The+Roman+Empire+Transportation+and+weapons

**Transportation and Weapons**
The Romans used very advanced weapons and Transportation for there time

- The Romans excellent use of weaponry was one of the main reasons that they were able to conquer so many other civilizations. - Romans used Archery and even heavy siege weapons to win there battles. - One siege weapon commonly used by the Romans was the Ballista. The Ballista shoots an arrow like spear that can be fired long distances and easily break through most armor and shields. It is almost useless against a single soldier because of it's poor accuracy, but is very effective when fired into large groups. The Ballista was invented by the Greeks but was perfected my the Romans. - Roman armies used a short sword called the gladius, which measured 64-81cm in length and 5cm in width. - The Gladius was sharp on both ends but was meant for stabbing. Almost all stab wounds made by the gladius were fatal. - Around 200AD, Roman Armies changed there standard issue sword to the Spatha. The Spatha was a longer version of the Gladius that was more complex and far more effective. - The Romans had very advanced ships to travel by sea. They could be sailed, but if there was no wind they could also be rowed and were very quick. - The Romans also used giant ships commonly known as super tankers. These ships could carry 1000tones of wheat at one time. The Super Tankers made trips across the Mediterranean. They were the largest ships built until the 1900s.
 * Weaponry**
 * Transportation Over Water**

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gladius#Manufacture http://videos.howstuffworks.com/hsw/22054-the-rise-of-rome-romes-size-video.htm http://www.crystalinks.com/rometransportation.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ballista#The_Roman_Weapon



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