Why Did the Romans Refuse to Use Archers?

Rome is remembered as the army that refused the bow. So how did the perfect Roman soldier end up being a horse archer? In 53 BC, Marcus Crassus marched seven legions into the desert near Carrhae and met Surena's Parthian horse archers, resupplied with arrows by camel trains. Tens of thousands of Romans never came home. This documentary follows what Rome did next over the next six centuries: Ventidius and his slingers at Gindarus, Mark Antony's 27-day retreat, Augustus winning back the eagles without a battle, Syrian archers on Hadrian's Wall, Vegetius telling recruiters to put a bow in many recruits' hands, and the Strategikon's riders drilled to shoot "in the Roman or Persian manner". Rome never beat the horse archer. It became one. Chapters 0:00 Carrhae, 53 BC 0:55 The Legion Machine 4:06 Rome's Rented Bows 7:23 Crassus Picks His Road 10:43 Surena and the Parthian System 13:53 The Battle: Arrows That Never Stop 17:04 The Collapse 20:22 The Slingers' Revenge 23:32 Antony's Long Retreat 27:03 Augustus Wins With Paper 30:19 Rome Buys Its Archers 33:51 Becoming the Horse Archer Sources Plutarch, Life of Crassus; Life of Antony Cassius Dio, Roman History, book 40 Julius Caesar, Gallic War 2.7 Josephus, Jewish War, book 3 Vegetius, Epitome of Military Science 1.15 Horace, Odes 3.5 Arrian, Order of Battle against the Alans Procopius, Wars (preface); Maurice, Strategikon (c. AD 600) Modern: J.C. Coulston on Roman archery equipment; Sean Manning, Roman Archery; Roman Army Museum on the Hamian archers of Hadrian's Wall Ancient quotations are paraphrased. Army sizes and casualty figures are estimates from ancient authors and are given as ranges. Subscribe for more animated Roman history. #RomanHistory #AncientRome #RomanEmpire #HistoryDocumentary #DailyLifeInAncientRome #AncientCivilizations