Greene, Bob. Homecoming: When the Soldiers Returned From Vietnam . N.p.: G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1989.
The Roman army was known for its discipline, organization, and innovation, which allowed Rome to build an empire that would dominate the Mediterranean world. Also known for its longevity of survival, the Roman army was one of the most effective fighting forces in military history. Greek biographer Plutarch credits the founder of Rome, Romulus, with creating legionary forces that fought in a form of a militia, with recruitment dependent on a citizen’s social standing. Rome had six classes of wealth upon Rome’s citizens; the lowest group had no land and were excluded from the military, while the highest group, the equites, formed the cavalry.
According to the video BC Battles: Caesar Super Siege the Roman military was so successful because they were a nearly professional, very large army consisting of more than 50,000 soldiers, between 10 legions. The Roman military used their technological advances to forge innovative armor and weapons, such as the gladius, a small stabbing sword. They had siege weapons, ballistae, which fires a lead shot, and used catapults to pummel the enemy from afar. They created obstacles for their enemies like sharpened sticks that acted as barbed wire on their walls. They utilized booby traps, such as wooden spikes, and placed them at the bottom of the trenches. They had cavalry, mounted troops, which was very effective against ground soldiers. In the battle of Alesia, Caesar decided to build a 12-foot wall around the
Rome was known for many things, one of the biggest things that they are very skilled in, is warfare. Romans were very skilled in this area, they were known to have great fighting techniques. They would hardly ever lose a war. They were very smart during battle. One of the techniques that they used was that they would fight on higher grounds against their enemies in order to have a height advantage. Of course, they would only do this when the battle was in their territory. Another great technique that they had was making sure that the sun was behind them and that the wind was also behind them. How smart is that? They used many other ways to confuse the enemy. Rome was in a lot of wars.
...defining Roman Grand Strategy." The Journal of Military History 70.2 (2006): 333-63. JSTOR. Web. 1 Apr. 2010.
When looking back at a war as controversial as America's involvement in Vietnam, it is difficult to understand why soldiers would choose to fight and why they kept fighting for so long. Through a series of letters written by the soldiers themselves, one can see multiple motivations for soldiers in Vietnam, such as believing in the cause, self-preservation, and comradary amongst the men. This is all brought together in Dear America: Letters Home From Vietnam, an adequate volume edited by Bernard Edelman for the New York Vietnam Veterans Memorial Commission.
Beginning with Greek hoplite warfare, we will see how the Romans adopted Greek principles of warfare and evolved their strategy in order to confront new and emerging challenges. From improving their tactics, making advancements in weaponry, to creating a standing army staffed by professional soldiers, we will see how Rome’s military evolved in ways the Greeks could not compete with, and would eventually succumb to. We will see the rise of the most lethal institution of Roman society, the Roman Army.
Military background and history has been in the world for a long time. It goes back as far as Assyrians, Spartans, Aztecs, Romans and Greek. The military purpose is mainly to protect our country and our rights and freedoms. It’s just a part of nature. No one came up with military it just happened and got stronger and stronger over the years. It first started with random people coming together protecting towns and homes and families, and eventually more and more people came together. The three main branches of the military are The Army, Navy, and Marine Corps. All three of these branches are the reason the U.S is how it is. These branches fight for our freedom, our rights, and our country!! (Robbie Hughes Interview)
Tim O’ Brien’s narrative, How to Tell a War Story depicts the livelihood and experience of American soldiers during the Vietnam War. More so evaluating the life Tim O’ Brien and several other characters in his platoon. The sequences of stories reveals the thoughts and behavior of many post-Vietnam veterans and also can be related to the behavior of many veterans today. Throughout the segments of stories, “How to tell a War Story”, “Speaking of Courage and Notes”, and “The Things They Carried”, O’ Brien illustrates a common theme of guilt and sacrifice among the key characters Lieutenant Cross, Rat, and O’ Brien himself. Each character are presented with an unexpected responsibility and are forced to serve their state. A sense of discomfort
Rome, on the other hand, was improving upon their military as well. Rome’s military was not as original, as they used the same formation of the phalanx at one point in time and even modified tactics used by their enemies; eventually though, Rome developed new tactics and different fighters, including cavalry or alae (Watson). The Roman military system was basically tripartite, or in a three-part system with each part focused on a specific area or spread out amongst the empire (Watson). This military system helped lead Rome to eventually become the largest empire the world had not previ...
O'Brien, Tim, and Edward Keating. The Vietnam in Me. New York: New York Times, 1994. Print.
Modern U.S and Ancient Rome have many similarities within military strategies. In both Modern U.S and Ancient Rome, the battle formations are very similar. U.S learned some of the strategies from Rome and made sure not to include the mistakes they made in Rome with battle formations. Some battle formation ideas that U.S used from Ancient Rome are staying together in groups, and using shields around the outside and above the group. Also, in both Modern U.S and Ancient Rome, the armies were and are very spread out across the known world. There are U.S military bases in other countries around the known world. Finally, in
To a soldier, war was not romantic nor an intellectual adventure: It was a job of work to which he brought a steady, stubborn, adaptable schooled application (Adcock 6). A grouping of men called Legions were the main force in the Roman Empire. In the Republican times the legions were given a serial number (I, II, III, etc.) each year they were recruited. The smallest unit in the legion was the century, made up of one hundred men. Legionaries used javelins to begin the battle at long range and disrupt enemy battle lines before charging forward to engage the enemy at close range with swords and shields. The normal strength of a Legion was four thousand infantry and two hundred calvary, which could be expanded to five thousand in an em...
Gilbert, Marc Jason. "Vietnam War." World Book Student. World Book, 2010. Web. 21 March 2010.
Simkin, John. “ Military Tactics of the Roman Army.” spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk. Spartacus Educational, Sept. 1997- June 2013. Web. 9 Nov. 2013.