Originally Posted by
Vladyvid
As if the army reform decided everything happening afterwards... that analysis is flawed and unjustified. Progress is in essence a positive factor, and professional army was always progressive no matter the time period. Thats the reason why Roman legions reigned supreme across such a vast territory, and thats why later feudal armies were replaced by professional conscripts.
A career soldier is on a completely different level than a levy. Levy doesnt even fit this whole comparison in my opinion. There existed different systems where you would have career soldiers, both in what you categorise here as professional armies, aswell as feudal or tribal societies.
The superiority of a professional army comes from many factors but in my opinion best example is that the more professional the armies are in general ruled by merit. That means men who have skills and experience, advance in ranks. You could still have an incompetent Consul maybe, but the legions tribuns and centurions would be very well qualified. Another superiority is organization, both in battle and outside of it.