The legionary soldier of the early Empire period, with his distinctive segmented armour, is one of the images most closely associated by popular imagination with ancient Rome. Such soldiers conquered most of Britain, suffered and avenged the terrible disaster of the Teutoburg Forest and vanquished the fearsome Dacians across the Danube, a feat immortalized on Trajan's Column, as well as fighting many other tribes. In the East, they overcame the Great Jewish Revolt and repeatedly contended with mixed success against the powerful Parthians. This was the army that enforced the so-called Pax Romana at the point of a gladius and maintained the greatest empire the world had yet seen. Of course, such troops were also employed to bloody effect in the many civil wars such as those of AD 69, 'the Year of the Four of the Emperors'. With over 110 images of historically accurate re-enactors, this book describes the tactics, organization and equipment of the Roman army at the height of its powers, considered by many to be the most efficient and powerful fighting force of the ancient world. It gives an overview of the most significant campaigns and considers in detail not only the iconic legionaries but also the various auxiliary units, including cavalry. AUTHOR: Gabriele Esposito is a military historian who works as a freelance author and researcher for some of the most important publishing houses in the military history sector. In particular, he is an expert specializing in uniformology: his interests and expertise range from the ancient civilizations to modern post-colonial conflicts. During recent years he has conducted and published several researches on the military history of the Latin American countries, with special attention on the War of the Triple Alliance and the War of the Pacific. He is among the leading experts on the military history of the Italian Wars of Unification and the Spanish Carlist Wars. His books and essays are published on a regular basis by Osprey Publishing, Winged Hussar Publishing and Libreria Editrice Goriziana; he is also the author of numerous military history articles appearing in specialized magazines like Ancient Warfare Magazine, Medieval Warfare Magazine, The Armourer, History of War, Guerres et Histoire, Focus Storia and Focus Storia Wars.
