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07-29-2002, 12:42 AM

Being a left-hander myself, I've often wondered if exceptions were made for left-handed legionaries to carry their scutum in the right hand so as to wield their offensive weapons in their left. Would this have affected the efficiency of the legionary formation in battle? IIRC the legionaries did not fight in as close and rigid a formation as the Greek hoplite phalanx where it was imperative for all hoplites in the phalanx to adopt the same shield and weapon-bearing arms, since a hoplite was in effect shielding the man on his left. 
 
If lefties were forced to train with the same sides as the righties, wouldn't it have lessened their combat efficiency? I for one believe that I could fight better if I was able to use my natural side to wield my primary offensive weapon, esp. the gladius. 
 
Any thoughts on this matter would be greatly appreciated. 
 
----------------------------------------------------------- 
 
 Aequam serva mentem, comprime linguam

07-29-2002, 02:24 AM

Using a shield in their right hand would compromise the protection offered to the soldier to your immediate left while in formation, fighting in ranks. 
 
For some strange reason, the thought that modern armies teach and train their troops to shoot right-handed, regardless of what hand/side is dominant, is popping into my mind. Yikes, I've been out of the army for a while, but I can't seem to remember if this is true or not. "Only Trajan could go to Dacia." 
 
Magnus/Matt 
Optio 
Legio XXX "Ulpia Victrix"

Muzzaguchi · 07-29-2002, 03:33 AM

Hi, 
 
I posted earlier if anyone knew of legionaries carrying shields on their right - but alas no one replied to my question. 
 
The reason for my somewhat oblique question was a query I received regarding 'dexiolaboi'. This word ocurrs only once in Acts 23:23 and is generally translated as 'light armed supplementary troops who carried a lance in the right hand' - a superfluous piece of detail. They have also been called provincial militia and spearmen or javelin throwers. The reason for the problem is that the latin translation is lancearios, but this has nothing to do with dexio (right) laboi (to lead, take, or bare). (dexios, right, lambanÃƒÆ’Ã‚Â¬, to take). 
 
The passage is describing Paul's bodyguard when he is sent by Claudius Lysias to see Felix the governor of Caesarea: 
200 stratiÃƒÆ’Ã‚Â¬tai -the heavy-armed legionaries, 
70 hippeis - cavalry 
and 200 dexiolaboi 
 
There would be no need to describe soldiers as carrying weapons in their right hands as this was standard if not universal. 
 
here is my take - the soldiers are sent as a bodyguard to protect Paul from surprise attack - as a guard unit protecting the right flank on the march it would make no sense to carry your shield on the right in such circumstances and I think these dexiolaboi may have been a specialist unit who carried their shield on the right in just such circumstances - this would provide a much more satisfactory definition to dexiolaboi (not to mention employment to lefties). It may also arouse debate as to normal defense of the right flank on the march. I am sure I read of a Roman commander telling his men to move their shields to their right shoulder when being pelted from the right (this shows that carrying shields on the right was not standard I suppose.) 
 
Other than what you have here I have nothing to back up my idea (unless I can find the anecdote I remember reading). 
Sorry for such a long reply. 
 
Muzzaguchi 
 
 
It is an unscrupulous intellect that does not pay Antiquity its due reverence - Erasmus of Rotterdam

07-29-2002, 05:33 AM

Re: Tiberius 
 
In the US Army lefties shoot left handed, they have a brass deflector that attaches to the carrying handle of the M-16 (I never used it though and had no problems - every now and then a piece of hot brass will finish down your shirt but it's rare). Heavier weapons of course require you to shoot right handed, like the M-60. I carried an M203 (M-16 / 40mm grenade launcher) I shot the rifle left handed and the grenade launcher right handed. 
Sorry to get off-topic, but you asked. 
 
joe Elrod

Gashford · 07-29-2002, 07:32 AM

Hello all, 
 
I can't comment about the left handed legionary as I know only a little about the military. However, the left handed gladiator was a sort after commodity because he was left handed. 
 
He would be used to fighting right handers all the time, but they would not be used to fighting left handers, consequently they where greatly feared in the arena ... at least sense tells us so, I can pull no exact reference to this. 
 
This might help as you consider the problem. 
 
As a follow on queston, do we have any evidence for stratiÃƒÆ’Ã‚Â¬tai, I have never heard of them before, but as I have said I don't know that much about the military. 
 
Thanks 
 
Graham

07-29-2002, 02:03 PM

Thanks joe. For some reason that information completely escaped my memory. "Only Trajan could go to Dacia." 
 
Magnus/Matt 
Optio 
Legio XXX "Ulpia Victrix"

Matthew Amt · 07-29-2002, 06:13 PM

Avete! 
I'm not sure we can stretch a point to make these "dexiolaboi" into a special left-handed guard unit for covering the right flank on the march. If such a unit existed and had proved valuable, probably other people who wanted such protection would have used them, too, and we'd have more descriptions. 
 
Marching along a road on the right flank with your shield on the left side as usual is not a great disadvantage unless the enemy pops up less than five feet away. That ain't likely! Any farther than that, and you simply turn your body to cover yourself. Takes a split second. 
 
I remember talking about this passage with a friend of mine a few years ago, while he was in the seminary. The best we could come up with is that the Greek word may be a corruption and therefore have a totally different meaning. The Latin word is much more likely, and is used in other contexts as light infantry with throwing spears. 
 
Do we know much about whether Roman children were even allowed to grow up left-handed? Even in the US into the 20th century, it was common to teach natural left-handed kids to write and work right-handed, sometimes screwing them up for years! I don't think the Romans were as worried about the "sinister" conotations as folks in the middle ages, though. My point is, how many trained left-handed recruits would the army really get? And if they got a few months of intensive training to fight right-handed like everyone else, would they really be at any disadvantage in battle? Even in a "looser" formation, I'd be worried about any of my close comrades being left-handed in battle. 
 
As usual, we need more evidence! Valete, 
Matthew/Quintus

Thiudareiks Flavius · 07-29-2002, 07:49 PM

Matt wrote: 
 
 I don't think the Romans were as worried about the "sinister" conotations as folks in the middle ages, though. 
 
 
Prejudice against left handers and the left in general pre-dates the evil, nasty, ignorant and 'dark' Middle Ages by many centuries and can be found in a number of Roman customs. According to Roman customs it was bad luck to wake on your left side, get out of the left side of your bed or put on your left shoe first. Divination by observing the flights of birds also had several negative connotations for birds flying into view from the left. And IIRC the Romans standardised the left to right style of writing, which caused such grief to generations of left handers until very recently. 
 
This prejudice is common in all Indo-European cultures and seems to go back well into prehistory. 
Cheers, Tim O'Neill / Thiudareiks Flavius
 

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Catiline · 07-29-2002, 10:34 PM

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07-29-2002, 11:16 PM

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