Roman Soldier Essays - Military Of Ancient Rome, Centurion

Roman Soldier A. Joining the Army - Qualifications if any - Pay or benefits received - Initial training no boot camp in those days - Soldiers oath (page 6 Legionary book) B. Life at the Fort - Accommodations - Food - Showers bathrooms -Free time - No weekends off but had all religious holidays off - Religion - Temple of Mithras, he was most of the soldiers god, You had to pass 7 tests of skill to become of full Mithras brotherhood C. Duties - Sentry duty - Cooking / Cleaning - Working (pg. 16 Legionary book) - Built roads\bridges - Made tiles for public buildings - Built aqueducts - Drained marshes to build new forts on - Quarry, stones for buildings etc. - Polished iron armor and weaponry - Sweeping - Only a select few got out of bad jobs and they were clerks, cobblers, smiths D. The Centurion - Was the boss of all the soldiers who worked - Dress was much more elaborate - Carried a vine wood stick - was a badge of honor also used as a whip for disobedient soldiers - Professional\Officers -Were harsh taskmasters - Punishments - petty such as being late would be to make the soldier look like a fool and make them stand outside w/o weapons or armor to show he is not worthy to be a soldier - serious crime such as sleeping on guard or deserting resulted in flogging, rank lowered. At the time of war the penalty was death - If a unit disgraced itself in battle it might be "decimated" - 1 in 10 selected to be clubbed or stoned to death by the rest of the army - Decimation was stopped after Emperor Trajan ruled E. Family Life - Forbidden to marry - That was not strictly enforced - Was not unusual to keep wife and children in nearby homes F. Pay - Pay was low - Deductions were taken out for worn out gear, bedding food, boots, clothes etc. - Often got a bonus in pay to celebrate an important event (annual) I wanted to join the Roman Army ever since I was a young boy playing in the fields of my home in (NAME A TOWN OR CITY RELATED TO ROME HERE). My father was a legionaire in the Roman Army for 25 years. It was my goal in life to follow in his footsteps. The hard part of being a Legionaire in the Roman Army was not becoming a soldier. To become a soldier you jsut had to be somewhat physically fit and be at least 5 feet 8 inches tall. The pay for being a legionaire was also not all that attractive to me. I got paid 250(DOLLARS, PESOS, FRANCS) per month. There were many deductions taken out of that 250 that I did not like. Roughly 10 for my bedding, 80 for food and 60 for clothes. So after all those deductions I was not left with all that much. The signifer kept track of all my money and savings I had. When I first became a legionary there was no inital training or boot camp to become an official soldier. I just showed up and was given my equipment and instructed on where to go and what to do. I was given a few questions to make sure I was a genuine citizen before I could take the Soldiers Oath. After the oath I was given 4 motnhs bonus pay which was very nice and then instructed on which century I was to report to. A century is an 80 man company. Six centuries made a cohort and ten cohorts made up a legion. Living inside the fort was not all that bad. I was fed very well and my living quarters were quite fitting to me. The food I ate varied quite often. It all depended on what the men in teh auxillary killed while hunting. Most often it was buffalo which I have liked since I was a child. We all showered in a big open area made of concrete. We showered about once per week on average. The bathrooms were a large room with two long rows of benches on each side. It was a punishment if you were assigned to clean the bathroom. One of the things I did not like about living at the fort was that I got very little free time to myself. I worked from sunrise to sunset each day with