Evolution of The Roman Soldier | Animated History

Sources:
Bahmanyar, Mir. Zama 202 BC: Scipio Crushes Hannibal in North Africa (United Kingdom: Bloomsbury USA, 2016).

Connolly, Peter. The Legionary (United Kingdom: Oxford University Press, 1997).

Cowan, Ross. Imperial Roman Legionary AD 161–284 (United Kingdom: Oxford University Press, 2003).

Cowan, Ross. Roman Legionary 109–58 BC: The Age of Marius, Sulla and Pompey the Great (United Kingdom: Bloomsbury Publishing, 2017).

Cowan, Ross. Roman Legionary 58 BC–AD 69 (United Kingdom: Bloomsbury USA, 2003).

D'Amato, Raffaele. Arms and Armour of the Imperial Roman Soldier: From Marius to Commodus, 112 BC-AD 192 (United Kingdom: Frontline, 2009).

D’Amato, Raffaele. Roman Army Units in the Eastern Provinces (1): 31 BC–AD 195 (United Kingdom: Bloomsbury USA, 2017).

D’Amato, Raffaele. Roman Army Units in the Western Provinces (1): 31 BC–AD 195 (United Kingdom: Bloomsbury Publishing, 2016).

Embleton, Ronald., Robinson, H. Russell. The Armour of the Roman Legions (United Kingdom: F. Graham, 1980).

Fields, Nic. Early Roman Warrior 753-321 BC (United Kingdom: Bloomsbury Publishing, 2011).

Fields, Nic. Roman Republican Legionary 298–105 BC (United Kingdom: Bloomsbury USA, 2012).

MacDowall, Simon. Late Roman Infantryman AD 236–565 (Taiwan: Bloomsbury USA, 1994).

Sekunda, Nick., Northwood, Simon., Hook, Richard. Early Roman Armies (United Kingdom: Bloomsbury USA, 1995).

Music:
Mobilize - Rome Total War Original Soundtrack - Jeff van Dyck
Barbarian Domination - Rome Total War Original Soundtrack - Jeff van Dyck
The Miner - Both Are Infinite
Truce No More - Dream Cave
Byrr - Hampus Naeselius
Soldier's Chant - Rome Total War Original Soundtrack - Jeff van Dyck
Heroes Will Fall - Bonnie Grace
Vantage Point - Hampus Naeselius
Barbarians - Dream Cave

Armchair Team Credits:

[NCRVeteranRanger]

What I find fascinating about Rome is not how much of a powerhouse they were at its peak, but how they managed to grow from your ordinary tribal society with chieftains & the like into a colossal powerhouse of ancient civilization.

We may know the Romans to be a great & powerful bastion of ancient civilization, but even the mighty Romans started out as just another simple tribal kingdom.

[bostonboys]

Interesting how the uniforms went from Greek looking, to classical Roman looking, then to a weird mix between Greek and early medieval armor. Really shows how the styles changed over time.

[nubuki]

Hearing the Rome: Total War music hit me with so much nostalgia. Great video as always.

[YoeriKarting]

I am really happy that people now see that the uniforms of the Roman Legions changed a lot over time

[lucianoosorio]

“Cause all I hear is threats from a brute with no discipline, and I’m ruling over you like a boot full of my citizens!” Julius Caesar

[TheArchangelSeth]

By 2247 AD, The Legion came back wearing repurposed Football Gear alongside improvised uniforms while Centurions had their uniforms put together from the outfits of their fallen enemies.

[brianstasko]

You cannot deny Legionary uniforms look fantastic.

[huntclanhunt]

One small thing:

The Lorica Segmentata was, according to Tacitus and other writers, considered to be an inferior and cheaper alternative to chainmail armor. That's why officers like Centurions are usually shown wearing chainmail.

[Bullet-Tooth-Tony-]

13:25 This will always be my favourite uniform for the Roman soldier. The High Principate Legionary represents the Roman Empire at the peak of it's power.

[blockmasterscott]

Love or hate the Romans, you still cannot deny the coolness factor when it came to how they looked in uniform and architecture. 👍

[stephenkenney]

To paraphrase Darwin, It is not the strongest nor the most intelligent states that survive the test of time, but the most adaptable.

This video opens great possibilities for the future with other ancient civilizations, although not all of them have a long evolution like the Romans (perhaps the Egyptians, the Greeks, the Persians and some other kingdoms of the Chinese dynasty); It also opens up medieval options such as the Byzantines and many other kingdoms that we all already know, in addition to repeating countries that you have already covered before. In any case, I'm still waiting for you to finish the series of uniforms for the modern countries, since Spain, Portugal, Netherlands, Italy, Turkey, Switzerland or some other Scandinavian and Eastern European countries are missing.

[matyeszszilasi]

When the Rome Total War soundtrack hit I felt a huge rush of nostalgia. Perfect choice for a video like this, and a pleasant surprise.

[huntclanhunt]

Limitanei are a tough one, some of their units are documented with full armor, and being more elite than field armies due to being very experienced in constant raiding.

Other units and other times they're spoken of with disdain for being a near useless police force who bullied local merchants for bribe money and wore no armor.

Really varied. A lot.

[Rasc]

What a massive jump in quality compared to the older military uniform videos!!!

[colegilbert]

I think you can really tell the difference- the Golden Age soldiers had heavy plate armour and a vibrant uniform, and the late soldiers wore more medieval and dark non-vibrant uniforms, although still retaining notable roman items such as the plumed helmet

[brymaster]

Glad someone covered this, and I hope one day most people will realize that they didnt wear that one same uniform

[hermanjeurissen]

I've always found the late roman soldier interesting, the latest culmination of the roman ability to adapt to the times

[ODST_Parker]

The Rome: Total War music is a nice touch, thanks for that. I learned most of this after being absolutely fascinated by that game as a kid.

Of course, back then I just thought of them in terms of which unit did better in any given battle, and which looked the coolest. Learning the real history in my teenage and adult years only deepened that fascination, and I still love this period of military history so much.

[ilovemuslimfood]

“Scutum”, the Latin word for shield, is where the Spanish term for that item, “escudo”, comes from. Escudo was also a name for the currency used in some parts of the Spanish Empire.