Question about a Roman internet site.

[rekirts]

www.roman-empire.net has a lot of interesting information on it, but I can't find anything that indicates where all the information comes from. I don't know the qualifications of the webmaster or his sources.<br>
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Is anyone here familiar with the site?<br>
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Wendy <p></p><i></i>

[richsc]

I've seen that before, and the webmaster looks like a real enthusiast, though I dont' see his/her name.<br>
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But, look at this reenactment by the XIIII GMV (RMRS) and particularly the 'anti-cavalry' formation.<br>
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www.cavazzi.com/roman-emp...aries.html<br>
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And, all the equipment. Who is that 'designer' of their ballista? Len Morgan? Worth a look. <p>Richard Campbell, Legio XX.
http://www.geocities.com/richsc53/studies/ </p><i></i>

[Thiudareiks Flavius]

I know the site and post regularly on its bulletin board. "The Webmaster", as he calls himself (not sure of his real name) is an amateur enthusiast who has done a monumental job of putting almost all of the information on the site together himself. The good thing about that site is the breadth of the information available and its usefulness as a resource for quick reference or as a starting point for beginners.<br>
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But this also means that the specialist either won't find the information they need there or will find the information available there either over simplistic or perhaps dated. Personally, I find some of the stuff there about the fall of the Empire simplistic and dated to the point of being erroneous - placing too much emphasis on "rampaging barbarians" sweeping into the Empire in "vast numbers". On the site's bulletin board I've long argued that the barbarians were a symptom of the Empire's decline, not its cause, and that their numbers were actually extremely small.<br>
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Similarly, the site had an article on the Battle of Adrianople which perpetuated the idea that it was a victory of "heavy cavalry" over infantry, rather than the substantially infantry vs infantry affair it actually was. This led to some long and repeated debates about this battle on the bulletin board and I notice the Webmaster now has an addendum on that article stating the more up-to-date view as "another perspective".<br>
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If you are a beginner or are looking for a resource to recommend to a beginner, then it's a useful site. There are some knowledgeable people who are regulars on its bulletin board, but some others have an enthusiasm for Roman history which isn't matched by their knowledge and some of the naive beginner's questions which get asked there can get answers which range from vague to wildly incorrect.<br>
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It's a good beginner's site and something of a favourite with High School students looking for information to regurgitate in assignments.<br>
Cheers,<br>
<p>Tim O'Neill / Thiudareiks Flavius
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<P>
Visit 'Clades Variana' - Home of the Varus Film Project<BR>
Help create the film of Publius Quinctilius Varus' lost legions</p><i></i>