Assault Quadreme, Socii Extraordinarii

Description

There is a good deal of debate as to how large ancient warships worked; the principles are understood, but the details are not always so clear. A Roman 'quadreme' or Greek 'tetreres' would seem to have four rows of oars if the name is translated literally. However, it is unclear how four sets of oars each with one rower apiece could be used without them getting in a terrible tangle even with a magnificently trained crew, or how the top set of rowers would be able to handle the extremely long oars pitched at a steep angle and still produce any power. The chances are that the term 'oar' had become synonymous with 'rower' and that the lowest bank had more than one man per oar. The other option was to go back to a double row of oars, with two men apiece. Two banks of oars would also have made for a cheaper construction task for each ship. Either way, the result was a ship that could rival the lighter trireme in speed, yet had more deck space for a large fighting contingent or artillery pieces.

These elite soldiers, chosen from amongst the Latin and Italian allies of Rome, were often given dangerous or vital duties to perform. Socii extraordinarii were composed of roughly the best fifth of an allied infantry force, and led any column on the march, acting as scouts and occasionally forming a rear-guard. The city-states and tribes of the Italian peninsula who provided the Socii were expected to match Rome’s military contribution on any campaign. Those liable for service included Romans that had given up citizenship to live in the colonies and Latin neighbours of Rome, such as the Etruscans and Samnites. In return for providing half of Rome’s military might, they did not have to pay tributes and received half of any spoils.