Can anyone recommend any general resources on Roman warfare?
I’m reading Tacitus’ account of the year of the four emperors and sometimes find myself at a loss when he’s describing skirmishes and battles.
Anything linking up the various fighting contingents and their roles would be greatly appreciated, as would anything on general strategy, etc. (the more visual, the better!).
TIA
Hi
I am not sure that this is exactly what you are looking for but chapter 15 (D. S. LEVENE Warfare in the Annals) in A. J. Woodman, The Cambridge Companion to Tacitus. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2009. xvi, 366. might be a good place to start. There is a short “further reading section”.
I am not sure how helpful a standard account of Roman warfare might be as Tacitus often plays games with his readers. But the best reference book is I think " Philip Sabin, Hans van Wees, Michael Whitby, The Cambridge History of Greek and Roman Warfare. Vol. II: Rome from the Late Republic to the Late Empire. Cambridge/New York: Cambridge University Press, 2007. Vol. 1, xxx, 663 pp.; Vol. 2, xxi, 608 pp."
If this is not what you are looking for let me know.
Thanks, seneca! I appreciate these leads. Will certainly have a look at Woodman’s further reading section and see if I can track down Sabin et al. 
Just to add to the works seneca mentioned above in case it’s of interest to others, I came across Connelly’s Greece and Rome at War, cited in the Oxford Classical Dictionary, which goes into quite a lot of detail about army organisation (the section covering the empire starts on p. 210). There are also lots of helpful illustrations of battle array and armour, plus maps.
If only the battles confused you, then congratulations. I remember being confused about several other things also when I read that work, especially the “who’s who”.
Oh, yes… I’ve resorted to keeping a running list of names I refer to more often than I’d like to admit!
I would also recommend the works of Adrian Goldsworthy. His Roman Army at War 100 BC-200 AD is an updated publication of his dissertation and, while not the easiest of reads, is quite informative. He also has several works geared toward the layman.
Fantastic – thank you!
I also think Goldsworthy is good. I got it out of my classics Library and am enjoying it, when I can find time to look at it!