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A crupellarius (Latin : Crupellarius, pl. Crupellarii) was a type of heavy armored gladiator during the Roman Imperial age, whose origin was Gaul. [1]
| | This article needs additional citations for verification .(December 2013) |
A crupellarius (Latin : Crupellarius, pl. Crupellarii) was a type of heavy armored gladiator during the Roman Imperial age, whose origin was Gaul. [1]
The standard crupellarius was clad almost entirely from head to foot in lorica segmentata or laminar armour, which consisted of strips of malleable iron that was layered. Other variations of this armor were similar to manica. [2] The crupellarius carried a scutum and gladius; the shield was most likely either oval, rectangular or circular. These shields were usually made of wood in a laminate type structure and bound in leather strips, durable enough to deflect sword strikes and projectiles but also light enough to be held in tow with just one arm.
Crupellarii wore a helmet resembling a perforated bucket,[ citation needed ] with only very small openings for the eyes and mouth, similar to a medieval Great helm, which resulted in poor visual acuity in battle. Iron was incorporated more due to how simple it was to produce however bronze fittings were more prone to being corroded as well as leather bindings which had a tendency to tether and rot over time. This style of armor was most popular during the Principate and seems to have been used sporadically after the 3rd century CE.
Thus, the crupellarius' fighting style was suited for men with a large muscular build, able to withstand the weight of the heavy plate armor he wore, as he was one of the most heavily encumbered gladiators with the amount of layered plated iron (especially given the absence of gauntlets and sabatons). The crupellarius are more defense orientated, depending on his stamina and endurance to survive the battle, tiring out attacking foes before counterattacking them when they are worn out. This can explain as to why their armor is heavily layered hence having limited movement speed as well as clad in a helmet that would have obstructed most of their vision due to the very small openings in the helmet. [3]
Crupellarii were first mentioned by the 1st century AD historian Tacitus. Under the reign of the 2nd Roman Emperor, Tiberius, a faction of Treveri led by Julius Florus, and the Aedui, led by Julius Sacrovir, led a rebellion of Gaulish debtors against the Romans in 21 CE. [4] The crupellarii, heavily armoured Gallic gladiators, fought against Roman legionaries. [5]
In addition were some slaves who were being trained for gladiators, clad after the national fashion in a complete covering of steel. They were called crupellarii, and though they were ill-adapted for inflicting wounds, they were impenetrable to them... [4]
...the cavalry threw itself on the flanks, and the infantry charged the van. On the wings there was but a brief resistance. The men in mail were somewhat of an obstacle, as the iron plates did not yield to javelins or swords; but our men, snatching up hatchets and pickaxes, hacked at their bodies and their armour as if they were battering a wall. Some beat down the unwieldy mass with pikes and forked poles, and they were left lying on the ground, without an effort to rise, like dead men. [4]
The lorica segmentata, also called lorica lamminata, or banded armour is a type of personal armour that was used by soldiers of the Roman army, consisting of metal strips fashioned into circular bands, fastened to internal leather straps.
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Plate armour is a historical type of personal body armour made from bronze, iron, or steel plates, culminating in the iconic suit of armour entirely encasing the wearer. Full plate steel armour developed in Europe during the Late Middle Ages, especially in the context of the Hundred Years' War, from the coat of plates worn over mail suits during the 14th century, a century famous for the Transitional armour, in that plate gradually replaced chain mail.
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The falx was a weapon with a curved blade that was sharp on the inside edge used by the Thracians and Dacians. The name was later applied to a siege hook used by the Romans.
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A retiarius was a Roman gladiator who fought with equipment styled on that of a fisherman: a weighted net, a three-pointed trident, and a dagger (pugio). The retiarius was lightly armoured, wearing an arm guard (manica) and a shoulder guard (galerus). Typically, his clothing consisted only of a loincloth (subligaculum) held in place by a wide belt, or of a short tunic with light padding. He wore no head protection or footwear.
A brigandine is a form of body armour from the late Middle Ages and up to the early Modern Era. It is a garment typically made of heavy cloth, canvas, or leather, lined internally with small oblong steel plates riveted to the fabric, sometimes with a second layer of fabric on the inside.
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A manica was a type of iron or copper-alloy laminated arm guard with curved, overlapping metal segments or plates fastened to leather straps worn by ancient and late antique heavy cavalry, infantry, and gladiators. It is most widely associated with use by the Romans, Parthians, and Achaemenid and Sasanian Persians.
Chausses were a Medieval term for leggings, which was also used for leg armour; routinely made of mail and referred to as mail chausses, or demi-chausses if they only cover the front half of the leg. They generally extended well above the knee, covering most of the leg. Mail chausses were the standard type of metal leg armour in Europe from the 9th to the early 14th centuries CE. Chausses offered flexible protection that was effective against most hand-powered weapons, but was gradually supplemented and then replaced with the development of iron plate armor for the legs in the second half of the 13th to first half of the 14th century.
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The production of these kinds of helmets of Italic tradition decreased in quality because of the demands of equipping huge armies, especially during civil wars...The bad quality of these helmets is recorded by the sources describing how sometimes they were covered by wicker protections, like those of Pompeius' soldiers during the siege of Dyrrachium in 48 BC, which were seriously damaged by the missiles of Caesar's slingers and archers.
It would appear that armour quality suffered at times when mass production methods were being used to meet the increased demand which was very high the reduced size cuirasses would also have been quicker and cheaper to produce, which may have been a deciding factor at times of financial crisis, or where large bodies of men were required to be mobilized at short notice, possibly reflected in the poor-quality, mass produced iron helmets of Imperial Italic type C, as found, for example, in the River Po at Cremona, associated with the Civil Wars of AD 69 AD; Russell Robinson, 1975, 67
Up until then, the quality of helmets had been fairly consistent and the bowls well decorated and finished. However, after the Marian Reforms, with their resultant influx of the poorest citizens into the army, there must inevitably have been a massive demand for cheaper equipment, a situation which can only have been exacerbated by the Civil Wars...
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