Roman Warfare (Smithsonian History of Warfare)
by Adrian Goldsworthy
List Price:
Our Price: $6.94
You Save: $11.01 (61%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $6.34 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions
Book Summary Information
Author: Adrian GoldsworthyEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 2005-09-01
ISBN: 0060838523
Number of pages: 240
Publisher: Collins
Book Reviews of Roman Warfare (Smithsonian History of Warfare)
Book Review: The force that laid the foundations of Europe
Summary: 4 Stars
This book is all about the history of Roman warfare. It is spanning the time period from the very beginning of the Roman Republic till the fall of the Empire, almost a thousand years later.
What is the explanation for the big success and the longevity of the successes of the Romans? What seemed to be the clue to success at the start turned out to be everlasting: First of all the total dedication to the task of destroying the opponent without any compromises, on the other side the lack of ongoing sentiments towards the once defeated which included the absorption of them, shown very clearly also in the fact that they used auxiliary forces. It went even so far that non- italian generals became emperors ("Turn the enemy of today into the Roman soldier of tomorrow").
All the capacity of the Empire was mobilized to serve the military. It was a military state. The Romans acquired the best weaponry, they had a well organized logistic support (which alone can stand for winning wars!), they had the most effective training which became over the years a highly professional affair and what was most decisive, they had the best tactics in uniform with a functioning discipline. And not least: "The Roman military system was characterized by its flexibility." Flexibility being a skill that later showed to be so decisive in Napoleons victories and the German "Blitzkrieg" troops (both Napoleon and the Nazis interstingly used Roman symbols!).
In fact there is almost nothing in modern armies of today that had not a forerunner and model in the Roman army (drill and clearly defined unit organization and command structure).
It were the Roman armies who laid the foundations of modern Europe more than Roman laws and education or whatever Latin input. Roman politics and warfare was closely connected. The right to exercise power in peacetime was purchased by the obligation to provide successful leadership in war. Even the word imperator means general.
The origins of the army in a citizens` militia, in which the whole community served in differing capacities according to their age and status, left a sense of shared endeavour. They fought, so to speak, for their own interests.
The Roman practise to turn defeated enemies into subordinate allies meant to use the resources of the conquest. But in the end it could have contributed to the fall of Rome.
Because too many non-italians became "Romans". Such in the case of Arminius who was a Germanic General in the Roman army. He organized the exterminating defeat of three Roman legions. This lead to the abandoning of the plans to conquer the land east of the Rhine from which later the fall of the Roman Empire was enforced, but from where also people invaded who later formed the French and English nations.
Roman rule was imposed and maintained by force, but it inaugurated in most areas periods of peace and prosperity far greater than was enjoyed in the centuries before or after the Empire.
There are too many aspects of Roman warfare that they could all be treated in detail in this volume. Therefore the author has tried to trace the development of warfare within the context of the evolution of the army and state, or at least those aspects of politics and society connected with the military. The nature of the army, why and with what objectives it fought a war, and the way in which it operated are discussed for each period and placed in the context of the military institutions of the main opponents.
Aspects as equipment, career and service patterns, daily routine, administration of the provinces, layout of forts and bases are only dealt with briefly. But every chapter of the book has a bibliography list about works that deal with these issues. This book can serve as a starting point for more study into any more specific topic. There is even a section listing Greek and Latin sources.
The book contains a chronology of events in short, then it goes on with chapters about Early Rome and the Conquest of Italy. In this period a nation established. The second chapter is about the wars with Carthage and the Hellenistic kingdoms which assured the Roman supremacy over the Mediterranean Seas and the most competitive opponents all around.
The third chapter is on the "world conquest" which means the conquest of the known "civilized" world (the countries around the Mediterranean Seas including Egypt, Syria, Gaul, Spain, Northern Africa) till the day of the first emperor Augustus with the "disaster in Germany (that) marked the end of the great period of Roman expansion." Following are the chapters about consolidation and control of the "World", about crisis and reforms, the collapse in the West and the Recovery in the East.
It should not be forgotten that the eastern "Roman Empire" had to live on till the 15.th century with the capital of Constantinople, until the Turks ended it, while Charlemagne was the first Germanic king who was crowned "Roman Emperor" some 300 years after the fall of the western Roman Empire to revive a so called successor "Roman Empire". This lasted one thousand years till the times of Napoleon in a succession of German kings crowned by the Pope to be "Roman" emperor. But that was politics and symbols.
There are helpful maps for every period of time. The photos are just good for breaking up the text. The text is apparently written from an expert. This book is good for what the author destined it.
Summary of Roman Warfare (Smithsonian History of Warfare)
The Roman Army was the most advanced professional fighting force the world had ever seen. What distinguished the Roman Army from its opponents was the uncompromising, total destruction of its enemies. The Romans' ruthless approach to warfare eventually created an empire that included much of Europe, the Near East, and North Africa. This authoritative history narrates the dramatic rise and fall of the Roman Empire, a journey author Adrian Goldsworthy traces with colorful anecdote and rich illustration.
- From the origins of Rome and the conquest of Italy to the great era of world conquest and empire
- The epic wars with Carthage and the Hellenistic world
- Periods of crisis and instability within the growing Roman Empire
- The eventual collapse of the Roman Empire in the West and its resurgence in the East
Rome Books
Book Subjects
- Arts & Photography
- Audiobooks on Cassette
- Audiobooks on CD
- Biographies & Memoirs
- Business & Investing
- Children's Books
- Comics & Graphic Novels
- Computers & Internet
- Cooking, Food & Wine
- e-Books
- Engineering
- Entertainment
- Gay & Lesbian
- Health, Mind & Body
- History
- Home & Garden
- Horror
- Law
- Literature & Fiction
- Medicine
- Mystery & Thrillers
- Nonfiction
- Outdoors & Nature
- Parenting & Families
- Professional & Technical
- Reference
- Religion & Spirituality
- Romance
- Science
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Sports
- Teens
- Travel
Most talked about in Smithsonian History of Warfare
The Second World War in the Far East (Smithsonian History of Warfare)by H. P. Willmott
Smithsonian Books; Published: 2004-09-30; Paperback; Book
Best price: $9.49
Price in other shops:
The Second World War in Europe (Smithsonian History of Warfare) (Smithsonian History of Warfare)by Charles Messenger
Collins; Published: 2006-09-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.02
Price in other shops:
War in the Air 1914-45 (Smithsonian History of Warfare)by Williamson Murray
Collins; Published: 2005-09-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $5.28
Price in other shops:
The First World War (Smithsonian History of Warfare)by Robin Prior, Trevor Wilson
Collins; Published: 2006-09-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $13.46
Price in other shops:
Wars of National Liberation (Smithsonian History of Warfare)by Daniel Moran
Collins; Published: 2006-05-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $1.69
Price in other shops:
War at Sea in the Ironclad Age (Smithsonian History of Warfare)by Richard Hill
Collins; Published: 2006-05-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.98
Price in other shops:
The Wars of Empire (Smithsonian History of Warfare)by Douglas Porch
Collins; Published: 2006-02-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.24
Price in other shops:
The Civil War and the Wars of the Nineteenth Century (Smithsonian History of Warfare)by Brian Holden Reid
Collins; Published: 2006-02-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $5.63
Price in other shops:
The Napoleonic Wars (Smithsonian History of Warfare)by Gunther Rothenberg
Collins; Published: 2006-02-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $5.75
Price in other shops:
War at Sea in the Age of Sail (Smithsonian History of Warfare)by Andrew Lambert
Collins; Published: 2005-09-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.48
Price in other shops:
Similar Books and other products
Roman Legionary 58 BC-AD 69by Ross Cowan
Osprey Publishing; Published: 2003-06-20; Paperback; Book
Best price: $10.09
Price in other shops:
Augustus: The Life of Rome's First Emperorby Anthony Everitt
Random House Trade Paperbacks; Published: 2007-10-09; Paperback; Book
Best price: $9.68
Price in other shops:
The Wars of Empire (Smithsonian History of Warfare)by Douglas Porch
Collins; Published: 2006-02-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.75
Price in other shops:
The Renaissance at War (Smithsonian History of Warfare)by Thomas Arnold
Collins; Published: 2006-05-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.99
Price in other shops:
Caesar's Legion: The Epic Saga of Julius Caesar's Elite Tenth Legion and the Armies of Romeby Stephen Dando-Collins
Wiley; Published: 2004-09-27; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.94
Price in other shops:
The Napoleonic Wars (Smithsonian History of Warfare)by Gunther Rothenberg
Collins; Published: 2006-02-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $5.75
Price in other shops:
Caesar: Life of a Colossusby Adrian Goldsworthy
Yale University Press; Published: 2008-01-28; Paperback; Book
Best price: $10.96
Price in other shops:
Wars of the Ancient Greeks (Smithsonian History of Warfare)by Victor Davis Hanson
Collins; Published: 2006-12-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.50
Price in other shops:
Roman Battle Tactics 109BC-AD313 (Elite)by Ross Cowan
Osprey Publishing; Osprey Publishing; Published: 2007-07-24; Paperback; Book
Best price: $10.80
Price in other shops:
The Complete Roman Armyby Adrian Goldsworthy
Thames & Hudson; Published: 2003-10-27; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $23.22
Price in other shops: