Roman Legions and the Tatmadaw cont

[brelief@xxxxxxx]

Subject: Roman Legions and the Tatmadaw contrasted

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This recently appeared on soc.culture.burma.  

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Reply-To: tnyein@xxxxxxx (TNyein)
Newsgroups: soc.culture.burma
Subject: The Roman Rule
Date: 26 Apr 1996 16:38:09 -0400
Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364)
Message-ID: <4lrc7h$bu2@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>

The Roman Rule

I read with interest, a post referring to the Roman Rule i.e.
when in Rome act like a Roman. Since the Roman civilization 
was marked by it's military prowess and it's  superior
organizational skills , it brings to one's mind an analogy
between those Roman legions of yore and the Tatmadaw of
Myanmar,
which  like the former,   is a reputably disciplined and
formidable fighting force in Asia.

History tells us that Romans were very much into building
infrastructure. Wherever they marched, they built roads,
aqueducts, civic buildings, temple etc. Does this sound
familiar? But , this is where the analogy  ends. The Roman
soldiers were trained as  builders, masons and architects etc.and
resourceful to boot. Better still, the soldiers built the structures
and monuments with their own labor.

In 76 A.D.(?) , Emperor Hadrian, who himself was an architect
built a huge wall in Britain to demarcate the Roman territory
from that of the savage Britons.  He could have used the local
labor to accomplish his goal but he did not. The reason it seems
was that Hadrian reckoned,  a huge and well -  fed Army with
not much fighting left to do but to lord over the pacified
populace was dangerous to Rome. Such a situation , lends itself
to plots and conspiracies among the armed,  not to speak of the
excesses unleased upon the unarmed. Thus , he engaged his
own legions in building the infrastructure. The locals marveled
at the accomplishments of the Roman soldiers.   The
monuments stand to this day,  attesting to the exemplary
organization and skills of the Romans. 

Tun Kyaw Nyein , M.B.,B.S., Ph. D
North Carolina



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