Mighty men and the public thing : the virtue of citizen armies in the ancient world.

Abstract

The hypothesis of this dissertation is that republican polities in the ancient world demonstrated a rare form of martial ideology in their citizen armies. Otherwise known as "civic militarism," this martial ideology was directly linked to republicanism's reliance on civic virtue. The foremost exemplars of this virtue of citizen armies in the ancient world were early Israel and Republican Rome. Both polities, though culturally and chronologically disconnected, crafted polities based on consent of the governed, the rule of law, mixed government, and civic virtue. This dissertation will outline the philosophical principles upon which these two ancient republics were based, stressing the importance of virtue in republicanism. Because Israel and Rome each fit within a unique context, it will be important to frame Israel's rudimentary republicanism in the background of covenant in the ancient Near East, and Rome's republicanism within the broader context of the classical world. The final object will be to demonstrate the battlefield manifestations of Israelite and Roman virtue. This will be achieved by a brief survey of the history of citizen armies in the ancient Near East, with special emphasis on the unique contribution of Israel and Rome.