Ancient Warfare Podcast

What happened to the Dacians after Trajan's conquest of Dacia, and did some of them really end up serving in Roman Britain?

In this episode, Murray answers a listener question about the Dacian presence in Britain. Following Trajan's conquest of Dacia in AD 106, Dacian soldiers were recruited into the Roman auxiliary forces, and some Dacian units were subsequently stationed on the fringes of the Empire, including in Britain.

But wha...

Roman legionaries of the late Republic and early Principate are often depicted wearing chain mail, but just how was enough armour produced to equip the vast armies of Rome?

In this episode, Murray tackles a listener question about the manufacture and supply of Roman armour. Chain mail was extremely labour intensive to produce, so where were the workshops that made it, and who were the craftsmen responsible for supplying the legions...

Jon asks "Hi Murray! Regarding command and control of units during battle through trumpets, drums and similar methods of audible communication, a question I've often wondered is if there are any instances in the historical record of: 1. Employing a form of COMINT by 'intercepting' (hearing) the enemy communications, and using that information to alter your forces actions? Were there any attempts to keep the signals secret, or chang...

Demetrios asks, "Hello Mr. Dahm,
Regarding ancient artillery, in certain cases such as Josephus' account of the siege of Jotapata during the Jewish Revolt, artillery seems to be very effective in suppressing the defenders and in a sort of anti-personnel role. Due to the slow firing torsion engines of the time, how was this possible? Wouldn't a much higher rate of fire be necessary for such a role? Additionally, were artillery c...

The second part of Carlos' question from a few episodes ago: "Second, somewhere in an old issue of AWM I have read (but I cannot find it again) that, to become a legionary, recruits needed to buy their way, and that the required payment (bribe?) was lower if you joined the auxiliaries instead. This was surprising, because I also read about a signing bonus (viaticum) by the second century. The article I remember discussed a poor Rom...

Russ asks, "I don't know what it is called, but at a certain point ( or a certain number of points) in time, Rome decided to build walls to defend their empire. Most famous, of course, is Hadrian's Wall. But of course they are many more, such as the Antonine Wall, Walls of Lugo, Aurelian's Wall and Londinium Walls, to name a few. These walls were constructed differently and had different purposes. Anyway, were the Walls revolutiona...

Jay asks "Murray, I really enjoyed your podcast about Demosthenes being one of the first generals to have a dedicated flank attack. I have always thought Demosthenes was criminally underrated among historians, because Thucydides writes about quite a few clever tactics of his. Likewise, I think Thrasybulus is another underrated commander as Athens' "last gasp" to preserve their democracy. Yet most casual history enthusiasts have pro...

Dan asks "May I submit an awa for uncle Murray here? What did legionaries drink on campaign? Aside from the obvious water and wine. Did they have flavoured cordials or plain water? Did they start their day with a hot drink and end with something cold, like we drink coffee and beer? Do we know of water rations, and can we infer if the legions were particularly hydrated or not?"

Join us on Patreon
patreon.com/ancientwarfarepodca...

How did tactics evolve in the ancient world? In this episode of the Ancient Warfare Podcast, the team explores how battlefield tactics developed over time, from the rigid formations of early armies to the increasingly sophisticated methods employed by some of history's greatest commanders. 

They discuss the factors that drove tactical innovation, the influence of new weapons and troop types, and whether ancient generals were t...

Seth tracked Murray down via Facebook Messenger and asked: "Hi Murray, really appreciate your AWA podcast, great short bursts of knowledge.

One question that bugs me about legionaries. Why did the Romans completely abandon the spear in favour of the pilum? Does it function effectively as a thrusting weapon as well as a thrown weapon?

If you have a space for a two-for, do you have time to talk about the comparative effectiveness of ...

Carlos writes: "Hi Murray, Even though I've been an AWM subscriber for long, I only recently started listening to the podcast. I love the AWA episodes, and the regular group podcasts too.  

I have a two-part question for AWA. First, I have read in various places that there were certain requirements to be admitted as a legionary in the Army of the Principate. For example, I've read in a popular magazine (not AWM!) that legionar...