REFLECTIONS

They were such a well organized team. This video reminds me of a football game.

More of my interest in Ancient Rome. Here is an excellent video.

Here is an interesting video of ancient Roman military tactics. The video is about 20 minutes long. Enjoy!

I found the image above and the image after the video below on I blog I just joined: Mike Anderson's Ancient History Blog I shortened this video from an earlier post. I hate the violent feelings it arouses in me yet in a way it excites me. Can this conflict in my emotions, the repulsion verses the excitement, be learned?  Is it from the constant violence on TV, video games, even the news that teach us to be violent? Or is violence built into our genes? Is this how the human race survived against the much stronger wild animals?

The Pilum was a javelin w ith a hard steel head attached to a soft neck. It was designed to bend once it landed if it did not hit an enemy soldier. If the pilum missed the target it would bend over making it useless. This way it could not be thrown back at the Roman soldier. If the  pilum would penetrate the enemy shield the soft neck would bend over.  Removing the head of the pilum from the shield would take too much time, so both pilum and shield were then thrown away leaving the man defenseless.  http://www.jaysromanhistory.com/romeweb/romarmy/equip.htm When Roman Soldiers confronted their nemesis in battle, they would typically throw the Javelins first trying to take out their enemy before they had to face them head on. When they did have to face their enemy head on, this is when they would draw their Ancient Gladius Sword. The Roman Warrior usually led with their Scutum (shield) and used their sword as a weapon for thrusting attacks. Many

"I swear I will faithfully, loyally and honorably serve the Supreme Pontiff, and his legitimate successors, and also devote myself to them with all my strength, sacrificing my life to defend them if necessary. I take on these same duties with regard to the Sacred College of Cardinals whenever the See is vacant. Furthermore, I promise to the Captain Commander and to my other superiors respect, fidelity and obedience. This I swear! May God and our Holy Patrons assist me!" Now that a new pope will soon be in the Vatican, I was curious about the Swiss Guard.  I thought they were only for parades but they do protect the Pope and with modern weapons.  They often work undercover in plain clothes.   Some Details: Guards must be at least 5' 8", under 30 years old, unmarried, attended Swiss military school and be Catholics with a good reputation in their parishes. "Swiss Guards travel everywhere with the Holy Father; the plainclothes bodyguards you see aro

(This is a post I am using again after replacing some lost images. Originally posted 9/23/11 ) I sometimes feel that when the Roman Empire fell it faced some of the same problems we have today.  I came across this interesting article. While  I do not believe some of the things in this article , it does point out many similarities. Senatus Populusque Romanus (The Senate and the people of Rome) Here is the original link: Top 10 similarities between the fall of Rome and the fall of America « Economy « :