This rather underestimates the tactical flexibility of Roman infantry formations. The legion was not some massive, unwieldly unit. It was subdivided into ten cohorts, each of which was further divided into three maniples. Each maniple was divided into two centuries, and each century was composed of a number of contubernia which means "tent parties" - you can think of it as basically a squad, all of which would occupy a standard size tent, hence the name.Jeremy wrote:If I remember correctly the Chinese would engage with infantry and archers to buckle the enemy. So if they would use archers they could have the romans form up their shields while they have the mobile cavalry archers come in from the sides and get their undefended flanks.
Each of these units was capable of operating independently under its own officer. Centuries, as the name suggests, were commanded by centurions, most of whom would have been skilled, professional soldiers of many years' experience. The hastatus prior, princeps prior and pilus prior were the higher ranking officers commanding the maniples. The hastatus posterior, princeps posterior and pilus posterior acted as their executive officers. The cohorts were commanded by an officer known as the pilus prior.
As you can see, the organization of a Roman legion was very much like that of a modern army, in that each unit was broken down into sub-units, each with its own officer, and each capable of acting on its own. There was a clearly defined chain of command. Individual commanders were expected to show initiative.
Flanking a Roman army would simply not have been so easy. The Roman army well deserves its reputation as the most disciplined, professional force of pre-modern times.
