The Decimation and One Modern Day Equivalent

[Faustus]

The Decimation

How often did it occur?

Wouldn

[Primus Pilus]

The Decimation

How often did it occur?

Wouldn

[Faustus]

Good answers P. P. Having read all your links, I think what they didn

[caldrail]

How often did it occur?

very rarely as it happens. Commanders were well aware of the possible risks to morale and mutiny if it was over-used, and only applied this punishment in cases of extreme dishonour. It also represented the hard edge of a very austere regime that survived from earlier times, when discipline was rigid and infexible in order to maintain order in the phalanx. As we enter the empire, the occurence becomes less and less (Crassus and Caesar made the headlines for reviving this old punishment) and later authors don't mention it at all (at least I haven't come across it yet).

 

Wouldn't its usage have been counterproductive for recruitment?

You would think so but this seems not to be the case. Young men usually have this sense of invulnerability and in any case, if they thought it was going to happen to them then they wouldn't join up for any reason - some didn't. The practice of cutting off a thumb and making it impossible to hold a sword is mentioned in the early empire (it became a serious issue in the late empire too) and some men were known to hide in rural slave barracks pretending to be slaves in order to escape being drafted. Nonetheless, for many the legions were a source of income, a steady(ish) job, and something that carried a measure of civic reward and sense of pride at the end of service, not to mention the promise of citizenship. For others, military service was a chance to win respect and political credibility. The possibility that they would serve with dishonour and be punished fatally isn't usually the sort of thing I'd expect anyone to spend too much considering, particularly since there was a 90% probability of survival.

 

But wouldn't its usage have made for better more dedicated recruits?

Thats the entire point! Imagine how you'd feel if your commander thought you were a bunch of wussy boys who'd turn tail and run at the first excuse and ordered you to club your best mate to death because of it. The officer would be sure to tell you that it was your own fault.

 

Did its usage decline during the Empire with more 'mercenary' types?

It did anyway, as the discipline of the legions was beginning to wane a little and notice how often troops mutiny in the early empire.

 

When did its usage end?

As far as I'm aware, it was never officially abandoned.

 

What replaced it in later military culture?

Difficult to say, since the use of decimation was down to the initiative of the commander and if he felt he couldn't take that sort of risk with discipline, then there's all sorts of alternatives he might have tried. Its an interesting question because I haven't read of punishments for similar military misdemeanours.

 

Does it have a Modern equivalency in military services?

No. There is no army in the world that orders the death of one in ten soldiers to punish poor performance - though on the spur of the moment anger from third world dictators comes close, but thats often politically inspired rather than any attempt to enforce honour and performance, and in any case, is usually directed at individuals rather than a random quota.

Edited February 12, 2008 by caldrail