Roman soldiers

Did you know that the ancient Roman soldiers were divided into two main types, legionaries and auxiliaries?

The former were citizens of Rome while the latter were not.

Besides being a Roman citizen, a legionary had to be fighting fit and he had to sign up for (at least) 25 years of service. Those who survived were rewarded with land they could farm and often retired together in military towns (colonia).

On the other hand, an auxiliary was only paid a third of a legionary’s wage. Auxiliaries guarded forts and frontiers but also fought in battles, often in the front lines where it was the most dangerous. For these men, serving in the Roman army meant an escape from poverty.

At the peak of Roman power in the second century AD, over half of the Roman army was comprised of auxiliary units.

Roman legionary (left) and Roman auxiliary infantryman (right) - Pinterest/@Андрей Бел and Pinterest/@Ancient Empires