Abstract
In the already overcrowded field of Roman military history, the genre of ‘comprehensive companions’ is both particularly crowded and particularly fraught. Countless volumes have been published in recent years attempting to cover the entirety of Roman warfare, from Goldsworthy's The Complete Roman Army (2011) and Roman Warfare (2019), to Pollard and Berry's The Complete Roman Legions (2012), to James’ Rome and the Sword: How Warriors and Weapons Shaped Roman History (2011), and more are published every year, for instance Elliott's Romans at War: The Roman Military in the Republic and Empire (2020) and the book under review here. This is not an area that is lacking in attention, scholarly or otherwise. However, it is fraught because, as scholarship on the Roman army has increased, it has become increasingly difficult to both say something ‘new’ and also to do justice to the topic. Covering c. 1000 years of military history, associated with one of the world's most famous (and studied) ancient armies and empires, is no easy feat. Instead, most scholars have turned to more detailed and period/subject-specific monographs, resulting in the genre of ‘comprehensive companions’ on the Roman army largely devolving into a more ‘popular’ field – appealing more to the ‘enthusiast’ than to the ‘academic’ audience. Consequently, far too many of the books in this genre on the market today do little more than scrape the surface – trotting out the same old tropes, retelling the same traditional narratives, and using the same interpretations of the same old sources. Within this crowded and fraught genre, A.D. Lee's Warfare in the Roman World represents a remarkable breath of fresh air. It is properly new and innovative, offering both an excellent overview of the material and a nuanced – and yet still very accessible – interpretation of Roman warfare in context. It sets the benchmark for what a modern, academic ‘comprehensive companion’ to Roman warfare should be.
Lee adopts a thematic structure founded upon the ‘war and society’ approach to the Roman army, which is arguably the dominant paradigm in the academic field at the moment. As such, he eschews the traditional battle descriptions, battlefield maps, and discussions of equipment in favour of much broader, more structural discussions of the social and cultural dimensions of Roman warfare. The book is divided into seven chapters, plus an engaging and informative Introduction (pp. 1–29), a short Epilogue (pp. 178–80), and some useful addenda and tables, including a short essay on further reading (both ancient and modern), a timeline of significant events, and a glossary. In terms of the main body chapters, chapter one explores ‘War and Peace’, chapter two ‘ Military Service and Courage’, chapter three ‘Manpower and Money’, chapter four ‘Authority and Allegiances’, chapter five ‘ Society and Identity’, chapter six ‘ Culture and Communication’, and chapter seven ‘ Experience of War’. Each section skilfully tracks its theme within Rome's military systems, from the middle Republic down through late Antiquity, combining both ancient and modern sources (cited extensively using footnotes). Notably, the later periods are particularly well-served in terms of both evidence and anecdotes. Indeed, if there is one fault with this volume (and I would hesitate to call it that) it is that Lee's main area of scholarly interest, the Roman army of the later Empire and late Antiquity, is clearly evident. This volume, although ‘comprehensive’ in covering Roman warfare from c. 340 BCE to the seventh century CE, is also retrospective, looking back on the expanse of Roman warfare from a position firmly located in that later period. Thus, the details for that later period are much clearer, the evidence richer, and earlier events often presented as the foundation for later developments in a somewhat teleological fashion. However, one must always start somewhere, and despite his obviously greater familiarity with the later period, Lee generally does an excellent job of avoiding any stumbles or pitfalls in the earlier material (for instance the modern debates over the so-called ‘Marian Reforms’ – see Cadiou 2018 and Taylor 2019, amongst others, for discussion). 1
In sum, Lee (and Cambridge University Press) should be lauded for this book. What might appear on the surface to be ‘yet another book on the Roman army’ is, in fact, a remarkable new work that deftly crafts a new and compelling vision of Roman warfare, effectively in its entirety, and presents it within the wider context of Roman society. It is well written, with only a very few typos noted, and would be accessible for the educated enthusiast – although it seems to be more geared for the undergraduate/postgraduate audience. That being noted, even Roman military historians will likely get something from this book, and from engaging with Lee's vision of the army and warfare. Although ‘comprehensive’, it is, quite impressively, not superficial. I suspect, and indeed hope, it will quickly become the ‘go to’ text for those seeking a primer on Roman warfare.