The Roman military had a very large and well organized structure.

The typical Roman legion had a large number of auxiliary troops attached to it. This was partly as a result of the reforms introduced by Gaius Marius and partly due to the fact that the Roman Legions were known for adapting tactics from those peoples conquered by Rome. Legion can refer to several encyclopedic topics, including: In military history, an organization or military unit: A Roman legion. ... Brigade is a term from military science which refers to a group of several battalions (typically two to four), and directly attached supporting units (normally including at least an artillery battery and additional logistic support). ... Cohort can mean any of the following: 1. ... Symbol of the Austrian 14th Armoured Battalion in NATO code In military terminology, a battalion consists of two to six companies typically commanded by a lieutenant colonel. ... Maniple (Latin: manipulus) was a tactical unit of the Roman Legion, consisting of two centuriae within a single cohort. ... // US Army In the United States military, infantry companies are usually made up of three rifle platoons and a heavy weapons platoon; tank companies are usually made up of three tank platoons and a command element. ... Centuria (Latin plural Centuriae) is a Latin substantive rooting in centum a hundred, denoting units consisting of (originally, approximatively) a 100 men. ... Platoon is a term from military science. ... The Contubernium was smallest group of soilders in the Roman Army. ... A squad is a small military unit subordinate to an infantry platoon. ... Legion can refer to several encyclopedic topics, including: In military history, an organization or military unit: A Roman legion. ... Gaius Marius (Latin: C·MARIVS·C·F·C·N) (157 - January 13, 86 BC) was a Roman general and politician who was mostly known for his reform of Roman armies. ... City motto: Senatus Populusque Romanus – SPQR (The Senate and the People of Rome) Founded 21 April 753 BC mythical, 1st millennium BC Region Latium Mayor Walter Veltroni (Left-Wing Democrats) Area  - City Proper  1285 km² Population  - City (2004)  - Metropolitan  - Density (city proper) 2. ...

The following is a list of specialist troop types attached to various legions. It is interesting to note that many of these troop types will be instantly recognisable to the modern soldier. In many cases the Roman Legions originated specialist sub-divisions for specific tasks. Here are a few of them: See also Legion software and Legion forummer. ...

Re-enlisted veterans – "Evocatii"

The standard period of service for a Roman Legionary was usually set at 20 years. However, following the completion of this service, certain individuals who were considered to be exceptional for their skills could be invited to re-enlist. They were given the name Evocatii and had many privileges compared to the average legionary: they may have been granted extra pay, they were exempt from all arduous duties, they were issued a horse for marches and were generally held as examples to newer recruits. A Legionary is a member of a legion. ...

Engineers & Artificers – “Fabratii”

As with everything in the Roman legions, troops assigned to engineering and construction work were specially chosen because of their skills in these areas. They were responsible for all areas of construction and engineering, from designing and building the specific Roman “marching camp” for Legions on the march, to repairing equipment. Most legions had a Master Engineer or Praefectus Fabrem. A military engineer is primarily responsible for the design and construction of offensive and defensive structures for warfare. ... A military camp or bivouac is a minor, semi-permanent facility for the lodging of an army. ...

Intelligence Officers – “Speculatores”

Interestingly this is the first known use of dedicated intelligence staff in an army environment. These troops were often chosen for their skills with languages and were usually trained as scouts in addition to their intelligence-gathering role. Intelligence Officers are staff that specialise in the gathering, fusion and analysis of information and intelligence sources in order to provide advise to the Government or organisation that they work for. ... Intelligence (abbreviated or ) is the process and the result of gathering information and analyzing it to answer questions or obtain advance warnings needed to plan for the future. ...

In addition to the Speculatores the Romans are known to have used a holistic approach to intelligence – using every facet of the occupational organisation to gather information on subject peoples. This intelligence was then spread through the empire via a sort of diplomatic postal service which was thought to be separate from the civilian and military postal systems. This was not perfect however – the Roman apparatus in Britain completely failed to predict the uprising by Boudica following the brutal subjugation of her local region. Boudica (also written Boudicca, Boadicea, Buduica, Bonduca) (d. ...

Bodyguards & Special Forces – the Praetorian Cohort

Each general in charge of a Legion would usually be assigned a group of specially trained and equipped elite troops known as Praetorians. They were formed in to a small unit known as a cohort whose sole task was to guard the legionary commander. These troops were also paid more than a standard legionary. A bodyguard is a person who protects someone (known as their principal) from personal assault, kidnapping, assassination, loss of confidential information, or other threats. ... Legion can refer to several encyclopedic topics, including: In military history, an organization or military unit: A Roman legion. ... Cohort can mean any of the following: 1. ...

Famously Julius Caesar is said never to have made use of the Praetorians assigned to him. He was known to have a favourite legion – the 10th legion (Legio X) and occasionally treated them as a sort of crack force of assault troops. This was indeed an early form of Special Forces, as were the Praetorian Guard in general. A bust of Julius Caesar. ... Special forces or special operations forces are relatively small military units raised and trained for special operations missions such as Special Reconnaissance (SR), Unconventional Warfare (UW), Direct Action (DA), Counter-Terrorism (CT), and Foreign Internal Defense (FID). ... The Praetorian Guard of Caesar Augustus - 1st century. ...

See also

• Roman military history
• Roman empire

Soldiers of the Roman Army (on manoeuvres in Nashville, Tennessee) Rome was a militarized state whose history was often closely entwined with its military history over the 1228 years that the Roman state is traditionally said to have existed. ... The Roman Empire is the term conventionally used to describe the Ancient Roman polity in the centuries following its reorganization under the leadership of Octavian (better known as Augustus), until its radical reformation in what was later to be known as the Byzantine Empire. ...

External link

• http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/library/report/other/romanarmy02.htm#00 for further information