Triarii
Spearmen Infantry(0.6.7)Side / Back
Short description
The Triarii were the oldest and most experienced infantry, who made up the third line of the pre-Marian Republican legions.
Description
The Triarii were the oldest and most experienced soldiers, who along with the Velites, Hastati and Principes, made up the full infantry complement in a pre-Marian Republican legion. They were armed similarly to the Principes although, rather than a gladius, their weapon of choice was commonly a hasta, a long spear. Other than this, they carried all the accoutrements of a typical Roman foot soldier: greaves, the gladius and scutum. However, the Triarii did away with the pila, as they weren't practical in addition to being armed with the hasta.
The proverb "ad triarios perventum est", used in relation with an extremely serious situation, is indicative of the role usually assigned to these men, of final line of defence. That they should engage at all was usually seen as being a last resort, since it meant the two previous lines, the Hastati and the Principes had been broken.
Polybius (Book 6, 21.6) says the Triarii were "the oldest of all" and that, because they were worth more than 10,000 drachmas, were able to wear a coat of chain mail instead of the simple sheet of metal worn over the chest by the common soldiers (Polybios, Historiai, 6.23.14). Along with the Velites, Hastati and Principes, the Triarii made up the names among the Romans of the four classes in each legion distinct in age and equipment. They divided them so that the senior men known as Triarii numbered six hundred, the Principes twelve hundred, the Hastati twelve hundred, the rest, consisting of the youngest, being Velites.
The scutum, or shield, was semi-rectangular in shape, and provided good protection for almost the entire body. A hasta was about six feet in length with a shaft generally made from ash, while the head was of iron, and usually had a bronze butt-spike.
Following the Marian reforms, the triarii lost their distinctive equipment, though remnants of the manipular system remained in the positions and titles of centurions within each cohort of the reformed legions.