There were several different types of Roman mili-tary instrument, which were used for giving various signals and were all valveless. The cornu was a large curved instrument, played by a cornicen, similar to a French horn. The tuba was a long trumpet over 1 m (3 ft 3 in) long and was played by a tubicen. These 2.9 Reconstruction (by the Ermine Street Guard) of
a catapulta bolt-firing machine.
2.10 Reconstruction (by the Ermine Street Guard) of an onager stone-throwing machine. On its right is a catapulta.
two instruments were used for giving commands, whereas the bucina and lituus were probably for cere-monial occasions. The bucina (played by a bucinator) was possibly a trumpet or horn, while the lituus was an elongated J-shaped instrument.
Transport
Chariots were known from the 7th century BCbut were never used by the Romans in battle, only in tri-umphal processions. However, peoples such as the Celts used chariots against Roman forces in battle.
On the march, much equipment was carried by mules in long baggage trains. From the time of
Mar-ius, legionaries carried much more of the equipment on their backs, so reducing the size of baggage trains, which slowed down the army on the march. This earned the soldiers the nickname of “Marius’s mules.”
Mules now carried tents and surplus baggage, while the legionaries carried their weapons and some other equipment. Their shields hung from their left shoul-ders and they carried javelins and palisade stakes for overnight camps. They marched bareheaded, with their helmets strapped to their right shoulders, but were otherwise fully armed. Over their left shoulder, each legionary carried a pole with a crossbar at the top to which his luggage was tied. Among the main luggage was a bronze mess tin (patera), cooking pot or bucket and a leather bag with a handle for clothes and personal belongings. A sack at the top probably
2.11 Scenes on Trajan’s Column showing preparations for the Dacian wars. Bottom frieze: [left] a harbor town and port with boats on the Danube; [center] river god Danuvius; [right] legionaries carry their equipment and march out of a fort or town gate over a pontoon bridge. Upper frieze: [left] Trajan addresses legionaries and auxiliaries; [center and right] legionaries build a fort of turves with timber walkways, while two auxiliaries remain on guard.
held emergency rations for three days. In the 4th century the comitatenses had to carry rations for 20 days. Tools also had to be carried, including a saw, basket, pickaxe (dolabra), sickle, leather strap and chain, and sometimes an entrenching tool or turf cutter and double-ended wooden stakes (erroneously called pila muralia) around 2m (6 ft) long that were possibly used as a portable obstruction in front of ramparts. It is likely that not every legionary carried every tool.
Normally soldiers would march about 30 km (18 miles) a day, but up to 50 km (30 miles) was common under forced marches. For crossing rivers, a bridge of boats or timber piles could be used. (See chapter 5.)
Standards
The standards were symbols identifying individual units. They also provided a rallying point during bat-tle. It is therefore likely that the Roman army employed some kind of standard from earliest times.
According to Pliny the Elder, when Marius reformed the legionary standards in 104 BC, a variety already were in use, with images of an eagle, wolf, minotaur, horse and boar. Marius kept the eagle as the legionary standard and abolished the others, although standards still identified subunits within legions. By the time of Julius Caesar, each legionary eagle standard (aquila) was made of silver and gold. It was the special respon-sibility of the primus pilus and never left camp unless the whole legion was on the move.
During the empire, the eagle was made entirely of gold, and each legion also had a portrait of the emperor (imago). There were also flags (vexilla) of Celtic origin, one of which belonged to the legion while others were used by detachments (vexillationes) serving away from the legion. The legion could also have a specific emblem, often a sign of the zodiac, which was usually connected with the origin of the legion or an incident in its history. Within the legion, each century had an individual standard called a signum (pl. signa). The standard of the Praetorian Guard carried images of the emperor and his family, crowns and victories.
Within the auxiliary cavalry, each ala had its own flag (vexillum), and each turma had a standard.
The standards were very important to the army.
As cult symbols they were worshipped at various times during the year. In a fortress they were kept in a shrine in the principia, and if the standards were lost during a campaign, the unit suffering the loss might be disbanded.
H ONORS
Decorations
A system of rewards to the army gradually developed (parallel with a system of punishment). Initially rewards were a share of the spoils, a system that was widely used in the republic.
Military decorations (dona militaria) are recorded from the mid-5th century BCto the early 3rd century
AD, although a few examples are known after this date.
They could be awarded to soldiers who were citizens.
A whole range of decorations existed depending, in the republic, on the deed performed. In the empire awards were standardized according to rank, except for the corona civica. By the 1st century BCthere were several types of crown. The corona obsidionalis (siege crown) was the highest honor, given for raising a siege.
It was made of grass or other vegetation from the area of the siege. The corona civica (civic crown) was next in importance, awarded for saving the life of a citizen. It was made of oak leaves and was sometimes known as the corona querca (oak crown). It was adopted as an imperial emblem, frequently appearing on coins.
The corona muralis (mural crown) was a gold crown ornamented with battlements, awarded for being the first to gain entry to a besieged town. The first to gain entry to an enemy camp was awarded the corona vallaris (rampart crown), made of gold ornamented with a rampart. The gold corona navalis (naval crown, also called the corona classica or ros-trata), was awarded in the empire to men of consular rank, and no longer had any connection with the sea.
There was also a corona aurea (gold crown).
Other awards included pairs of gold torques (neck rings), armlets (armillae) and phalerae, which were gold, silver or bronze discs decorated in high
relief with mythological creatures. Phalerae were awarded in sets, usually nine, and were worn over the chest on a leather harness. The vexillum (flag) was also given as a decoration and was awarded to senior officers. It may have been an exact replica of the legionary and auxiliary vexillum, although some were silver copies. The hasta pura (ceremonial spear) was awarded for wounding an enemy in single com-bat. It appears to have resembled a spear with a small head, but its precise nature is uncertain.
It was rare for individual auxiliary troops to win military decorations, although whole units could be honored, and even granted immediate citizenship as a reward.
Triumphs
Triumphs were the celebratory procession of a victo-rious general and were the highest military honor of a general. They were Etruscan in origin and were guided by strict religious rules. The general had to hold a magistracy with imperium (not a prerequisite later on), to have won a decisive victory over a foreign enemy with over 5,000 of the enemy killed and to have brought home at least a token army. Although not common, 100 triumphs were held between 220 and 70 BC. The Senate had to allow the victorious general (triumphator) to retain his imperium inside Rome for one day, which he entered on a gilded char-iot drawn by four horses, with a procession of magis-trates, senators, soldiers, spoils, prisoners and sacrificial animals. The spectacular procession started in the Campus Martius, outside the city, to the Capi-tol, where a sacrifice was made at the temple of Jupiter Capitolinus, and one or more prisoners were executed.
If a triumph was not allowed, an ovatio (ovation) was usually granted. This was less spectacular than a triumph, and the general entered Rome on foot or horseback (not chariot), wearing the toga praetexta and wreathed in myrtle. The use of the ovatio was sporadic, last recorded in 47.
Triumphs by generals outside the imperial family were forbidden by Augustus and by subsequent emperors because of the attention paid to one par-ticular military person.
Triumphal arches were also erected to commem-orate victories. (See chapter 4.)