The History of the Roman Sword: The Gladius

Introduction:

Why I chose to write about Roman Swords: I chose to write about Roman swords because they were a cornerstone of the Roman Empire. The Roman Empire was a massive empire that spanned contents. Roman Swords were an important piece of the Roman Empire- it included vastly different territories- and occasionally the basis for what a Roman Sword is would change.

Context:

The Roman Republic was a strong power in Europe, Africa, Asia and the Middle East. They were one of the most effective fighting forces in the entire world- and over the course of the world’s history. Ancient Rome’s armies consisted of Legions- of 5,200 men. It included 300 cavalry and 600 ranged units. The rest were split up into legionaries- which consisted of Princeps, Trarii and Hastatii.

Different Roman swords included the Gladius, Gladuis and the “La Tene”[1]

The Gladius came from the British Celts and the Celtiberians- they were from Spain-.[2]  The Gladuis was the original Spanish version of the Roman Gladius- it was 70cm versus the Roman versions 50cm. [3]The “La Tene” group of swords included the entire class of swords.

The Roman Gladius’s name came from the areas that created the different versions- they include Fulham, Mainz and Pompeii. The Roman Gladius was steel and was forged by blacksmiths hired and employed by the Roman Republic. The Gladius was forged as a single piece of steel- making it harder to break[4]. It was forged at of 1237 degrees – centigrade. [5]The central part of the sword ranged from 15%-25% carbon- which strengthened the blade and made it more solid/harder to break.[6] The Gladius came from Spanish, British and Irish European roots- however it was adapted to make it better for the Roman workers. Roman Weapons were adapted from their enemies and made to create their own stuff.

Roman Weapons were adapted or taken from other cultures- other groups- they were not Roman inventions.[7] The Mainz version of the Gladius was used in northern Europe- encompassing the Northern frontiers of the Roman Empire.

One of the other kinds of Gladius was called Pompeii Gladius- the Pompeii gladius was used in most of the Roman camps throughout the Roman Empire.[8] At the end of the Roman Civil Wars- the Pompeii version of the Roman Sword occurred which was a longer version of the Roman Gladius- eventually it was changed to the Roman Spatha.[9]

Citations

Armas Medievales. “Roman Swords.” ArmasMedievales.es. Accessed June 20, 2025. https://armasmedievales.es/en/63-roman-swords.

Reliks. “Gladius Swords.” Reliks.com. Accessed June 20, 2025. https://www.reliks.com/functional-swords/types/gladius/.

Warfare History Network. “The Roman Gladius.” Warfare History Network. Accessed June 20, 2025. https://warfarehistorynetwork.com/article/the-roman-gladius/.

Devereaux, Bret C. “Collections: The Journey of the Roman Gladius (and Other Swords).” A Collection of Unmitigated Pedantry (ACoup). January 5, 2024. https://acoup.blog/2024/01/05/collections-the-journey-of-the-roman-gladius-and-other-swords/.

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[1] Devereaux, Bret C. “Collections: The Journey of the Roman Gladius (and Other Swords).” A Collection of Unmitigated Pedantry (ACoup). January 5, 2024. https://acoup.blog/2024/01/05/collections-the-journey-of-the-roman-gladius-and-other-swords/.

1. [2] Armas Medievales, “Roman Swords,” ArmasMedievales.es, accessed June 20, 2025, https://armasmedievales.es/en/63-roman-swords.

2. [3] [3] Armas Medievales, “Roman Swords,” ArmasMedievales.es, accessed June 20, 2025, https://armasmedievales.es/en/63-roman-swords.

[4]Reliks. “Gladius Swords.” Reliks.com. Accessed June 20, 2025. https://www.reliks.com/functional-swords/types/gladius/.

[5]Reliks. “Gladius Swords.” Reliks.com. Accessed June 20, 2025. https://www.reliks.com/functional-swords/types/gladius/.

3. [6] Warfare History Network, “The Roman Gladius,” Warfare History Network, accessed June 20, 2025, https://warfarehistorynetwork.com/article/the-roman-gladius/.

2. [7] Reliks, “Gladius Swords,” Reliks.com, accessed June 20, 2025, https://www.reliks.com/functional-swords/types/gladius/.

4. [8]Bret C. Devereaux, “Collections: The Journey of the Roman Gladius (and Other Swords),” A Collection of Unmitigated Pedantry (ACoup), January 5, 2024, https://acoup.blog/2024/01/05/collections-the-journey-of-the-roman-gladius-and-other-swords/.

5. [9] Bret C. Devereaux, “Collections: The Journey of the Roman Gladius (and Other Swords),” A Collection of Unmitigated Pedantry (ACoup), January 5, 2024, https://acoup.blog/2024/01/05/collections-the-journey-of-the-roman-gladius-and-other-swords/.