The Gladius: The Roman Short Sword
- Downloads：5023
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-06-17 09:56:20
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：M.C. Bishop
- ISBN：1472815858
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
Adopted from the Celtiberians in the late 3rd century BC and then adapted by the Romans， the gladius was one of the most feared weapons in the ancient world。 Both a lethal stabbing weapon and a formidable chopping blade， it was first used by the Roman Army in Spain， but employed to greatest effect when a strict gladiatorial training regime was applied。 Literary sources tell of the terror it induced， while archaeological evidence of wounds inflicted provides testament to it's deadly effect。 Pulling together strands of literary， sculptural and archaeological evidence， renowned expert M。C。 Bishop charts the development of the gladius， exploring the way in which the shape of the short sword changed as soldiers and gladiators evolved their fighting style， and how the iconic weapon helped Rome conquer the ancient Mediterranean world。
Reviews
J。P。 Harker
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Falls under 'interesting if you're me'！ Falls under 'interesting if you're me'！ 。。。more
Adam
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chop chop stabchop chop staboh what a bitchin sword you had
Krisley Freitas
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Livro curto， mas altamente informativo。 O autor aborda as espadas utilizadas pelos romanos desde a república até o fim do império， descrevendo os materiais， especificações， variações e como e por quem eram usadas， assim como sua influência militar e cultural no mundo antigo。Cheio de referências e citações de fontes antigas， o livro é muito bem escrito e altamente ilustrado - com inúmeras imagens de esculturas， desenhos， réplicas atuais das espadas e achados arqueológicos。 Recomendado para quem q Livro curto， mas altamente informativo。 O autor aborda as espadas utilizadas pelos romanos desde a república até o fim do império， descrevendo os materiais， especificações， variações e como e por quem eram usadas， assim como sua influência militar e cultural no mundo antigo。Cheio de referências e citações de fontes antigas， o livro é muito bem escrito e altamente ilustrado - com inúmeras imagens de esculturas， desenhos， réplicas atuais das espadas e achados arqueológicos。 Recomendado para quem quer aprofunda no assunto。 。。。more
Simon Binning
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Anyone with an interest in Roman history， be that in fiction or non-fiction， will often come across military passages where various items of equipment are mentioned。 One of them will certainly be the ubiquitous gladius。 We won't even think about it; we'll move on without a second thought， confident that we know exactly what is being talked about。But it does us all good， once in a while， to pause， and challenge our own pre-conceptions。 That is exactly what this book does。 It's not a big book - ab Anyone with an interest in Roman history， be that in fiction or non-fiction， will often come across military passages where various items of equipment are mentioned。 One of them will certainly be the ubiquitous gladius。 We won't even think about it; we'll move on without a second thought， confident that we know exactly what is being talked about。But it does us all good， once in a while， to pause， and challenge our own pre-conceptions。 That is exactly what this book does。 It's not a big book - about 80 pages - but appears to contain just about everything known about this iconic sword。 And the story is not as simple as it may appear。The author traces the history of the gladius; its probable origins， its various incarnations， how it was made， and gives his views and opinions as to why the changes occurred。 Because you can tell a lot from this seemingly simple weapon。 Why was it so successful？ Did the changes to the gladius over time change Roman tactics？ Or did a change of tactics lead to changes in the weapon？ There are no clear answers， but the author does an excellent job of explaining the competing theories， and explaining his own conclusions。The other thing worth mentioning are the illustrations。 There are many， and they add enormously to the text。 Pictures of extant weapons in various European museums， as well as pen drawings and diagrams。 This， of course， means that this is not an ideal book to read on a Kindle。 If you buy the Kindle version， it is definitely worth reading it on a tablet or PC if you can， or at least using one to look through the pictures。Overall， this is an excellent resource。 Clear， concise and beautifully illustrated。 。。。more
Bonnie_blu
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This slim book is a very good overview of the "gladius Hispaniensis。" Bishop covers the sword's evolution， how legionaries trained with it， how it was used in battle， and how it's viewed in the modern world。 There is a lot of information packed into the book's 80 pages， and there are numerous pictures and drawings to support the text。 The book is a good beginning point for anyone interested in the primary weapon carried by the legions of Rome。 This slim book is a very good overview of the "gladius Hispaniensis。" Bishop covers the sword's evolution， how legionaries trained with it， how it was used in battle， and how it's viewed in the modern world。 There is a lot of information packed into the book's 80 pages， and there are numerous pictures and drawings to support the text。 The book is a good beginning point for anyone interested in the primary weapon carried by the legions of Rome。 。。。more
William Paley
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A well-researched piece。
Jonathan
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Very good study of the short sword that has become an iconic symbol of an empire。
Checkman
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The range of military oriented topics that Osprey has published over the years never ceases to amaze me。 Recently I learned that in addition to firearms Osprey also published books about the Gladius （Roman short sword）。 the Pilum （Roman javelin） and other famous weapons of the ancient and medieval world。 The rest of my Osprey weapons library is focused on modern firearms， but I'm also a lifelong Roman Empire history buff so I added Mr。 Boshop's book on the famous Roman sword。 One does not read a The range of military oriented topics that Osprey has published over the years never ceases to amaze me。 Recently I learned that in addition to firearms Osprey also published books about the Gladius （Roman short sword）。 the Pilum （Roman javelin） and other famous weapons of the ancient and medieval world。 The rest of my Osprey weapons library is focused on modern firearms， but I'm also a lifelong Roman Empire history buff so I added Mr。 Boshop's book on the famous Roman sword。 One does not read about the Roman Empire and not come across numerous references to the Gladius and the Pilum。 However the number of books that are dedicated to covering the sword itself are not as numerous as one might think。 As is the case with many of the Osprey books this one is tailor made for the reader with a casual interest in the topic。 Not being an expert on swords I found the book to be informative， with just enough technical info to be interesting， but not eye glazing。 Like all the other Osprey books it's loaded with illustrations and packs a lot of information in just eighty pages。 I'm hooked。 。。。more
Brad Fonseca
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If you want very technical and deep information about what we know about the Roman gladius （or legionnaire sword sword）， this is the book for you。 This was a very enjoyable read for a Roman history nerd， like myself。
Mark Stone
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The de facto resource for learning about what is perhaps the most effective sword ever created。 How it came about， its multiple uses， care， and training。 I've been intensively studying Ancient Rome for ten years and consistently found myself discovering new things thanks to this book， which is short on pages but long and deep on information you won't find elsewhere。 The de facto resource for learning about what is perhaps the most effective sword ever created。 How it came about， its multiple uses， care， and training。 I've been intensively studying Ancient Rome for ten years and consistently found myself discovering new things thanks to this book， which is short on pages but long and deep on information you won't find elsewhere。 。。。more
S。J。A。 Turney
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