He abandoned the traditional Roman practice of relying on a citizen militia and instead created a professional standing army. This army, composed of paid volunteers, was more disciplined, better trained, and more effective than the old citizen militia. Marius military reform allowed Rome to maintain a large, permanent army that could be deployed quickly and effectively to any part of the empire. This proved to be a major advantage in the many wars that Rome fought during this period and helped to ensure the continued expansion of the Roman Empire.
The little or First Northern War (1655-60) was one of the most important though lesser-known conflicts that made little Sweden a pan-European power. The Swedish king Charles Gustav, facing Poland (Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth), Russia, Prussia, Austria, Denmark and the Netherlands, had managed, in