Decimation (Roman Army)
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Decimation (Latin: decimatio) was a form of extreme military discipline used by officers in the Roman Army to punish mutinous or cowardly soldiers. The word decimation is derived from Latin meaning "removal of a tenth." [1]
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[edit] Procedure
A cohort selected for punishment by decimation was divided into groups of ten; each group cast lots, and the soldier on whom the lot fell was executed by his nine comrades, often by stoning or clubbing. The remaining soldiers were given rations of barley instead of wheat and forced to sleep outside of the Roman encampment.
Because the punishment fell by lot, all soldiers in the selected cohort were eligible for execution, regardless of rank or distinction. As a result, the threat of decimation inspired fear and resolve into the Roman Legions. However, because a decimation significantly reduced the troop strength of an army, it is believed that the punishment was rarely used.
[edit] Sources
The earliest documented decimation occurred in 471 B.C. during the Roman Republic's early wars against the Volsci and is recorded by Livy [1]. The practice was revived by Crassus in 71 B.C. in the Third Servile War against Spartacus.
Decimation was in practice during the Roman Empire: Suetonius records that it was used by Augustus in 17 B.C. [2].
[edit] Current usage
In current English use, the word decimation is understood to refer to an extreme reduction in the number of a population or force, usually greater than the one tenth specified above. The term might now be understood to describe an occurrence in which closer to one tenth of the original number remains, rather than is lost (see catachresis).
The current corporate managerial practice of rank and yank bears some similarities to this practice.
[edit] Notes
[edit] References
[edit] Primary Sources
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[edit] Secondary Sources
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[edit] External links
- Decimatio, article in Smith's Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities
[edit] See also
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