tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-386077914312449748.post3940879063497291589..comments2024-03-29T13:09:31.522+01:00Comments on Defence and Freedom: The Roman Empire's warningUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-386077914312449748.post-22972189692949300422012-05-28T22:21:08.680+02:002012-05-28T22:21:08.680+02:00The Roman economy is a good point because it faile...The Roman economy is a good point because it failed miserably with the lack of conquest reward influx. <br />The Germanic tribes could levy a larger part of their population (with not so good equipment) than the Romans who were ill suited to easily stomach their losses of trained professionals who much differed from civilians(muscles, nourishment). Another issue is that the local population was not exactly welcoming what had become of the Roman Empire and developed more local patriotism and problem solving ideas (Gallic Empire http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gallic_Empire) with longer persistence because of increasingly weakening central power vis-รก-vis the fringes.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-386077914312449748.post-82607537736904562742011-12-18T15:21:59.671+01:002011-12-18T15:21:59.671+01:00That was a very brief summary of the Romans. It...That was a very brief summary of the Romans. It's disputed that they had gaps in their frontline. Rather they, like others, rotated ranks within formation. It makes things a lot easier if you advance in separate blocks and can then adapt to the circumstances instead of waiting for everybody in the line and moving at a very slow pace.<br /><br />The heavy infantryman doesn't have to move as much as the light infantryman in the right threat environment and he most certainly wore some organic armour on his skin. Such organic armour, like quilted cotton, was used in the Middle Ages and Early Modern Age as far south as West Africa and the sugar plantations in America.<br />There's a trick to it, make that organic armour wet and it makes the heavy equipment quite comfortable to wear under the sun, even better cooling than sweating naked. There's a downside to it, it's hard to fight after crossing the Trebbia and you better oil yourself with olive oil to keep your muscles warm and supple under such wet and cold conditions.<br /><br />If you go rafting or canyoning today you should wear a wet shirt underneath the neopren suit to cool you. That also helps when diving in a wet or semi-dry suit because you better retain the warmed water. So if falling into cold water you don't get much of a dangerous thermal shock.<br /><br />I've not been and will likely never be deployed to a place like Afghanistan. If I was, I would make at least my T-shirt under the armour as wet as possible and have some water with me to keep it so. That's more weight to carry, but it's much easier to handle if you aren't overheated. A different solution could be experimenting with first aid blankets, they have one heat conducting and one isolating side. Maybe a combination of these with the wet T-shirt helps (like wearing two wet shirts and the blanket in between for conducting the heat from the inner to the outer T-shirt). <br />Wearing the latest fashion expensive IR-radiation reducing clothes seems like a silly idea to me expect in a cool night.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com