Winter Clothing in 1st century AD legionary re-enactment

[Gaius Colletti]

Well Matt, thirty years may not seem like much to you but don't forget that that is more than the full term of service for most Roman soldiers, even those who had to remain in for an extra year. A lot can change in that time. But then, if you are going to see thirty years as little or nothing, then how about two hundred? From 107BC onwards the Romans had fought against the Cimbri and the Teutones. Someone at least amongst these must have been wearing trousers. Could not the Romans have seen them then and thought: 'what a good idea - let's start wearing them ourselves'? Or we could go back further. The Persians had been wearing trousers as least as far back as the fifth century BC. The Greeks had encountered them during the Persian Wars but don't seem to have had any inclination to jump into trousers, despite it getting quite cold in some parts of Greece in the winter. The Romans would have been well aware of the Persians during that period and certainly had encountered them themselves and seen them wearing trousers by the early first century BC.
There were also the provinces of Narbonensis and Cisalpine Gaul, as well as the very cosmopolitan city of Massilia in southern Gaul.
Therefore, the Romans had been surrounded by people wearing trousers for centuries, yet there is absolutely zero evidence for them adopting them themselves at any time before Trajan's Dacian campaigns. As I have already said above, it is entirely possible that they were wearing them prior to the Dacian Wars but the evidence is lacking.

Therefore (and I repeat myself here but it is worth saying again), if you argue in favour of legionaries in trousers prior to the early second century AD without evidence to back yourself up, you are giving the same value to the possible but unproven as you do to the absolutely certain. This is not good historical method and lacks rigour. If I had tried to argue that way when I was at university I would have earned myself a lot of angry red ink and would almost certainly have earned lower grades.


As a side question, have you tried wearing a cloak, extra tunic, socks and lower leg coverings in cold weather yourself? Those of us who have, find little problem with that level of cold weather protection.

Crispvs

I don't disagree with you Paul, we can't go just throwing out our own preconceptions as the truth. I actually have tested out my thin sagum and towels around my legs. It wasn't so bad, but I can't say if was more efficient. A good chunk of the army spent their share and then some outside, and 8 men in a tent isn't exactly "indoors" lol.

I'm arguing about nit picking a reenactor wearing pants in 70 AD, yes I would NEVER write a book or tell an audience that "We know the Romans used pants at least 30 years before Trajan", I may say "We don't have evidence that pants were used until 100 AD, but I do use them with my 70 AD impression, also leg wraps and cloaks were used to...."

I just find it a little irritating that justify a reenactor wearing a Gallic A through the 3rd quarter or the first century, or using a giant scutum from the 3rd century, but we draw the line at a reenactor wearing pants? Which this thread originated from if I recall correctly, via the "Show us your Roman Impression" thread