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Calling all armchair generals! Boudica's Last Stand.
(12-18-2017, 07:37 PM)Nathan Ross Wrote: Marching by road on an established line of communication, with forts or supply bases en route, I don't see why Paulinus's men couldn't cover the regular Vegetian 18-22 miles per day.

I have commented earlier that Vegetius' 20 and 24 Roman miles in five summer hours establishes a rate of march (4 and 4.8 mph) but not necessarily the distances covered except in training. The Romans over-trained in order to make campaign conditions seem easier than what the troops were used to. It would depend upon the circumstances of the campaign as to how many hours the commander expected his men to maintain that pace. Marching on roads would ease the process but it is unlikely that the forts that Paulinus passed en route to and from London would have been big enough to accommodate the size of his force. Being a prudent general and travelling at least part of the way through hostile or potentially hostile country and also being uncertain of the loyalty of the other tribes through whose territory he passed, Paulinus would probably have insisted on the construction of a marching camp each night. For what it is worth, I believe the forts on Hadrian's Wall to be approximately seven miles apart and that this represents half a day's march in peacetime conditions without having to construct a camp. Thus, a normal peacetime marching day of 14 miles at the slower rate would be approximately 3.5 hours. Put that way, it does not seem very much but in times of peace it is not necessary to stretch the men and in wartime both the pace and the hours of marching could be extended.
Michael King Macdona

And do as adversaries do in law, -
Strive mightily, but eat and drink as friends.
(The Taming of the Shrew: Act 1, Scene 2)
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Messages In This Thread
Re: Calling all armchair generals! - by Ensifer - 03-11-2010, 03:13 PM
Re: Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by Steve Kaye - 02-18-2012, 06:26 PM
Re: Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by Steve Kaye - 02-19-2012, 12:02 AM
Re: Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by Steve Kaye - 02-19-2012, 02:50 PM
Re: Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by Steve Kaye - 02-19-2012, 05:40 PM
Re: Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by Steve Kaye - 02-19-2012, 11:26 PM
Re: Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by Steve Kaye - 04-24-2012, 05:11 PM
Re: Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by Steve Kaye - 04-24-2012, 09:42 PM
Re: Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by Steve Kaye - 04-24-2012, 10:10 PM
Re: Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by Steve Kaye - 04-25-2012, 03:11 PM
Re: Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by Steve Kaye - 04-25-2012, 03:25 PM
Re: Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by Steve Kaye - 04-25-2012, 08:36 PM
Re: Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by Steve Kaye - 04-26-2012, 02:57 PM
Re: Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by Steve Kaye - 04-27-2012, 01:50 PM
Re: Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by Steve Kaye - 08-05-2012, 02:24 PM
Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by antiochus - 11-07-2014, 02:18 PM
Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by antiochus - 11-08-2014, 01:50 AM
Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by antiochus - 11-11-2014, 02:03 AM
Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by antiochus - 11-18-2014, 07:54 AM
Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by antiochus - 11-20-2014, 02:37 AM
Calling all armchair generals! Boudica\'s Last Stand. - by antiochus - 11-25-2014, 08:29 AM
RE: Calling all armchair generals! Boudica's Last Stand. - by Renatus - 12-19-2017, 12:04 AM

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