Roman Swords
Many Episodes
What do you think of the swords that the soldiers carried? They were very short and broad!
Roman soldiers carried a short sword, known as a Gladius. It was designed to make thrusting blows rather than sword fighting, as you see in films from later time periods. The Roman Army used ‘close combat’ which meant that the enemy was very close when you fought him. Roman fighting depended on large numbers of soldiers as they tried to conquer the world. There were several different sword designs, but the large flat blades are typical of Roman swords.
The Romans did use longer swords in the first century when they had to fight men on horses or soldiers in chariots.
In Friends and Heroes Roman soldiers carry swords but our heroes don’t, they use their clever ideas, quick wits and the occasional pot of wet clay to defeat the Romans!
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