In the

military of ancient Rome The military of ancient Rome, according to Titus Livius, one of the more illustrious historians of Rome over the centuries, was a key element in the rise of Rome over "above seven hundred years" from a small settlement in Latium to the capital o ...

, ''fustuarium'' (

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

ξυλοκοπία, ''xylokopia''.) or ''fustuarium supplicium'' ("the punishment of cudgeling") was a severe form of

military discipline Military justice (also military law) is the legal system (bodies of law and procedure) that governs the conduct of the active-duty personnel of the armed forces of a country. In some nation-states, civil law and military law are distinct bodie ...

in which a soldier was

cudgel A club (also known as a cudgel, baton, bludgeon, truncheon, cosh, nightstick, or impact weapon) is a short staff or stick, usually made of wood, wielded as a weapon since prehistoric times. There are several examples of blunt-force trauma caused ...

ed to death. It is described by the Greek historian Polybius in a passage observing that Roman soldiers were motivated to stand fast and maintain their posts by the fear of harsh punishments such as public disgrace,

flogging Flagellation (Latin , 'whip'), flogging or whipping is the act of beating the human body with special implements such as whips, rods, switches, the cat o' nine tails, the sjambok, the knout, etc. Typically, flogging has been imposed on ...

, and death. As a form of discipline imposed on a soldier, ''fustuarium'' thus reflected Roman doubts that courage alone was sufficient to ensure the steadfastness of the average soldier—an awareness that

Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, ...

shows in his war commentaries. ''Fustuarium'' was the penalty when a sentry deserted his post and for stealing from one's fellow soldiers in camp. A soldier who committed an act of theft ''(

furtum ''Furtum'' was a delict of Roman law comparable to the modern offence of theft (as it is usually translated) despite being a civil and not criminal wrong. In the classical law and later, it denoted the contrectatio ("handling") of most types of ...

)'' against civilians by contrast had his right hand cut off. The ''fustuarium'' was also the punishment for falsifying evidence and lying under oath, or for committing the same offence three times. It is sometimes thought that

homosexuality Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to pe ...

incurred this punishment, but Polybius refers only to "adult men who have abused their persons". All the behaviors punishable by the ''fustuarium''—desertion, stealing, false witness, sexual misconduct and repeating three times a same offense—thus violate trust ''( fides)'' among fellow soldiers, and the cudgeling was administered communally. ''Fustuarium'' was inflicted on a single soldier who committed an offense, and thereby differs from '' decimatio'', when a unit that had

mutinied Mutiny is a revolt among a group of people (typically of a military, of a crew or of a crew of pirates) to oppose, change, or overthrow an organization to which they were previously loyal. The term is commonly used for a rebellion among members ...

or disgraced itself by cowardice was compelled to randomly select every tenth man and

stone In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its Chemical compound, chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks ...

, club or stab him to death by their own hands. The distinction between ''fustuarium'' and ''decimatio'', however, may be illusory and is difficult to discern in passing references by literary sources. ''Fustuarium'' is a strikingly archaic form of punishment at odds with Roman legal practice in the historical era; stoning was also alien to the Romans, except in a military setting, perhaps suggesting the conservatism of martial tradition. ''Fustuarium'' may have originated as a religious rite of purification by means of which the unit purged itself through something like a scapegoat or ''

pharmakos A pharmakós ( el, φαρμακός, plural ''pharmakoi'') in Ancient Greek religion was the ritualistic sacrifice or exile of a human scapegoat or victim. Ritual A slave, a cripple, or a criminal was chosen and expelled from the community at tim ...

'' ritual. Germanicus, for instance, permitted mutinous soldiers to butcher their leaders to clear themselves of their guilt. ''Fustuarium'' in combination with ''decimatio'' is relatively rare in the historical record. Incidents include

Marcus Crassus Marcus Licinius Crassus (; 115 – 53 BC) was a Roman general and statesman who played a key role in the transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire. He is often called "the richest man in Rome."Wallechinsky, David & Wallace, Ir ...

, punishing forces defeated by

Spartacus Spartacus ( el, Σπάρτακος '; la, Spartacus; c. 103–71 BC) was a Thracian gladiator who, along with Crixus, Gannicus, Castus, and Oenomaus, was one of the escaped slave leaders in the Third Servile War, a major slave uprisin ...

early in his command of the war; Apronius,

deserters Desertion is the abandonment of a military duty or post without permission (a pass, liberty or leave) and is done with the intention of not returning. This contrasts with unauthorized absence (UA) or absence without leave (AWOL ), which a ...

against

Tacfarinas Tacfarinas ( Latinised form of Berber Tikfarin or Takfarin; died AD 24) was a Numidian Berber from Thagaste, located in the province of Proconsular Africa (now Souk Ahras, in Algeria), who was a deserter from the Roman army who led his own Mus ...

; and four occasions during the civil wars between 49 and 34 BC.As listed by Lintott, ''Violence'', p. 42, with citations of ancient sources.

References

{{Italic title Corporal punishments Execution methods Ancient Roman military punishments

See also

References