Eager for Glory
Page 8
A new kind of armour was being introduced at the time of Drusus’ campaign. This was an articulated segmented plate armour (plate 11).123The design comprised of several curved plates of iron or steel riveted to leather straps on the inside, allowing the plates to slide over the ones below.124Two top half assemblies of overlapping plates attached together over the shoulders with buckled straps at the back and chest, from which hung two transverse halves that wrapped around the chest and abdomen like a steel corset, similarly attached by straps or hooks and loops.125The oldest known fragments of this segmented armour were found in Dangstetten, Baden-Württemberg and dated to 9 BCE, though other pieces have been identified at Strasbourg, France and Windisch, Switzerland.126The finds were of a type that used double-riveted buckles attached to leather straps. The complete assembly provided complete protection from the shoulders down to the waist while still allowing considerable freedom of movement. It also offers excellent protection from both slashing and piercing weapons such as spears, whereas mail is better suited to deflecting sword blows. The development of the new armour may in fact have been driven by the need to better protect Roman troops being exposed to opponents in the north of Europe who used spears and clubs rather than the slashing swords in widespread use among Gallic and Iberian enemies.
Around the waist, the legionary wore a heavy single or double military belt (balteus) decorated with riveted metal plates that often featured enamelled detail.127From it several protective leather and metal strips hung down like a sporran (cingulum) over the genitals.128It was the only protection for body parts below the waist. From the balteus a scabbard hung on the right side for a leaf-shaped dagger (pugio).129The legionary’s primary weapon, however, was the double-edged gladius hispaniensis, which hung on a separate baldric usually from the left shoulder to the right side. Several have been found at sites across Europe and they vary subtely in shape and size. Widely used in Drusus’ time was the so-called ‘Mainz type’ which was 69cm long and 6cm wide. A handle of bone or wood fitted over the tang and a large spherical pommel of wood or ivory assisted with counter-balancing the weapon.130The width of the blade by the handguard end was wider than the middle section and both edges curved slightly inward along its length before tapering to a sharp point. It was primarily a stabbing and thrusting weapon intended to puncture the fleshy parts of the body – neck, armpits and abdomen – in the manner of a bayonet, but it could be used to slash and fence as required by circumstances.
The largest piece of equipment the legionary owned was a shield (scutum). At the time of Drusus’ campaign, the shield was transitioning from the curved ovaloid shape favoured by Marius and Caesar to a squarer design.131In the new version the curved top and bottom edge of the shield was sliced off. This may have been done to improve visibility for battle tactics such as shield walls or portability and manoeuvrability in the tortoise formation (testudo). In the testudo, men in the front rank raised their shields and formed a continuous wall, while those behind lifted and interlocked theirs above their heads to form a shield roof.132The curved shape of the scutum meant it could be wrapped around the body and pulled in close to protect the entire front from eyes to the knees. This posture was necessary when retracting the gladius from its scabbard, which hung from the wearer’s right side, requiring the scabbard to be steadied and the right hand inverted to withdraw the weapon. The shield was held by a central handgrip with the left hand, which was protected by a domed metal boss (umbo), allowing a full range of manoeuvres.133It was made of a relatively light but durable type of plywood in which layers of strips of wood were glued together, each layer laid in a different direction.134Linen or a thin cover of leather was glued on the outer face and then painted with thunderbolts, wings, or laurel leaves according to the chosen emblem of the legion. On the march the shield was wrapped in a protective cover, often with the name of the unit stiched into it, and carried using a leather strap across the right shoulder, freeing the left arm to carry a pole from which hung the soldier’s tools and personal belongings (plate 12).135
On enlistment, the new legionary went through a rigorous programme of basic training in marching, running, jumping and swimming, battle formations, swordsmanship and horse riding.136Drill was conducted under the watchful eye and hoarse voice of the campidoctor. Weapons training (armature) was supervised by the doctor armorum, first in the use of the gladius with a double weighted wooden sword to develop technique and arm strength, and then with the real thing.137Next, training followed in throwing the pilum, the legionary’s trademark javelin, featuring a slender iron shank with a sharp pyramid-shaped point, attached by an iron collar, iron rivets and a wooden pin to a wooden shaft.138On impact it pierced the opponent’s flesh causing injury or death; or if it pierced his protective wooden shield, the weight of the wooden shaft bent the narrow iron shank or broke it off at the collar so it could not be thrown back, rendering the opponent’s equipment unusable.
From the first century BCE the Romans employed local allied tribes (socii, foederati) to support their legions on campaign. Iulius Caesar made extensive use of such auxiliary troops (auxilia) both on campaign in Tres Galliae (58–50 BCE) as well as during the Civil War (49–45 BCE).139They continued in the service of Rome as a permanent part of the army in Drusus’ day.140Auxiliaries provided a variety of specialist skills required for specific theatres of war, such as archers (sagittarii) with powerful composite bows from Crete and irregular troops from the Balearic Islands with deadly accurate slings (funditores) to throw leaden slingshot (glandes). The auxiliaries’ basic equipment – helmets, body armour, shields – did not differ greatly from that of the legionaries at this period but many would have brought with them much of their own panoply of arms – bows, slings, spears and swords – that distinguished their mode of combat. Particularly valued for their skills were cavalry from Gallia and Germania who were known as fine horsemen. They were used as advance skirmishers (procursatores) and scouts (exploratores) for intelligence gathering as well as shock troops.141Auxiliary cavalry were organised into alae of 512 or 768 sub-divided into 16 or 24 turmae respectively.142A turma was commanded by a decurio and assisted by a duplicarius. Auxiliary infantry were organised into cohorts (cohors peditata milliaria) sub-divided into ten centuriae of 80 men for a total of 800, not a thousand.143The Cohors II Tungrorum, for example, was recruited from among men of the Tungri nation living near the Arduenna Silva (Ardennes Forest) of Gallia Belgica.144They were trained to the same high standards as legionaries and, like their legionary counterparts, their centuries were led by centurions and optiones and they marched under their own signa borne aloft by signiferi. A tribunus cohortis commanded the entire unit. Mixed units (cohors equitata quingenaria) comprised of six centuriae of infantry plus four turmae of cavalry for a total of 608 men, commanded by a praefectus cohortis.145They were often deployed for local garrison and police duties. Such a unit recruited from among the Ubii is known from an inscription dating to Tiberius’ reign.146Which units were assigned to Drusus’ command are not revealed in the extant records, but it is almost certain they were a key part of his expeditionary force.
Before embarking on the campaign, Drusus led his army in a purification rite (lustratio).147Such a scene is one of the first to be depicted on Trajan’s Column in which the commander sits on a dais with his senior officers before the assembled army to watch the proceedings.148Below, the officiating priest, wearing his toga respectfully covering his head, says a prayer and pours a libation from a small round bowl onto the flames of the altar erected for the purpose. Behind, yet prominently on view, the massed standards of the army stand upright together to receive the blessings. The officers then rise and to the accompaniment of music from the straight trumpet (tuba) and curved horn (cornu), a pig, bull and a ram bedecked in sacred dressings have their throats ritually slit in the solemn suovetaurilia by men who are stripped to their waists.149It was a ceremony performed almost unchanged for centuries before battle by Rome’s armies. With the religious rite co
ncluded, and the goodwill of the gods secured, Drusus then addressed his men directly from the dais in an adlocutio. Standing on the raised platform he cut an imposing figure in his full military panoply (plate 13) of polished bronze, anatomically modelled cuirass (thorax stadios) with a ribbon decorously tied across the abdomen over an arming doublet (subarmile) edged with pteriges; a Greek-style parazonium sword hung from a baldric on his left side favoured by officers, and silvered greaves upon his legs; a crested Attic helmet tucked under his arm and with his commander’s cloak (paludamentum) draped flamboyantly over his left shoulder and forearm.150This was his moment to harangue his men. Assembled in one place on the eve of the campaign he called upon them to abide by the oath they had sworn to fulfill the orders of their officers; belittled their enemy with disparaging remarks, and urged his men to fight bravely to bring glory to their country and their gods.151It was one of the few times he would be able to communicate directly with his men on his own terms and in so doing create a lasting impression that he was no mere privileged boy, but a man worthy of their respect.
Bellum Alpinum
The Romans named this military offensive the Bellum Alpinum (the Alpine War) or the Bellum Noricum (the Norican War).152Our best source of information on the war is Cassius Dio but his account is cryptic at best and was written three centuries later.153Velleius Paterculus and Florus, who were contemporary with events, add some important details. Frustratingly the ancient sources omit key information such as how many units Drusus led, which ones, and where they departed from. Modern historians still debate the actual route of the invading army and the discussion is hampered by the paucity of facts.154The written sources are a jumble of names of tribes and locations making a precise timeline difficult to construct and a starting point hard to identify with any certainty.155We do know that Drusus started in the south/southeastern region of the Alps: he engaged the Carni as well as certain tribes of the Norici, among them the Taurisci, and in so doing made safe the area around the city of Aquileia and its important port on the Adriatic Sea.156He also encountered the Breuni, Genauni and the Ucenni nations, which were believed to be Illyrian in origin, suggesting they settled closest to Illyricum on the southern or southeastern lowland approaches to the Alps.157Lastly, the surviving milestones of the via Claudia Augusta (the route of which connected Altinum, near present day Venice, to the River Danube) specifically acknowledge the debt to Drusus (fig. 1) “which his [Emperor Claudius’] father had made passable after the opening up of the Alps by war”.158From a logistical point of view it makes sense that Drusus would first deal with the problem on the coast and then move inland.
In planning the campaign Drusus would have relied on the counsel of his concilium, a leadership team consisting of the legati, tribunes, centurions of the primi ordines as well as the praefecti of his auxiliary units.159He would have looked to them to advise on strategic and tactical matters, especially in the light of new intelligence brought to him by his scouts who were positioned well in advance of the main column.160They would have also discussed ploys to confuse and confound their opponent to gain a tactical advantage.161As Augustus’ representative imbued with his imperium, Drusus’ decision was final; but his ability to listen and engage his officers would win their trust and loyalty. In this he succeeded. Velleius Paterculus describes Drusus as
Figure 1: Inscription from a milestone of the via Claudia Augusta credits Drusus’ war for opening up the Alps and enabling the road to be built.
a youth of as many and as great virtues as human nature can cherish, or industry acquire; and whose genius it is doubtful whether it was better adapted for the arts of war or of peace.162
His abilities were complemented by an affable and engaging personality and “his sweet and engaging manners, his courteous and unassuming demeanour towards his friends, are said to have been inimitable”.163 In the ensuing campaign, however, he would need to prove his competence as a military leader and toughness as a warfighter.
Alpine Celtic Forces
The opponents Drusus faced were tough and no strangers to warfare. Yet despite their proximity, the Romans appeared to know little about the Raeti. They were first mentioned by Polybius writing in the second century BCE.164 They were not mentioned again until Livy, who was writing his great history of Rome at the time of Drusus’ campaign and who asserted that the Raeti were actually of Etruscan origin.165 The genesis story held that they were a community of Etruscans who had settled in the plains of the Po River and were driven into the mountains by invading Gauls, where they adopted the name of their leader Raetus. The people of the Reschen and Inn Valleys certainly absorbed cultural aspects from the Etruscans who had founded cities on the Po plain to the south beginning in the sixth century BCE and imported large bronze vessels bearing images of sacrificial ceremonies. Even if the Raeti were originally related to the Etruscans, by the time of the war with the Romans they were well integrated with the indigenous Celts. The arrival of Iron Age Celts in the fifth and fourth centuries BCE exposed the valley people to new cultural traits. Along their western border lived the Helvetii, on their northwestern the Vindelici, on their northeastern the Norici, all of whom are defined as ‘Celtic’ peoples of the La Tène culture by modern historians.166 The Alps defined their identity – indeed, Livy blamed the very wildness of their territory for barbarising their behaviour.167 When not engaged in predatory expeditions against their neighbours, they supported themselves by breeding cattle, producing dairy products and felling trees for timber. Several of the valleys they inhabited were rich and fertile producing corn and other agricultural commodities, and they traded their surplus of cheese, honey, pitch, resin and wax.168
The Raeti likely shared the same social characteristics as their neighbours. Celtic societies were hierarchical and headed by a non-hereditary king (ri, rigon), chieftain (regulus) or clan chief or magistrate (vergobretos) who ruled with the aristocracy.169 Below the aristocracy, three groups of men were regarded with great honour among the Iron Age Celts.170 The Bards were singers of songs and poems who enthralled their audiences with tales of heroism and valour.171 The Vates were diviners, men who predicted the future and dealt with matters of natural philosophy.172 Lastly the Druids were the magistrates and arbitrators in disputes between members of the community and even interceded on the eve of battle in an attempt to avoid bloodshed by resolving the conflict peacefully.173 They also supervised sacrifices, both private and public. Binding later Irish and Welsh Celtic societies, which serve as useful analogues for the Raetian of whom next to nothing is known, was customary law under which each man knew his place and obligations to his kin.174
The chief – or king – was supported by a warrior class of nobles, personal retainers and freemen who in turn could be clients or vassals of other freemen.175 These clients fought for him and accompanied him as he commanded and, in return, the senior man protected him in times of need, but the bond could be broken by mutual agreement. Below the nobles the great number of largely disenfranchised common people, who could be called upon to fight at will, existed as bondsmen in near servitude.176 Prowess in fighting was highly valued by all levels of Celtic society, which idolised the heroic war fighter and mythologised its heroes in epic tales. Echoes of these have come down to us as the Irish Táin Bó Cúalnge (‘The Raid of Cúalnge’) and Welsh Mabinogi (‘Tales of a Hero’s Boyhood’).177 A Celtic boy grew up amongst men who celebrated their exploits in war, practiced continually and competed for honour and esteem in the eyes of his peers, and listened to epic songs sung by the bards. There were probably wide differences in the way Raetian warriors were equipped reflecting their means and social backgrounds. In common they wore trousers, tunics and cloaks.178 Their garments could be brightly coloured, their cloaks (sagi) could be striped or chequered, and they wore gold and silver belts and jewelry ostentatiously.179 Tunics and trousers (bracae) were made of wool and brightly coloured such as the striped trousers worn by a certain Viridomarus.180 The Celts farmed a breed of sheep th
at produced coarse wool (laenae) that was “flocky on the surface” and rough to the skin.181 They preferred large split tunics with long sleeves, though their bracae could be tight fitting.182
The Celtic flair for colour and ingenious design was reflected in their protective equipment, such as their cuirasses and chain mail shirts.183 Able to withstand slashing cuts and glancing blows from swords chain mail armour is widely believed to have been a Celtic invention dating to around 300 BCE (plate 14). A fragment from Ciumesti, Romania survives still with its chest fastener intact.184 Mail using both butted links and alternate punched and riveted rings was in use by Raetian warriors, either through their own manufacture or from trading with neighbours – or taking it from the dead as it was surely among the much sought-after spoils by the victorious in battle. But it was time-consuming to make and was unsuitable for mass-production using the means and techniques available to village blacksmiths of the day. Thus, it was likely the prized equipment of the warrior aristocracy as they were the only ones in this society who could afford to pay for it. The majority of Celtic warriors actually fought without any protective body armour at all (plate 15).185 For their primary defence Raetian warfighters relied on their long shields, which were typically made of wooden planks butted together attached to strips on the inside, covered with leather front and back with a leather or a metal trim attached along the edge.186 Faced with a thin layer of leather they were likely painted in bright colours with dramatic emblems on the front.187 They varied in size and shape. The specimens from La Tène dated to 250 BCE are 1.1 metres tall but evidence in the form of sculptures such as shown on the Roman triumphal arch at Orange, France suggest 1.3–1.4 metres were in common use in the 50s BCE. Shapes were circular, oval, hexagonal or long rectangles with rounded edges. Examples of shields from La Tène feature an axial spine, which runs down the front centerline, flared to cover a handgrip and protected by a domed boss, which could also be used to turn the shield into an offensive weapon to punch an opponent at close quarters. Celtic shields were gathered up by the victor after battle as much-prized trophies and often dedicated in temples.188