Velites were a class of light infantry in the army of the Roman Republic,
The Velites (pronounced well-ih-tays) were skirmishers, armed with a short sword (Gladius) and several javelins. They wore light armor, which usually consisted of little more than greaves and a bronze helmet, and carried a basic round shield. Their armor and weaponry made them the most mobile of all the Roman infantry of the time. The Velites did not form their own line; maniples of Principe and Hastati had a certain number of velites assigned to them. During battle the Velites would engage the enemy with their spears before retiring behind the Hastati and Principe, however their effectiveness is often overlooked, as the Velites were responsible for turning back war elephants on many different occasions.
The Velites of the Roman Republican army at its height in the 2nd century BC were remnants of the earlier rorarii and accensi classes, which were comprised of the unreliable and otherwise poor combatants of the original 5 class Phalanx. Though they still owned land, the Velites were usually the poorer of the Roman military accepted classes, until the time of Marius. During the time up until the establishment of the Roman Empire under Augustus, the Roman Army frequently accepted foreigners into its service in an effort to keep sufficient manpower. The Velites were disbanded when Augustus reorganized the army.
