[Avodah] Rabbi Akiva's Students' Deaths as Soldiers in Bar Kochba's Army? A thorough critique of the theory

[Zvi Lampel]

On Tue, May 14, 2024 at 6:24 PM Zvi Lampel <zvilampel at gmail.com> wrote:

> ...I have not found a source that "sicarii" was a type of low-ranking
> Roman soldier.)
>

I did find the following on Wikipedia:

Originally, the accensi were light infantry in the armies of the early
Roman Republic. They were the poorest men in the legion, and could not
afford much equipment. They did not wear armour or carry shields, and their
usual position was part of the third battle line.[1] They fought in a loose
formation, supporting the heavier troops.

They were eventually phased out by the time of Second Punic War [218 - 201
BCE--centuries before Rabb Akiva's time--ZL]

In the later Roman Republic the term was used for civil servants who
assisted the elected magistrates, particularly in the courts, where they
acted as ushers and clerks.

1. Southern, Pat (2007). The Roman Army: A Social and Institutional
History. Oxford university press. p. 90. ISBN 978-0-19-532878-3.

Zvi Lampel
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