Roman scabbards on right side?

[Darkside]

Why did they wear that on the right side? Wouldn't that make reaching for it a pain?

[ISA Gunner]

I remember reading about it somewhere. Can't recall why buy they never changed it from the right side so it's historical.

[MarcusTullius]

This was because the legions went into battle wielding their pila, not their gladiuses. These were drawn only after the pila were thrown, ie immediately before joining close quarters with their enemies. This meant that the legionaries had their shields raised, and would have risked cutting their shield arms with their swords had they been drawn from a scabbard hanging on the left side. Instead the gladius hung on the right and was drawn with a flick of the wrist, ending in an immediate thrust

[Raymond Agustin]

Ooooo... I learned something new again.

Been wondering why is that aswell. I thought it was weird also till now.

[Darkside]

So they would contort their wrist of their right hand to grasp the sword? Also, another question:

Woiuld they sitll have that large shield in their hand while throwing the pilae?

[emperor77]

So they would contort their wrist of their right hand to grasp the sword? Also, another question:

Woiuld they sitll have that large shield in their hand while throwing the pilae?

Yes they would.

[mattgoby]

I think the romans were stupid if they cut off their own arm, also wasnt their a risk of cutting their stomach if they use a flick of the wrist.

[Tim1988]

I think the romans were stupid if they cut off their own arm, also wasnt their a risk of cutting their stomach if they use a flick of the wrist.

That's the point though. They did it this way so they didn't cut their arms and hence weren't stupid. To draw a sword from your left side you need the shield to be at your side and out of the way, not infront of you, where the Romans would have had it for protection. The short length of the gladius makes it able to be drawn from the right hand side, something that would have been a lot harder if it was a longer blade.

[Ybbon]

I think the romans were stupid if they cut off their own arm, also wasnt their a risk of cutting their stomach if they use a flick of the wrist.

I think that's the point, if they had their scabbard on their left side, they would cut their arm off - that would be stupid so they put it on their right side which isn't stupid. I'm guessing the flick was forwards so they shouldn't cut their stomachs, but I would presume that all their practice made it an automatic thing to not cut themselves when drawing the sword.

[Spartan198]

So they would contort their wrist of their right hand to grasp the sword? Also, another question:

Woiuld they sitll have that large shield in their hand while throwing the pilae?

Yes they would.

Typo there. They'd have to contort their wrists to the left (i.e., thumb toward the body). Rotating your hand that far to the right is impossible, as you're likely to break your wrist.

[emperor77]

Kinda hard to cut your stomach anyway if you're wearing armor.

[mattgoby]

SUPpose thatss what they practised but it still seems just as silly to me

[charles the hammer]

SUPpose thatss what they practised but it still seems just as silly to me

Its silly to avoid putting it on a side that avoids getting your arm cut off?

[MarcusTullius]

As an added extra fact: With the adoption of the longer spatha, this might not have been possible any more, leading to the sword being worn on the left hip.

[Paedric]

I think I've read something about legionnaires putting their scabbards on one side, and the centurions on the other side to differentiate them. Is it true?

[Drowsy]

Doesn't sound logical to me if the centurion got raised from the ranks, as they receive same basic training and it becomes instinctive.

[Sandrus Castus]

It's actually because, if the sword hangs on your left hip, you'd break the formation pulling it. I remember having seen a little youtube movie where this is shown, but I don't think I could find it again.

If your shields are 'locked' as a wall, it is impossible to draw your sword from the left side with your right hand, without having to move your shield or giving the person next to you a push.


Edit: found them.
http://s104.photobucket.com/albums/m...emsted2004.flv
http://s104.photobucket.com/albums/m...moothjemst.flv
http://s104.photobucket.com/albums/m...dwallhjems.flv

[Praefectus praetorio]

Centurions had their sword on left, yes.

[MarcusTullius]

Yup, Centurions and Praetorian Guard units typically wore their swords on the left as a sign distinction from the regular legionnaires.

[rory o'kane]

Remember - a centurion didn't have pila to throw, so they went into battle with their swords already drawn, so it wasn't an issue for them to have their scabbards on the left.
The regular legionnaire or auxiliary soldier would have worn his sword on his right side, and would have drawn it by placing his hand on the grip with their thumbs and index finger lowermost (requiring a slight twisting of the wrist to achieve). Once the contact was made between hand an sword, this would encourage the sword grip to swivel forward slightly, allowing a grip to be more easily achieved, and when this was achieved, the sword could simply be drawn by moving the arm upwards until the blade was free, and then returning the wrist to its normal position (i.e. thumb and index finger uppermost), which, in so doing, would rotate the blade 180 degrees in the vertical plane and place it in position. Legionary re-enactors have demonstrated that it means you can draw your sword in the rather tight confines of legionary battle order, with shield raised, without the risk of injuring your shield arm or your fellow soldiers standing to either side of you.

EDIT: MT, as far as I'm aware, Praetorians followed this convention too, they weren't singled out like this. Only officers wore them on their left, as far as I can tell. Oh, and cavalrymen, but that's because the spatha is too long to draw like that.