Legionnaires are warriors in the army in Ancient Rome. The legion numbered up to a thousand soldiers armed with swords and spears. The ammunition of the Roman legionnaire consisted of several elements, was easy to put on and protected the chest and head from being hit by the enemy's sword. The warrior's protective equipment is designed so that movement remains free, although a certain physical strength is required to wear this armor.
Basically, the legionnaire's kit consisted of a helmet, shell, greaves and armlets, as well as a large shield. All of them had a different shape and method of manufacture, depending on belonging to a particular legion. The armor of the Roman legionaries was relatively light when compared with the armor of medieval knights. The armor protecting the warrior's torso was often made of pieces of leather or metal joined together, which allowed the soldier to turn and bend freely without restricting movement.
In the article, we will consider the types of protective equipment, the names of each part of the suitwarrior of ancient Rome. You will learn how to make your own Roman legionary helmet, chest armor from different materials. We will present several options for crafts so that you can choose the right outfit for any situation. A legionary costume can be made to a child for a matinee, for a theatrical performance, for a holiday or carnival. You can choose a variety of materials for the outfit, depending on the skills of the master.
Introducing Legionnaire Armor
The shell of a Roman legionary soldier is called "lorica" (lorica). They were of three different types depending on the material and fasteners. We list the features of each option.
- One-piece, made of 2 or 3 layers of boiled leather, or a metal cuirass covering the chest in front and behind. On the sides and on the shoulders, the parts were connected with leather straps.
- Lamellar, assembled from metal elements that were either sewn onto the skin or connected to each other by buckles and hinges. On the shoulders and sides of the body, the front and back of the structure were connected by flexible metal belts.
- Mail. Such lorica was worn by soldiers of auxiliary troops, for example, archers or spearmen. Chain mail was assembled from washer-shaped riveted rings with a diameter of 5 or 7 mm in horizontal stripes. This gave the Roman legionaries flexibility during the war. This protection is reliable and durable.
The lower part of the body was protected by movable leather strips that did not hinder the movement of the warrior. From above, the lorica was strengthenedshoulder pads made of strips of metal or several layers of leather. This protected the hands from being struck by a sword from above. The ammunition of the Roman legionnaire was quite heavy. Only the weight of lorica reached 9 - 15 kg, depending on the type of its design. You also had to wear a helmet, armlets, shin guards, and weapons.
Roman legionary helmet
Helmets to protect the head of the Roman soldiers also had their own varieties. Some were borrowed from the inhabitants of Puglia. This is a Corinthian helmet, which looked like a metal mask with a beveled front part, and almost completely closed on all sides. There was a narrow gap in the front in the center, which made it possible to see what was happening around. For decoration, a comb of brightly colored horsehair was attached to the top of the helmet. It was located both from left to right, and from the front to the back.
In order to make a Roman legionary helmet with your own hands, they often choose a different type of head protection, namely the option shown in the photo above. This is a helmet with an open face and hanging cheek pads on the sides, which were hinged. This is a more advanced model, since the warrior had the opportunity to clearly see what was happening on the battlefield. This type of headdress is of Greek origin.
These helmets of Roman legionnaires, whose names are Chalcidian, date back to the 4th - 3rd centuries BC. Behind they had a neck protection. For beauty, all helmets were decorated with engraving. They depicted wild boars or bulls, less often lions and sphinxes. Engraving was done all over the dome and on hanging parts. Average weighthelmet was from 700 grams to 1 kg. He was kept on the warrior's head with the help of a chin strap.
The pilos-pileus helmet of a Roman legionary has a special appearance, the image of which can be seen in the photo below.
Its upper part resembles a soft Phrygian cap with a top hanging forward, which also had flaps on the sides. This helmet also has articulated cheek pads.
Tower Shield
Roman legionary costume is impossible to imagine without a shield, which was called "scutum". It was considered tall, as it was rectangular in shape, its height reached 120 cm, and its width - up to 75 cm. A real shield was made from glued planks of wood or plywood, it was upholstered on the outside with thick leather, and the edges ended with a bronze or iron piping.
From the back there was a handle, which was attached in the center. A special sign of the Roman shield is the bronze umbon in the center of the front side of the rounded shape. The shield of a Roman soldier was quite heavy, weighing up to 6 kg. The soldiers of the army of the Republican Rome had oval-shaped shields, which were even heavier.
Making a shield for a suit
Let's start making the equipment of the Roman legionnaire for the festive costume from the easiest part, namely from the warrior's shield. You will need a large piece of corrugated cardboard, hot glue, colored paper with a glossy surface in gold and silver, a plastic ball, a sharp knife, scissors, a pencil, red gouache paint and a widea brush for applying it, a long ruler, transparent tape.
Since the shield is considered to be a height shield, measure the height of the child from the floor to the upper edge of the chest. This will be the height of the craft. Width is taken into account. The shield should cover the child completely, but no more, so that it is convenient to wear it and play its role at a holiday or during a theatrical performance.
Before you cut out the desired shape, draw it on the back of the cardboard with a simple pencil, making all measurements with a long ruler. Pay special attention to the corners, they must remain straight. When the rectangle is cut out, round the edges of the craft according to the template. Next, you need to paint the entire surface with red paint and allow time to dry. So that the paint does not stain the hands and the rest of the outfit of the little legionnaire, you can paste over the outside with strips of transparent tape. Next, find the middle of the shield. There you need to place a round umbon. To do this, cut off a half of the sphere from a plastic ball and glue the part, smearing its end part with hot glue.
Next, decorate the front side of the shield. You can make a drawing like in the photo above, or you can come up with your own unique emblem. Paint over the umbon with silver paint and paste over the place around it with a silver square. It will remain on the back side to attach a strip of the handle. It will be enough to cut it out of corrugated cardboard with a width of 5 - 6 cm. It should be long so that the edges glued with hot glue are on the surface of the shield.
I wonder formore similar to a real shield, add a golden edging around the entire perimeter of the craft, cut according to a template from glossy colored paper.
Soldier's weapon
The legionary of the Roman army was lightly armed to move quickly in battle. The short sword was called the "gladius", its length was only 40 - 60 cm, and the width barely reached 8 cm. Compared to the long and heavy swords of the warriors of other armies, it weighed an average of 1.5 kg. A scabbard made of metal and beautifully decorated with ornaments and details made of tin and silver necessarily went to him. They often depicted battle scenes or the figure of Emperor Augustus.
If you are making a Roman legionnaire's sword for a boy's holiday outfit, it is best to make it from corrugated cardboard. You can seal the blank with a double layer of paper to make the weapon more durable. Cut it out along the contours drawn with a simple pencil. For beauty, cover it with silver colored paper, which is sold in rolls and is intended for gift wrapping. The scabbard can be sewn from fabric. Sew a small piece of rectangular textile along the side line and attach a thin ribbon or rope along the edges so that you can hang the scabbard over your shoulder. If desired, you can decorate the craft with embroidery or appliqué in a contrasting color.
The Roman legionnaire was also armed with a throwing spear, which was used like a dart. It was called "pilum" and was used in various types of combat. There were heavy spears and light ones. The weapon consisted of two parts: a long dart(about 2 m) and an iron tip, which had a pointed pyramid shape or two spikes. They used spears at short distances from the enemy. With a strong throw, a warrior could easily break through an opponent’s shield or armor, inflicting a severe or mortal wound. The warrior himself remained at a distance and was in relative safety.
If you decide to make this weapon for the costume, then take care of the safety of the surrounding children. As a dart, you can use a thin wooden or plastic stick, for example, from an old toy or a mop. Put a cardboard sleeve pasted over with silver paper on the top edge. At the very end, you can stick a paper cone, and the spear of the Roman legionnaire is ready! The main thing is that there are no sharp parts, and the child will not injure a groupmate.
Tunic for outfit
Before putting on protective ammunition, a Roman soldier dressed in a tunic. It was short, barely reaching the knees, and was made of thick linen. Before the fight, it was often soaked in vinegar and dried to make it even more dense. The edges of the short sleeves were decorated with gold embroidery, as was the lower hem of the robe. The tunic was sewn from white fabric, and a bright cloak, most often red, was thrown over the shoulders. Compared to making a Roman legionnaire's helmet, sewing a tunic is easy. It is enough to purchase a light light fabric and measure the double length of the future tunic. Measurements are taken from the level of the child's shoulders to the knee or slightly above the joint. Fold the fabric in half with the sides together and cut out the neckline in the center of the joint. During the fitting, markthe cut line of the sides and sleeves and cut off the excess. The length of the sleeves should be short, not reaching the elbow, and make it wide enough so that the fabric hangs freely from the shoulders.
Sew the edges of the tunic from the wrong side on a sewing machine. Prepare a yellow fabric piping or gold satin ribbon, sew around the neckline, the edges of the short sleeves and the bottom of the tunic.
The cloak is even easier to sew. Prepare a piece of red satin fabric. The length of the pattern should match the size of the tunic. The width of the cloak is also small, since it is located only at the back. From above, you need to collect the fabric with an elastic band, you can simply immediately prepare a pattern in the shape of a trapezoid. The top bar is equal to the width of the child's shoulders. The cloak is fastened with large golden buttons attached to the lorica's shoulder straps. How to make it for the outfit of a legionnaire, we will tell further.
Warrior's Protective Carapace
As already mentioned, the lorica of a Roman fighter comes in many forms. When making a costume on your own, the fastest way for a child is to make a solid shell, using either brown fabric (under the skin), or assemble lorica from thick packaging cardboard, from the same we will then make a helmet of a Roman legionnaire with our own hands. Pre-measure with a flexible meter the distance from the belt on the back over the shoulders to the level of the waist in front. Measure a rectangle of corrugated cardboard and cut a round neck in the center with scissors.
Then draw the contours of the sides and bottom of the craft symmetrically. To attach the real shellLegionnaire used leather straps with clasps. For a carnival costume, you can strengthen the front and back of the craft with wide brown elastic bands sewn on. For convenience, it is desirable to attach Velcro to them. Parts of the outfit will be well kept with ribbons matched to the tone, which are tied on the sides. On the right shoulder, you need to attach a circle of cardboard with a stapler to hold the raincoat. Then the blank is dyed brown and decorative elements are added with yellow paper appliqué.
If you decide to sew a lorica from a dense brown fabric, then use a vest pattern with a semicircular neckline. It can be made wide and worn over the head. Decorate the warrior's shell with golden emblems and inserts.
Underguard
Separately for the outfit of the legionnaire, you need to make the lower protection. For a real warrior, it was made of thick leather or metal plates. A child can make it from equal width strips of cardboard or textile with pointed edges, as in the photo below. They can be arranged in one row and be of equal length, but protection in two levels will look beautiful. The lower strips are made longer, and the second, upper row is short. You can glue circles or rhombuses from yellow or golden paper on each part from below.
The strips themselves are attached to a rope or a thin satin ribbon on the belt, tying it into a knot on the side. You can make such parts from thick cardboard or felt sheets. This material has a good saturation of shades, is perfectly cut with scissors andits edges do not crumble. Also, appliqué elements are perfectly glued to the felt. Armlets and greaves can be sewn from this material, which are tied with ribbons on the back of the legs. To do this, make several holes on the sides and insert a ribbon or rope, secure the part with lacing.
Legionnaires of Ancient Rome put on leather sandals on their feet, and a child can wear ordinary black shoes for a holiday. We have already considered how to make the details of the costume, and now we will figure out how to make a legionnaire's helmet with our own hands. They come in different types, so the methods of making them differ dramatically.
Cardboard helmet
The headdress of a warrior of the Roman army was made of durable metal up to 2 mm thick. The names of the helmets of the Roman legionnaires were different depending on the appearance. For a costume, a child can make a domed headdress with a closed facial visor, which is not a movable element. Make a helmet out of thick cardboard in the following way:
- From a strip 4 cm wide, a bezel is assembled according to the size of the circumference of the child's head and its edges are fixed with paper clips using a stationery stapler.
- Then two more long strips of the same width are cut out and folded perpendicular to each other.
- The cross is located on the top of the helmet and is fixed on the rim after fitting on the boy's head.
- The voids between the strips are filled with sectors cut out of cardboard. Their size is measured with a flexible meter.
- Dangling edges are wrapped inside and glued with PVA glue. Leave a long segment on the frontparts of a Roman legionnaire's helmet.
- Separately cut out a visor with holes for the eyes. Its shape is clearly visible in the photo below.
Then the crafts are decorated. The helmet itself is pasted over with silver colored paper on the front side. It remains to make a decoration in the form of a comb from bright red double-sided paper. Wide ribbons are cut into “noodles” with scissors, but not completely. You need to leave a thin strip for gluing on the helmet. Before attaching the workpiece to the headdress, bend even strips at a right angle to the cut part and spread them with glue. Everything, the domed helmet is ready! Next, we will tell you how to make a different kind of headgear to protect the head of a legionnaire.
Apulo-Corinthian helmets
This is a special kind of helmet with a fully closed face. They were borrowed for the ammunition of the Roman army from the Greeks, but were not used for long. If you want your child to make this vintage helmet, then carefully consider the sample photo below.
For the manufacture of crafts, it is better to use white thick cardboard. The assembly of the helmet begins with the rim, as in the first version, however, its top is no longer assembled from two crossed strips, but from several that fill the entire crown of the helmet. The visor is cut according to the drawn template from two identical parts. On the front side, they are connected together by gluing a strip on the bottom and top of the workpiece. It remains to seal the entire surface with silver paper and attach a neck protection at the back,which looks like a semicircular visor.
Now you know how to make your own legionary outfit for a carnival or theatrical performance.
