Did Roman Legions get SOFT? | The Late Roman Army Explained

What really happened to the Roman legions in the Late Roman Empire? Were they in decline, or did they simply adapt to survive new challenges? This video explores the transformation of the Roman army from the Principate to the 4th and 5th centuries, examining the evolution of Roman legions, auxiliaries, and cavalry into the Comitatenses and Limitanei. We’ll cover how Roman military equipment, tactics, and organization changed after the Crisis of the Third Century, why the creation of mobile field armies was necessary, and how the frontier defenses of the empire were structured. Along the way, we’ll bust the myth of a “declining” army and show how the Late Roman military remained disciplined, powerful, and capable of defending the empire against foreign invasions and civil wars alike. So How and Why did the Roman Legions change? Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/HistoriaMilitum Our NEW YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1PiGi79snPk_qBH_VfCTsg?sub_confirmation=1 Primary sources: Ammianus Marcellinus, Res Gestae, 16.11-12; 18.2; 20.10; 21.3; 24.2-6; 25.3, 6; 27.1-2, 8; 28.3; 29.4; 31.10-13 Libanius, Orations, 59.99-120 Procopius, History of the Wars, 3.11 Vegetius, On Military Matters, 1-4 Zosimus, New History, 1.40.1; 2.34.1-2 Secondary sources: Anderson, E.B. (2016) Cataphracts: Knights of the Ancient Eastern Empires, Barnsley, Pen & Sword Books M.C Bishop and J.C.N Coulston (2006) Roman Military Equipment: From the Punic Wars to the Fall of Rome, Oxford, Oxbow Books Bishop, M.C. (2020) Weapon 72: The Spatha, Oxford, Osprey Publishing Bishop, M.C. (2020) Elite 234: Roman Shields, Oxford, Osprey Publishing Campbell, D.C. (2006) Fortress 43: Roman Legionary Fortresses 27 BC - AD 378, Oxford, Osprey Publishing Cowan, R. (2015) Warrior 175: Roman Legionary AD 284-337, Oxford, Osprey Publishing edit. Michael H. Dodgeon and Samuel N.C. Lieu (1994) The Roman Eastern Frontier and the Persian Wars AD 226-363: A Documentary History, London and New York, Routledge Esposito, G. (2018) Armies of the Late Roman Empire AD 284 - 476, Barnsley, Pen & Sword Books Elton, H. (1994) Warfare in Roman Europe AD 350-425, Oxford, Clarendon Paperbacks Elton, H. (2018) The Roman Empire in Late Antiquity: A Political and Military History, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press Elliot, S. (2016) Legions in Crisis: Transformation of the Roman Soldier AD 192-284, Stroud, Fonthill Elliot, S. (2020) Romans at War, Oxford and Havertown, Casemate Publishers Haynes, I. (2016) Blood of the Provinces: The Roman Auxilia and the Making of Provincial Society from Augustus to the Severans, Oxford, Oxford University Press Goldsworthy, A. (2003) The Complete Roman Army, London, Thames & Hudson Goldsworthy, A. (2004) In The Name Of Rome: The Men Who Won The Roman Empire, London, Phoenix Goldsworthy, A. (2009) The Fall of the West: The Death of the Roman Superpower, London, Weidenfeld & Nicolson Kulikowski, M. (2016) Imperial Triumph: The Roman World from Hadrian to Constantine, London, Profile Books Lee, A.D. (2007) War in Late Antiquity: A Social History, Malden, Blackwell Publishing Loades, M. (2016) Weapon 43: The Composite Bow, Oxford, Osprey Publishing MacDowall, S. (1994) Warrior 9: Late Roman Infantryman 236-565 AD, Oxford, Osprey Publishing MacDowall, S. (1995) Warrior 15: Late Roman Cavalryman 236-565 AD, Oxford, Osprey Publishing Nigel Pollard and Joanne Berry (2012) The Complete Roman Legions, London, Thames & Hudson Stephenson, I.P. (1999) Roman Infantry Equipment: The Later Empire, Gloucestershire, Tempus Publishing Southern, P. (2006) The Roman Army: A Social and Institutional History, Santa Barbara, ABC-CLIO Southern, P. (2016) The Roman Army: A History 753 BC - AD 476, Gloucestersire, Amberly Publishing Sage, M. (2020) Septimius Severus & The Roman Army, Barnsley, Pen & Sword Books Patricia Southern and Karen R. Dixon (1996) The Late Roman Army, New Haven and London, Yale University Press Syvänne, I. (2024) Late Roman Combat Tactics, Barnsley, Pen & Sword Books Potter, D. (2013) The Roman Empire at Bay, AD 180-395, London and New York, Routledge Taylor, D. (2016) Roman Empire at War: A Compendium of Battles from 31 BC to AD 565, Barnsley, Pen & Sword Books The Principate Army (0:00) The Late Army (1:47) Origins of the Field Army (3:45) Comitatenses (6:27) Limitanei (9:16) Moesia Secunda (12:09) Contemporary disapproval (15:58) Barbarization (17:08) The Army at War (18:41)