In this work, Fred Drogula studies the development of Roman provincial command using the terms and concepts of the Romans themselves as reference points. Beginning in the earliest years of the republic, Drogula argues, provincial command was not a uniform concept fixed in positive law but rather a dynamic set of ideas shaped by traditional practice. Therefore, as the Roman state grew, concepts of authority, control over territory, and military power underwent continual transformation. This adaptability was a tremendous resource for the Romans since it enabled them to respond to new military challenges in effective ways. But it was also a source of conflict over the roles and definitions of power. The rise of popular politics in the late republic enabled men like Pompey and Caesar to use their considerable influence to manipulate the flexible traditions of military command for their own advantage. Later, Augustus used nominal provincial commands to appease the senate even as he concentrated military and governing power under his own control by claiming supreme rule. In doing so, he laid the groundwork for the early empire's rules of command.

When the Roman Republic became the master of an overseas empire, the Romans had to adapt their civic institutions so as to be able to rule the dominions that were successively subjected to their imperium. As a result, Rome created an administrative structure mainly based on an element that became the keystone of its empire: the provincia. This book brings together nine contributions from a total of ten scholars, all specialists in Republican Rome and the Principate, who analyse from diverse perspectives and approaches the distinct ways in which the Roman res publica constituted and ruled a far-flung empire. The book ranges from the development of the Roman institutional structures to the diplomatic and administrative activities carried out by the Roman commanders overseas. Beyond the subject on which each author focuses, all chapters in this volume represent significant and renewed contributions to the study of the provinces and the Roman empire during the Republican period and the transition to the Principate.

In this new edition, with a new preface and an updated bibliography, the author provides a comprehensive and well-documented survey of the evolution and growth of the remarkable military enterprise of the Roman army. Lawrence Keppie overcomes the traditional dichotomy between the historical view of the Republic and the archaeological approach to the Empire by examining archaeological evidence from the earlier years. The arguments of The Making of the Roman Army are clearly illustrated with specially prepared maps and diagrams and photographs of Republican monuments and coins.

From the moment its last king was expelled (traditionally in 753) the Roman republic had to fight for its very survival. Centuries of almost continuous warfare saw Romes armies evolve in response to a wide variety of threats which were met with mixed fortunes though always with ultimate success. As defence of the homeland turned to territorial expansion, Roman forces also had to adapt to sustained campaigns in varied terrain and climates, not to mention the changes in the Roman republic itself. Michael Sage traces the development of the republics army from its foundation (having first set the context of their regal antecedents), down to the time of its most famous leader, Julius Caesar. The transition from clan-based forces, through the Servian levy and the development of the manipular and cohortal legion is examined along with the associated weapons, tactics and operational capabilities. We see how the legions shaped up against the challenges of successive enemies from the Celts and Samnites, the Carthaginians and the hitherto-dominant Hellenistic armies based on the Macedonian-style pike phalanx.

This volume addresses the fundamental importance of the army, warfare, and military service to the development of both the Roman Republic and wider Italic society in the second half of the first millennium BC. It brings together emerging and established scholars in the area of Roman military studies to engage with subjects such as the relationship between warfare and economic and demographic regimes; the interplay of war, aristocratic politics, and state formation; and the complex role the military played in the integration of Italy. The book demonstrates the centrality of war to Rome’s internal and external relationships during the Republic, as well as to the Romans’ sense of identity and history. It also illustrates the changing scholarly view of warfare as a social and cultural construct in antiquity, and how much work remains to be done in what is often thought of as a "traditional" area of research. Romans at War will be of interest to students and scholars of the Roman army and ancient warfare, and of Roman society more broadly.

Contents: Introdution. PART I: THE EARLIEST ROMAN ARMY: The military indebtedness of early Rome to the Etruscans, E. McCartney; The legion and the centuriate assembly, G.V. Sumner; The introduction of Hoplite tactics at Rome, M.P. Nilsson. PART II: THE ARMY AND THE GROWTH OF EMPIRE: Literary sources for the pre-Marian Roman army, Elizabeth Rawson; The principes and the so-called Camillan reforms, M.C.J. Miller; Roman military forces in 223 B.C. (Polybius 2.23-4), D.W. Baronowski; The battle of Pydna, N.G.L. Hammond; The Roman general's authority over Booty, Israel Schatzman. PART III: THE ARMY AND THE END OF THE REPUBLIC: Pilum, gladius, and pugio in the late Republic, P. Connolly; Studies on Caesar's use of cavalry, Pierre F. Cagniart; The army and the land in the Roman revolution, Peter A. Brunt; The supposed manpower shortage of the later second century B.C., John Rich; The Jugurthine war: was Marius or Metellus the real victor?, M. Holroyd; Caesar and the mutiny of 47 B.C., Stefan Chrissanthos. PART IV: STRATEGY AND TACTICS: Polybius, Livy, and the 'Fabian strategy,' Paul Erdcamp; Strategy and politics in Caesar's Spanish campaign, 49 B.C.: variation on a theme by Clausewitz, Pierre F. Cagniart; Roman republican heavy infantrymen in battle (IV-II centuries BC), Alexander Zhmodikov; The Roman cohort tactics-problem of development, I. Kertisz; Tactical reform in the Roman republican army, M.J.V. Bell. PART V: EQUIPMENT, TRAINING, AND THE EXPERIENCE OF BATTLE: The five standards of the pre-Marian legion. A note on the early plebeian militaria, Dusanic Slobodan and Zarko Petkovic; Roman republican training equipment: form, function and the mock battle, I.P. Stephenson; The homogenisation of military equipment under the Roman republic, Michael T. Burns; The face of Roman battle, Philip Sabin; The reality of Cannae, M. Samuels; Single combat in the Roman republic, Stephen P. Oakley; Two Caesarian battle-descriptions: a study in contrast, Robert D. Brown; Caesar's battle-descriptions and the defeat of Ariovistus, C. Pelling.