The Spatha

Author : M.C. Bishop
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN 13 : 147283240X
Total Pages : 81 pages
Book Rating : 4.05/5 ( download)

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Download or read book The Spatha written by M.C. Bishop and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2020-01-23 with total page 81 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Adopted from the Celts in the 1st century BC, the spatha, a lethal and formidable chopping blade, became the primary sword of the Roman soldier in the Later Empire. Over the following centuries, the blade, its scabbard, and its system of carriage underwent a series of developments, until by the 3rd century AD it was the universal sidearm of both infantry and cavalry. Thanks to its long reach, the spatha was the ideal cavalry weapon, replacing the long gladius hispaniensis in the later Republican period. As the manner in which Roman infantrymen fought evolved, styles of hand-to-hand combat changed so much that the gladius was superseded by the longer spatha during the 2nd century AD. Like the gladius, the spatha was technologically advanced, with a carefully controlled use of steel. Easy maintenance was key to its success and the spatha was designed to be easily repaired in the field where access to a forge may have been limited. It remained the main Roman sword into the Late Roman period and its influence survived into the Dark Ages with Byzantine, Carolingian and Viking blades. Drawing together historical accounts, excavated artefacts and the results of the latest scientific analyses of the blades, renowned authority M.C. Bishop reveals the full history of the development, technology, training and use of the spatha: the sword that defended an empire.

Author : M.C. Bishop
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN 13 : 1472832388
Total Pages : 81 pages
Book Rating : 4.82/5 ( download)

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Download or read book The Spatha written by M.C. Bishop and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2020-01-23 with total page 81 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Adopted from the Celts in the 1st century BC, the spatha, a lethal and formidable chopping blade, became the primary sword of the Roman soldier in the Later Empire. Over the following centuries, the blade, its scabbard, and its system of carriage underwent a series of developments, until by the 3rd century AD it was the universal sidearm of both infantry and cavalry. Thanks to its long reach, the spatha was the ideal cavalry weapon, replacing the long gladius hispaniensis in the later Republican period. As the manner in which Roman infantrymen fought evolved, styles of hand-to-hand combat changed so much that the gladius was superseded by the longer spatha during the 2nd century AD. Like the gladius, the spatha was technologically advanced, with a carefully controlled use of steel. Easy maintenance was key to its success and the spatha was designed to be easily repaired in the field where access to a forge may have been limited. It remained the main Roman sword into the Late Roman period and its influence survived into the Dark Ages with Byzantine, Carolingian and Viking blades. Drawing together historical accounts, excavated artefacts and the results of the latest scientific analyses of the blades, renowned authority M.C. Bishop reveals the full history of the development, technology, training and use of the spatha: the sword that defended an empire.

Author : Ilkka Syvänne
Publisher : Pen and Sword
ISBN 13 : 147389526X
Total Pages : 640 pages
Book Rating : 4.63/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Caracalla written by Ilkka Syvänne and published by Pen and Sword. This book was released on 2017-02-28 with total page 640 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This biography of the Roman Emperor Caracalla challenges his tyrannical reputation with a revealing narrative of his social reforms and military campaigns. Caracallahas one of the worst reputations of any Roman Emperor. Many ancient historians were very hostile, and the 18th century English historian Edward Gibbon even dubbed him the common enemy of mankind. Yet his reign was considered by at least one Roman author to be the apogee of the Roman Empire. He was guilty of many murders and massacres—including that of his own brother, ex-wife and daughter. Yet he instituted the Antonine Constitution, granting citizenship to all free men in the Empire. He was also popular with the army, improving their pay and cultivating the image of sharing their hardships. Historian Ilkka Syvanne explains how the biased ancient sources in combination with the stern looking statues of the emperor have created a distorted image of the man. He then reconstructs a chronology of Caracalla’s reign, focusing on his military campaigns and reforms, to offer a balanced view of his legacy. Caracalla offers the first complete overview of the policies, events and conflicts he oversaw and explains how and why these contributed to the military crisis of the third century.

Author : George Bentham
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 848 pages
Book Rating : 4.20/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Flora australiensis: Roxburghiaceæ to Filices written by George Bentham and published by . This book was released on 1878 with total page 848 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Author : Australia. [Miscellaneous Official Publications]
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 828 pages
Book Rating : 4.24/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Flora Australiensis written by Australia. [Miscellaneous Official Publications] and published by . This book was released on 1878 with total page 828 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Author : Robert D. Smith
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 504 pages
Book Rating : 4.79/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Medieval Weapons written by Robert D. Smith and published by Bloomsbury Publishing USA. This book was released on 2007-04-20 with total page 504 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This fascinating reference covers the weapons and armor used by warriors from the 4th to the 15th century and discusses how and why they changed over time. In the Middle Ages, the lack of standardized weapons meant that one warrior's arms were often quite different from another's, even when they were fighting on the same side. And with few major technological advances in that period, the evolution of those weapons over the centuries was incremental. But evolve they ultimately did, bringing arms, armor, and siege weapons to the threshold of the modern era. From the fall of the Roman Empire to the beginnings of the Renaissance, Medieval Weapons: An Illustrated History of Their Impact covers the inexorable transformation from warrior in the mail shirt to fully armored knight, from the days of spears and swords to the large-scale adoption of the handgun. Medieval Weapons covers this fascinating expanse of centuries in chapters devoted to the early medieval, Carolingian, Crusade, and late medieval periods. Within each period, the book details how weapons and armor were developed, what weapons were used for different types of battles, and how weapons and armor both influenced, and were influenced by, changing tactics in battles and sieges.

Author : Benjamin Smith Barton
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 390 pages
Book Rating : 4.08/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Elements Of Botany: Or Outlines Of The Natural History Of Vegetables written by Benjamin Smith Barton and published by . This book was released on 1812 with total page 390 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Author : Benjamin Smith Barton
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 460 pages
Book Rating : 4.38/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Elements of Botany written by Benjamin Smith Barton and published by . This book was released on 1804 with total page 460 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Author : M.C. Bishop
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN 13 : 1472815874
Total Pages : 84 pages
Book Rating : 4.73/5 ( download)

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Download or read book The Gladius written by M.C. Bishop and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2016-11-17 with total page 84 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: One of the most feared weapons in the ancient world, the gladius was lethal both on the battlefield and in the arena. Literary sources tell of the terror it inspired, while archaeological evidence of wounds inflicted is testament to its deadly effect. By pulling together strands of literary, sculptural and archaeological evidence renowned expert M.C. Bishop creates a narrative of the gladius' development, exploring the way in which the shape of the short sword changed as soldiers and gladiators evolved their fighting style. Drawing together historical accounts, excavated artefacts and the results of the latest scientific analyses of the blades, this volume reveals the development, technology, training and use of the gladius hispaniensis: the sword that conquered the Mediterranean.

Author :
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 1086 pages
Book Rating : 4.42/5 ( download)

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Download or read book The Transactions of the Entomological Society of London written by and published by . This book was released on 1926 with total page 1086 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: