ROMA30 FAREWELL. 218-201 BC

Triarii (singular: Triarius) is a Roman heavy infantry from the period of the Republic (509 BC - 31 BC), which formally functioned until the reforms of consul Mariusz carried out around 100 BC. This type of Roman infantry was used by soldiers with the greatest combat experience, who had participated in more than one battle, in short - real veterans. It is also assumed that the Triarii were also older than the Velites or Hastati soldiers (their age was usually from 30 to 46) and they came from much better-off social circles. The triarii were the last reserve in the legion of the Republic of the Republic, which was put into combat when the battle began to take an unfavorable turn for the Romans. For this reason, there was a saying in Latin res ad triarios venit which meant that the situation was very good, even hopeless. A single soldier of this formation, as a defensive armament, had mainly heavy but solid chain mail, also a round shield or - much more often - a large wooden shield (Latin scutum) with iron reinforcement in the middle (Latin umbo). It is assumed that such a shield entered the service of the Roman army most likely during the Samnite wars (343-290 BC). There was also a helmet - often of the Montefortino type - and greaves. As a side weapon it had a short, one-handed sword called gladius and a spear. Armed in this way, the Triarii fought, inter alia, during the Punic Wars (264-146 BC) or during the wars of Rome with Macedonia and the Seleucid State at the beginning of the 2nd century BC.