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gladius and physical training
#1
Hi, im new to the site but have a great interest in ancient and medieval warfare, im an ex-soldier so like a good film-war, book-war, in fact almost anything to do with warfare. I have recently purchased a training gladius from coldsteel, looks and feels great. I am interested in traing techniques and physical training in general in connection with the roman legionary in-particular, any ideas, comments and advice would be very gratefully recieved. cheers.Steve.
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#2
Advice from an arm-chair historian who has not tried using a gladius against anything more dangerous than a cardboard box.

Find as many images of Romans in battle as possible. Preferably ancient images, or modern images based (more strictly) on these.

Gladiatorial mosaics were quite the fashion in the Empire, and you might learn tips about how to use your gladius. There are also graffiti, oil lamp decorations, and similar, which show stances and fights. Look at the Trajan's Column, Marcus Antonius' Column, and various other friezes were combat are depicted and find out what is going on, filtred through the limitations and the needs of the artists as these columns are.

There is, to my knowledge, no "Manual for the Drill Optio" which has survived. The closest would be Vegetius' study, in particular his point about training against a wooden post.

Check sources Frontinus' Strategmata, and the passages were apparently lax armies were brought up to standard by forcing them to dig canals etc; under Drusus, under Corbulo, and others; built camps, tear them down, and force-march 30 miles a day with 30 kg. on your back: if that's not physical training...

Whether there were any physical exercises to "warm up" for combat training or to develop the correct muscles, I don't know.

Not restricted to to the military, look at some of the sports. Pancratio, a type of boxing with next to no rules, ball games with hard balls, Wrestling, running, and whatever the girls on the famous Bikini mosaic from Piazza Armerina are doing, all that could be used as physical training to some extend. I cannot remember any from a military context, but at least wrestling and pancratio seems to be not too far fetched.
M. Caecilius M.f. Maxentius - Max C.

Qui vincit non est victor nisi victus fatetur
- Q. Ennius, Annales, Frag. XXXI, 493

Secretary of the Ricciacus Frënn (http://www.ricciacus.lu/)
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#3
If you want to learn correct swordsmanship, try running a search for ARMA or AEMMA in your area.

Otherwise as M.Caecilius stated, there aren't really any surviving training manuals for legionaries.
____________________________________________________________
Magnus/Matt
Du Courage Viens La Verité

Legion: TBD
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