BOOK REVIEW : IN THE NAME OF ROME.

THE MEN WHO WON THE ROMAN EMPIRE.

Another book from my library but a little different from the usual offerings.  This book details the life and military exploits of a number of Roman generals from the Republic to the Empire. Most of the names are not well known today but others, mostly from the Republican period and possibly the most successful, are and include Scipio Africanus, Pompey and Caesar.

Until the last few hundred years of the Roman Empire, generals were not professional soldiers but were first and foremost, politicians and usually members of the Senate. Positions as generals were given  in much the same way as other governmental appointments. The ruling elite were expected to be successful in any position, military or civilian. With that in mind they had no formal training in generalship, indeed there was no formal training available of any sort other than to the rank and file.

There is a view that Roman armies were successful because of their training, equipment and sheer professionalism  and that any fool could be a general. Of course this is false, there were unsuccessful Roman generals and  Roman armies were  often beaten if insufficient attention was given to strategy and battlefield tactics as well as the issue of logistics. As an aside it is very interesting to me to read just how important logistics were to the Roman army. I expect there is a view that Roman soldiers carried everything on their backs or foraged for supplies along the way with no need for supply lines. That is very much not the case. Ensuring adequate food supplies and constant replacement of arms from the base was a very significant issue.

The simple fact is that some generals were more successful than others because of their natural ability as commanders. Possibly at no other time in history  has success or failure in war been so dependent on a general's natural ability as during the Roman era. Of course in subsequent centuries generals with little or no training were also successful but with much smaller forces and usually after many years service and experience. Few Roman generals served more than a few years before returning to civilian positions or even just resuming their service as Senators, a position held for life.

Many wargamers would like to think they are a new Napoleon but assume that without suitable training that is hardly likely. Reading this book illustrates that in fact you CAN be a successful general provided you have some natural talent. Some of you, maybe even me, could in fact be really good armchair generals, we just need the opportunity.