Collections: Raising Carthaginian Armies, Part IV: Allies and Mercenaries

This is the fourth part of our series (I, II, III, IV, V) looking at how Carthage's complex, multi-ethnic armies were raised and structured. Last week, we looked at Carthage's unusual system for raising vassal forces: long-serving Carthaginian generals could inhabit positions within the personalist, non-state mobilization systems of Numidia and Iberia, enabling them to … Continue reading Collections: Raising Carthaginian Armies, Part IV: Allies and Mercenaries →

Collections: Raising Carthaginian Armies, Part III: Generals, Warlords and Vassals

This is the third part (I, II, III, IV, V) of our series looking at how Carthage's complex, multipart armies were raised and constituted. Last time, we looked at the backbone of Carthage's armies: North African troops levied out of Carthage's subject communities in North Africa. These fellows seem to have been directly employed by … Continue reading Collections: Raising Carthaginian Armies, Part III: Generals, Warlords and Vassals →

Collections: Raising Carthaginian Armies, Part II: The African Backbone

This is the second part (I, II, III, IV, V) of our series looking at the structure of the Carthaginian army. As we discussed last time, while Carthage has an unfair reputation for being an 'un-military' society, its military system was one of the highest performing in the ancient Mediterranean, able to produce vast and … Continue reading Collections: Raising Carthaginian Armies, Part II: The African Backbone →

Collections: Raising Carthaginian Armies, Part I: Finding Carthaginians

This is the first part of a series (I, II, III, IV, V) looking at the structure of the Carthaginian army. Although Carthage has an (unfair!) reputation for being a country of "peaceful merchants who tended to avoid wars," Carthage was, I will argue, without question the second greatest military power the Mediterranean produced - … Continue reading Collections: Raising Carthaginian Armies, Part I: Finding Carthaginians →

Collections: How to Raise a Tribal Army in Pre-Roman Europe, Part III: Going To War With the Army You Have

This is the third and final part of our three-part (I, II, III) look at how some 'tribal' or more correctly, non-state agrarian peoples - particularly the Celtiberians, Gauls and also many Germanic-language speaking peoples on the Rhine and Danube- raised armies to fight the Romans (and anyone else who came knocking) in the third, … Continue reading Collections: How to Raise a Tribal Army in Pre-Roman Europe, Part III: Going To War With the Army You Have →

Collections: How to Raise a Tribal Army in Pre-Roman Europe, Part II: Government Without States

This is the second part of our (planned) three part (I, II, III) look at how some 'tribal' or more correctly, non-state agrarian peoples raised armies to fight the Romans (and others) in the third through first centuries BC. Last time, we looked at the subsistence basis of these societies - they're agricultural - and … Continue reading Collections: How to Raise a Tribal Army in Pre-Roman Europe, Part II: Government Without States →

Collections: How to Raise a Tribal Army in Pre-Roman Europe, Part I: Aristocrats, Retainers and Clients

For the next few posts (I, II, III), I want to take a look at how some 'tribal' peoples raised armies, in contrast to the way that ancient (or later) states raised armies. As moderns, we are so familiar with the way that states function that the far older systems of non-state organization and mobilization … Continue reading Collections: How to Raise a Tribal Army in Pre-Roman Europe, Part I: Aristocrats, Retainers and Clients →

Collections: How to Roman Republic 101, Addenda: The Provinces

This is the second and (in theory) last addendum to our series on Roman civic governance (I, II, IIIa, IIIb, IIIc, IV, V, A1, A2). Having discussed how Rome handles those parts of Italy it controls but which were not part of the Roman Republic itself, we now look at how the Romans govern their … Continue reading Collections: How to Roman Republic 101, Addenda: The Provinces →

Collections: How to Roman Republic 101, Addenda: The Socii

This week, as an addendum to our series on Roman civic governance (I, II, IIIa, IIIb, IIIc, IV, V, A1, A2), we're going to take a look at how Rome handles those parts of Italy it controls but which it does not inhabit. These are Rome's 'allies' (socii), a euphemistic label for the Italian communities … Continue reading Collections: How to Roman Republic 101, Addenda: The Socii →

Collections: How to Roman Republic 101, Part V: The Courts

This is the fifth part of our five part series (I, II, IIIa, IIIb, IIIc, IV, V, A1, A2) on the structure of the Roman Republic during the third and second centuries BC, the 'Middle Republic.' Last time we looked at the odd but very important role played by the ROman Senate as the central … Continue reading Collections: How to Roman Republic 101, Part V: The Courts →