ABSTRACT

Soldiers have not always been positively perceived, and indeed have sometimes even been vilified by their own societies. Since value is not automatically attached to the figure of the soldier, societies in need of the skills of warriorhood and the person of the warrior or soldier must first engage in the ennoblement of that role. The figure of the soldier of the middle Republic was publicly elevated, in the form of signs of appreciation and validation from a broader society, both in Rome and in the soldier’s local community. Two areas where the Romans signaled ennoblement of the soldier’s role were triumphs and awards (military decorations) for exemplary service. Triumphs and awards, as mechanisms of ennoblement, reinforced that certain types of military actions were desirable to broader society. Soldiers who were recognized by Rome’s military, in turn, became invested in upholding its reputation, since the perceived value of their awards depended on a continued and widespread acceptance of the prestige of that institution and the judiciousness of its leaders.