The Auxilia Soldiers of Rome DOCUMENTARY
The Roman legionary, one of the most recognisable soldiers in all of military history. These soldiers served in the Roman army all over the empire. But next to the legionary, there was another type of soldier, one hardly known to the broader public. This type of soldier at some point even outnumbered the legionaries!
Who were these unknown warriors? In this video we will take an in depth look at equipment, training and status of these soldiers in the Roman empire.
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Music: Rome Total War 1 Jeff van Dyck
Rome Total War 2 Richard Beddow
Graphic design: German Reber
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I remember reading an excerpt from a roman auxiliary's letter to his father about joining up. He was already a Roman Citizen from Hispania, but instead of joining the Legions he found a position in the Auxilia. That alone made me think they were more than their name.
If memory serves there were a number of restrictions on joining the legion in the late Republic into the Empire. Not only in terms of size and physical fitness but ancestry as well. If one of your grandparents worked in a tavern for example you could be rejected. As a great number of legionary veterans married local women and settled down in the areas they were posted to it may have been a case were their sons joined auxiliary units, despite being Roman citizens, because they didn't meet the social restrictions to join the legion.
I agree just from the way fighting style was explained here you would think the auxiliary was more effective as they were more Baylor hardened as much as I don’t want to admit it
@@silverjohn6037 yes that is also on historical record
What records?
It wasn't so rare - there were auxiliary units drawn from citizens from italy itself, as well as auxiliary units granted special status (together with immediate citizenship for all members). There's also that whole Caracalla's edict granting citizenship to everyone, as well as things like minimum height requirements for the legions. And if you wanted a cavalry career auxiliaries were the place to go as it was the only way to end up in the elite mounted guard of the emperor, sometimes in just a few years.
Usually the Auxilia gets nothing more than a footnote in documentaries so I am even more happy to learn in detail about their ways of life, warfare and their importance to the roman empire. I truly love this video and I think you chose a great setting and it was cool how you had the two different armours at hand and could display easily what the difference was. I learned a lot today! :D
Thanks a lot! We really appreciate these comments a lot:)
I read that Roman auxiliary units only earn Roman citizenship at the end of their service. Salary were half of a Roman soldier too.
@@nonye0 Aux pay was a bit lower. LEGIO soldiers in 1st century is about 10 Ases per day (DCCC (900) HS (Sestertii) per year or 225 Denarii.) What I read was AUX received 8 Ases per day or 730 HS per year. Donativos would be 20% “bonus” per year. I really believe Aux we’re not 1/5th the pay (in this video) of legionary…. That would be a huge insult. Probably 20% less.
@@Dr_Will_Tarr can u convert that to usd? no pun intended. just not sure how that equates.
@@nonye0 ancient money does not convert to current money well. You gotta look at what coins can buy in say year 100… height of the empire. The silver value today is $3. Back then, 8 silver weights equal 1 gold weight (based on weight of silver coins (at 85% purity) to gold coins) . 25 denarii equals 1 gold coin. In 1858, 14:1. In 2021 (December) it is 81:1 But a Denarius is a thicker silver (85%) dime size coin…. And is two days pay for me…. As an AUX. Denarius is 16 asses. So I get 8 a day. A woman’s “company” for an hour is 3 asses (say $100 USD). 3 asses will get you a very nice meal… steak, veggies, beer, cake… say that will cost you $90 at a nice place. A place in a inn, a room, 3 ases.. around here hotel room is $89 to $150 a night. So 9 asses is about $250 USD. So a Denarius is like $500 If a legionnaire makes 225 denarii a year, that is $112,500 a year. Not including two gold coins donative on Jan 1st or emperors anniversary each year……More gold on his his 5th year of reign, more gold on his 10th…. Best look up what thing cost… an As coin is a copper coin like the size of US gold dollar (but larger than a US quarter. I have two late Roman gold coins… 98% gold and 4.5 grams gold or about $225 melt value. Silver coins of that period are 4.5 grams 90% silver or $4 silver but 12 silver equaled a gold coin back then.
Narrator walking in full armor in the first 10 seconds? subbed immediately
Very informative and extremely well done. You've put a lot of work into your equipment and your training and it shows
Thanks, Pat! We appreciate that!
Put
This is really good. One of the thoughts running through my mind is in warfare in the 1700's, line troops were sort of like legionnaires. Skirnishers and snipers and jaegers were sort of like auxiliaries as initially employed by Rome. As weapons technology advanced in the 1800s, line of battle tactics and troops began to loose effectiveness and the skirmisher type fighting expanded until modern armies were more like mass organized skirmishers or the line of battle troops absorbed skirmisher tactics and morphed into them (?) A bit of a stretch perhaps (?)
The priciples of line warfare are still essentially the same in modern combat, it is just that due to modern weaponry and transport, having dense formations is a greater risk that expanding the firepower of an infantry until with more men. Instead it is more effective to have infantry fix the enemy and use artillery to destroy them, then using infantry to clear out the remnants.
@@vaderbuckeye36 🤔
Auxillaries had an extremely wide range of equipment and usage. Sometimes auxillaries were skirmishers (eg. archers), but many auxillaries not only fought as heavy infantry, but also had the same equipment and fought in the same way the core legions did. In the Trajan's victory monument erected in Dacia, Roman legions and many auxillary are seen wearing the same armor.
@@vaderbuckeye36 exactly. Many concepts from Napoleonic warfare have been adapted to modern scenarios. Simple history has some nice videos about it
@@vaderbuckeye36 First to OP - I much agree, interesting paralell. Although dates given are quite bad. First half of XIX century is boom and development of line troops, it's Napoleonic era. Some tactics only started then. Famous "thin red line" was from the battle in 1854! Shift started later, I would say at least around half of century or closer to XX century. Now about contemporary. I have no idea where you see principles of line warfare now, in your explanation also I don't see it, just the opposite. What you are describing is the reason for the end of line armies. The same with line fleets. I can give another analogy. It's the same as with fortifications in recent decades. We have complete advantage of explosives, firepower and other means of destruction over means to make fortifications. That's why states stopped building permanent strong fortifications, with rare exceptions, mainly of few shelters deep underground. We have a shift to temporary and limited fortifications.
I think in some respects the auxilia are more interesting than the legions they served with. We can track the evolution of the legions from the period of early Rome to the Republic and into the Empire, but the standard format of a legion may not change for decades or even over a century. But an auxilia detachment could never be considered standard as they were local or relatively local troops usually doing the fighting. An auxilia formation could be a few hundred to a few thousand, it could consist of spears or archers or slingers or fighters wielding axes and swords, they could be equipped with horses and elephants or a combination of really any one of these. It is the legions that form the hardened core of the Roman war machine but the auxilia almost always played an integral part in Roman victory
The auxiliary, where standardisrd, There where others, like mercinarys that whernt
late roman army abandon the gladius and the classic legionary armor and adopted chainmail armor, oval shield and longer sword, so the auxilia armor and equipment ended up as the standard equipment of the roman army during its late period.
Well gotta take in consideration a cheaper army due to a broken empire economically speaking
Gotta love that Rome Total War soundtrack in the background
You guys just earned yourselves a subscriber. The heart and soul put into this video both providing well spoken and organized information as well as visuals. I liked the Romans, ever since I got my hands on games like Rome total war and films like centurion and gladiator. However, I have always been drawn more to their auxiliary troops. Do not get me wrong, the Roman legionaries were beasts and they were one of the greatest warriors in the ancient world and were really up there alongside the warrior society of Sparta. But in my opinion, they were far too standardized and invested so much in their Roman way of fighting and became so reliant on their auxiliary’s that it was a contributor that led to their downfall. Which is ironic because they adopted and perfected so many good ideas but didn’t stop to think to add a little more flexibility in their armies, of course as was explained that’s why they had the Auxiliary. But anyway, I just really love the Auxiliary’s flexibility and variety. They truly were I think in an entire league of their own and if they really wanted to I think they could’ve completely overthrown the Romans if they all banded together. Whether that is true or not I leave it to the hardcore well informed historians to debate. But I always loved the auxiliary’s and felt that deserved much more credit than they were given. This video and this channel I am so glad to have came across. They have honored the memory of the auxiliary and have really brought to life one of the hidden gems of history that should really be explored more by films and games. Thank you guys for such a terrific video.
I didn't know that Trajan's column was originally painted.
Salvé! Genot voor het oor en oog. Je ziet dat er veel tijd in heeft gezeten om een goed verhaal neer te zetten en het stereotype beeld een duwtje te geven. Keep up the good work! 💪🏽
Dankjewel Jeoffrey! Tof om te horen!
FRISI E BATAVI PRIMA NEMICI E POI ALLEATI DI ROMA.....piero roma
Fantastic work from your whole team. Thanks for the great content
I came here by way of Invicta, and I'll be sticking around. You've got some high-quality content, here!
Amazing stuff man..mark my words youll be at a million subscribers in no time
Thank, we hope so :)
The details of use in regards to the spatha sword makes all good sense. Not just for Calvary use...
Thanks for the video man !
Very much enjoyed this video, as always !
excellent in evry aspect. This channel has unbelievable potential. Thank you very much!
Great video. Thanks. Historically detailed and accurate...but also a pleasure to watch!
You guys have been doing such a great work! Can;t wait for more videos from you!
Love the format
Great video, glad to see these units being covered in more detail.
Amazing quality, narration and research. Subbed! Eagerly waiting for future content. A suggestion that I would like to make is that if possible, a list of the sources and some supplementary reading material in the description box would be highly appreciated.
Thanks for the compliment! If you want to know everything about the auxilia I highly recommend 'Blood of the provinces written by Ian Haynes.
Great video and much appreciated!
Such an excellent video as always. Can't wait to see this channel blow up as it is well deserved!
Trajan's column also shows an auxiliary cavalryman coming across the Dacian King, Decebalus. In 1965, the tombstone of this cavalryman, Tiberius Claudius Maximus, was found in Northern Greece, telling the story of his lengthy military career.
Indeed! Such an amazing story and find :D
Complimenten voor een goed, duidelijk en gestructeerd verhaal. Veel geleerd van deze bijdrage, dank jullie wel!
Great video & very informative.
I love your well researched videos. Your costuming and weaponry are great.
Another excellent informative program. Excellent explanations and practical demonstrations, thank you.
Thank you for the video
Incredible. This video just keeps giving and giving
great respect for your video, thanks very much!
Ohhh now i know why there are art of Roman side with the oval shape shield, before i always thought all soldier use scutum About the armour, im pretty sure it is all down to logistics, sometime there ain't enough stuff going around to equip every single soldier with the same stuff, no matter how hard you try to standardized My guess is that there are still massive stock pile of chain mail still in the Empire and it is simplier just to keep using those
Nicely done guys!!🙌🙌🙌🙌
Love this channel! Awesome awesome presentation. The little kitty trotting around on set is a sweet add!
Thank you for this information. Once again I learn more about something I thought I knew. Well done.
I've been following you on Instagram for a while now, so glad to discover your youtube channel !
Excellent channel. Big thanks!
Great work 🥳🥳🥳 Thank you 💜💜💜
Wow great videos and most importantly very informative.
Great documentary explaining the role the Roman Auxiliaries had within the Roman Empire and the differences between legionaries and auxiliaries with respect to Roman Army standards, battle dress, and weapons. I really enjoyed learning so much about this topic in a well choreograph video! Keep up the wonderful videos!
Always good information.
Very informativa and well made video thanks for this
Fantastic presentation
This channel is absolutely brilliant, in my opinion. Thank you. I wish that I had found it earlier! Great presentation. Fascinating facts. Ancient history re-visited in top format.
Good job! Loved the video!
Well done! Very informative. Roman military history is fascinating 👍👏
This is fantastic. Your videos should be taught in schools. Also love the Total War soundtrack :)
Just discovered this channel and glad I did! Really great and informative short-form videos covering some really awesome topics. Hope to see some more soon! Cheers!
Glad you like them!
My new favorite channel!!!!👍
Man this is good stuff!
Amazing stuff!
The reason for finding less spatha could also be the fact that spatha are thinner than gladii. They could have rusted away.
Absolutely brilliant blog.👍
What a gem I found here! This and Batavi video are very well made and informative. Definitely sub. And waiting for more!
We really appreciate these kind of comments! We will be sure do deliver more awesome video's!
How does this channel only have 5k subscribers they deserve more.
Thank you very informative
What how come i just discovered your channel!! I love it
Definitely early on they were more supportive but during the late Roman empire they became indespensable and they became the bulk of the forces that saved the western empire countless times and slowed it's decline and inevitable destruction.
Invicta sent me. Immediate sub when I saw the quality of the work and care put into this.
Nice video, good job!
This is a fantastic documentary. Liked and subscribed!
I just found out about this channel. I'm very happy. Thank you.
great video very well done
Very impressive presentation on the development of the auxiliary units of the Roman Army.Thank you.Great work !
Thanks! We are very pleased that you liked it!
Very nice video, I learned a lot from it. It is interesting how the shield a soldier carried determined how he fought.
Just got a new subscriber. Love the RTW music.
Great video
What an amazing video!
Great job 👏
This so interesting to me as I love reading about Roman history especially the battles across the Roman empire, this video brings it all to life.
15:56 It could also mean that he was happy to "use up" the auxilias first, before risking the lives of the roman legionnaires, couldn't it?
No… many of the AUX units in this battle were from southern Britannia and had very personal feelings about the their time being picked on by anti-Roman tribes. They asked for the Honour to charge first and teach the mother s a lesson.
This channel is awesome 🤟🏻
very accurate! awesome job!
Very well done documentary! The weapons and equipment were top notch! Had me feeling like I was re-living a past life!
Very informative and well done!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Well done, very interesting!
you should try to do a collab with Metatron, another history youtuber that make some video wearing and using armor and such
Great video I have always been interested in the auxiliaries too
Great content 👌 👏 👍
This channel is so underrated
I'm glad that this video addresses the stereotype of legions with laminar/segmentata and auxiliary soldiers with chainmail by mentioning that legionary soldiers and auxiliary soldiers often wore the same types of armor - chainmail, laminar, scale, etc. I'd like to add that the pila can be used as a thrusting weapon and thrusting seemed to have been the primary tactic when used against cavalry. Caesar's writings about Alesia said he had his troops first use pilums as spears/pikes before switching to swords in Gallic Wars Book VII. Plutarch describes Caesar's men at Pharsalus jabbing upwards at the faces of Pompey's cavalry with their javelins in "The Life of Julius Caesar" by Plutarch. A similar description of using pila to stab at horses is found in "The Life of Pompey" by Plutarch. Plutarch in Life of Antony 45 talks about Mark Antony's legions using their pila to thrust at Parthian horses in melee. We have reliefs on Roman artwork showing Romans using pila in melee combat stabbing at Dacian infantry in the Tropaeum Traiani. And finally, Arrian in Array against the Alans (2nd century AD) talks about legionary heavy infantry equipped with an iron shank weapon used to thrust at horses.
Glad you appreciate our vision! And you're absolutely right about pila, thanks for pointing that out. We'll definitely do a video about pila in the future where we will correct this stereotype about it being solely a throwing weapon. Hope you'll stick around 'til then :)
@@ImperiumRomanumYT Awesome, looking forward to your future videos!
Looks superb guys!
extremely well done.plz do vid on trajan coloum
Very well done!
Cheers!
I need one of these golden lorica squamata, good job.
Thanks!
Enjoy your channel keep up the good work!
Thank you!
That was a great video.
Zeer goeie kwaliteit!
Great information and visual being shown in the video, can't believe you have less than a million sub.
Please keep making more content!
No worries, we are!
What a great channel!
This was a really great Video! I'm reenacting an auxilary of the middle of the 2nd century AD in small group. I still use often the gladius or my ringpommel sword.
Greetings from California, USA. Aux unit in the new LEGIO II AVG COH V. Sunnyvale, in Silicon Valley! We do Aux for early 1st and late 4th Century.
great work
Thanks!
Invicta sent me here. Man this is awesome, just subscribed. I would love to see a close up of the kit one by one as well as info on the makers of your arms and armour and other equipment.
Welcome! Indeed we will have videos about specific items of equipment, and all of them will be covered in due time. We got some ready to launch already, just need you guys to practice some patience in the meantime ;P
@@ImperiumRomanumYT Looking forward to it!
Super gedaan. Subbed
Well done!