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SUMMARY:Telum Acerrimum\, being a Firm Reply to some Outlandish Recent The
 ories Concerning the Use of Missile Weapons in the Manipular Legion - Ilya
  Berkovich (Peterhouse\, University of Cambridge)
DTSTART:20091201T173000Z
DTEND:20091201T190000Z
UID:TALK21512@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:Ilya Berkovich
DESCRIPTION:The two and half centuries of Rome's rise from one of many war
 ring city-states of central Italy to a Mediterranean Empire coincided with
  the adoptation and use of a particular military formation. The main strik
 ing force of the legions\, the heavy infantry\, was arranged into three li
 nes\, each consisting of sub-units called _maniples_. The precise working 
 of a this checkered-like formation\, where only part of the Roman army wou
 ld be engaged at any given moment\, is a source of major scholarly content
 ion. For long\, however\, the basic fighting method of the individual legi
 onary was never put into question - a rapid mass discharge of javelins\, f
 ollowed by quick advance into close combat with the sword.\n\nIn the last 
 decade this view came under increasing scrutiny\, some researchers going a
 s far as claiming that manipular tactics involved lengthy stand-offs with 
 the opponents lobbing missiles at each other\, occasionally for hours at t
 he time. This paper will rebut those claims. It will be argued that while 
 the textual analysis employed by the revisionists is not without some meri
 ts\, their interpretation of the evidence provided by Livy is taken too fa
 r. Problematic as this particular source could be\, it still unequivocally
  supports the traditional reconstruction of the manipular legionary as a s
 word-wielding heavy infantryman. Moreover\, a discussion of the size\, wei
 ght and possible employment methods of the surviving Roman equipment from 
 the era of the manipular legion\, will demonstrate that it could not be us
 ed to any efficiency in skirmishing\, but would be prove extremely practic
 al in close combat.
LOCATION:Boys Smith Room\, Fisher Building\, St. John’s College
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