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The ancient Roman Army was highly successful.
Part of the reason for this was their harsh discipline and training combined with formations that could
accommodate any situation. Perhaps the most famous of these is the ''testudo'' which is formed when a group of Roman
soldiers enter a tight order, and interlock shields, with the soldiers at the front being covered by the man behind, who holds his shield above both. Then,
the soldiers in the center lift their shields over their heads to form a
box that is almost impossible to penetrate with Javelins or arrows.
Another formation was called the ''pig's head'', which was used to
march into enemy lines and push them back. The soldiers formed a shape
that looked like a wide isosceles triangle without the base, with the
vertex facing the enemy directly. The Romans then interlocked their Shields . Thus, as a wall of shields they could effectively push back and
kill the enemy.