Title: What Caused the End of the Roman Republic? | History Hit
Headings: What Caused the End of the Roman Republic?
What Caused the End of the Roman Republic?
Simon Elliott
Roma invicta
The coming of the Cimbrians
How did Marius reform the Roman military?
1. It proved easy for the warlords to build huge armies
2. Marius removed the property requirement to serve in the legions
3. The creation of many new legions increased the opportunity for promotion
4. There was money to be made for the legionaries over and above their salaries if their warlords were successful

Content: He felt them too unwieldy for this new kind of warfare, fighting hoards of ‘barbarians’ marauding across the countryside in their many thousands. He therefore resolved to turn each individual legion into a self-contained fighting force, with little or no supply train. In that way they could manoeuvre at a strategic level more quickly than their opponents, bringing them to battle on the best terms. Historian and archaeologist Simon Elliott discusses the Classis Britannica, Rome's regional fleet that patrolled the shores around Britannia. Listen Now
How did Marius reform the Roman military? In the first instance he standardised the legionary on the gladius and pilum -armed armed principes and hastati of the Polybian legions, with the spear-armed triarii and javelin-armed velites disappearing entirely. From that point all of the fighting men in a legion were simply called legionaries, numbering 4,800 out of a total 6,000 men in each legion. The remaining 1,200 troopers were support personnel. These carried out a wide variety of roles, ranging from engineering to administration, which enabled the legion to function autonomously. A painting depicting the Battle of Vercellae in 101 BC, where Marius defeated the Cimbri with his newly-reformed legions.