The Legion. The core of the Roman army of the Republic and most of the Empire was made up of formations of heavily armed and armored infantry. The largest standing unit was the legion, theoretically composed of about five thousand men. (The legion and all of its subdivisions were ordinarily smaller in practice than on paper.) This legion was divided into ten numbered "cohorts," the first being about twice the size of the others. Each cohort in turn consisted of six "centuries" made up of about eighty men. Finally, centuries were divided into contubernia of eight men. The century was commanded by a centurion; he was often an experienced soldier promoted from the ranks, but sometimes a political appointee instead. He was assisted by a standard-bearer and two other officers. The cohorts did not have officers of their own but appear...