03-22-2013, 08:46 AM
Jori and Chris:
The thread concerning legion reinforcements really helped me out when I had the same question. To us 21st century moderns, keeping units at full paper strength seems correct and natural because we were born into a culture with a long tradition of a professional military. But what makes sense to us did not necessarily apply to the Roman Republic, which until relatively recently had no tradition of military service as a career.
The gap in my knowledge at the time was not understanding that the post Marian, Late Republic Army was an institution in the midst of a transition. As you probably know, the Marian Reforms weren't the overnight, revolutionary change from a militia system to a professional army that some textbooks would have us believe. Even a generation later, legions were raised, used, and discharged as a unit, suggesting that the militia tradition was still somewhat intact, albeit for a much longer term.
The thread concerning legion reinforcements really helped me out when I had the same question. To us 21st century moderns, keeping units at full paper strength seems correct and natural because we were born into a culture with a long tradition of a professional military. But what makes sense to us did not necessarily apply to the Roman Republic, which until relatively recently had no tradition of military service as a career.
The gap in my knowledge at the time was not understanding that the post Marian, Late Republic Army was an institution in the midst of a transition. As you probably know, the Marian Reforms weren't the overnight, revolutionary change from a militia system to a professional army that some textbooks would have us believe. Even a generation later, legions were raised, used, and discharged as a unit, suggesting that the militia tradition was still somewhat intact, albeit for a much longer term.
Take what you want, and pay for it
-Spanish proverb
-Spanish proverb
