09-20-2013, 08:01 PM
Quote:Then who were the Romans fighting that necessitated a shorter sword? Romans were fighting Macedonian phalangites, Gauls, Germans, horsemen, catraphacts, etc., with longish gladii in the Republic era to the Principate. Could the change to a shorter Mainz and later Pompeii style have been a fad? Or could it have been based off of fighting other Romans?
I thought the Romans adopted the short swords early on in the Republic. They used the short swords against all kinds of enemies for several hundred years so it could hardly be passed off as a fad. The gladius worked very well when used with the huge scutum and close ranks.
My opinion is that the Roman gladius was never their strength. It wasn't vastly superior to Celtic or Germanic swords. Their success (in my opinion again) was their organization, discipline and stubborn determination to never give up. They refused to admit defeat even when Hannibal all but exterminated them. They just regrouped and avenged their humiliation. They would spend generations to pay some one back for a defeat.
