Roman Army Units in the Western Provinces (3): 4th–5th Centuries AD

Osprey Men at Arms #557

by Raffaele D’Amato

A fully illustrated account of the large-scale reformation of the Roman Army from the reign of Diocletian to the fall of the Western Empire in AD 476.After the 50-year chaos of the mid-3rd century AD, Emperor Diocletian (r. AD 284–305) and his successor, Constantine I (r. AD 306–37), the first Christian emperor, undertook major administrative reforms to reflect new realities and improve defensive strategy. These changes saw the Roman Army completely reorganized, with its old structure of legions and auxiliary units giving way to central mobile field armies and various classes of garrison troops. In addition, the Army also began recruiting 'allied barbarians' in ever-increasing numbers and even promoted some to the level of senior command. Roman military expert Raffaele D'Amato draws on the latest archaeological and written evidence to explore this turbulent final period of the Western Empire. Illustrated with photographs and drawings of surviving artefacts and imagery, this latest entry in a series charting the Roman Army's evolution also features eight newly commissioned colour plates depicting the uniforms and weaponry of Rome's reformed military.

48 pages, Paperback

Published September 24, 2024

Reviews

[spencer wright · Rating 4 out of 5]

While light on detailed information of the units described in this book, it is nonetheless an excellent visual guide of the uniforms and equipment used by the Roman military units stationed in the western provinces. Combined with Osprey's two earlier books on the Roman units of the western provinces, which cover a combined time frame from the 1st century BC to the 3rd century AD, the reader gets a good resource to use for wargaming, or visual reference. The text is minimal in this book, so those looking for an in-depth history of the units would be better served with a traditionally written history book. I received the book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review, and as such, all opinions are my own.