The late republican era legionnaires will always be interesting to me, because I first began learning about Rome from Caesar's Gallic Wars and the later civil wars.
As some of you know we have been struggling to get paid sponsorships for this entire year, we have only posted two video's and the reason is quite simple, no paid sponsorships. Our video's take a lot of time to produce but as you can imagine they also cost quite a lot of money. Without these sponsors we will not be able to keep producing video's at the pace we used to, or even keep this channel alive in the long run. Please consider supporting us on Patreon, we need it more than ever. Thank you. This is NOT a paid sponsorship, this is an honest thanks to Ancient Warfare Magazine for providing us with their amazing artwork. If you’ve enjoyed this video, then you will surely love Ancient Warfare Magazine as well, or their podcast. So do yourself a favor and head to www.ancient-warfare.com and use the discount code ‘imperiumromanum’ to get 20% discount on a subscription to Ancient Warfare Magazine:)
Great work! I have always been a fan of Ancient Warfare magazine, and thanks to you guys, I can get a discount. By the way, your videos are amazing too.🎉
Thanks philly, we are still not getting any sponsors so thats the reason why we have not posted in a while, also this video is basicly costing us money :(
One of the best UA-cam channels on Ancient Rome. This and other videos provide so much more information than even some of the documentaries by other media. My only suggestion for consideration is to include non-modern, ancient sounding music. This would help transport one back to ancient times.
These videos have impressive production values, not just research but also many live actors wearing a wide range of full replica costumes. Hope the UA-cam algorithm gives you what you fairly deserve in the near future.
Thanks a lot, great to hear it's appreciated, i hope youtube will catch on sooner or later, but it seems just not all of our videos are as popular as the more "clickbaity" or "popular" topics
Very Good video. for what it's worth, I've long had a theory that Post-Marian Roman Legionaries were. overall, a better force than mid-late imperial ones, simply due to the greater amount of combat experience they'd pick up. It as possible, especially if you could wangle a few transfers, to spend your whole service in a second century AD Legion without having face anything more dangerous than a Centurio with a bad hangover. "Boudican Revolt?" "On leave, sir". "The Judean Revolt? "On detached service as a bodyguard to a tax collector, sir". "Year of the Four Emperors?" "Ah, well, Tribune, Sir, I had four Grandparents' funerals to attend that year and couldn't book passage back from Ostia in time" One minor point though, "Republican" Equipment stayed in service for decades. Even the Second centaury Adamliski Monument shows some Legionaries with oval scuta and mail alongside rectangular shields and segmented armour. and there do exist bronze/brass helmets with so many names punched into the neck guards that they could have stayed in service for over 100 years. I don't think the Roman Army ever threw anything away! BUT... GREAT video, love what you guys do!
I still think the "incentives" that makes Post Marian Legionnaries great. For the poor , landless guys , a pension in the form of a Plot of land is a great motivation!😂
If they were a "better" force overall or not is probably impossible to answer and perhaps a bit problematic as a question to begin with. Combat experience would vary greatly from unit to unit at both times and even within units, as veterans often were used to form the core around which a new force was built. Though especially during the Civil Wars of the Late Republic there were plenty cases of new Legions comprised mostly of green recruits hastily thrown into service out of pure necessity and entire Legions being lost. Meanwhile apart from the Teutoburg disaster entire Legions being lost or dissolved due to high casualties just didn't really happen in the 1st-2nd century AD, there was always a low but steady influx of new recruits in combination with older veterans guiding them on, so that likely gained experience wasn't really lost on a unit level. Simultaneously there was probably a lot more time that could be spent on selecting and training new recruits, so that the training level overall might have actually been higher. That is the benefit to having a professional military force. What we definitely do see in the finds though is that personal gear and equipment becomes a lot more elaborately decorated in the relative peace of the 1st century AD, as also alluded to in the video, as opposed to often very utilitarian pieces from the time of the Civil Wars, where a lot of gear was lost and had to be produced quickly. So instead of saying the Legionary force was better or worse it maybe has more merit to say that the character of their deployment often changed, perhaps not unlike the US military in the past decades that has become more accustomed to counter-insurgency operations than full peer-on-peer warfare and is only now starting to reorient itself. Of course in the Roman context things changed and became more unstable during late Imperial times again, with equipment and force structures changing accordingly.
1:22 the magazines really look intersting and cool :). i also like the Clausewitz magazines. but they are mostly about thirty years war, 19th century and ww1 and 2.
I think the plumage probably played a similar role to why Velites were associated with dressing in weird ways like with wolf skins. You wanted to stand out on the battlefield because you wanted everyone to know you had just killed someone or managed some impressive feat. In addition to the actual rewards a general could bestow upon an extraordinary soldier, there would also be a massive amount of social pressure to prove yourself. Particularly for the younger men who served in the front ranks.
Very relieved to see another marvelous video. I start to worry that you’re not coming back when it takes a while! The guys look great. Very realistic as common soldiers, especially since they look to be cold, unhappy, and a bit bored!
Thanks Joe, we are struggling a bit to be honest, we still don't get any paying sponsors and these video's cost quite a lot of money. We do not want to give up but we are having some troubles unfortunately... And the soldiers are not acting, they were genuinely cold hehe.
@@FelixstoweFoamForge it may have been. with the greek colonists and traders around, that and the falcata could of both been imports or just independent development
14:56 : "What awaits us ?" Me : Firing up Rome Total War Remastered with the RTR: Imperium Surrectum mod, expanding the Republic from the Latium to Hispania and India, stretching from Scandia to Syene !
That intro is so bloody smooth. Like, I have been subscribed for quite some time now but I had to share that vid and gush to my friends just for that smooth intro.
I know that the plated armor that everyone knows the Legionaries for isn't the most or longest used and not the only type of armor used but i'm a sucker for it man, i absolutely love it.
Good stuff. I would like to add that contemporary historians think that most of those reforms were done by Augustus after the Civil Wars. The ACOUP blog has a nice post about this titled Collections: The Marian Reforms Weren’t a Thing
The problem I have with this is that the first mention of the Marian reforms comes from Sallust in his Jugurthine Wars written in 40bc, 13 years before Augustus became emperor.
There would seem to be less uniformity for sure. On Trajan's column there is a scene of soldiers marching across a bridge. One of the standard bearers carries the eagle and another next to him carries some kind of four legged animal - yet totems other than the eagle supposedly stopped getting used around 100bc.
Amazing video once again! Unfortunate that one guy walks out of step on 2:08-2:14, but on the other hand I applaud the fact that you include challenged people in your videos as well!
I would love to see you do a video of the soldiers of the tetrarchy and of the civil wars of Constantine. The army of that time is quite different and I think would be interesting.
@@ImperiumRomanumYTIt would be very interesting to see something from the Eastern Roman Empire too, specifically during the reign of Justinian, and Belisarius' soldiers and bucellari(probably spelt wrong) As always, fantastic videos, cant wait for the next one!
should keep going back, and do an in depth look at polybian legions of the punic wars, then the first new model maniple legions of the 3rd samnite war and the pyrrhic war. and then the pre manipular legion as well for good measure. though you'd have to get full kit for all that, but I'd love to see it. as republican Rome in general is my favorite roman period especially the manipular legion from the 3rd samnite war through the punic wars a period which I lovingly call "mothers dinner plate" era, from the pectoral plate worn by the likes of the hastati XD
Loved the video! It's very interesting that some of the Late Republican characteristics on the equipment will be picked up again by Late Imperial equipment, like the longer spatha of Iberian origin too.
Good show.As chainmail armour had more ventilation,it was the best armour then in hot areas.In these areas,using other armour is exhaustive.Ancient Romans threw spears in unison to make them hard to dodge.
Saying that the Late republican Legionnaires weren't imperial soldiers is misleading. Rome conquered and ruled an empire during the Republic, centuries before Augustus. Older Roman historians separated the different eras of Roman history into the Monarchy, the Republic and the Principate (Augustus called himself Princeps Civitatus, or first citizen) to avoid such confusion. I don't know when or why this changed but it has been a source of confusion for many people, especially those who don't study Roman history or only have a passing interest in it.
you're right, but when making the script for such videos we always have to keep in mind not all viewers will know the meaning of the word principate, or many other words which would be more accurate in this field of work. So instead of using 'complicated' words that need an explanation, but which in itself don't add anything to the topic at hand, we try to avoid those and really limit our explanations to things that actually concern the topic of the video.
Hopefully in the future your group will delve further into the Republican Roman Army's history with some recreations of the Punic War legionaries. I for one would be very excited to see it!
For Roman history buffs, late republican legionaries are probably the most iconic. I can definitely say they are for me. It is almost a mythical period.
True the process of changing to a standing professional army did not happen over night, but. It was Gaius Marius that convinced the senate to pay for the equipement of the new roman legions, made out (mostly) by capite censi, rome's poorest citizens. Please correct me if I'm wrong.
The late republican era legionnaires will always be interesting to me, because I first began learning about Rome from Caesar's Gallic Wars and the later civil wars.
same here!
Me as well
Same here
check out sulla vs marius also quite interesting
As some of you know we have been struggling to get paid sponsorships for this entire year, we have only posted two video's and the reason is quite simple, no paid sponsorships. Our video's take a lot of time to produce but as you can imagine they also cost quite a lot of money. Without these sponsors we will not be able to keep producing video's at the pace we used to, or even keep this channel alive in the long run. Please consider supporting us on Patreon, we need it more than ever. Thank you.
This is NOT a paid sponsorship, this is an honest thanks to Ancient Warfare Magazine for providing us with their amazing artwork. If you’ve enjoyed this video, then you will surely love Ancient Warfare Magazine as well, or their podcast. So do yourself a favor and head to www.ancient-warfare.com and use the discount code ‘imperiumromanum’ to get 20% discount on a subscription to Ancient Warfare Magazine:)
Great work! I have always been a fan of Ancient Warfare magazine, and thanks to you guys, I can get a discount. By the way, your videos are amazing too.🎉
I love Ancient Warfare Magazine and their Podcast, it's all I listen to at work.
i cannot believe that such quality videos are here for free!
Love the Rome Total War music at the end.
It always puts a smile on my face seeing a new video from you. You all do such amazing work.
Thanks philly, we are still not getting any sponsors so thats the reason why we have not posted in a while, also this video is basicly costing us money :(
I can't help but notice (and love) the intro and outro soundtrack from Rome Total War. Great video by the way!
They are back ladies and gentlemen! They're back!
oh jazeker wel, maar dat mag allemaal!
Want ik kom gewoon terug hoor. Denk erom dat ik er een ben. Hoe zegt die Schwarzenegger dat aan het einde van die film?! I’ll be back
It's Britney B1tch!
Yet another wonderful video of this spectacular channel!
Thanks, glad you liked it!
One of the best UA-cam channels on Ancient Rome. This and other videos provide so much more information than even some of the documentaries by other media. My only suggestion for consideration is to include non-modern, ancient sounding music. This would help transport one back to ancient times.
These videos have impressive production values, not just research but also many live actors wearing a wide range of full replica costumes. Hope the UA-cam algorithm gives you what you fairly deserve in the near future.
Thanks a lot, great to hear it's appreciated, i hope youtube will catch on sooner or later, but it seems just not all of our videos are as popular as the more "clickbaity" or "popular" topics
I like the live setting. It brings it back to life.
Nice.
I think to show a Roman soldier from the reign of Septimius Severus would make a great counterpoint to this one.
Happy to see another upload from you guys!!
Fantastic video, great to see reenactors with accurate and well fitting equipment.
i get SO excited every time a new Imperium Romanium vid comes out
Love seeing the kit
Most underrated youtube channel!
Spread the word!;)
AW mag is excellent...thanks to this channel, i found out about it and subscribed. thanks again. бережіть себе
What a epic series and production! Nice new upload.
Thank you. This was interesting. Normally documentaries are all about imperial Rome, I need to find some on the Republic side of history.
welcome back to YT boys!
Very Good video. for what it's worth, I've long had a theory that Post-Marian Roman Legionaries were. overall, a better force than mid-late imperial ones, simply due to the greater amount of combat experience they'd pick up. It as possible, especially if you could wangle a few transfers, to spend your whole service in a second century AD Legion without having face anything more dangerous than a Centurio with a bad hangover.
"Boudican Revolt?"
"On leave, sir".
"The Judean Revolt?
"On detached service as a bodyguard to a tax collector, sir".
"Year of the Four Emperors?"
"Ah, well, Tribune, Sir, I had four Grandparents' funerals to attend that year and couldn't book passage back from Ostia in time"
One minor point though, "Republican" Equipment stayed in service for decades. Even the Second centaury Adamliski Monument shows some Legionaries with oval scuta and mail alongside rectangular shields and segmented armour. and there do exist bronze/brass helmets with so many names punched into the neck guards that they could have stayed in service for over 100 years. I don't think the Roman Army ever threw anything away!
BUT... GREAT video, love what you guys do!
I still think the "incentives" that makes Post Marian Legionnaries great. For the poor , landless guys , a pension in the form of a Plot of land is a great motivation!😂
@@Gitsmasher Yup. Better than starving in a gutter somewhere in the Sabura.
If they were a "better" force overall or not is probably impossible to answer and perhaps a bit problematic as a question to begin with. Combat experience would vary greatly from unit to unit at both times and even within units, as veterans often were used to form the core around which a new force was built. Though especially during the Civil Wars of the Late Republic there were plenty cases of new Legions comprised mostly of green recruits hastily thrown into service out of pure necessity and entire Legions being lost. Meanwhile apart from the Teutoburg disaster entire Legions being lost or dissolved due to high casualties just didn't really happen in the 1st-2nd century AD, there was always a low but steady influx of new recruits in combination with older veterans guiding them on, so that likely gained experience wasn't really lost on a unit level. Simultaneously there was probably a lot more time that could be spent on selecting and training new recruits, so that the training level overall might have actually been higher. That is the benefit to having a professional military force.
What we definitely do see in the finds though is that personal gear and equipment becomes a lot more elaborately decorated in the relative peace of the 1st century AD, as also alluded to in the video, as opposed to often very utilitarian pieces from the time of the Civil Wars, where a lot of gear was lost and had to be produced quickly.
So instead of saying the Legionary force was better or worse it maybe has more merit to say that the character of their deployment often changed, perhaps not unlike the US military in the past decades that has become more accustomed to counter-insurgency operations than full peer-on-peer warfare and is only now starting to reorient itself.
Of course in the Roman context things changed and became more unstable during late Imperial times again, with equipment and force structures changing accordingly.
If it's not broken, why replace it?
@@tkdjimmyify exactly
1:22 the magazines really look intersting and cool :). i also like the Clausewitz magazines. but they are mostly about thirty years war, 19th century and ww1 and 2.
I'm so glad to see you again
Ah Renatvs, our oldest and most loyal follower, glad that you are still with us!
Yaaaaaay new video. You guys are so awesome.
To hear that from Julius Caesar himself is of course the greatest honour!
it's great to see you back guys!
It’s always a great day when I see a upload from them!
Cheers!
Congrats to you AND ancient warrior magazine! this is GREAT!!! Keep up the fantastic work IR!
Judging by his wondering eyes, this legionnaire has clearly seen A LOT 😅
Great video guys, keep up the good work!
Haha, and it was 2 degrees Celcius so he was also pretty cold lol
I think the plumage probably played a similar role to why Velites were associated with dressing in weird ways like with wolf skins. You wanted to stand out on the battlefield because you wanted everyone to know you had just killed someone or managed some impressive feat. In addition to the actual rewards a general could bestow upon an extraordinary soldier, there would also be a massive amount of social pressure to prove yourself. Particularly for the younger men who served in the front ranks.
Very interesting!!
Many of our ancestors would have feared these men!
Very relieved to see another marvelous video. I start to worry that you’re not coming back when it takes a while! The guys look great. Very realistic as common soldiers, especially since they look to be cold, unhappy, and a bit bored!
Thanks Joe, we are struggling a bit to be honest, we still don't get any paying sponsors and these video's cost quite a lot of money. We do not want to give up but we are having some troubles unfortunately... And the soldiers are not acting, they were genuinely cold hehe.
Excellent! Love the new partnership. Keep them coming, and more on the Republic, please!
Great video - thanks very much!!
I've been waiting for a good video in the late roman Republics legionaries. Found it.
Glad to hear we could satisfy your republican needs haha
Hoera! Waited long for this. (And yes, AW is a very good read!)
Hope to see more non Roman ancient history. They don’t get enough love like iberians / lakhmids/ Parthia / sogdians etc etc
Good to see more on the late republic. Everyone goes on about the empire. Wish i could find an actual Gladius Hispaniensis.
tbh, I've always thought it was just a rather robust Iberian take on the Xiphos.....
@@FelixstoweFoamForge it may have been. with the greek colonists and traders around, that and the falcata could of both been imports or just independent development
That's very close to my current thinking.@@TotallyNotTimothyMcVeigh
Great video! Love how you brought the late republican soldiers to life!! Caeser’s soldiers!
Thanks Luis (not Luisa if i remember correctly ;P)!
I recognize the song from Total War: Rome at the end.
I was like I now these notes and put the volume one to be sure !
Really nice small documentary
awesome video. love how this was filmed, as well as the clear information that was presented
14:56 : "What awaits us ?"
Me : Firing up Rome Total War Remastered with the RTR: Imperium Surrectum mod, expanding the Republic from the Latium to Hispania and India, stretching from Scandia to Syene !
Very well done .
Love Ancient Warfare. Love my subscription!!
Same! Great to hear :)
Great job guys.
thanks!
What a fantastic video, really informative about a very little covered period, you guy's nailed it 👏 👍 😀
i love how you guys use the old Rome Total War soundtrack. Gives me a nice nostalgic rush.
We love it as well, one of the greatest games ever made!
Awesome video ! One of the most interesting periods, the transition period.
EXCELLENT! Thank you. 😃
Nice use of Rome Total War soundtracks! This channel is really impressive, thank you for making these contents!
Wounderfull video. Greeting from a Roman archeology student from Germany.
Thank you!
You guys rock!
Salve! I like your videos,good job.Greetings from Rome.
That intro is so bloody smooth. Like, I have been subscribed for quite some time now but I had to share that vid and gush to my friends just for that smooth intro.
Hahaha thanks michimatsch5862, the idea came up spontaneously and we are glad it worked out the way it did!
Amazing work!
Great video! Thanks for the hard work put in to bring this time in History alive.
You guys do amazing work.
amazing video as always!!
good documentary
Maravillosa factura. Excelente. Saludos desde España
Damn spain and their powerful, evil sword.😂
Another great video guys,regards from Moesia Superior.
Thanks Andrejapaunic!
You guys don't upload enough! 👍🏼
No you are right, that is because we are unable to get any paying sponsors:(
Another great video from this great channel , and thanks for the musical blast from the past!
Can't beat the Rome 1 soundtrack
love this channel! seeing accurate examples is so helpful in imagining
Best channel on UA-cam
Thanks John:)
Welcome back!!
outstanding video as always!
Cheers!
Loving the music from Rome 1 and 2. Great work chaps!
This is one of the best videos I've ever seen. Keep up the killer work.
Thanks a lot Peter!
Amazing! Great stuff and ost
Thanks!
I know that the plated armor that everyone knows the Legionaries for isn't the most or longest used and not the only type of armor used but i'm a sucker for it man, i absolutely love it.
Ancient warfare podcast is great too
Thanks!
Wow, no thank you Ddun3489!
Excellent Video and very intersting topic. Thank you for the Video
Lol, I'm glad that guy at the end got his cloak back
it was literally around freezing temperature, we were truly in awe of this guy haha
Another nice video, well done!
Bedankt Robert, goed te horen!
Yahoo !! Your back !! Great videos !!!!
Love it!!
Good stuff.
I would like to add that contemporary historians think that most of those reforms were done by Augustus after the Civil Wars. The ACOUP blog has a nice post about this titled Collections: The Marian Reforms Weren’t a Thing
The problem I have with this is that the first mention of the Marian reforms comes from Sallust in his Jugurthine Wars written in 40bc, 13 years before Augustus became emperor.
There would seem to be less uniformity for sure. On Trajan's column there is a scene of soldiers marching across a bridge. One of the standard bearers carries the eagle and another next to him carries some kind of four legged animal - yet totems other than the eagle supposedly stopped getting used around 100bc.
Excellent video guys. Carefully done outfits, weapons and manner with carful informative voice over.
Thanks therapier4214, we always try to create an atmosphere of authenticity and we are glad you notice:)
Honey, stop what you're doing! A new Imperium Romanum video just dropped!
Hahaha
Amazing video once again! Unfortunate that one guy walks out of step on 2:08-2:14, but on the other hand I applaud the fact that you include challenged people in your videos as well!
He will be disciplined next time for sure, thanks for pointing it out
Awesome video. I can't wait for more. Bravo.
I would love to see you do a video of the soldiers of the tetrarchy and of the civil wars of Constantine. The army of that time is quite different and I think would be interesting.
Well lucky you, we might just have something like that in our pipeline ;)
@@ImperiumRomanumYTIt would be very interesting to see something from the Eastern Roman Empire too, specifically during the reign of Justinian, and Belisarius' soldiers and bucellari(probably spelt wrong)
As always, fantastic videos, cant wait for the next one!
@@ImperiumRomanumYT🤩
should keep going back, and do an in depth look at polybian legions of the punic wars, then the first new model maniple legions of the 3rd samnite war and the pyrrhic war. and then the pre manipular legion as well for good measure. though you'd have to get full kit for all that, but I'd love to see it. as republican Rome in general is my favorite roman period especially the manipular legion from the 3rd samnite war through the punic wars a period which I lovingly call "mothers dinner plate" era, from the pectoral plate worn by the likes of the hastati XD
14:47 Soldiers in the background: He's wrapping up! Better get movin boys!
It was near freezing so everybody was pretty cold;)
Very informative, learned some new things. Good job!
Loved the video! It's very interesting that some of the Late Republican characteristics on the equipment will be picked up again by Late Imperial equipment, like the longer spatha of Iberian origin too.
Good show.As chainmail armour had more ventilation,it was the best armour then in hot areas.In these areas,using other armour is exhaustive.Ancient Romans threw spears in unison to make them hard to dodge.
Ave, true to Caesar.
I'd like to see Early Republic.
Saying that the Late republican Legionnaires weren't imperial soldiers is misleading. Rome conquered and ruled an empire during the Republic, centuries before Augustus. Older Roman historians separated the different eras of Roman history into the Monarchy, the Republic and the Principate (Augustus called himself Princeps Civitatus, or first citizen) to avoid such confusion. I don't know when or why this changed but it has been a source of confusion for many people, especially those who don't study Roman history or only have a passing interest in it.
you're right, but when making the script for such videos we always have to keep in mind not all viewers will know the meaning of the word principate, or many other words which would be more accurate in this field of work. So instead of using 'complicated' words that need an explanation, but which in itself don't add anything to the topic at hand, we try to avoid those and really limit our explanations to things that actually concern the topic of the video.
great kit and good to see.
thanks :D
Hopefully in the future your group will delve further into the Republican Roman Army's history with some recreations of the Punic War legionaries. I for one would be very excited to see it!
Glad you liked this new format and we will surely take a dive into that era:)
For Roman history buffs, late republican legionaries are probably the most iconic.
I can definitely say they are for me.
It is almost a mythical period.
Great video guys
AW looks really interesting
True the process of changing to a standing professional army did not happen over night, but. It was Gaius Marius that convinced the senate to pay for the equipement of the new roman legions, made out (mostly) by capite censi, rome's poorest citizens. Please correct me if I'm wrong.
I love your content and appreciate the amount of effort you put into your videos.
Wow, Salkvi816, this helps us out so much, everything helps so you have our utmost thanks!