The attitude of the Romans themselves to crucifixion was expressed by the barrister Cicero in his final speech for the prosecution in the trial of Verres in 70 BC.  Verres had been governor of Sicily and on his return to Rome at the end of his term of office, he was indicted for gross misgovernment.  Among the charges was that of having crucified a man who was a Roman citizen and as such was legally exempt from that form of punishment.  In referring to what he called “this most cruel and hideous penalty”, Cicero declared “To bind a Roman citizen is a crime, to flog him is an abomination…to crucify him is – what?  There is no fitting word that can possibly describe so horrible a deed”. (1)

The four guards on duty at the Cross, therefore, were soldiers serving in the Roman army, probably recruited in Syria, though the centurion, the non-commissioned officer who was in charge, may well have been a Roman. They would be quite insensitive to their task – it was in the regular line of duty – but as the minutes dawdled into hours a feeling of compassion for Our Lord awoke in the heart of one of the soldiers.