.
.
.
.
The Tenth Legion Gemina were based at a camp on the site of the current city of Nijmegen in the Netherlands from AD 71 to AD 104. This weekend they appeared at Corstopitum Roman Camp at Corbridge in Northumberland, and some of them can be seen in this photo. for further information, see see :
http://www.gemina.nl/ .
..
..seen at Corbidge on Saturday; the testudo, or tortoise formation , was commonly used by Roman Legions during battles, particularly sieges; it was essentially a defensive formation by which the legionaries would hold their shields overhead, except for the front rows, thereby creating a kind of shell-like armour protecting them against arrows or other missiles from the front or above.
.
..
..The Roman site at Corbridge has just hosted an amazing historical re-enactment featuring a full Roman Legion made up of groups from the UK, France and the Netherlands. This photo features an Optio. An Optio was a soldier in the Roman Army holding a rank roughly equivalent to that of a modern first sergeant or sergeant major. This picture depicts the identifying part of an Optio's armour, a helmet with a crest made of horse hair and with feathers on either side..
