Assimilation by the Romans

The Assimilation of the Ancient Frontier
The Roman Empire was one of the largest and most successful civilizations to ever grace the face of this earth. They conquered and subjugated all the people around them. For centuries, Rome’s borders expanded and changed, but there was always a bleeding edge, the rugged frontier. This frontier was a boiling pot of assimilation, Rome’s greatest tool of expansion. Without assimilation the empire of Rome would have never reached out of Italy or conquered nearly as many people. The three most prominent catalysts to this process known as assimilation were an active military presence, the integration and settlement of Roman peoples, and the adaptation of religious practices.
The most important catalyst to assimilation was the conquerors themselves, the Roman generals. They used three tested methods to gain new territory and therefore assimilate new peoples. These were invasion, displacement, and diplomacy. Of these, invasion was the more favor...