Rome's Enemies (4) : Spanish Armies 218-19 BC (Men at Arms Series, 180) [Paperback]

Rafael Treviño Martinez (Author), Angus McBride (Illustrator)

Book Description

Series: Men-at-Arms | Publication Date: March 26, 1992

The Republican Roman army suffered heavy losses as a result of the ‘hit and run’ tactics employed by the Hispanics in Ancient Spain. After preparatory chanting, the Celt-Iberians would attack en masse and in apparent disorder. At a pre-arranged signal the warriors would retreat as if defeated. This sequence might be repeated over several days, until finally the Romans lost their discipline and broke formation in pursuit. At this point the Hispanics would quickly mount a counter-attack that would decimate the legions. This volume explores the organisation, tactics, history, arms and armour of Rome's Spanish enemies.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Packed with specially commissioned artwork, maps and diagrams, the Men-at-Arms series is an unrivalled illustrated reference on the history, organisation, uniforms and equipment of the world's military forces, past and present.

About the Author

Rafael Treviño Martinez is a respected author in the field of Ancient History, and has a special interest in the period of classical history in his native Spain.

Product Details

• Paperback: 48 pages
• Publisher: Osprey Publishing (March 26, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0850457017
• ISBN-13: 978-0850457018
• Product Dimensions: 7.3 x 0.1 x 9.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,283,320 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars shows where toledo steel originated from., August 22, 2006

By 

Douglas E. Libert "howitt" (parkersburg wv) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Rome's Enemies (4) : Spanish Armies 218-19 BC (Men at Arms Series, 180) (Paperback)

i was surprised to note the close similarities between the Spanish weaponry and art to the Ancient Greeks. I knew that the Greeks had colonized the Meditteranean but this book really brings it home.Spain must have been a vast "melting pot" of cultures,including Celtic,North African as well as roman.The seige of Numantia,a city deep in the Spanish Peninsula,by the romans occurred in 134 B.C.This was about 90 years before the great Roman seige of Alesia by Julius Caesar's army and makes for equally fascinating reading.Maps and archaeological digs highlight the brief explanation of Roman general Scipio's conquering of this major city.I remember from history class hearing that Toledo steel conquered the Aztecs,but i didn't know that the ancient spanish were already masters of iron ore and the Romans even adopted alot of Spanish weaponry.Also mentioned in the book was the fact that the Roman year initially began in September. It was changed to January due to consideration of Romes war of conquest in spain.The book ends with the pacification of Spanish territory in 19 B.C.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great use of the Osprey format, January 20, 2006

By 

Red Harvest (Georgia, USA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Rome's Enemies (4) : Spanish Armies 218-19 BC (Men at Arms Series, 180) (Paperback)

Martinez/McBride's work is one of the better examples of an Osprey book: it covers an area that otherwise receives little attention, Martinez clearly knows his subject and is eager to share the knowledge, the book is concise and well illustrated. (This is some of Angus McBride's best work in my opinion.)

The classical period Iberian peninsula receives little dedicated coverage, yet it was the strategically decisive theater for the 2nd Punic War. Hannibal launched his invasion from here, and when the Carthaginian territories he left behind were finally subdued, the Romans were able to make the decisive invasion of Africa that forced Hannibal to leave Italy to defend Carthage. After defeating Hannibal, it took Rome almost 200 years to fully pacify their Iberian subjects. The discussion of Veriatus campaigns, and the Numantine wars are some of the more interesting aspects of this work. Martinez explains the mix of Iberian, Celt, and Celt-Iberian tribes that characterized the native inhabitants; and he describes which weapons and armour were associated with each group.

Despite the short length, there is good representation of archaeological findings to support the text and color plates.

As with other interesting Osprey works, it leaves the reader wishing it were longer to more fully explore the subject.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Spaniards, March 30, 2007

By 

K. Murphy "Fortune favors the Bold" (The thriving metropolis of Masury, OH) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Rome's Enemies (4) : Spanish Armies 218-19 BC (Men at Arms Series, 180) (Paperback)

This book details the history, tactics, and battle gear of the tribal people of what would now be Spain (Hispania) and Portugal (Lusitania) in the last three centuries before Christ. The Spaniards of this time period were a proud people with a strong warrior's tradition, and they simply refused to submit to Rome for centuries. Even when a tribe was officially 'conquered', they would still revolt time and again. In their military-minded culture the Hispanics had borrowed from the Greeks, the ancient Africans, and the Gaulish Celts, which made their very appearance, clothing, and weaponry exotic. This book also tells the heroic, and ultimately tragic stories of the revolt of the Lusitanian patriot Viriatus and the resistance of the Numantine Celtiberians to Scipio Africanus. These are also some of my favorites of Angus McBride's many plates for the Osprey series, depicting Iberian, Hispano-Celtic, and Andalusian warriors clashing with the Romans, often fighting with their brutal falcata swords, their iron soliferrum javelins, and their deadly slings.