Obseruations vpon the fiue first bookes of Cæsars commentaries setting fourth the practise of the art military in the time of the Roman Empire : wherein are handled all the chiefest point of their discipline, with the true reason of euery part, together with such instructions as may be drawn from their proceedings, for the better direction of our moderne warres / by Clement Edmunds.

THE FIRST OBSERVATION.

IN this relation we may obserue the industrious art, which the Romans vsed in assaulting, and taking holdes and townes; wherein we find three sortes of engines described, Vinea, Agger, and Turres.

Vinea is thus described by Vegetius:* 1.1 A little strong built house or houell, made of light wood, that it might be remoued with greatest ease; the roofe was supported with diuers pillars of a foote square, vvherof the formost were 8 foot high, and the hindmost 6; and betweene euerie one of these pillars, there was 5 foot distance: it was alwaies made with a double roofe; the first or lower roofe was of thicke plankes, and the vpper roofe of hurdles, to breake the force of a waight, without further shaking or disioyning the building: the sides were likewise walled with hurdles, the better to defend the soldiers that vvere vnder it: the vvhole length vvas about 16 foot, and the breadth 7: the vpper roofe vvas commonly couered vvith greene or raw hides, to keepe it from burning, Many of these houels vvere ioined together in ranke, vvhen they went about to vnder∣mine a vval: the higher end was put next vnto the wal, that all the waights which vvere throwen vpon it might easily tumble down, without any great hurt to the engine: the foure sides and groundsils, had in euery corner a vvheele, & by them they vvere driuen to any place as occasion serued: the chiefest vse of them vvas to couer and defend the souldiers, as they vndermined or ouerthrew a vval. This engine vvas called Vinea, which signifieth a vine, for it sheltered such as vvere vnder the roofe thereof, as a vine couereth the place vvhere it groweth.

Agger;* 1.2 vvhich vve call a mount, is described in diuers histories to be a hil or eleuation made of earth and other substance, vvhich by little and little was raised forward, vntil it approched neare vnto the place, against which it vvas built; that vpon this mount they might erect fortresses and turrets, and so fight with an ad∣uantage of height. The matter of this mount, vvas earth and stones, fagots, and timber. Iosephus saith, that at the siege of Ierusalem, the Romans cut downe al the trees vvithin 11 mile compasse, for matter and stuffe to make a mount. The sides of this Agger vvere of timber to keepe in the loose matter; the forepart which was towards the place of seruice, was open without any timber worke: for on that part they stil raised it & brought it nearer the wals. That which was built at Massilia vvas 80 foot high, and that at Auaricum 80 foot high and 30 foote broad. Iosephus and Egesippus writ, that there was a fortresse in Iudea, 300 cu∣bites high, which Sulla purposing to vvin by assault, raised a mount 200 cubites high; and vpon it, he built a castle of stone 50 cubites high, and 50 cubites broad; and vpon the said castell he erected a turret of 60 cubites in hight, and so took the fortresse. The Romans oftentimes raised these mounts in the mouth of a hauen, and commonly to ouer-toppe a towne, that so they might fight with much aduantage.

Amongst other engines,* 1.3 in vse amongst the Romans, their moueable Tur∣rets were verie famous; for they were built in some safe place out of danger, and with wheeles put vnder them, were driuen to the walles of the towne. These Tur∣rets were of two sortes, either great or little: the lesser sort are described, by Vi∣truuius, to be 60 cubites high; and the square side 17 cubites; the breadth at the top was a fift part, of the breadth at the base; and so they stood sure without any danger of falling: the corner pillars were at the base, 9 inches square; & 6 inches at the top: there were commonly 10 stories in these little turrets, & windowes in euerie storie. The greater sort of towers were 120 cubites high, and the square side was 24 cubites, the breadth at the top was a fift part of the hase; and in e∣uerie one of these were commonly 200 stories. There was not one and the same distance kept betweene the stories, for the lowest commonly was 7 cubites, and 12 inches high: the highest storie 5 cubites, and the rest 4 cubites, and a third. In euerie one of these stories, were souldiers and engines, ladders, and casting bridges, by which they got vpon the wall and entered the towne. The forepart of these Turrets were couered with yron, and wet couerings, to saue them from fire. The souldiers that remoued the tower to and fro, were alwaies within the square thereof, and so they stood out of danger. The new water-worke by bro∣ken Wharfe in London much resembleth one of these towers.

Notes

• * 1.1

  * Lib. 4. A vinea or vine descri∣bed.
• * 1.2

  Agger or mount.
• * 1.3

  Towers or Turrets de∣scribed.