KOMAN CAVALRY. 



0.1 



ClIAV. III.] 



spurs to his horse and drove furiously against Brutus/ 

 They transfixed each other, and both fell dead, and the ac- 

 tion between the horse commenced at once. This shows 

 that a violent personal animosity brought on this tight be- 

 tween the reconnoitring parties, and is no proof of a custom, 

 against the existence of which there is some evidence. 



It seeras probable that the cavalry were organised, 

 equipped, and maintained fcjr two objects : to recon- 

 noitre, in which service they did not re(iuire heavy 

 armour, as they could perform that duty without coming 

 to close quarters ; and as speed in movement was a great 

 object, it could be attained much better by keeping the 

 men as lightly armed as possible. In the second place, 

 it seems that during the action the horsemen were held 

 in the rear, not so much as a reserve, but more probably 

 to be used in case of a victory to pursue a flying foe. It 

 will be seen that for this purpose also heavy defensive 

 armour would not be required, as in the panic of a 

 retreat -they would not expect any serious resistance 

 from the fugitives, while being lightly armed they could 

 pursue with much greater rapidity. 



Had the intention been to hold the cavalry in reserve, 

 and to dismount them to fight on foot in the line of 

 action in case of disaster to the infantry, it is clear that 

 they would have been armed more heavily even than the 

 foot-soldiers, for they would have been considered the 

 mainstay of the battle, and being carried on horseback 

 could without fatigue have worn much heavier armour 

 than if they were not mounted. Their old method of 

 using horsemen seems to have been maintained until the 

 wars with Hannibal, when many changes were made in 

 the equipmeiic and management of the Roman cavalry. 



As late as the battle of Cannae the Roman knights leaped 

 otf their horses to fight the Carthaginians.^ Hannibal, 

 seeing it, said, " This pleases me better than if they were 

 delivered to me with their feet and hands tied."^ 



The turma was the tactical unit of the Roman equites, 

 and consisted of three decuriae of ten men each, com- 

 manded by three decurions. The senior decurion had 



' Livy, ii. 6. 2 Plutarch, Fabius, 135. ^ Folard. Polybius, iv. 392. 



