Good day Worthy Knights,
In this part 41, we have an overview to enable us to follow Constantine the Great in his pursuit to take control of the whole Roman Empire, demonstrating among other things, his military strategy knowledge and his courage in battles. (Wikipedia)
Turin Summer 312
Verona Late Summer 312
Milvian 28 October 312
Cibalae 8 October 314
Mardia Late 316 / 317
Adrianopolis 3 July 324
Hellespont 324
Chrysopolis 18 September 324
If you wish to use the following Link: Open it in a new window: https://decisivehistoryblog.wordpress.com/category/history/
Mont Cenis
Constantine emulated Julius Cesar by using Gaul to support his advance on Rome. He also copied Rome’s most famous enemy in the speed of his attack south. Hannibal had demonstrated that an army could cross the Alps at Mont Cenis, swiftly and remain effective. Constantine moved his loyal troops from Gaul over the later imperial roads through the passes and was in Italy before Maxentius could react.
Remembering the ‘quickness’ (celeritas) that had given Rome to Julius Caesar, Constantine moved rapidly towards the capital, with an army barely one-fourth of the size Maxentius had at his own disposal. Constantine defeated a force of heavy cavalry at Turin, near the passes, and destroyed his rival’s northern army at Verona.
The Mont Cenis is a massif and a pass at an altitude of 2083 m in the French Alps. It was the principal route for crossing the Alps between France and Italy until the 19th Century.
It was also used as the main passage by which Charlemagne crossed with his army to invade Lombardy in 773 and Napoleon for his campaign of Italy (1796 – 1797).
Use the following link to see some re-enactment of the legion military exercises. Unfortunately, the commentary is in French which we are sure, will not be a problem….!
South side of Mount Cenis
If you wish to use the following Link: Open it in a new window: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9LxZ9-_qwg
The following are some of Legions taking part in the display:
Legion XX Valeria Victrix United Kingdom
Legion XI Victrix Germany
Legion VIII Augusta France
Legion X Gemina Holland
Legion XXII Primigenia Germany
All the orders are given in Latin! Enjoy!