07-20-2013, 08:35 AM
Having read several books about the Roman army, these seems to be contradicting ideas as to how well Roman soldiers were paid.
Historians like Adrian Goldsworthy suggest that Roman military pay was very modest, and an unskilled labourer in the cities could earn easily as much, but most soldiers enlisted because of the stability it offered.
Others, such as Walter Scheidel and Yann Le Bohec, challenged this idea, by claiming that although legionary pay was low compared to wages in the Roman capital, most forts were stationed at the frontiers, where the standard of living was considerably lower, and military pay probably was considered a luxury in comparison with local civilians.
Another interesting question is the difference in salaries between legionaries and auxiliaries. Officially the former earned 3 times as much as the latter, but if legionary pay was already modest, auxiliary pay would barely be able to cover the expenses of armour and weapons.
Other sources suggest that auxiliaries earned 3/4 that of legionaries, which seemed more reasonable, by the very fact that many auxiliary soldiers were known to raise families and own slaves.
Historians like Adrian Goldsworthy suggest that Roman military pay was very modest, and an unskilled labourer in the cities could earn easily as much, but most soldiers enlisted because of the stability it offered.
Others, such as Walter Scheidel and Yann Le Bohec, challenged this idea, by claiming that although legionary pay was low compared to wages in the Roman capital, most forts were stationed at the frontiers, where the standard of living was considerably lower, and military pay probably was considered a luxury in comparison with local civilians.
Another interesting question is the difference in salaries between legionaries and auxiliaries. Officially the former earned 3 times as much as the latter, but if legionary pay was already modest, auxiliary pay would barely be able to cover the expenses of armour and weapons.
Other sources suggest that auxiliaries earned 3/4 that of legionaries, which seemed more reasonable, by the very fact that many auxiliary soldiers were known to raise families and own slaves.
