Farmers and herdsmen - who were tougher?

[Calvo]

Some ancient civilizations, such as the Romans and Greeks, recruited the bulk of their soldiers from the peasant population, who were mostly farmers.
Others such as the Persians and other Central Asian states, recruited the cream of their soldiers from the nomadic herdsmen from the steppes.

I sometimes wonder, between farmers and steppe herders, which ones were physically tougher?
Farmers mostly moved on foot and often had to walk great distances every day and engage in back-breaking labour to move the soil.
The herders of the steppe, moved mostly on horseback, which required less physical energy, but they had to be on the move every day.

In your opinion, which of the 2 made tougher warriors?

[Michael Kerr]

Citizen farmers were the backbone of early Roman armies but I think that due to the fact that most nomads lived in harsher climates in wagons or tents, constantly following their herds, living on higher ground in summer for grazing, tending their herds, milking, shearing, hunting to store food for winter, putting up with droughts & diseases periodically decimating their herds, depriving their families of food, clothing & means of transport as well as protecting their herds from predators both animal & human, it was no wonder they looked forward to winter so they could raid their neighbours or more sedentary populations for loot & horses. They were disciplined, worked well in groups & by necessity were tough & had a reputation as excellent light cavalry & made excellent soldiers which a lot of sedentary nations made use of in their own armies.
Regards
Michael Kerr

[Calvo]

On a normal day, a farmer could have burned off more calories than a nomadic herder, but as you wisely pointed out, nomadic herders usually lived in harsher climate and were materially more deprived and accustomed to hardship.

Early farmers from Italy, Gaul and the Iberian Peninsula were known to make tough warriors (especially those from the mountainous regions), but other peasant nations, such as the Egyptians and other peoples of the eastern mediterranean, were never reputed to be warlike.

[Flavivs Aetivs]

The Huns I think provide a perfect example of a tough nomad people. The Farmers who made up the Limitanei Garrison (presumably, as Limitanei were known to become very sedentary at their postings) at (I think it was Viminacium) were easily overpowered by Uldin when he captured the fort in the period between 400-410 (not sure on the exact date either)

[Macedon]

To make a long story short, farmers (and other settled professions) made better infantry, nomads (of the type of the steppes which seems to be the case in your query) made better light (skirmishing) cavalry.

[Quintius Clavus]

There were some serious cultural values changes that influenced the quality of the more settled soldiers of the late Empire. The farmer-citizen soldiers of the early and middle Republic, were very hardy men and the cultural values were often fight or die. The Roman state during the Republic encouraged this ethos. Dr. Gaius Stern of BerkleyU in California teaches and writes extensively on the treatment by Rome of Roman soldiers captured by the enemy especially during the Republic. Some of his papers can be viewed on the website academia.edu. He is also very responsive to questions. There were clearly very high expectations required of that farmer-soldier.

[john m roberts]

There were also non-nomadic pastoralists - shepherds and cattle herders. Italy had these in abundance, and despite the flute-tootling shepherds of pastoral poetry, the real specimens were acknowledged to be a rough lot, often indistinguishable from brigands. Besides the toughness required of soldiers, they would have possessed another attribute of great value to the legions - the ability to stay awake and alert at night. In a Europe that still harbored bears, panthers and wolves as well as human rustlers, shepherds and herdsmen had to be tough, alert and skilled with weapons.

[Frank]

For the romans physical criteria was just one side of the medal. Even more important: Farmers and herdsmen were used to live a hard life, work all day long and accept authorities. Best pre-conditions for a soldier.

[Calvo]

If farmers were more suited for heavy infantry and nomadic herders more suited for light cavalry, the question I have now is which of the 2 would need to be stronger and tougher?

I could imagine that a heavy infantryman would need to have greater force and endurance as he'd have to march dozens of miles every day carrying a heavy load of 30-40 kg, and by fighting hand-to-hand with sword and shield, he would require a great physical strength.

Light calvary, could be physically not as strong, but more agile, as he would be able to control his horse, fire arrows and throw javelins while at full gallop,

[Flavivs Aetivs]

Well in the end Heavy Infantry beat the Light Cavalry. :whistle:

[Michael Kerr]

I think Roman army recruiters would follow a criteria in selecting troops similar to what Macedon suggested in that farmers made good infantry & physically suited to the requirements of a legionary with the endurance to march & entrench every day as well as the strength to do physical labour like building walls, roads and forts as well as repairing structures & then to take part in battles & kill the odd barbarian every now & then.
However with light cavalry recruitment the steppe herder would be their ideal pick because he had the mental toughness & endurance to withstand cold & hunger for long periods while scouting & foraging either working in small groups or by themselves. he would have natural tracking & survival skills? He would be pretty strong physically requiring strong legs to help control horses when riding as well as having the strength to swing a longsword or axe in battle. Steppe herders were renowned for their exceptional riding skills so rather than strength it was these skills as well as the fact they probably supplied their own horses, armour, weapons as well as other recruits that made them more suitable to cavalry.
Regards
Michael Kerr

[M. Demetrius]

Well in the end Heavy Infantry beat the Light Cavalry.

Could a factor in that be that there were thousands of Infantry and only hundreds of cavalry?

[Michael Kerr]

I think that non nomadic pastoralists as John M Roberts mentioned like shepherds would make excellent light infantry as they would be skilled with sling & archery to ward off predators & rustlers & be pretty fit.
Regards
Michael Kerr

[Gesiþ]

I think that non nomadic pastoralists as John M Roberts mentioned like shepherds would make excellent light infantry as they would be skilled with sling & archery to ward off predators & rustlers & be pretty fit.
Regards
Michael Kerr

Also they would often be in a lower economical class, less able to afford medium-heavy equipment and would thus make an excellent recruitment pool for the Polybian-era Velites, or the Hellenistic Psiloi, for example.