Romans at War: The Roman Military in the Republic and Empire

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The first non-apocryphal Roman wars were wars of both expansion and defence, aimed at protecting Rome itself from neighbouring cities and nations and establishing its territory in the region. [32] Florus writes that at this time "their neighbours, on every side, were continually harassing them, as they had no land of their own... and as they were situated, as it were, at the junction of the roads to Latium and Etruria, and, at whatever gate they went out, were sure to meet a foe." [33] Next came plebeians. They were the ordinary working people of Rome. Although they were poor, they were allowed to vote. This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.

Battle of Bergamo – Romans under General Ricimer defeated Alan invasion of Italy and killed their king. or 297 – Battle of Carrhae – Romans under the Caesar Galerius are defeated by the Persians under Narseh.He was next engaged in a war with Gabii, one of the Latin cities, which had rejected the Latin treaty with Rome. Unable to take the city by force of arms, Tarquin had his son, Sextus Tarquinius, infiltrate the city, gain the trust of its people and command of its army. In time he killed or exiled the city's leaders, and handed control of the city over to his father. [28] Battle of Orleans – Gallo-Roman and Salian Frank forces under the command of Aegidius defeated a force of Visigoths at Orleans. Battle of the Teutoburg Forest (9) – Cherusci-born Roman commander Arminius defects to a coalition Germanic rebel groups, who jointly ambush and annihilate three Roman legions under Publius Quinctilius Varus, prompting retaliation campaigns by the Romans. Germania Antiqua roman province is abandoned with all their settlements such as the Waldgirmes Forum .

Battle of Sarmisegetusa – A Roman army led by Trajan conquered and destroyed the Dacian capital. Part of Dacia was annexed to the Roman Empire. From its origin as a city-state on the peninsula of Italy in the 8th century BC, to its rise as an empire covering much of Southern Europe, Western Europe, Near East and North Africa to its fall in the 5th century AD, the political history of Ancient Rome was closely entwined with its military history. The core of the campaign history of the Roman military is an aggregate of different accounts of the Roman military's land battles, from its initial defense against and subsequent conquest of the city's hilltop neighbors on the Italian peninsula, to the ultimate struggle of the Western Roman Empire for its existence against invading Huns, Vandals and Germanic tribes. These accounts were written by various authors throughout and after the history of the Empire. Following the First Punic War, naval battles were less significant than land battles to the military history of Rome due to its encompassment of lands of the periphery and its unchallenged dominance of the Mediterranean Sea.

May – Battle of Ctesiphon – Emperor Julian defeats Shapur II of Persia outside the walls of the Persian capital, but is unable to take the city.