How old were Roman soldiers? Roman soldiers typically enlisted in the Roman army in their late teens or early twenties. This age range allowed them to undergo training and gain experience before becoming fully-fledged members of the military.

The Roman army (Latin: exercitus Romanus) was the armed forces deployed by the Romans throughout the duration of Ancient Rome, from the Roman Kingdom (753 BC–509 BC) to the Roman Republic (509 BC–27 BC) and the Roman Empire (27 BC–476 AD), and its medieval continuation, the Eastern Roman Empire.

The most basic characteristic of Roman soldiers is that they were men. In Ancient Rome, prior to the Marian Reforms of 107 BCE, which transformed the Roman army from a full-time to part-time affair, these men also had to either own land or have a certain amount of material wealth for buying their own equipment.

Theoretically speaking, anyone between the ages of 16 and 50 was considered of military age in Rome, in both Republican and Imperial days. By the time of Augustus, however, the average age of recruits into the legions was c. 18-20.

Recruits were mostly between 18 and 21 years old, could not have a criminal record, and had to have a good reputation. Let`s find out more. The recruitment process in the Roman army. Who was tasked with recruiting for the Roman army? How many Roman soldiers were recruited each year? The recruitment of Roman Legionaries.