(Late) (Roman) Formations

[Salvianus]

And yes, the "treat" is nice, demonstrating just how slick a changeover of lines (albeit in open order) can be, even in contact !

Ah, I hadn't appreciated that they were in "open order" (6' each). I had thought they were in "open order" in their six lines and move to "order" (not quite "rim to rim" with those shields) when they compressed to two lines. I had assumed they were having to turn their shields to let the relieving rear rank through :?

In fact (& I can't believe I just calculated this - you can tell I'm on holiday & missing teaching problem solving! :roll: ) if they started with 12 files 6' apart, dismissed half & then compressed the 36 left into two lines of the same frontage: 72'/18 = 4' each. Perhaps they started closer: 5' would close to 3'4".

Whatever the actual starting width, by putting 18 officers into the frontage originally used by 12, they ended up with 2/3 of the original width each, rather than halving it - clearly an adaptation from the classical system, perhaps specifically to allow their interchange? Perhaps it facilitates their 'shield as a weapon' tactic? Certainly the first clips of them in action show them advancing in a close line, but not as a shield wall with shields rim to rim, like the British Police at Orgreave. Please excuse the digression...

I completely agree that they didn't get into what I'd call "close order" (18", or what Regia calls "boss to boss" for meeting another shield wall). I'd love to see it from a 'protesters eye view'. But only at the display ground