Rome's Conquest: Army, Culture and Civilization

It may have been the greatest army of all time, conquering and controlling an empire that stretched across the ancient western world. It was ruthless, disciplined, and feared by all, and yet these solders were builders as well as destroyers that helped build a culture that became the bedrock of western civilization. The glory of what is Rome was built on the power of its army, but before it discovered how to wage war Rome was a very small farming town.
The city that would dominate the ancient world for centuries began as early as 1000 BC, early Rome was dominated by the neighboring Etruscans (Tuscany). The Etruscan king took control of Rome around 600 BC and ruled it for a century before the Romans defeated them. Rome began the creation of the political and military system we know today. As early as 500 BC the Romans had an army of at least 6,000 men that were called “The Legion,” but this was a far from the Roman army that would control the ancient western world. The Roman army was comprised of citizen soldiers, part time soldiers, or they were recruited for the campaigning season. Every year every able bodied Roman men were summoned
While the poorest the front line had no armor and only slings and stones for weapons. The early Roman army copied the Greeks basic tactical formation. The Greek army used the phalanx, a tight formation which came at the enemy with spears. The whole army would face forward in lines, and the first few ranks would hold out their spears and their shields. The army would move forward in unison. The object was to just push the enemy aside and in the course of it kill as many as possible. Rome’s first victory was against the Etruscans in 396 BC, but not much later the Romans found a new kind of enemy when Celtic warriors from the north swept down on