Leves
Encyclopedia
Leves were javelin-armed skirmishers in the army of the early Roman republic. They were typically some of the youngest and poorest men in the legion, and could not afford much equipment. They were usually outfitted with just a number of light javelins and no other equipment. There were 300 leves in a legion, and unlike other infantry types they did not form their own units, but were assigned to units of hastati
— heavier sword-armed troops. Their primary purpose on the battlefield was to harass the enemy with javelin fire and support the heavy infantry
who fought in hand-to-hand combat. Accensi
and rorarii were also light missile troops and had similar roles.
ca. 386 BC. These soldiers stood at the rear of a very large phalanx
and were equipped in a similar manner to leves. They provided missile support to the richer hand-to-hand infantry in the front ranks, and also acted as a screening force. It is probable that engagements with the Samnites and a crushing defeat at the hands of the Gallic
warlord Brennus
, who both used lots of smaller military units rather than a few very large ones, taught the Romans the importance of flexibility and the inadequacy of the phalanx on the rough, hilly ground of central Italy.
in a crushing defeat that prompted reforms by Marcus Furius Camillus
. Under the new system, men were sorted into classes based on wealth; the leves were some of the poorest, along with the rorarii and accensi. Leves typically carried a number of light javelins and a simple round shield about 90 cm (3 feet) in diametre. The larger rectangular scutum
was sometimes carried by those soldiers who could afford it. They fought in a loose formation, often forming up at the front of the army before battle to pepper the enemy with missiles.
Under this organisation, the 300 leves were attached to units of hastati, heavy sword armed troops, rather than forming their own units. In a pitched battle
, the leves would form up at the front of the legion and harass the enemy with javelin fire to cover the advance of the hastati and other heavy infantry. The equites, cavalrymen, were used as flankers and to pursue routing enemies. The rorarii and accensi in the final battle line were used in a support role, providing mass and reinforcing wavering areas of the line.
, the different types of light troops were done away with and replaced by a single skirmisher class, the velites
Their equipment and role was very similar to that of the leves, to harass the enemy with missile fire and support friendly troops.
Hastati
Hastatii were a class of infantry in the armies of the early Roman Republic who originally fought as spearmen, and later as swordsmen. They were originally some of the poorest men in the legion, and could afford only modest equipment — light armour and a large shield, in their service as the...
— heavier sword-armed troops. Their primary purpose on the battlefield was to harass the enemy with javelin fire and support the heavy infantry
Heavy infantry
Heavy infantry refers to heavily armed and armoured ground troops, as opposed to medium or light infantry, in which the warriors are relatively lightly armoured. As modern infantry troops usually define their subgroups differently , 'heavy infantry' almost always is used to describe pre-gunpowder...
who fought in hand-to-hand combat. Accensi
Accensi
Accensi were light infantry in the armies of the early Roman Republic. They were the poorest men in the legion, and could not afford much equipment. They did not wear armour or carry shields, and their usual position was part of the third battle line. They fought in a loose formation, supporting...
and rorarii were also light missile troops and had similar roles.
History and deployment
Leves appear to have evolved from the old poor classes of the army under the Etruscan kings when it was reformed by Marcus Furius CamillusMarcus Furius Camillus
Marcus Furius Camillus was a Roman soldier and statesman of patrician descent. According to Livy and Plutarch, Camillus triumphed four times, was five times dictator, and was honoured with the title of Second Founder of Rome....
ca. 386 BC. These soldiers stood at the rear of a very large phalanx
Phalanx formation
The phalanx is a rectangular mass military formation, usually composed entirely of heavy infantry armed with spears, pikes, sarissas, or similar weapons...
and were equipped in a similar manner to leves. They provided missile support to the richer hand-to-hand infantry in the front ranks, and also acted as a screening force. It is probable that engagements with the Samnites and a crushing defeat at the hands of the Gallic
Gauls
The Gauls were a Celtic people living in Gaul, the region roughly corresponding to what is now France, Belgium, Switzerland and Northern Italy, from the Iron Age through the Roman period. They mostly spoke the Continental Celtic language called Gaulish....
warlord Brennus
Brennus
Brennus is the name of two Gaulish chieftains famous in ancient history:* Brennus , chieftain of the Senones, a Gallic tribe originating from the modern areas of France known as Seine-et-Marne, Loiret, and Yonne; in 387 BC, in the Battle of the Allia, he led an army of Cisalpine Gauls in their...
, who both used lots of smaller military units rather than a few very large ones, taught the Romans the importance of flexibility and the inadequacy of the phalanx on the rough, hilly ground of central Italy.
Camillan system
By the 4th century BC the military the Romans had inherited from the Etruscans was still in use. Though its efficiency was doubtful, it proved effective against Rome's largely local adversaries. When Gauls invaded Etruria in 390 BC, the inhabitants requested help from Rome. The small contingent Rome sent to repel the Gallic invaders provoked a full scale attack on Rome. The entire Roman army was destroyed at the Battle of the AlliaBattle of the Allia
The Battle of the Allia was a battle of the first Gallic invasion of Rome. The battle was fought near the Allia river: the defeat of the Roman army opened the route for the Gauls to sack Rome. It was fought in 390/387 BC.-Background:...
in a crushing defeat that prompted reforms by Marcus Furius Camillus
Marcus Furius Camillus
Marcus Furius Camillus was a Roman soldier and statesman of patrician descent. According to Livy and Plutarch, Camillus triumphed four times, was five times dictator, and was honoured with the title of Second Founder of Rome....
. Under the new system, men were sorted into classes based on wealth; the leves were some of the poorest, along with the rorarii and accensi. Leves typically carried a number of light javelins and a simple round shield about 90 cm (3 feet) in diametre. The larger rectangular scutum
Scutum
Scutum is a small constellation introduced in the seventeenth century. Its name is Latin for shield.-History:Scutum is the only constellation that owes its name to a non-classical historical figure...
was sometimes carried by those soldiers who could afford it. They fought in a loose formation, often forming up at the front of the army before battle to pepper the enemy with missiles.
Under this organisation, the 300 leves were attached to units of hastati, heavy sword armed troops, rather than forming their own units. In a pitched battle
Pitched battle
A pitched battle is a battle where both sides choose to fight at a chosen location and time and where either side has the option to disengage either before the battle starts, or shortly after the first armed exchanges....
, the leves would form up at the front of the legion and harass the enemy with javelin fire to cover the advance of the hastati and other heavy infantry. The equites, cavalrymen, were used as flankers and to pursue routing enemies. The rorarii and accensi in the final battle line were used in a support role, providing mass and reinforcing wavering areas of the line.
Polybian system
The Camillan system of organisation proved inefficient, in part due to the relatively large number of light troops, and sometime in the mid-3rd century BC, was restructured. In a new system, described by PolybiusPolybius
Polybius , Greek ) was a Greek historian of the Hellenistic Period noted for his work, The Histories, which covered the period of 220–146 BC in detail. The work describes in part the rise of the Roman Republic and its gradual domination over Greece...
, the different types of light troops were done away with and replaced by a single skirmisher class, the velites
Velites
Velites were a class of infantry in the Polybian legions of the early Roman republic. Velites were light infantry and skirmishers who were armed with a number of light javelins, or hastae velitares, to fling at the enemy, and also carried short thrusting swords, or gladii for use in melee...
Their equipment and role was very similar to that of the leves, to harass the enemy with missile fire and support friendly troops.