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Continuity and Change after the Fall of the Roman Empire
The cataclysmic end of the Roman Empire in the West has tended to mask the underlying features of continuity. The map of Europe in the year 500 would have been unrecognizable to anyone living a hundred years earlier. Gone was the solid boundary...
Definition
Battle of Cannae
The Battle of Cannae (2 August 216 BCE) was the decisive victory of the Carthaginian army over Roman forces at Cannae, southeast Italy, during the Second Punic War (218-202 BCE). The Carthaginian general Hannibal Barca (l. 247-183 BCE), who...
Definition
Reconquista
The Reconquista (Reconquest) or Iberian Crusades were military campaigns largely conducted between the 11th and 13th century CE to liberate southern Portuguese and Spanish territories, then known as al-Andalus, from the Muslim Moors who had...
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The Roman Empire in West Africa
At its fullest extent, the Roman Empire stretched from around modern-day Aswan, Egypt at its southernmost point to Great Britain in the north but the influence of the Roman Empire went far beyond even the borders of its provinces as a result...
Definition
Roman Auxiliary Cavalry
The Roman army consisted of three separate divisions: the famed legions, the cavalry, and lastly, the auxiliaries. The auxiliaries (auxilia) were comprised of infantry cohorts, mounted infantry, and cavalry units or wings (alae). Although...
Definition
Roman Constitution
Roman constitution was an accumulation of laws, legal decisions, and ancient customs. While today 'constitution' usually refers to a single act of legislation, this was not the case in ancient Rome. Instead, Roman government relied on the...
Definition
Roman Naval Warfare
Military supremacy of the seas could be a crucial factor in the success of any land campaign, and the Romans well knew that a powerful naval fleet could supply troops and equipment to where they were most needed in as short a time as possible...
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Scale Model of Augusta Emerita (Mérida, Spain)
Augusta Emerita (modern-day Mérida in Spain) was a Roman colony established by Augustus in 25 BCE. The city was the capital of the Roman province of Lusitania, and was one of the largest in Hispania with an area of over 20,000 square kilometres...
Definition
Roman Standard
The Roman Standard (Latin: Signum or Signa Romanum) was a pennant, flag, or banner, suspended or attached to a staff or pole, which identified a Roman legion (infantry) or Equites (cavalry). The Standard of a cavalry unit was emblazoned with...
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Portico in Augusta Emerita (Mérida, Spain)
A reconstructed Roman portico decorated with clipei (circular medallions) depicting Jupiter Ammon and Medusa. The structure was part of the Roman Forum in the town of Augusta Emerita (Mérida, Spain).