pattern holds true in military affairs; indeed, little of the Roman military was indigenously developed. This dissertation looks at the origins of the Roman’s mainline weapons systems from the beginning of Roman Republic expansion in the fourth century BC to the abandonment of Western-style armaments in favor of Eastern style ones beginning in the late-third century AD. This dissertation determines that the Romans during that time relied predominately on the Celtic peoples of Europe for the majority of their military equipment. One arrives at this conclusion by examining at the origins of the major weapons groups: armor, shields, spears, swords, and missile weapons. This determination is based on the use of ancient written sources, artistic sources, and archaeological sources. It also uses the large body of modern scholarship on the individual weapons. The goal is to produce a unified work that addresses the origins of all weapons in order to see if there is an overarching impact on the Roman military from outside cultures. When one studies whence the weapons that ended up in Romans hands originated, a decided Celtic influence is easily found. That does not mean the Romans did not advance those weapons. The Romans proved very adroit at improving upon the basic designs of others and modifying them into new forms that met new needs. The Romans just did not develop their own technology very often. As a result, the Celts will exert a strong impact on the Roman military culture as it develops from 400 BC until it is overtaken by Eastern influences in the late 200s AD. Copyright 2019 by Ian A. Martin ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS No major project can be done alone. I could not have completed my educational journey without the dedicated assistance of a village full of people. As such, I would like to take a moment to thank those who assisted me in this journey. First and foremost, I would like to thank Dr. Christopher Fuhrmann. He took me on not knowing much about me or what he was getting himself into, and he gave me everything he could to help me through this project. I honestly could not have done it without him. Just as helpful were my other committee members: Drs. Walter Roberts (co-chair), Guy Chet, Keith Mitchener, and Reid Ferring. All of them contributed greatly to my finishing. I would not have been able to accomplish all the tasks I have without the input of each and every one of you. Outside the academic world, I need to thank my family for the support and encouragement given me throughout close to thirty years of education. My father, who passed in 2013, was a driving force behind my interest in history, and was a sounding board for so many ideas I used throughout my educational career. My mother provided the quintessential mother’s care needed to help me through the tough times, and my sister for helping me get away from the rigors of research and writing from time to time. No less important is my academic family. This group of people who I met when I was just a wide-eyed 42 year old coming to Texas for the first time helped me adjust and blow off steam through the entire process. They were guinea pigs for what came out of my kitchen and bar, and were instrumental in helping me keep what little sanity I have. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................................................................................................... iii LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES............................................................................................... v CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................... 1 CHAPTER 2. THE TRANSFORMATION OF THE ROMAN ARMY ........................................ 8 CHAPTER 3. ROME’S MILITARY EVOLUTION, c.600 BC-c. AD 250 ................................... 24 Iron Age Rome (The Celtic Age, 390 BC-AD 235) ............................................................ 40 CHAPTER 4. THE CELTS .......................................................................................................... 65 CHAPTER 5. BODY ARMOR .................................................................................................. 102 Conclusions ..................................................................................................................... 146 CHAPTER 6. SHIELDS AND SHAFTS ................................................................................... 148 Shafted Weapons ............................................................................................................ 164 Conclusions ..................................................................................................................... 185 CHAPTER 7. HILTED WEAPONS........................................................................................... 190 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 230 CHAPTER 8. MISSILE WEAPONS ......................................................................................... 232 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 249 CHAPTER 9. CONCLUSION.................................................................................................... 251 APPENDIX: GLOSSARY OF LATIN AND GREEK MILITARY TERMS............................ 257 BIBLIOGRAPHY ....................................................................................................................... 264 Ancient Sources .............................................................................................................. 264 Secondary Sources .......................................................................................................... 265 iv LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES Page Tables Table 3.1: Roman Military System, compiled using Livy’s Ab Urbe Condita book 1 section 43. ....................................................................................................................................................... 33 Figures Figure 4.1: This is a map begun in 2007 by the Tin (Cassiterite) Distribution Google Earth 3D GIS Project. It marks all current locations known where tin can or has been found throughout history in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa ............................................................................ 83 Figure 5.1: Lorica hamata on display at Museum Canuntinum Bad Deutsch-Altenburg, Austria. ..................................................................................................................................................... 105 Figure 5.2: Body armor. .............................................................................................................. 111 Figure 5.3: Palette of Narmer. Section B shows the king wearing an armored loincloth and possibly armored lower leg guards. ............................................................................................ 117 Figure 5.4: The Dying Gaul ........................................................................................................ 132 Figure 5.5: Ludovisi Gaul ........................................................................................................... 133 Figure 5.6: Riace Bronzes. .......................................................................................................... 133 Figure 5.7: Letnitza Treasures .................................................................................................... 135 Figure 5.8: Mogilansja Tumulus Golden Jug ............................................................................. 136 Figure 5.9: Detail from Pergamon Weapons Frieze. .................................................................. 138 Figure 5.10: Vacheres Warrior. .................................................................................................. 138 Figure 6.1: Painting from Cave 7 at Dugat in the Altai Mountains ............................................ 148 Figure 6.2: The Dura Europos shield. ......................................................................................... 150 Figure 6.3: Nola tomb frieze of Samnite warrior; 4th cent BC. ................................................... 154 Figure 6.4: Crater from tomb 1005 at Caudium 4th century BC ................................................. 155 Figure 6.5: Situla Arnoaldi from tomb 104 at the Arnoaldi Necropolis c. 500-450 BC. ............. 170 v Figure 6.6: Fresco from the Giglioli Tomb c. 300 BC...............................................................
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