About Romans?

Question

Do Romans use any other weapons?Exept swords?

Answer 1

Among other things,daggers,garrotes&poison,tridents,broadswords,spears&scourges.

Answer 2

Ah! the Roman legions! (They were legion.)
When they went into battle, the infantry consisted of:
First rows: slingshots
Second rows: javelins (light spears)
Third rows: bows
For close up, it was their short sword (short because so many others soldiers tired out swinging the long, heavy swords, so Romans used short swords, so they would not tire so quickly).
Their calvary used mostly javelins and swords, but also bows.
Against fortified positions, they used various forms of catapults (also used against massed armies, throwing rocks, flaming pitch, poisonous plant materials, scorpions, etc.)
They also used a wooden frame covered with hides and shields so soldiers could advance upon fortified positions in comparative safety.
In regards to those "3" rows mentioned above, the slingers would sling their rocks, etc., drop down, the row behind would sling, and so forth; then the javelin throwers would throw, drop down, the next row would throw, and so on with the archers following, row after row. After the last row fired, then they would start over, with the slingers slinging, etc.
Also, the Romans built forts in a square, with a gate on each side, palisades, pickets, the whole nine yards.

Answer 3

Well the main weapons of the Romans was spears. Swords were used only in cases where they lost or broke their spears, or in close hand to hand combat. They also had daggers. If they were trying to knock off a political opponent they would use poison. That was a little dangerous due to the fact that if it was found out, and a member of the Senate or considered a man of high honor, you would be strangled to death. But to answer your question yes they did use other weapons than swords.

Answer 4

Clipeus - Roman shield
Ocrea - Roman legging
Balteus - Roman shield
Hasta - Roman spear
Pilum - Roman javelin
Galea - Roman helmet

Answer 5

The Roman legionary had in addition to his gladius(short broadsword-very lethally engineered) two Pilums(short throwing spears). These were crafted such as that when they struck an enemy's shield they snapped part way and weighed down that shield making it useless. They also carried a dagger. Also they Roman legionary shield(the Scutum - an oblong shield) was a masterpiece. Built of hard but light wood covered with boiled(extemely hard) leather and with metal, it could take anything the ancient world could throw at it. Also the legion had in support cavalry(with long spear, long sword < Spatha> and round shield), archers(bows and arrows), infrantry(ordinary sword and spear) plus dart throwers, slingers, javelin throwers and lightly armed infrantry with mattocks, axes and clubs. They also had armour for the legionary(the Lorica Segmentata) which consisted of strips of hardened leather, covered with metal, sewn together and armour for the auxilia (the Lorica Scalia) which consisted of metal scales sewn together.

Also the legion had field artillery. Sixty Catipults per legions(arrow and spear throwing), ten Ballista(rock and incenduary(fire) throwing) and the dreaded Raspioballista which threw a six foot or longer arrowed pointed bolt. A Roman ballista could range up to 400 yards with 360 pounds and in the siege of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. one of these went through and killed twelve men. They also had siege towers. One, at the siege of Massada in 71-72 A.D. adjusted by back gears whilst moving up a ramp up a mountain to make the centre of gravity of the thing level to the centre of gravity of the earth. In other words , instead of the front arching back when it moved up , the gears made the back lift up as to compensate for the angle of the ramp. The Romans also had battering rams, movable siege shields(torquedos) to protect masses of men and a vast array of equipment including various traps for infrantry and cavalry such as that used at Aleasia in 51 B.C.

They also had numerous ships in their navy which included Quinquremes (270 oars + 30 reserve + 80 marines + 40 crew) = 420. This was their main battleship. Their navy consisted of ships of various sizes :
PENTECOUNTER: 50 oars size 1 bank
BIREME: 120 oars size 2 banks
TRIREME: 160 oars size 3 banks
QUADREME: 220 oars size 4 banks
QUINQUREME: 270 oars size 5 banks
SEXTREME 400 oars size 6 banks
These were indicitive of rows of oars, hence their name. However especially in the empire most had at the most three banks of oars and the designation mostly meant the size and capacity of the ship. The ships had a variety of weaponary aboard including battering ram in front and ballistas and catipults on the deck. As well they had the crow(Corvus) which consisted of a piece of metal welded to the ship with a long wooden board strung out from it, piviting, with small rope fences either side and with a big metal hood attatched to the end. On this they put their soldiers, swung the thing around to the enemy ship and landed their soldiers upon it. When first used in the battle of Mylea in 261 B.C. in the first Punic War against the Carthaginians(the supreme naval power in the Western Medittereanian at the time) it gave the Carthaginians such a shock that they were slaughtered and lost most of their ships.

Also the Romans had fortresses, walls, wooden pallisades, ditches and observation towers all around their empire. In the latter empire they even invented the Greek Fire. This concoction was of Napha, Petroleum and other things that it even burnt on water and was deadly lethal. However it came too late to save a falling empire. It did however save Rome's sucsessor state, the Byzantine empire many times. The Romans had many weapons aviable to them. They had a vast array of them too. And equipment and support logistics and rescourses. More than anything in the ancient world. For instance the yearly income of the Persian empire in it's hayday(a very rich empire in the ancient world) was 14,000 talents per year. The budget alone of the Roman empire at the time of Augustus was 300,000 talents per year. And these were Roman talents, not Attic talents-like the Persians. Attic talents were only 30 per cent of a Roman talent. And the Roman empire had a vast variety of units too. They had at the time of Augustus: the Legions(about 180,000), the Auxiluries(about 180,000), the Praetorian Guard(9,000 infrantry and 900 cavalry), the Urban Guard(3,000), the Vigiles(fire brigade 7,000), the Navy (about 1,000 ships, about 300,000), Numachia(organised independent units), Symmachia(unorganised independent units) and allies. They had much, many and varied. They had the greatest armed forces for their time the world has ever known. Hope this helps.

Answer 6

throwing speaRs which were designed to break on impact so they couldnt be thrown back

Answer 7

duh....haven't you watched the movies: )