I still think that the Romans had the most powerful army by far. Their recruitment and the fact that they had a standing army was ahead of their time. The Romans had the man power, the intelligence, and the technology to beat anyone during their time and throughout the Middle Ages. The understanding that the Romans were a powerful nation-state is true because they expanded their boundaries and failed to lose them (I mean really) until Nero took power in 54 C.E. The Romans were the most powerful civilization in accordance of everything, including their army.
