08-12-2016, 12:37 PM
Jaroslav wrote:
So no, i have a hard time believing that Romans would introduce a new system, where rich Class I (the largest per your numbers) would only send 600 men as Triarii + 300 as Equites, and would make remaining men of classes below (who again per your numbers, were together less numerous than Class I+Cavalry) to fight in a front rank..
In a previous post I said Class I was made up of both the principes and triarii. Did you miss that? Back in the 80’s while working for the government film unit, we filmed operations with the US army and the Australian army, which covered a sea borne landing of the marines. The first wave that came ashore were young kids, the second the same. The first two waves of kids merged into the jungle, took up positions and started smoking dope. But the third wave was older, and appeared better troops by their professional attitude, and they had the look of we mean business.
Nathan wrote:
Just idle curiosity - I was wondering what the source might be for the figure of 252,000 men in the 35 tribes in 228BC - I did a quick search and it led me to your own paper.
I have another source that bears the mathematical trademark found in Polybius. However, this is well outside Polybius’ time frame of writing. The intensity of this mathematical trademark is most profuse for the Second Punic War, and I am starting to wonder if Fabius Pictor is the source. However, the pattern pops up now and again to 172 BC, so I imagine Fabius did not live that long. What I am doing now, is just writing the ancient authors name and then “or his source.” So for example, if the historian is Livy, it will read Livy or his source(s).
So no, i have a hard time believing that Romans would introduce a new system, where rich Class I (the largest per your numbers) would only send 600 men as Triarii + 300 as Equites, and would make remaining men of classes below (who again per your numbers, were together less numerous than Class I+Cavalry) to fight in a front rank..
In a previous post I said Class I was made up of both the principes and triarii. Did you miss that? Back in the 80’s while working for the government film unit, we filmed operations with the US army and the Australian army, which covered a sea borne landing of the marines. The first wave that came ashore were young kids, the second the same. The first two waves of kids merged into the jungle, took up positions and started smoking dope. But the third wave was older, and appeared better troops by their professional attitude, and they had the look of we mean business.
Nathan wrote:
Just idle curiosity - I was wondering what the source might be for the figure of 252,000 men in the 35 tribes in 228BC - I did a quick search and it led me to your own paper.
I have another source that bears the mathematical trademark found in Polybius. However, this is well outside Polybius’ time frame of writing. The intensity of this mathematical trademark is most profuse for the Second Punic War, and I am starting to wonder if Fabius Pictor is the source. However, the pattern pops up now and again to 172 BC, so I imagine Fabius did not live that long. What I am doing now, is just writing the ancient authors name and then “or his source.” So for example, if the historian is Livy, it will read Livy or his source(s).
