Tuesday 24 January 2012

Samnite Linen Legion





According to Livy, the Samnite infantry were divided into two corps. The first wore bleached white tunics and silvered armour. the second wore bronze and muti-coloured tunics. It was the custom of the Samnites to concecrate themselves before battle, and this is why they dressed themselves in white and whitened their arms , as this is the colour of religious purity. In the middle of the camp an enclosure was erected made of wicker fences this was then covered with linen. Here a sacrifice was made according to the ancient rites preserved on linen rolls. The chosen band was created firstly by the imperator selecting ten of the most eminent of the Samnites. These then in turn chose a further ten each until they numbered 16,000 men. These soldiers swore a sollemn oath over the sacrifices, which were guarded by centurions with drawn swords. These were called the Linen legion after the linen roof of the enclosure. They were given silvered arms and crested helmets to distinguish them from the rest.  They were the elite of the army and held the post of honour , the right wing.

6 comments:

  1. Good job, and thanks for the historical info

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  2. I think they look great! I'm always nervous when it comes to painting white, you've really nailed it.

    And as above, thanks for the info.

    cheers

    Nate

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  3. Nice job on the white. samnites i have heard of but the linen legion...interesting bit of history..thanks
    Cheers
    paul

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  4. Steve, what have I told you about airing your linen in public.
    These look superb and will really stand out on the table.

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  5. Thanks for your kind comments, more to come soon!

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  6. Yes, all white is very tricky but you did it splendidly! I really like these guys!

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Hi I have recently had a few comments on old posts that i missed, so to make sure i dont miss anything i have added the moderator settings
thanks for taking the time to comment :o)