Roman Military Project
Due: 2/4/2010
Points: 80
Introduction
You group will present a lesson to the class on one of the following topics which concern
the Roman military.
1) You will instruct the class on one of the three following lessons using some sort
of visual aid and students will take notes. My suggestion is PowerPoint.
2) You will also come up with a way, for example a worksheet, to assess whether the
class understood your lesson.
Topics for Research
There are three lessons/topics. You will work in pairs. I will assign the topic to your
pair.
Lesson # 1: Equipment and Organization
I.
EQUIPMENT
 What kind of weapons and equipment did the Roman infantry man go into
battle with? (Go beyond what is in chapter 12)
II. ORGANIZATION




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What is a legion? A century? A cohort?
Who are the commanding officers in the army and how many men are
they in control of?
What is an imperator? When did the emperor become commander-inchief of the army?
What is the typical structure and organization of the Roman military
camp?
How were troops organized in the city of Rome itself?
Lesson #2: Battle Standards and Tactics
I.
BATTLE STANDARDS

What is a battle standard and why did the Romans use them?

What are some examples of Roman battle standards?


What is the name in Latin for a standard bearer and how does his uniform
make him easily recognizable?
(Show and battle standard and interpret some of the symbols on it).
II. BATTLE TACTICS
 Roman soldiers were trained to assume certain formations on the
battlefield virtual instantaneously. An example of this is the “testudo,”
which they used as a defensive maneuver against a javelin attack.

What does a testudo look like?

What are some other tactics and their purposes?
Lesson # 3: Daily Life/Punishment and Reward
I. DAILY LIFE

What challenges does a Roman soldier face?

Why did the average solider join the army?
• Describe the typical living quarters of a soldier.
• What did soldiers eat?
• What did they do for entertainment?

Did the average soldier have contact with women and children?
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What kinds of things did soldier request from home?
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What was the typical term of service for a soldier?
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How much were soldiers paid?
II. PUNISHMENT AND REWARD

What is a sacramentum?

How were Roman soldiers punished?

What is a triumph?

What kind of rewards could a victorious general expect?
RESOURCES—links are active

Vindolanda: Forts and Military Life 
• BBC History: Vindolanda. Great site with lotes on information on a Roman
fort that was discovered in Great Britain. Information about the daily lives of
soldiers.
Another site about Vindolanda
• More information from the excavation of Vindlanda in Great Britain.
Elementary site about the Roman army
• Designed for younger students but has some good, basic info. The pdf on
the structure of the Roman army is especially helpful.
Roman amry
• Information on the history and organization of the army
Roman army and legionary standard bearers

(Probably the most thorough of the sites. MAKE SURE YOU SEE “PART II at the bottom of
this webpage).
Roman Military Rubric
Out of 80 points
Due Tuesday, 10/21
POINTS
Use of library time
Did you stay on task? Only visit related
websites?
Up to 10
Research
Did your thoroughly conduct research on
your own? Fully explore the links
provided? Answer all questions?
Presentation and Lesson
Did your lesson address all the questions?
Was your lesson engaging and
accompanied by quality visual aids?
Was your lesson effective?
Did you stay on task/focused during lesson?
Up to 10
Up to 50
Up to 10
Assessment
Did you have some way to assess whether
students mastered the lesson? (A worksheet,
etc.)?
Is your assessment very closely related to the
lesson?
BONUS
Up to five bonus points will be awarded for
exceptional work
YOUR TOTAL SCORE: