How Rome Paid Soldiers

For a Roman legionary, the life of a soldier was more than just

glory. It was a career. The core of their payment was

the silver denarius, a coin that powered the greatest empire on Earth. This base salary,

known as the stipendium, was typically distributed to the troops three times every

year But a soldier rarely saw the full amount. The Roman army

was a master of bureaucratic accounting. Deductions were immediately taken for food, clothing,

and the maintenance of their weapons and armor. By the time the bookkeeping was

finished, the soldier might only receive a fraction in actual coins.