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The Army of Maximinus Thrax: The Roman Soldier of the early 3rd Century AD. Paperback – December 7, 2020

by Jan Eschbach (Author)

4.9 20 ratings

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The early 3rd century AD saw the Roman Empire confronted with an increasing number of problems: the northern frontiers shattered under the impact of attacks at the hands of Germanic and Sarmatian tribes, while the Persians ravaged the Eastern provinces almost with impunity. Economic crisis, the effects of the Antonine Plague, endless usurpations and climate change brought the Roman Empire to the verge of collapse. In the year 238 AD, the Emperor Alexander Severus was murdered at Mainz by his own troops. The accession of his successor Gaius Iulius Verus Maximinus ushered in five decades of inner unrest and enemy incursions, in which emperors in quick succession constantly fought among themselves while desperately trying to stabilize the tottering Empire. The fateful era of the Soldier Emperors had begun. This book seeks to provide a concise overview over organisation, tactics, and equipment of the Roman army at the beginning of this era, and also sheds light on Maximinus' German campaign, in which Rome's army once more ventured deep into unconquered German territory. The discovery of the Harzhorn battlefield has enabled archaeologists and historians to reconstruct a dramatic episode from this dramatic time.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Zeughausverlag GmbH (December 7, 2020)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 396360025X
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-3963600258
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.67 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 10.67 x 0.59 x 7.87 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #3,004,663 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #4,722 in Ancient Roman History (Books)
- #77,364 in Military History (Books)

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4.9 20 ratings

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Kyle Dinic

Splendid coverage of Roman military equipment.

Reviewed in the United States on August 22, 2023

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This book contains the only artist’s reconstruction I’ve ever seen of the Roman “manuballista” or as I like to call it,the sawn-off ballista. It’s essentially a scaled down,handheld artillery piece utilizing the same torsion powered spring frame as its big brothers. If that alone doesn’t justify purchasing this book then frankly I don’t know what does. Outstanding discussion of Roman extra-heavy cavalry as well going into great detail about the psychological impact of their equal parts majestic and terrifying face-masks. For those that can’t get enough visuals of these remarkable horsemen there are two examples(one cataphractarius and one clibanarius)both specially commissioned by the book’s artist. The various types of body armor utilized are also discussed in great detail. There is full-color original artwork of several different troop types on almost every page. Rewards for deeds of heroism and valor are also touched on along with various methods of corporal punishment. All in all a very fascinating and enlightening read.

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Anibal Madeira

One of the best illustrated introductions to the Roman army in the first half of the 3rd Cent AD

Reviewed in the United States on November 8, 2023

Dr. Jan Eschbach uses the Ludovisi Sarcophagus and the recent discoveries from the attempted ambush turned battle of Harzhorn as a starting point to provide us with a magnificent number of insights regarding the Roman army of the first half of the 3rd century.

He also utilizes most of the available primary sources and a respectable number of secondary ones to offer us an excellent summary of the organization, ranks, NCOs, equipment (clothing, helmets, shields, swords and daggers, pole arms, artillery), standards, musical instruments, and dona militaria.

The end result is a very solid introduction to the military history of the period and the Roman Army, which underwent considerable equipment changes to face new challenges such as heavy Persian cavalry. This includes the introduction or increased use of specialized units such as Osrhoenian heavy horse archers, Dromedarius Palmyrenorum, Catafracts, and clibanarii, as well as the dissemination of the oval shield, spatha, and spear for heavy-armored infantry legionaries and auxilia instead of the gladius and Scutum heavy infantry of the former period (although the scutum was still in use).

This work is enriched with some maps, a glossary, a chronological table, and especially by the illustrations of Stefano Borin, which are really good with highly detailed images of soldiers from almost all the units that fought for Maximinus Thrax in his campaigns (there is only one plate illustrating the ambush in Harzhorn in 236 AD, which I believe is excessively stylized and static for such an action scene). Small typos and inaccuracies are understandable due to the fact that Dr. Eschbach translated the book himself.

Highly recommended.

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Doug Welch

The Roman Army in the 3rd Century

Reviewed in the United States on July 16, 2022

This book is a perfect introduction to the Roman army of the 3rd Century.
When you hear the term "barbarization of the Roman army" what images come to your mind? The 3rd Century saw the breakdown of two centuries of the Pax Romana into an era of successive crises of invasions, plagues, civil wars, famine and unrest. Along with social and political flux, there was a change in Roman military fashion, weaponry and equipment. The gold standard of iconography of the appearance of the Roman army is Trajan's column, but the Roman army portrayed in this book has evolved far in the two centuries that had elapsed since the Dacian Wars.
This book revolves around very recent archaeological finds from Harzhorn, Germany where relics of a German ambush of a Roman marching column have given us new insights into the Roman army north of the Alps.
The reign of Maximinus Thrax could be viewed as a pivot in Roman history as he was an unlettered barbarian from the wild country of Thrace. His elevation to the purple was a watershed in the military's influence in Roman politics. His reign kicked off about half a century of crisis in the Roman world.
This book provides a grand overview of the Roman army in transition, captured in a snapshot of a single battle but extrapolated to the totality of the Roman army at this period.
Another factor of change in the appearance of Roman soldiers in this period is a kind of fluorescence in Hellenistic visual arts akin to the literary movement called the Second Sophistic. Generally this could be referred to as a kind of baroque Hellenism. Dr. Eschbach's use of illustrations from the contemporary Ludovisi sarcophagus is well done and may be a start point for readers coming in from a deeper familiarity with Classical Art. Another example of this would be a reintroduction of the pseudo-Corinthian helmet style among Roman officers, but with cheek pieces more in line with 3rd century military fashion.
Stefano Borin's illustrations are very good in expressing much of what Eschbach is putting across. There might be better illustrators in military history, but this book is perhaps of a narrow and specialized scope that Borin's attention to detail approaches hyperrealism and is very welcome from this reviewer. His attention to surface details like embossed decorations on helmets, armor and weapons as well as open-work metal decorations is great.
Dr. Eschbach covers a new trend in fighting style as evidenced by polearms and round shields which shows development away from the gladius and roof-tile shaped scutum readers may already be familiar with.
Eschbach also puts forward a theory of the story of the Harzhorn ambush and Roman victory which shows that while the Roman world was teetering on the edge of disaster at this time, its military was still that of a first rate imperial power.
This book is a boon to readers of Roman military history, particularly those curious about the gradual transition of the Roman army from Classical times into the beginning of the Dark Ages will find this book helpful and enlightening.

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