Battle stations!
This afternoon we tried to imagine what life might be like as a Roman soldier. We watched a video to see what the soldiers at Vindolanda fort at Hadrians Wall thought of life in northern England. They enjoyed receiving packages from home and particularly appreciated socks and even underpants! They were not keen on the cole weather, with most being used to life in a warmer climate elsewhere in the Roman Empire. After 25 years in the Roman army soldiers were discharged with a lump sum of money with which they could finally retire and return home to find a wife and have a family. It was a hard life where you had to be strong and fit to march the many miles covered and build the forts and battle across the empire. We looked at the tactics of the Roman army in battle and used our shields to practice some of the favourite formations of the army, the Orb, the Tortoise, the Repel-Cavalry and the Wedge.