How Good Soldiers Go Down

They had the mightiest armies ever seen up until
that time. And yet the seemingly invincible legions
of the Roman Empire eventually fell to ransacking
hordes who were once confined to Rome's far borders.

What happened? Actually, many things happened
that led to their defeat, but one of them was clearly
spelled out by one Fourth Century Roman General.
He said: "When, because of negligence and laziness,
parade ground drills were abandoned, the customary
armor began to feel heavy since the soldiers rarely,
if ever, wore it. Therefore, they asked the emperor to
set aside the breastplates and mail and then the
helmets. So our soldiers fought the Goths without
any protection for the heart and head, and they were
often beaten by archers. Although there were many
disasters, which led to the loss of great cities, no
one tried to restore the armor to the infantry. They
took the armor off, and when the armor came off -
so, too, came their integrity."

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