The author is a renowned scholar of the Roman Army and has written many books, both on this topic and related Roman subjects. The present work will be an absolute delight for those who are fascinated by the life and achievements of the world’s first and probably greatest professional army.
It is not, as the author states, a history of the Roman Army, nor indeed a handbook about organisation and equipment, but rather a deeply researched attempt to know what it was really like to be a soldier in the army that conquered most of the ancient world.
Placing great reliance on ancient sources, epigraphic evidence, and the latest archaeological finds, the author brings the subject to life with an engaging style and a very obvious passion for the topic. In fact, he states in the introduction that his research could ‘have gone on indefinitely’, such is the depth of the source material, particularly the ever-increasing epigraphic evidence, especially the plethora of gravestones and memorials that have been, and still are being, found across the Empire.
The Pilgrimage of Hadrian’s Wall 2009