Talk:Roman Empire (500 BC - 300 AD)

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Reconstruction of the Balearic slinger

This looks mostly like the slinger on the Trian's column. I do not think the person doing the column has really seen a slinger because:

  1. the sling is much to short (That has been corrected in that image.)
  2. the stones in the cape do certainly fall out easily (On the column there are much more stones in the cape than in that image. Why not just store them in a bag?)
  3. the shield blocks the hand for reloading, slows down the movement and protects against threads which should not be present (In close combat with shield and dagger against trained soldiers with shield, armor and sword they are lost. => Run away, fast! / With bowmen as opponents and arrows flying in like on that image they are lost even with that shield. => Get out of their range and fire back.)

And regarding that image:

Balearic slingers certainly were poor people and had therefore none or very little iron. (Germanic warriors also had little iron despite the fact that they got into close combat.) So I do not believe that they would have had such kind of shields as they are used by the close combat support troups. (These had also iron helmets, swords and chainmail. So they are and entirely different class.) If they had shields, then probably plaited willow shields. And I do also not believe that a Balearic slinger could have afforded a gilded glamour pugio.

Btw. holding with your left arm that shield and halve the weight of the stones ... isn't that a bit much? -- Zwiebeltuete 2006-03-05 1:32 UTC

A much better reconstruction is in my opionion http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Balearic_Slinger.jpg -- Zwiebeltuete 2006-03-07 21:24 UTC


Well, being from the Balearic islands and having learnt about Balearic slingers all my childhood, I think I have some things to say.

As far as I know, most of the time Balearic slingers wore no clothes at all, but suppose that mercenaries on battle would wear something, but as little as they could. About being poor... sure they had not lots of money, but they did not value it at all: they wanted to get payed ONLY with women, cows and wine. But that's not what that's about. They really had not lots of iron, but they had plenty of bronze (there are lots of swords, knives, "sculptures" and such of bronze found in their "towns"), so why not have bronze shields? What's sure is that they won't use plaited willow shields: there is no willow on the Balearic island, and the weather is quite dry, so there aren't much plants that can be made into a shield. Maybe wood or leather.

Hope you understand what I've said (or wanted to say, at least). -- Narya

It is possible that they were naked (where the weather allowed it) and paid with women, cows and wine. My asumption that they wore simple tunics was an extrapolation of other Roman troup units. It is also possible that they had things made from bronze, eg. nice knives which certainly are usefull as tools or status symbols. It would be very helpful if you have any sources on that matter. They might also have had shields, but I do not believe it unless there is hard evidence because shields were for their kind of combat useless and cumbersome. Their protection was to be out of reach from all other weapons. But I do not want to dismis that the Balearic people had shields (as they also had swords), only that the slingers had no shields. -- Zwiebeltuete 2006-03-09 23:14 UTC

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Search results for original sources at www.thelatinlibrary.com

May someone look at them who does understand Latin.

Search with www.google.de with "funda site:thelatinlibrary.com" and prechecked by me with my decayed Latin knowledge:

Additional texts found searching with www.google.de with "fundae site:thelatinlibrary.com" and prechecked by me with my decayed Latin knowledge:

The most information has probably Vegetius und Livius.

Interesting seems to be also:

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Vegetius

English wikipedia has following links to an English translation of Vegetius' books (copied from Wikipedia):

An English translation of De Re Militari by Lieutenant John Clarke (1767) is available online

  1. The Military Institutions of the Romans (De Re Militari)
  2. The Military Institutions of the Romans (De Re Militari)
  3. "MILITARY MATTERS"

Book four seems to be missing there.

Vegetius 1/XV says:

THE SLING

Recruits are to be taught the art of throwing stones both with the hand and sling. The inhabitants of the Balearic Islands are said to have been the inventors of slings, and to have managed them with surprising dexterity, owing to the manner of bringing up their children. The children were not allowed to have their food by their mothers till they had first struck it with their sling. Soldiers, notwithstanding their defensive armor, are often more annoyed by the round stones from the sling than by all the arrows of the enemy. Stones kill without mangling the body, and the contusion is mortal without loss of blood. It is universally known the ancients employed slingers in all their engagements. There is the greater reason for instructing all troops, without exception, in this exercise, as the sling cannot be reckoned any incumbrance, and often is of the greatest service, especially when they are obliged to engage in stony places, to defend a mountain or an eminence, or to repulse an enemy at the attack of a castle or city.

Vegetius 2/XXIII says:

... The archers and slingers set up bundles of twigs or straw for marks, and generally strike them with arrows and with stones from the fustiablus at the distance of six hundred feet. They acquired coolness and exactness in acnon from familiar custom and exercise in the field. The slingers should be taught to whirl the sling but once about the head before they cast the stone. Formerlyall soldiers were trained to the praccice of throwing stones of a pound weight with the hand, as this was thought a readier method since it did not require a sling. The use of the common missile weapons and loaded javelins was another part of the drill strictly attended to. ...

Vegetius 3/XIIII says:

... Slingers with round stones from the fustibalus and sling killed both the men who guided the elephants and the soldiers who fought in the towers on their backs. ...

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Livius

Of the books 22, 38 and 42 book 22 is available in English at the Project Gutenberg.

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Thomas Voelling's article

I have the article Thomas Völling: Funditores im Römischen Heer. Saalburg-Jahrb. 45, 1990, 24-58. I will write here soon a summary.

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Proposed structure

A chapter about the roman empire could consist of:

  1. Original latin texts
  2. English translation of these texts
  3. Discussion of these texts
  4. Original images like Trajan's column
  5. Properly reconstructed images according to sources and reasoning
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