Decimation

[fhaggis]

How often was decimation actually carried out? and was it always the same procedure?

As far as I know they would break the limbs first, so that they would die quicker. Was this actually waht was done?

Cheers

Francis

[Matthew Amt]

Decimation was very rare. I think Crassus was the last or at least one of the last to inflict it, in his case on a legion that had fled in battle from Spartacus' rebel force. I don't know if the exact procedure is known, though I'd be surprised if it was the same every time.

Never heard of breaking the limbs--are you thinking of crucifixion? In that case, breaking the legs could be done to get the victim to die more quickly, but I expect that wasn't very common, either, since the whole point of crucifixion is a really ingeniously slow and painful death!

Decimation was probably done with clubs, with 9 men clubbing the lucky tenth one.

Sleep tight!

Matthew

[PhilusEstilius]

Francis. I think the last I know of was Germanicus in 14 AD or 15 when the armies of the Rhine went into revolt at the advent of Tiberius, the problem was some soldiers had spent more than their 25 yrs in service at that time and many others would not swear the oath to Tiberius in 14 AD. Germanicus was sent to deal with these problems and knowing the Roman Empire this was the way it had to be dealt with for mutiny cannot be tolerated.

[lucius Gellius cuniculus]

Hi Francis ,
I recommend reading the excellent book " roman military service- ideologie of Discipline in the late republic and early principate " - S.E. Phang - Cambrige university press-2008. You 'have the answer to your question in this book and all kind of roman army punishmements description: decimation, corporal punishment, the jurist and military punishments, shaming punishments...

Somme examples of the rare decimations during republic:

Appius Claudius (471 BC)
Crassus (decimated 500 soldiers!)
Mark Antony

During the empire, its become very unusual but there are some examples :

Galba (decimated sailors)
Macrinus

[Jona Lendering]

As far as I know they would break the limbs first, so that they would die quicker.

I think that was a procedure during a crucifixion.

[fhaggis]

Did Caesar not decimate one of the Spanish legions?

The breaking of the limbs i th ink i may have took from a novel i read, i know that this doesn't prove anything etc but i assume the author hasd some sort of source.

cheers

Francis

[M. Demetrius]

i assume the author hasd some sort of source

Not always. Fiction is just that, and sometimes a writer has done inadequate research. All other writers on the forum can attest to that, I'd bet. How many times do we see something in a book, television program, or movie, and say, "Why didn't they ask somebody about that? We know that wasn't how it was."

[Jona Lendering]

i assume the author hasd some sort of source

Not always. Fiction is just that, and sometimes a writer has done inadequate research. All other writers on the forum can attest to that, I'd bet. How many times do we see something in a book, television program, or movie, and say, "Why didn't they ask somebody about that? We know that wasn't how it was."

Unfortunately, that's not just true about fiction. I am currently writing a book about common mistakes about Antiquity in non-fiction books. The alphabet was invented by the Phoenicians, there were camels in Judaea, the Roman Empire had its largest expansion under Trajan, Archimedes used burning mirrors to destroy Roman ships, the rowers of galleys were slaves, Carrhae was in the desert, our democracy is a Greek invention, there were Celts living in Britain, pagans were more tolerant than monotheists - that kind of stuff. All taken from serious non-fiction books.

[M. Demetrius]

Didn't seem to be much "tolerance" for Christians under Decius.

Don't forget the amazing tales of hooks and loops on the sides of Roman rectangular shields so they could lock them into shield walls. Where the swords were supposed to go would be a mystery, I guess. I've heard that from very authoritative-sounding people. And that they would fight so close together that one man might hit his hand on his neighbor's shield during a battle. Sigh.

[Gaius Julius Caesar]

Also, I would not say I got the idea of Democracy being a greek idea an nvention I have picked up from Novels......Whos idea was it?
Certainly the modern convention of democracy had been adapted over the years, but it has its root in ancient greece.