Review by Choice Review
This excellent contribution to the study of the cavalry of the Roman Republic complements the work by Karen Dixon and Pat Southern on the Roman imperial cavalry (The Roman Cavalry, 1992). However, McCall (St. Thomas More School) takes a more sociopolitical focus than a military one. Though he includes some discussion of cavalry equipment, organization, and tactics, the author is more interested in explaining cavalry service as a method by which the Roman elite during the mid-Republic acquired prestige, the reasons behind the severing of the link between cavalry service and membership in the Roman elite, and the disappearance of the legionary cavalry at the end of the Republic. McCall attributes these changes not to a lack of combat effectiveness, but to severe manpower demands during the Social War of the early first century BCE and, perhaps more importantly, to the development of alternative indicators of prestige, such as money, education, and oratorical skills. Clearly written, well organized, and augmented with endnotes, three appendixes, and a select bibliography, the work will appeal to readers at all levels. R. I. Curtis University of Georgia
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
