The reason that Rome was able to conquer and defend themselves so well throughout the ages was because of their army. The Roman army was on of the fiercest and dangers armies of antiquity. The reason for their ferocity was that these men were professional soldiers who were either fighting to protect the land they owned and payed taxes on or they were fighting to gain land and money. Also, the men fighting would be of utmost physical condition. The army consisted of men between the ages of 17 and 46 (http://abacus.bates.edu/~mimber/Rciv/soldier.htm) and were chosen based and their wealth (they had to buy their own equipment) and the physical stature. The only men that would be exempt from duty would be veterans (16 campaigns for infantry and 10 for cavalry) the extremely poor, and the unfit. To not be chosen for the army was seen as a dishonor and a disgrace.
The Roman army had it’s foundations of an oath. Each solider would have to swear the sacramentum which not only changed his life from a citizen to a soldier but also subjected to him to every order and command of the general without question. Essentially the oath made it so that soldiers could blindly do whatever the general said, this made the soldiers a killing machine. They would have no fear of killing, or dying. They had no conscience, all emotion would be taken out, they essentially removed themselves from the normal realm of Roman society and became a tool for the army to use. The only means to release yourself from the sacramentum would be death or demobilization.
The army was expected to march up to 20 miles a day (http://www.historyonthenet.com/Romans/roman_army.htm) with their entire palette of equipments: weapons, armor, supplies, tent, sleeping gear, everything they needed. They were also expected to stay with the army for 25 years. After this commitment you would be given land and money but also be highly regarded and revered in the community because a service to Rome, meant not only a service to the empire but also a service to the Gods.
The army set-up had the same strict order as the rest of the Roman enterprise. The army was set-up where 5000 legionnaires (Roman citizens) would form a legion, the legion was then broken down into centuries of 80 men who were led by a centurion, these would then be broken down to groups for various jobs.
The strict format the the army followed allowed for an effective and potent killing machine to be produced and was one of the main reasons Rome became so strong and so vast within their time.
Bibliography:
1. http://www.roman-empire.net/army/army.html
2. http://www.historyonthenet.com/Romans/roman_army.htm
3. http://abacus.bates.edu/~mimber/Rciv/soldier.htm
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