- Penalties and Punishments were more severe during the Roman Republic, probably because the soldiers were part-time and less disciplined.
- Under the Roman Empire, the legionaries were professional full-time soldiers.
Minor Penalties
- Castigatio
- Corporal Punishment, inflicted by the Centurion’s staff, the ‘Animadversion fustium’.
- Flogging
- usually Flogged in front of either the Legionary’s Century, Cohort or Legion.
- Whipping
- by the use of the ‘Flagrum’. This was more extreme than flogging.
- Pecunaria Multa
- Monetary Fine deducted from the Legionary Pay.
- Military Oath
- Ordered to retake the Sacramentum Militare, the Military Oath, to verify the Legionary’s Loyalty.
- Munerum indictio
- Extra Duties.
- Gradus deiectio
- Downgrade in Rank.
- Downgrade of Privileges
- gained during the Legionary’s years of Service.
- Militiae mutatio
- Demotion to a less prestigious unit or Duties.
- Missio ignominiosa
- Dishonorable Discharge (Cashiered)
Severe Penalties
- Fustuarium or Bastinado
- Execution: If a soldier was found to be guilty by a Court Martial, he would be stoned or beaten to death in front of the assembled Legion.
- This would be the penalty for Desertion, Mutiny, Insubordination, Stealing, or Lying.
- Mitigating factors: Age of the recruits, length of service, rank, previous behaviour.
- Decimation
- Decimatio: 1 in 10 Legionaries would be executed by the others. This was very rarely used.
- Disbandment
- A disgraced Legion could be disbanded with no entitlement to Land or Pensions.
- In 70 CE Legio I Germanica was disbanded in disgrace by Vespasian for failing to quell the Batavian Revolt.