Could You Survive as a Roman Soldier?

Step back into the first century AD with Survive History as we explore the challenges faced by Roman soldiers on the frontier of the Empire. In this immersive episode, filmed at a meticulously reconstructed Roman fort on the Welsh border, we explore the daily life of a Roman soldier.

With Ridley Scott's Gladiator 2 due to be releases later in 2024, find out what it was really like to live and die by the sword under the Roman Empire.

With the help of volunteers from the Roman Military Research Society, we ask whether you could survive serving in a remote outpost on the edge of ‘barbaricum’. From the secrets of Roman military training, to the intricacies of Roman weapons and armour, we discover what made the Roman army such a successful force on the battlefield. We also experience the power of Roman ranged weapons, from the bow to the ballista.

We learn about the differences between Roman legionaries and auxiliaries, discover what Roman soldiers ate, and how they dealt with terrifying barbarian foes like Sarmatian horse archers. And we find out what it takes to construct a full-size first century Roman fort from the build team at Park in the Past - a truly unique construction project.

So the question is, could you survive as a soldier on the Roman frontier?

#romanempire #militaryhistory #history
00:00 Introduction
02:20 Where you'd be stationed
04:31 Auxiliaries and legionaries
12:15 Roman army training
18:49 Roman forts
22:13 Sentry duty
24:27 Roman toilets
25:12 Meeting the fort builder
30:11 Britain's Big Fort Build
30:55 Ranged weapons
38:00 Sarmatian horse archer
43:22 What Roman soldiers ate
48:11 Could you survive?