Roman legion

The size of a typical legion varied throughout the history of ancient Rome, with complements ranging from 4,200 legionaries and 300 equites (drawn from the wealthier classes – in early Rome all troops provided their own equipment) in the pre-Marian Reform Republic,^[1] to 5,500 in the Imperial period.

A legion had 4,800 legionaries (in 10 cohorts of 6 centuries of 80 legionaries) from the late republic to the time of Julius Caesar. It expanded to 5,280 men plus 120 auxiliaries in the Imperial period (split into 10 cohorts, nine of 480 men each, with the first cohort being double-strength at 960 men). These are typical field strengths while "paper strength" was slightly higher (e.g. 600 and 1,200 respectively for Imperial cohorts).

In the early Roman Kingdom the term legion may have meant the entire Roman army, but sources on this period are few and unreliable.^[2] The subsequent organisation of legions varied greatly over time but legions were typically composed of around five thousand soldiers. During much of the republican era, a legion was divided into three lines, each of ten maniples. In the late Republic and much of the imperial period (from about 100 BC), a legion was divided into ten cohorts, each of six (or five) centuries. Legions also included a small ala, or cavalry unit. By the third century AD, the legion was a much smaller unit of about 1,000 to 1,500 men, and there were more of them. In the fourth century AD, East Roman border guard legions (limitanei) may have become even smaller. In terms of organization and function, the republican era legion may have been influenced by the ancient Greek and Macedonian phalanx.^[3]

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Equites

Equites

The equites constituted the second of the property-based classes of ancient Rome, ranking below the senatorial class. A member of the equestrian order was known as an eques.

Marian reforms

Marian reforms

The Marian reforms were reforms of the ancient Roman army implemented in 107 BC by the statesman Gaius Marius, for whom they were later named. The reforms originated as a reaction to the military and logistical stagnation of the Roman Republic in the late 2nd century BC. Centuries of military campaigning throughout the Mediterranean and increasing invasions and uprisings across Roman territory had stretched the human and physical resources of the Roman army.

Legionary

Legionary

The Roman legionary was a professional heavy infantryman of the Roman army after the Marian reforms. These soldiers would conquer and defend the territories of ancient Rome during the late Republic and Principate eras, alongside auxiliary and cavalry detachments. At its height, Roman legionaries were viewed as the foremost fighting force in the Roman world, with commentators such as Vegetius praising their fighting effectiveness centuries after the classical Roman legionary disappeared.

Cohort (military unit)

Cohort (military unit)

A cohort was a standard tactical military unit of a Roman legion. Although the standard size changed with time and situation, it was generally composed of 480 soldiers. A cohort is considered to be the equivalent of a modern military battalion. The cohort replaced the maniple following the reforms attributed to Gaius Marius in 107 BC. Shortly after the military reforms of Marius, and until the middle of the third century AD, ten cohorts made up a legion. Cohorts were named "first cohort,” "second cohort," etc. The first cohort consisted of experienced legionaries, while the legionaries in the tenth cohort were less experienced.

Julius Caesar

Julius Caesar

Gaius Julius Caesar was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, and subsequently became dictator from 49 BC until his assassination in 44 BC. He played a critical role in the events that led to the demise of the Roman Republic and the rise of the Roman Empire.

Roman Kingdom

Roman Kingdom

The Roman Kingdom was the earliest period of Roman history when the city and its territory were ruled by kings. According to oral accounts, the Roman Kingdom began with the city's founding c. 753 BC, with settlements around the Palatine Hill along the river Tiber in central Italy, and ended with the overthrow of the kings and the establishment of the Republic c. 509 BC.

Roman Republic

Roman Republic

The Roman Republic was a form of government of Rome and the era of the classical Roman civilization when it was run through public representation of the Roman people. Beginning with the overthrow of the Roman Kingdom and ending in 27 BC with the establishment of the Roman Empire, Rome's control rapidly expanded during this period—from the city's immediate surroundings to hegemony over the entire Mediterranean world.

Ala (Roman allied military unit)

Ala (Roman allied military unit)

An ala was the term used during the middle of the Roman Republic to denote a military formation composed of conscripts from the socii, Rome's Italian military allies. A normal consular army during the period consisted of two legions, composed of only Roman citizens, and two allied alae.

East Roman army

East Roman army

The Eastern Roman army refers to the army of the eastern section of the Roman Empire, from the empire's definitive split in 395 AD to the army's reorganization by themes after the permanent loss of Syria, Palestine and Egypt to the Arabs in the 7th century during the Byzantine-Arab Wars. The East Roman army is the continuation of the Late Roman army of the 4th century until the Byzantine army of the 7th century onwards.

Border guard

Border guard

A border guard of a country is a national security agency that performs border security. Some of the national border guard agencies also perform coast guard and rescue service duties.

Limitanei

Limitanei

The līmitāneī, meaning respectively "the soldiers in frontier districts" or "the soldiers on the riverbank", were an important part of the late Roman and early Byzantine army after the reorganizations of the late 3rd and early 4th centuries. The limitanei, unlike the comitātēnsēs, palātīnī, and scholæ, garrisoned fortifications along the borders of the Roman Empire and were not normally expected to fight far from their fortifications.

Phalanx

Phalanx

The phalanx was a rectangular mass military formation, usually composed entirely of heavy infantry armed with spears, pikes, sarissas, or similar pole weapons. The term is particularly used to describe the use of this formation in ancient Greek warfare, although the ancient Greek writers used it to also describe any massed infantry formation, regardless of its equipment. Arrian uses the term in his Array against the Alans when he refers to his legions. In Greek texts, the phalanx may be deployed for battle, on the march, or even camped, thus describing the mass of infantry or cavalry that would deploy in line during battle. They marched forward as one entity.

For most of the Roman Imperial period, the legions formed the Roman army's elite heavy infantry, recruited exclusively from Roman citizens, while the remainder of the army consisted of auxiliaries, who provided additional infantry and the vast majority of the Roman cavalry. (Provincials who aspired to Roman citizenship gained it when honourably discharged from the auxiliaries.) The Roman army, for most of the Imperial period, consisted mostly of auxiliaries rather than legions.^[4]

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Heavy infantry

Heavy infantry

Heavy infantry consisted of heavily armed and armoured infantrymen who were trained to mount frontal assaults and/or anchor the defensive center of a battle line. This differentiated them from light infantry who are relatively mobile and lightly armoured skirmisher troops intended for screening, scouting, and other tactical roles unsuited to soldiers carrying heavier loads. Heavy infantry typically made use of dense battlefield formations, such as shield wall or phalanx, multiplying their effective weight of arms with force concentration.

Roman cavalry

Roman cavalry

Roman cavalry refers to the horse-mounted forces of the Roman army throughout the Regal, Republican, and Imperial eras.

Roman citizenship

Roman citizenship

Citizenship in ancient Rome was a privileged political and legal status afforded to free individuals with respect to laws, property, and governance. Citizenship in Ancient Rome was complex and based upon many different laws, traditions, and cultural practices. There existed several different types of citizenship, determined by one's gender, class, and political affiliations, and the exact duties or expectations of a citizen varied throughout the history of the Roman Empire.

Honesta missio

Honesta missio

The honesta missio was the honorable discharge from the military service in the Roman Empire. The status conveyed particular privileges. Among other things, an honorably discharged legionary was paid discharge money from a treasury established by Augustus, the aerarium militare, which amounted to 12,000 sesterces for the common soldier and around 600,000 sesterces for the primus pilus until the Principate of Caracalla.

Many of the legions founded before 40 BC were still active until at least the fifth century, notably Legio V Macedonica, which was founded by Augustus in 43 BC and was in Egypt in the seventh century during the Islamic conquest of Egypt.

On the other hand, Legio XVII ("Seventeenth Legion"), Legio XVIII ("Eighteenth Legion") and Legio XIX ("Nineteenth Legion"), founded by Augustus around 41 BC,^[5][6][7] were destroyed by a Germanic alliance led by Arminius in the Varian Disaster (September 9, AD 9) and never raised again by the Romans thereafter.^[8]

Quintili Vare, legiones redde! (Quintilius Varus, give me back my legions!)^[9]

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Legio V Macedonica

Legio V Macedonica

Legio V Macedonica was a Roman legion. It was probably originally levied in 43 BC by consul Gaius Vibius Pansa Caetronianus and Gaius Iulius Caesar Octavianus. It was based in the Balkan provinces of Macedonia, Moesia and Dacia. In the Notitia Dignitatum records from beginning of the fifth century, the legion was still stationed in Dacia, with detachments stationed in the east and Egypt.

Augustus

Augustus

Caesar Augustus, also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Principate, which is the first phase of the Roman Empire, and is considered one of the greatest leaders in human history. The reign of Augustus initiated an imperial cult as well as an era associated with imperial peace, the Pax Romana or Pax Augusta. The Roman world was largely free from large-scale conflict for more than two centuries despite continuous wars of imperial expansion on the empire's frontiers and the year-long civil war known as the "Year of the Four Emperors" over the imperial succession.

Legio XVII

Legio XVII

Legio XVII was a legion of the Imperial Roman army. It was founded by Augustus around 41 BC. The legion was destroyed in the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest. The legion's symbol and cognomen are unknown.

Legio XVIII

Legio XVIII

Legio XVIII was a legion of the Imperial Roman army. It was founded ca. 41 BC by the future emperor Augustus. The legion was, along with Legio XVII and Legio XIX, destroyed in the Battle of Teutoburg Forest. The legion's symbol and cognomen are unknown.

Legio XIX

Legio XIX

Legio XIX was a legion of the Imperial Roman army. It was destroyed in 9 AD in the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest. The emblem of the XIXth legion is unknown but was probably the Capricorn like other legions levied by Augustus.

Arminius

Arminius

Arminius was a chieftain of the Germanic Cherusci tribe who is best known for commanding an alliance of Germanic tribes at the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest in 9 AD, in which three Roman legions under the command of general Publius Quinctilius Varus were destroyed. His victory at Teutoburg Forest would precipitate the Roman Empire's permanent strategic withdrawal from Germania Magna. Modern historians have regarded Arminius' victory as one of Rome's greatest defeats. As it prevented the Romanization of Germanic peoples east of the Rhine, it has also been considered one of the most decisive battles in history and a turning point in human history.

Imperial Roman legionaries in tight formation, a relief from Glanum, a Roman town in what is now southern France

Because legions were not permanent units until the Marian reforms (c. 107 BC), and were instead created, used, and disbanded again, several hundred legions were named and numbered throughout Roman history. To date, about 50 have been identified.

The republican legions were composed of levied men that paid for their own equipment, with emphasis placed on service to the Republic as opposed to military career. At any time there would be four consular legions (with command divided between the two ruling consuls) and in time of war extra legions could be levied.

Toward the end of the 2nd century BC, the Republic started to experience manpower shortages brought about by property and financial qualifications to join the army. This was in part due to consul Gaius Marius's previous reforms and a growth in the number of Capite censi (property-less men), which prompted him to remove the property qualifications previously required and decree that all citizens regardless of their wealth or social class were made eligible for service in the legions, with all equipment provided by the state.

The Roman military thus became a professional volunteer and standing army which extended service beyond Roman citizens to also the Peregrini (non-citizens), who could sign on as Auxilia (auxiliaries) and were rewarded with Roman citizenship upon completion of service and all the rights and privileges that it entailed. In the time of Augustus there were nearly 50 legions in active duty which were in various states of disorder. He regulated and reduced this number to that of about 25–35 legions, which remained as such for most of the empire's history.

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Structural history of the Roman military

Structural history of the Roman military

The structural history of the Roman military concerns the major transformations in the organization and constitution of ancient Rome's armed forces, "the most effective and long-lived military institution known to history." From its origins around 800 BC to its final dissolution in AD 476 with the demise of the Western Roman Empire, Rome's military organization underwent substantial structural change. At the highest level of structure, the forces were split into the Roman army and the Roman navy, although these two branches were less distinct than in many modern national defense forces. Within the top levels of both army and navy, structural changes occurred as a result of both positive military reform and organic structural evolution. These changes can be divided into four distinct phases.Phase IThe army was derived from obligatory annual military service levied on the citizenry, as part of their duty to the state. During this period, the Roman army would wage seasonal campaigns against largely local adversaries.Phase IIAs the extent of the territories falling under Roman control expanded and the size of the forces increased, the soldiery gradually became salaried professionals. As a consequence, military service at the lower (non-salaried) levels became progressively longer-term. Roman military units of the period were largely homogeneous and highly regulated. The army consisted of units of citizen infantry known as legions as well as non-legionary allied troops known as auxilia. The latter were most commonly called upon to provide light infantry, logistical, or cavalry support.Phase IIIAt the height of the Roman Empire's power, forces were tasked with manning and securing the borders of the vast provinces which had been brought under Roman control. Serious strategic threats were less common in this period and emphasis was placed on preserving gained territory. The army underwent changes in response to these new needs and became more dependent on fixed garrisons than on march-camps and continuous field operations.Phase IVAs Rome began to struggle to keep control over its sprawling territories, military service continued to be salaried and professional for Rome's regular troops. However, the trend of employing allied or mercenary elements was expanded to such an extent that these troops came to represent a substantial proportion of the armed forces. At the same time, the uniformity of structure found in Rome's earlier military disappeared. Soldiery of the era ranged from lightly armed mounted archers to heavy infantry, in regiments of varying size and quality. This was accompanied by a trend in the late empire of an increasing predominance of cavalry rather than infantry troops, as well as a requirement for more mobile operations. In this period there was more focus on smaller units of independently-operating troops, engaging less in set-piece battles and more in low-intensity, guerilla actions.

Glanum

Glanum

Glanum was an ancient and wealthy city which still enjoys a magnificent setting below a gorge on the flanks of the Alpilles mountains. It is located about one kilometre south of the town of Saint-Rémy-de-Provence.

Southern France

Southern France

Southern France, also known as the South of France or colloquially in French as le Midi, is a defined geographical area consisting of the regions of France that border the Atlantic Ocean south of the Marais Poitevin, Spain, the Mediterranean Sea and Italy. It includes southern Nouvelle-Aquitaine in the west, Occitanie in the centre, the southern parts of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes in the northeast, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur in the southeast, as well as the island of Corsica in the southeast. Southern France is generally included into Southern Europe because of its association with the Mediterranean Sea.

Marian reforms

Marian reforms

The Marian reforms were reforms of the ancient Roman army implemented in 107 BC by the statesman Gaius Marius, for whom they were later named. The reforms originated as a reaction to the military and logistical stagnation of the Roman Republic in the late 2nd century BC. Centuries of military campaigning throughout the Mediterranean and increasing invasions and uprisings across Roman territory had stretched the human and physical resources of the Roman army.

Gaius Marius

Gaius Marius

Gaius Marius was a Roman general and statesman. Victor of the Cimbric and Jugurthine wars, he held the office of consul an unprecedented seven times. He was also noted for his important reforms of Roman armies. He set the precedent for the shift from the militia levies of the middle Republic to the professional soldiery of the late Republic; he also improved the pilum, a javelin, and made large-scale changes to the logistical structure of the Roman army.

Capite censi

Capite censi

Capite censi were literally, in Latin, "those counted by head" in the ancient Roman census. Also known as "the head count", the term was used to refer to the lowest class of citizens, people not of the nobility or middle classes, owning little or no property; thus they were counted by the head rather than by their property. Initially capite censi was synonymous with proletarii, meaning those citizens whose property was too small to be rated for the census. Later, though, the proletarii were distinguished from the capite censi as having "appreciable property" to the value of 11,000 asses or less. In contrast, the capite censi are assumed to have not owned any property of significance.

Peregrinus (Roman)

Peregrinus (Roman)

In the early Roman Empire, from 30 BC to AD 212, a peregrinus was a free provincial subject of the Empire who was not a Roman citizen. Peregrini constituted the vast majority of the Empire's inhabitants in the 1st and 2nd centuries AD. In AD 212, all free inhabitants of the Empire were granted citizenship by the Constitutio Antoniniana, with the exception of the dediticii, people who had become subject to Rome through surrender in war, and freed slaves.

Auxilia

Auxilia

The Auxilia were introduced as non-citizen troops attached to the citizen legions by Augustus after his reorganisation of the Imperial Roman army from 27 BC. By the 2nd century, the Auxilia contained the same number of infantry as the legions and, in addition, provided almost all of the Roman army's cavalry and more specialised troops. The auxilia thus represented three-fifths of Rome's regular land forces at that time. Like their legionary counterparts, auxiliary recruits were mostly volunteers, not conscripts.

Roman citizenship

Roman citizenship

Citizenship in ancient Rome was a privileged political and legal status afforded to free individuals with respect to laws, property, and governance. Citizenship in Ancient Rome was complex and based upon many different laws, traditions, and cultural practices. There existed several different types of citizenship, determined by one's gender, class, and political affiliations, and the exact duties or expectations of a citizen varied throughout the history of the Roman Empire.

Augustus

Augustus

Caesar Augustus, also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Principate, which is the first phase of the Roman Empire, and is considered one of the greatest leaders in human history. The reign of Augustus initiated an imperial cult as well as an era associated with imperial peace, the Pax Romana or Pax Augusta. The Roman world was largely free from large-scale conflict for more than two centuries despite continuous wars of imperial expansion on the empire's frontiers and the year-long civil war known as the "Year of the Four Emperors" over the imperial succession.

The legions of the Republic were only conscripted in times of conflict and usually limited to four legions, two to be commanded by each consul, though more could be levied if needed. Legionaries lacked the opportunity of a military career; they were not paid well, their primary form of income being what they could loot from the battlefield, and were simply called upon when needed and returned to their civilian lives when they were no longer required.

In terms of organization and function, the early Republican era military was inherited from the Etruscans and seemingly influenced by the ancient Greek and Macedonian phalanx.^[3]

After a crushing defeat at the Battle of the Allia, in 387 BC the military structure was reformed. Under the Camillan system the legions were initially structured based on social class, with the poorest being the first line of the formation. The legionaries most often fought with hastae (spears) and scuta (large rectangular shields) in a checkered maniple formation with assistance from skirmishers. The exception to this was the triarii, the final line of the formation who instead fought as hoplites, using Greek clipei and whose wealth could afford them gladii in the case of a broken spear.

By the 3rd century BC, this system was seen to be inefficient. Under the new Polybian system the ranks were no longer structured by wealth, and instead by age and experience. All legionaries had their hastae replaced by gladii, along with two pila, which were used as an opening volley before melee. The former classes of poor legionaries, the accensi, rorarii, and leves were replaced by the velites. Unit sizes were also expanded.

The formation of the legion once again changed in 107 BC under the Marian reforms due to manpower shortages. Legions were turned from conscripted armies in times of conflict to active, standing forces organized by cohortes as opposed to maniples. All former classes were disbanded and replaced by a main body of legionaries and its officers. Property and wealth qualifications were removed and all legionaries were equipped by the state. Legionaries were now contracted and actively trained and paid career soldiers. Non-citizens or peregrini were also offered a position in the military as auxiliaries.

The Republican legion evolved from 3,000 men in the Roman Republic to over 5,200 men in the Roman Empire, consisting of centuries as the basic units. Until the middle of the first century AD, ten cohorts made up a Roman legion. This was later changed to nine cohorts of standard size (with six centuries at 80 men each) with the first cohort being of double strength (five double-strength centuries with 160 men each).

By the fourth century AD, the legion was a much smaller unit of about 1,000 to 1,500 men, and there were more of them. This had come about as the large formation legion and auxiliary unit, 10,000 men, was broken down into smaller units – originally temporary detachments – to cover more territory.

In the fourth century AD, East Roman border guard legions (limitanei) may have become even smaller.

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Etruscan civilization

Etruscan civilization

The Etruscan civilization was developed by a people of Etruria in ancient Italy with a common language and culture who formed a federation of city-states. After conquering adjacent lands, its territory covered, at its greatest extent, roughly what is now Tuscany, western Umbria, and northern Lazio, as well as what are now the Po Valley, Emilia-Romagna, south-eastern Lombardy, southern Veneto, and western Campania.

Battle of the Allia

Battle of the Allia

The Battle of the Allia was a battle fought c. 387 BC between the Senones – a Gallic tribe led by Brennus, who had invaded Northern Italy – and the Roman Republic. The battle was fought at the confluence of the Tiber and Allia rivers, 11 Roman miles north of Rome. The Romans were routed and subsequently Rome was sacked by the Senones. According to scholar Piero Treves, "the absence of any archaeological evidence for a destruction-level of this date suggests that [this] sack of Rome was superficial only."

Hastati

Hastati

Hastati were a class of infantry employed in the armies of the early Roman Republic, who originally fought as spearmen and later as swordsmen. These soldiers were the staple unit after Rome threw off Etruscan rule. They were originally some of the poorest men in the legion, and could afford only modest equipment—light chainmail and other miscellaneous equipment. The Senate supplied their soldiers with only a short stabbing sword, the gladius, and their distinctive squared shield, the scutum. The hastatus was typically equipped with these, and one or two soft iron tipped throwing spears called pila. This doubled their effectiveness, not only as a strong leading edge to their maniple, but also as a stand-alone missile troop. Later, the hastati contained the younger men rather than just the poorer, though most men of their age were relatively poor. Their usual position was the first battle line. They fought in a quincunx formation, supported by lighter infantry. The enemy was allowed to penetrate the first battle line consisting of hastati, after which the enemy would deal with the more hardened, seasoned soldiers, the principes. They were eventually disbanded after the Marian reforms of 107 BC.

Hasta (spear)

Hasta (spear)

Hasta is a Latin word meaning "spear". Hastae were carried by early Roman legionaries, in particular they were carried by and gave their name to those Roman soldiers known as hastati. However, during republican times, the hastati were re-armed with pila and gladii and the hasta was only retained by the triarii.

Maniple (military unit)

Maniple (military unit)

Maniple was a tactical unit of the Roman Republican armies, adopted during the Samnite Wars. It was also the name of the military insignia carried by such units.

Clipeus

Clipeus

In the military of classical antiquity, a clipeus was a large shield worn by the Greek hoplites and Romans as a piece of defensive armor, which they carried upon the arm, to protect them from the blows of their enemies. It was round in shape and in the middle was a bolt of iron, or of some other metal, with a sharp point. The clipeus was more-or-less identical to the earlier aspis.

Gladius

Gladius

Gladius is a Latin word meaning "sword", but in its narrow sense it refers to the sword of ancient Roman foot soldiers. Early ancient Roman swords were similar to those of the Greeks, called xiphe. From the 3rd century BC, however, the soldiers of the Roman Republic adopted a sword based on the celtic sword used by the Celtiberians in Hispania late into the Punic Wars, known in Latin as the gladius hispaniensis, meaning "Hispanic-type sword". New variants of the gladius, such as the "Mainz gladius" and the "Pompeii gladius", were used from the first century AD and during the early centuries of the Roman Empire; in the third century AD the Roman infantry replaced the gladius with the "spatha".

Melee

Melee

A melee or pell-mell is disorganized hand-to-hand combat in battles fought at abnormally close range with little central control once it starts. In military aviation, a melee has been defined as "[a]n air battle in which several aircraft, both friend and foe, are confusingly intermingled".

Accensi

Accensi

The term accensi is applied to two different groups. Originally, the accensi were light infantry in the armies of the early Roman Republic. They were the poorest men in the legion, and could not afford much equipment. They did not wear armour or carry shields, and their usual position was part of the third battle line. They fought in a loose formation, supporting the heavier troops. They were eventually phased out by the time of Second Punic War. In the later Roman Republic the term was used for civil servants who assisted the elected magistrates, particularly in the courts, where they acted as ushers and clerks.

Leves

Leves

Leves were javelin-armed skirmishers in the army of the early Roman Republic. They were typically some of the youngest and poorest men in the legion, and could not afford much equipment. They were usually outfitted with just a number of light javelins and no other equipment. There were 300 leves in a legion, and unlike other infantry types they did not form their own units, but were assigned to units of hastati – heavier sword-armed troops. Their primary purpose on the battlefield was to harass the enemy with javelin fire and support the heavy infantry who fought in hand-to-hand combat. Accensi and rorarii were also light missile troops and had similar roles.

Marian reforms

Marian reforms

The Marian reforms were reforms of the ancient Roman army implemented in 107 BC by the statesman Gaius Marius, for whom they were later named. The reforms originated as a reaction to the military and logistical stagnation of the Roman Republic in the late 2nd century BC. Centuries of military campaigning throughout the Mediterranean and increasing invasions and uprisings across Roman territory had stretched the human and physical resources of the Roman army.

Peregrinus (Roman)

Peregrinus (Roman)

In the early Roman Empire, from 30 BC to AD 212, a peregrinus was a free provincial subject of the Empire who was not a Roman citizen. Peregrini constituted the vast majority of the Empire's inhabitants in the 1st and 2nd centuries AD. In AD 212, all free inhabitants of the Empire were granted citizenship by the Constitutio Antoniniana, with the exception of the dediticii, people who had become subject to Rome through surrender in war, and freed slaves.

Roman Kingdom (to c. 500 BC)

In the period before the raising of the legio and the early years of the Roman Kingdom and the Roman Republic, forces are described as being organised into centuriae of roughly one hundred men. These centuries were grouped together as required and answered to the leader who had hired or raised them. Such independent organisation persisted until the 2nd century BC amongst light infantry and cavalry, but was discarded completely in later periods with the supporting role taken instead by allied troops. The roles of century leader (later formalised as a centurion), second in command and standard bearer are referenced in this early period.

Rome's early period is undocumented and shrouded in myths, but those myths tell that during the rule of Servius Tullius, the census (from Latin: censeō – accounting of the people) was introduced. With this all Roman able-bodied, property-owning male citizens were divided into five classes for military service based on their wealth and then organised into centuries as sub-units of the greater Roman army or legio (multitude). Joining the army was both a duty and a distinguishing mark of Roman citizenship; during the entire pre-Marian period the wealthiest land owners performed the most years of military service. These individuals would have had the most to lose should the state have fallen.

Roman Republic (509–107 BC)

At some point after the overthrow of the Roman monarchy the legio was subdivided into two separate legions, each one ascribed to one of the two consuls. In the first years of the Republic, when warfare was mostly concentrated on raiding, it is uncertain if the full manpower of the legions was summoned at any one time. In 494 BC, when three foreign threats emerged, the dictator Manius Valerius Maximus raised ten legions which Livy says was a greater number than had been raised previously at any one time.^[10]

Also, some warfare was still conducted by Roman forces outside the legionary structure, the most famous example being the campaign in 479 BC by the clan army of gens Fabia against the Etruscan city of Veii (in which the clan was annihilated). Legions became more formally organised in the 4th century BC, as Roman warfare evolved to more frequent and planned operations, and the consular army was raised to two legions each.

In the Republic, legions had an ephemeral existence. Except for Legio I to IV, which were the consular armies (two per consul), other units were levied by campaign. Rome's Italian allies were required to provide approximately ten cohorts (auxilia were not organised into legions) to support each Roman Legion.

In the middle of the Republic, legions were composed of the following units:

• Equites (cavalry): The cavalry was originally the most prestigious unit, where wealthy young Roman men displayed their skill and prowess, laying the foundation for an eventual political career. Cavalry equipment was purchased by each of the cavalrymen and consisted of a round shield, helmet, body armour, sword and one or more lances. The cavalry was outnumbered in the legion. In a total of ca. 3,000 men, (plus the velites that normally enlarged the number to about 4,200), the legion only had around 300 horsemen, divided into ten units (turmae) of 30 men. These men were commanded by decurions. In addition to heavy cavalry, there would be the light cavalry levied from poor citizens and wealthy young citizens not old enough to be in the hastati or the equites. In battle, they were used to disrupt and outflank enemy infantry formations and to fight off enemy cavalry. In the latter type of engagement, they would often (though not always) dismount some or all of the horsemen to fight a stationary battle on foot, an unusual tactic for the time, but one that offered significant advantages in stability and agility in a time before stirrups.^[11]
• Velites (light infantry): The velites were mainly poorer citizens who could not afford to equip themselves properly. Their primary function was to act as skirmishers – javelin-throwers, who would engage the enemy early in order either to harass them or to cover the movement of troops behind them. After throwing their javelins, they would retreat through the gaps between the maniples, screened from the attack of the enemy by the heavy infantry lines. With the shortage of cavalry in the army of the early to mid Republican army, the velites were also used as scouts. They did not have a precise formal organisation or formation.
• Heavy infantry: This was the principal unit of the legion. The heavy infantry was composed of citizen legionaries that could afford the equipment composed of an bronze helmet, shield, sword, armour and pilum, a heavy javelin whose range was about 30 metres. After the Second Punic War, the preferred weapon for the hastati and principes was the gladius, a short sword.^[12] Their hobnailed sandals (caligae) were also an effective weapon against a fallen enemy. Prior to the Marian reforms (see below), the heavy infantry was subdivided, according to experience, into three separate lines of troops:
  • The hastati (sing. hastatus) consisted of raw or inexperienced soldiers, considered to be less reliable than legionaries of several years' service. The Hastati were placed at the front for several reasons. One reason is the city of Rome could ill-afford to lose experienced soldiers, so they put the greenest soldiers at the front. If they survived, the hastati would gain invaluable experience. Another reason is if the newest soldiers succumbed to battle nerves and broke and tried to run, then there were experienced soldiers behind them to stiffen their resolve.
  • The principes (sing. princeps) These were the more experienced soldiers, often better equipped than the hastati, and having more experience on the battlefield, they would take up the second line in the battle in the event the Hastati failed or fled. They were the second wave in an early Republican Legion before the military reforms of Marius.
  • The triarii (sing. triarius) were the veteran soldiers, to be used in battle only in extreme situations; they rested one knee down when not engaged in combat. The triarii served primarily as reserves or barrier troops designed to backstop the hastati and principes, and were equipped with long hastae (spears) rather than the pilum and gladius (the hastati and principes stopped using spears in 387 BC). Thus armed, they fought in a phalanx formation. The sight of an advancing armored formation of triarii legionaries frequently discouraged exultant enemies in pursuit of retreating hastati and principes troops. Ad triarios redisse – To fall back upon the triarii – was a Roman idiom meaning to use one's last resort.

Each of these three lines was subdivided into (usually ten) chief tactical units called maniples. A maniple consisted of two centuries and was commanded by the senior of the two centurions. At this time, each century of hastati and principes consisted of 60 men; a century of triarii was 30 men. These 3,000 men (twenty maniples of 120 men, and ten maniples of 60 men), together with about 1,200 velites and 300 cavalry gave the mid Republican ("manipular") legion a nominal strength of about 4,500 men.

Late Republic (107–30 BC)

Visual representation of the post-Marian Reform Legion showing size and disposition for Infantry formations

See also List of Roman legions for details of notable late Republican legions
See also Sub-Units of the Roman legion

The Marian reforms (of Gaius Marius) enlarged the centuries to 80 men, and grouped them into six-century "cohorts" (rather than two-century maniples). Each century had its own standard and was made up of ten units (contubernia) of eight men who shared a tent, a millstone, a mule and cooking pot. Following the reforms of the general Marius in the 2nd century BC, the legions took on the second, narrower meaning that is familiar in the popular imagination as close-order citizen heavy infantry.

At the end of the 2nd century BC, Gaius Marius reformed the previously ephemeral legions as a professional force drawing from the poorest classes, enabling Rome to field larger armies and providing employment for jobless citizens of the city of Rome. However, this put the loyalty of the soldiers in the hands of their general rather than the State of Rome itself. This development ultimately enabled Julius Caesar's crossing the Rubicon with an army loyal to him personally and effectively end the Republic.

The legions of the late Republic and early Empire are often called Marian legions. Following the Battle of Vercellae in 101 BC, Marius granted all Italian soldiers Roman citizenship. He justified this action to the Senate by saying that in the din of battle he could not distinguish Roman from ally. This effectively eliminated the notion of allied legions; henceforth all Italian legions would be regarded as Roman legions, and full Roman citizenship was open to all the regions of Italy. At the same time, the three different types of heavy infantry were replaced by a single, standard type based on the principes: armed with two heavy javelins called pila (singular pilum), the short sword called gladius, chain mail (lorica hamata), helmet and rectangular shield (scutum).

The role of allied legions would eventually be taken up by contingents of allied auxiliary troops, called auxilia. Auxilia contained immunes (specialist units), engineers and pioneers, artillerymen and craftsmen, service and support personnel and irregular units made up of non-citizens, mercenaries and local militia. These were usually formed into complete units such as light cavalry, light infantry or velites, and labourers. There was also a reconnaissance squad of ten or more light mounted infantry called speculatores, who could also serve as messengers or even as an early form of military intelligence service.

As part of the Marian reforms, the legions' internal organisation was standardised. Each legion was divided into cohorts. Prior to this, cohorts had been temporary administrative units or tactical task forces of several maniples, even more transitory than the legions themselves. Now the cohorts were ten permanent units, composed of six centuries and in the case of the first cohort five double strength centuries each led by a centurion assisted by an optio. The cohorts came to form the basic tactical unit of the legions. Ranking within the legion was based on length of service, with the senior centurion commanding the first century of the first cohort; he was called the primus pilus (First Spear), and reported directly to the superior officers (legates and tribuni). All career soldiers could be promoted to the higher ranks in recognition of exceptional acts of bravery or valour. A newly promoted junior centurion would be assigned to the sixth century of the tenth cohort and slowly progressed through the ranks from there.

Every legion had a large baggage train, which included 640 mules (one mule for every eight legionaries) just for the soldiers' equipment. To keep these baggage trains from becoming too large and slow, Marius had each infantryman carry as much of his own equipment as he could, including his own armour, weapons and five days' rations, for about 25–30 kg (50–60 pounds) of load total. To make this easier, he issued each legionary a cross stick (furca) to carry their loads on their shoulders. The soldiers were nicknamed "Marius' Mules" because of the amount of gear they had to carry themselves. This arrangement allowed for the possibility for the supply train to become temporarily detached from the main body of the legion, thus greatly increasing the army's speed when needed.

A typical legion of this period had 5,120 legionaries as well as a large number of camp followers, servants and slaves. Legions could contain as many as 11,000 fighting men when including the auxiliaries. During the Later Roman Empire, the legion was reduced in size to 1,000 to allow for easier provisioning and to expand the regions under surveillance. Numbers would also vary depending on casualties suffered during a campaign; Julius Caesar's legions during his campaign in Gaul often only had around 3,500 men.

Tactics were not very different from the past, but their effectiveness was largely improved because of the professional training of the soldiers.

After the Marian reforms and throughout the history of Rome's Late Republic, the legions played an important political role. By the 1st century BC, the threat of the legions under a demagogue was recognised. Roman governors were not allowed to leave their provinces with their legions. When Julius Caesar broke this rule, leaving his province of Gaul and crossing the Rubicon into Italy, he precipitated a constitutional crisis. This crisis and the civil wars which followed brought an end to the Republic and led to the foundation of the Empire under Augustus in 27 BC.

Early Empire (27 BC–AD 284)

See List of Roman legions of the early Empire
See also Sub-Units of the Roman legion

Map of Roman legions by 14 AD.

Generals, during the recent Republican civil wars, had formed their own legions and numbered them as they wished. During this time, there was a high incidence of Gemina (twin) legions, where two legions were consolidated into a single organisation (and was later made official and put under a legatus and six duces). At the end of the civil war against Mark Antony, Augustus was left with around fifty legions, with several double counts (multiple Legio Xs for instance). For political and economic reasons, Augustus reduced the number of legions to 28 (which diminished to 25 after the Battle of Teutoburg Forest, in which three legions were completely destroyed by the Germanics).

Beside streamlining the army, Augustus also regulated the soldiers' pay. At the same time, he greatly increased the number of auxiliaries to the point where they were equal in number to the legionaries. He also created the Praetorian Guard along with a permanent Roman Navy where served the liberti, or freed slaves. The legions also became permanent at this time, and not recruited for particular campaigns. They were also allocated to static bases with permanent castra legionaria (legionary fortresses).

Augustus' military policies proved sound and cost effective, and were generally followed by his successors. These emperors would carefully add new legions, as circumstances required or permitted, until the strength of the standing army stood at around 30 legions (hence the wry remark of the philosopher Favorinus that It is ill arguing with the master of 30 legions). With each legion having 5,120 legionaries usually supported by an equal number of auxiliary troops (according to Tacitus), the total force available to a legion commander during the Pax Romana probably ranged from 11,000 downwards, with the more prestigious legions and those stationed on hostile borders or in restive provinces tending to have more auxiliaries. By the time of the emperor Severus, 193–211, the auxiliaries may have composed 55 to 60% of the army, 250,000 of 447,000. Some legions may have even been reinforced at times with units making the associated force near 15,000–16,000 or about the size of a modern division.

Throughout the Imperial era, the legions played an important political role. Their actions could secure the empire for a usurper or take it away. For example, the defeat of Vitellius in the Year of the Four Emperors was decided when the Danubian legions chose to support Vespasian.

In the Empire, the legion was standardised, with symbols and an individual history where men were proud to serve. The legion was commanded by a legatus or legate. Aged around thirty, he would usually be a senator on a three-year appointment. Immediately subordinate to the legate would be six elected military tribunes – five would be staff officers and the remaining one would be a noble heading for the Senate (originally this tribune commanded the legion). There would also be a group of officers for the medical staff, the engineers, record-keepers, the praefectus castrorum (commander of the camp) and other specialists such as priests and musicians.

Later Empire (from 284 AD)

Map of Roman legions by 212 AD.^[13]

In the Later Roman Empire, the number of legions was increased and the Roman army expanded. There is no evidence to suggest that legions changed in form before the Tetrarchy, although there is evidence that they were smaller than the paper strengths usually quoted. The final form of the legion originated with the elite legiones palatinae created by Diocletian and the Tetrarchs. These were infantry units of around 1,000 men rather than the 5,000, including cavalry, of the old legions. The earliest legiones palatinae were the Lanciarii, Joviani, Herculiani and Divitenses.

The 4th century saw a very large number of new, small legions created, a process which began under Constantine II. In addition to the elite palatini, other legions called comitatenses and pseudocomitatenses, along with the auxilia palatina, provided the infantry of late Roman armies. The Notitia Dignitatum lists 25 legiones palatinae, 70 legiones comitatenses, 47 legiones pseudocomitatenses and 111 auxilia palatina in the field armies, and a further 47 legiones in the frontier armies.^[14] Legion names such as Honoriani and Gratianenses found in the Notitia suggest that the process of creating new legions continued through the 4th century rather than being a single event. The names also suggest that many new legions were formed from vexillationes or from old legions. In addition, there were 24 vexillationes palatini, 73 vexillationes comitatenses; 305 other units in the Eastern limitanei and 181 in the Western limitanei.^[15] A rare instance of apparent direct continuity between the legions of the early Empire and those of the post-6th century army was Legion V Macedonica; created in 43 BC, recorded in the Notitia Dignitatum as a legione comitatense under the title of Quinta Macedonica and surviving in Egypt until the Arab conquest of 637 AD.^[16]

According to the late Roman writer Vegetius' De re militari, each century had a ballista and each cohort had an onager, giving the legion a formidable siege train of 59 ballistae and 10 onagers, each manned by 10 libritors (artillerymen) and mounted on wagons drawn by oxen or mules. In addition to attacking cities and fortifications, these would be used to help defend Roman forts and fortified camps (castra) as well. They would even be employed on occasion, especially in the later Empire, as field artillery during battles or in support of river crossings.

Despite a number of organisational changes, the legion system survived the fall of the Western Roman Empire. It was continued within the Eastern Roman Empire until the 7th century, when reforms begun by Emperor Heraclius to supply the increasing need for soldiers resulted in the Theme system. Despite this, the Eastern Roman armies continued to be influenced by the earlier Roman legions, and were maintained with similar levels of discipline, strategic prowess, and organization.

Discover more about History related topics

Military history of ancient Rome

Military history of ancient Rome

The military history of ancient Rome is inseparable from its political system, based from an early date upon competition within the ruling elite. Two consuls were elected each year to head the government of the state, and in the early to mid-Republic were assigned a consular army and an area in which to campaign.

Early Roman army

Early Roman army

The Early Roman army was deployed by ancient Rome during its Regal Era and into the early Republic around 300 BC, when the so-called "Polybian" or manipular legion was introduced.

Centuria

Centuria

Centuria is a Latin term denoting military units originally consisting of 100 men. The size of the century changed over time, and from the first century BC through most of the imperial era the standard size of a centuria was 80 men.

Centurion

Centurion

A centurion was a position in the Roman army during classical antiquity, nominally the commander of a century, a military unit originally consisting of 100 legionaries. The size of the century changed over time, and from the first century BC through most of the imperial era was reduced to 80 men.

Optio

Optio

An optio, plural optiones, was a position in a centuria (century) of a Roman army similar to that of an executive officer. The main function of an optio was as an optio centuriae, the second-in-command of a century, although there were many other roles an optio could adopt.

Aquilifer

Aquilifer

An aquilifer was a soldier signifer bearing the eagle standard of a Roman legion. The name derives from the type of standard, aquila meaning "eagle", and ferre, the Latin word for bringing or carrying. Before that time, the wolf, boar, bull and horse were also used. The eagle standard was the most important possession of the legion, and its loss was a terrible disgrace.

Latin

Latin

Latin is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area around present-day Rome, but through the power of the Roman Republic it became the dominant language in the Italian region and subsequently throughout the Roman Empire. Even after the fall of Western Rome, Latin remained the common language of international communication, science, scholarship and academia in Europe until well into the 18th century, when other regional vernaculars supplanted it in common academic and political usage. For most of the time it was used, it would be considered a "dead language" in the modern linguistic definition; that is, it lacked native speakers, despite being used extensively and actively.

Overthrow of the Roman monarchy

Overthrow of the Roman monarchy

The overthrow of the Roman monarchy was an event in ancient Rome that took place between the 6th and 5th centuries BC where a political revolution replaced the then-existing Roman monarchy under Lucius Tarquinius Superbus with a republic. The details of the event were largely forgotten by the Romans a few centuries later; later Roman historians invented a narrative of the events, traditionally dated to c. 509 BC, but this narrative is largely believed to be fictitious by modern scholars.

Manius Valerius Maximus

Manius Valerius Maximus

Manius Valerius Maximus was Roman dictator in 494 BC during the first secession of the plebs. His brothers were Publius Valerius Publicola and Marcus Valerius Volusus. They were said to be the sons of Volesus Valerius.

Livy

Livy

Titus Livius, known in English as Livy, was a Roman historian. He wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, titled Ab Urbe Condita, ''From the Founding of the City'', covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome before the traditional founding in 753 BC through the reign of Augustus in Livy's own lifetime. He was on familiar terms with members of the Julio-Claudian dynasty and a friend of Augustus, whose young grandnephew, the future emperor Claudius, he exhorted to take up the writing of history.

Equites

Equites

The equites constituted the second of the property-based classes of ancient Rome, ranking below the senatorial class. A member of the equestrian order was known as an eques.

Cavalry

Cavalry

Historically, cavalry are soldiers or warriors who fight mounted on horseback. Cavalry were the most mobile of the combat arms, operating as light cavalry in the roles of reconnaissance, screening, and skirmishing in many armies, or as heavy cavalry for decisive shock attacks in other armies. An individual soldier in the cavalry is known by a number of designations depending on era and tactics, such as cavalryman, horseman, trooper, cataphract, knight, drabant, hussar, uhlan, mamluk, cuirassier, lancer, dragoon, or horse archer. The designation of cavalry was not usually given to any military forces that used other animals for mounts, such as camels or elephants. Infantry who moved on horseback, but dismounted to fight on foot, were known in the early 17th to the early 18th century as dragoons, a class of mounted infantry which in most armies later evolved into standard cavalry while retaining their historic designation.

Aside from the rank and file legionary (who received the base wage of 10 assēs a day or 225 denarii a year), the following list describes the system of officers which developed within the legions from the Marian reforms (104 BC) until the military reforms of Diocletian (c. 290).

Senior officers

• Legatus Augusti pro praetore, Imperial Legate: The commander of two or more legions. The Imperial Legate also served as the governor of the province in which the legions he commanded were stationed. Of Senatorial rank, the Imperial Legate was appointed by the Emperor and usually held command for 3 or 4 years.
• Legatus legionis, Legion Legate: The overall legion commander. The post was usually filled by a senator, appointed by the emperor, who held command for 3 or 4 years, although he could serve for a much longer period. In a Roman province with only one legion, the legatus was also the provincial governor. In such circumstances, the Legatus was dual-hatted as both Legion Legate and Imperial Legate. The Legion Legate also served as commander of the auxiliary units attached to the legion though they were not formally a part of the legion's command structure.
• Tribunus laticlavius, Broad Band Tribune: Named for the broad striped tunic worn by men of senatorial rank, this tribune was appointed by the emperor or the Senate. Though generally young, he was more experienced than the tribuni angusticlavii, he served as second in command of the legion, behind the legate. Because of his age and inexperience he was not the actual second in command in battle, but if the legate died he would take command of the legion.
• Praefectus castrorum, Camp Prefect: The Camp Prefect was third in command of the legion. Generally he was a long serving veteran from a lower social status than the tribunii whom he outranked, and who previously had served as primus pilus and finished his 25 years with the legions. He was used as a senior officer in charge of training a legion, though he could also command a cohort of auxiliaries.
• Tribuni angusticlavii, Narrow Band Tribunes: Each legion had five lower ranking tribunes, who were normally from the equestrian class and had at least some years of prior military experience. They often served the role of administrative officers.^[17] This tribunate was often a first, but optional, step in a young man's political career (see cursus honorum).^[18]

Centurions

An historical reenactor in Roman centurion costume

The rank of centurion was an officer grade that held much responsibility. The most senior centurion in a legion was known as the primus pilus (first file or spear), who directly commanded the first century of the first cohort and commanded the whole first cohort when in battle. Within the second to tenth cohorts, the commander of each cohort's first century was known as a pilus prior and was in command of his entire cohort when in battle. The seniority of the pilus prior centurions was followed by the five other century commanders of the first cohort, who were known as primi ordines.

There is a story of one centurion, Petronius Fortunatus, making rank in four years, then spending the next forty-two years in twelve different legions never once serving in the primi ordines.^[19]

The six centuries of a normal cohort, were, in order of precedence:

• The forward hastati (forward spears)
• The rear hastati (rear spears)
• The forward principes (forward principal line)
• The rear principes (rear principal line)
• The forward triarii (forward third line)
• The rear triarii (rear third line)

The centuries took their titles from the old use of the legion drawn up in three lines of battle using three classes of soldier. (Each century would then hold a cross-section of this theoretical line, although these century titles were now essentially nominal.) Each of the three lines is then sub-divided within the century into a more forward and a more rear century.

• Primus pilus, literally First File: the primus pilus was the commanding centurion of the first century, first cohort and the senior-most centurion of the entire legion. (Unlike other cohorts, the first cohort had only one javelin century, instead of a "front spear" and a "back spear" century.) The primus pilus had a chance of later becoming a praefectus castrorum. When the primus pilus retired, he would most likely gain entry into the equestrian class. He was paid 60 times the base wage. Primus pilus were also paid more than an average centurion and like a narrowband tribune.
• Pilus prior: the "front file" centurions were the commanders of the 10 1st centuries within the legion, making them senior centurions of their respective cohorts. While the legion was in battle formation, the pilus prior was given command of their entire cohort. The primus pilus was also a pilus prior, and the most senior of all the centurions within the legion. These positions were usually held by experienced veteran soldiers who had been moved up within the ranks. This rank is subordinate to the primus pilus.
• Primi ordines: the "ranks of the first [cohort]" were the five centurions of the first cohort, and included the primus pilus. They, excluding the primus pilus, were paid 30 times the base wage. This rank is senior to all other centurions, save the primus pilus and pilus prior.
• Other centurions: each legion had 59 or 60 centurions, one to command each century of the ten cohorts. They were the backbone of the professional army and were the career soldiers who ran the day-to-day life of the soldiers and issued commands in the field. They were generally moved up from the ranks, but in some cases could be direct appointments from the emperor or other higher-ranking officials. The cohorts were ranked from the first to the tenth and the century within each cohort ranked from 1 to 6, with only five centuries in the first cohort (for a total of 59 centurions and the primus pilus). The century that each centurion commanded was a direct reflection of his rank: command of the 1st century of the first cohort was the highest, and the 6th century of the 10th cohort was the lowest. Paid ten times the basic wage.

Legionaries

The Roman army maintained a complex position and grading system for its soldiers that reflected the many and varied duties of the Roman army. There were three pay grades within the rank of legionary: standard, one and a half, and twice the basic pay rate.

Standard duty positions

• Optio: one for each centurion (59–60), they were appointed by the centurion from within the ranks to act as his second in command and were graded pay twice the basic wage.
• Tesserarius: (Guard commander) One for each century. They acted as seconds to the optios and were graded pay one and a half times the basic wage. Keeper of the watchword, administrative assistant to HQ Staff, third in command of a century. These men fought as normal soldiers when the century they were attached to was not in the vanguard.
• Decurion: commanded a cavalry unit (turma) of 10 to 30 eques legionis.^[20]
• Decanus: commanded a contubernium or ten men tent party, eight soldiers and two non-combatants. A group of four soldiers would be referred to as a quaternion.

Special duty positions

• Aquilifer: a single position within the legion. The aquilifer was the legion's standard– or Aquila (eagle)– bearer and was an enormously important and prestigious position. Losing the aquila was considered the greatest dishonor a legion could endure. This post therefore had to be filled with steady veteran soldiers, with an excellent understanding of the tactics of the legion. He was graded pay twice the basic wage.
• Signifer: each century had a signifer (thus, there were 59 in a legion) and within each cohort the 1st century's signifer would be the senior. He was standard-bearer for the centurial signum, a spear shaft decorated with medallions and topped with an open hand to signify loyalty, which was a rallying point for the soldiers. In addition to carrying the signum, the signifer also assumed responsibility for the financial administration of the unit and functioned as the legionaries' banker. He was graded pay twice the basic wage.
• Cornicen (Horn blower): worked hand in hand with the signifer drawing the attention of the men to the centurial signum and issuing the audible commands of the officers. He was graded pay twice the basic wage.
• Imaginifer: a special position from the time of Augustus onwards. Carried the standard bearing the image of the Emperor as a constant reminder of the troops' loyalty to him. He was graded pay twice the basic wage.
• Immunes: immunes were legionary soldiers who possessed specialised skills, qualifying them for better pay and excusing them from labour and guard work. Engineers, artillerymen, musicians, clerks, quartermasters, drill and weapons instructors, carpenters, hunters, medical staff and military police were all immune soldiers. These men were still fully trained legionaries, however, and were called upon to serve in the battle lines when needed.
• Evocatus: a veteran of the Roman army who had earned his military diploma for military service, but had chosen to re-enlist. They received double pay and were excluded from regular duties, such as manual labour.

Discover more about Legionary ranks related topics

Legionary

Legionary

The Roman legionary was a professional heavy infantryman of the Roman army after the Marian reforms. These soldiers would conquer and defend the territories of ancient Rome during the late Republic and Principate eras, alongside auxiliary and cavalry detachments. At its height, Roman legionaries were viewed as the foremost fighting force in the Roman world, with commentators such as Vegetius praising their fighting effectiveness centuries after the classical Roman legionary disappeared.

Denarius

Denarius

The denarius was the standard Roman silver coin from its introduction in the Second Punic War c. 211 BC to the reign of Gordian III, when it was gradually replaced by the antoninianus. It continued to be minted in very small quantities, likely for ceremonial purposes, until and through the Tetrarchy (293–313).

Legatus Augusti pro praetore

Legatus Augusti pro praetore

A legatus Augusti pro praetore was the official title of the governor or general of some Imperial provinces of the Roman Empire during the Principate era, normally the larger ones or those where legions were based. Provinces were denoted imperial if their governor was selected by the emperor, in contrast to senatorial provinces, whose governors were elected by the Roman Senate.

Roman governor

Roman governor

A Roman governor was an official either elected or appointed to be the chief administrator of Roman law throughout one or more of the many provinces constituting the Roman Empire.

Roman Senate

Roman Senate

The Roman Senate was a governing and advisory assembly in ancient Rome. It was one of the most enduring institutions in Roman history, being established in the first days of the city of Rome. It survived the overthrow of the Roman monarchy in 509 BC; the fall of the Roman Republic in the 1st century BC; the division of the Roman Empire in AD 395; and the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476; Justinian's attempted reconquest of the west in the 6th century, and lasted well into the Eastern Roman Empire's history.

Military tribune

Military tribune

A military tribune was an officer of the Roman army who ranked below the legate and above the centurion. Young men of Equestrian rank often served as military tribune as a stepping stone to the Senate. The tribunus militum should not be confused with the elected political office of tribune of the people (tribunus plebis) nor with that of tribunus militum consulari potestate.

Praefectus castrorum

Praefectus castrorum

The praefectus castrorum was, in the Roman army of the early Empire, the third most senior officer of the Roman legion after the legate (legatus) and the senior military tribune, both of whom were from the senatorial class. He was responsible for training, equipment procurement and maintenance, and construction of the camp, but he could command the legion when his seniors were absent. The post was usually held by a soldier promoted from the centurionate, having already served as a chief centurion of a legion, and was therefore open to ordinary, plebeian citizens. Prefects of this rank, for example Sextus Vibius Gallus, were awarded prizes (dona) to mark their achievements.

Auxilia

Auxilia

The Auxilia were introduced as non-citizen troops attached to the citizen legions by Augustus after his reorganisation of the Imperial Roman army from 27 BC. By the 2nd century, the Auxilia contained the same number of infantry as the legions and, in addition, provided almost all of the Roman army's cavalry and more specialised troops. The auxilia thus represented three-fifths of Rome's regular land forces at that time. Like their legionary counterparts, auxiliary recruits were mostly volunteers, not conscripts.

Cursus honorum

Cursus honorum

The cursus honorum was the sequential order of public offices held by aspiring politicians in the Roman Republic and the early Roman Empire. It was designed for men of senatorial rank. The cursus honorum comprised a mixture of military and political administration posts; the ultimate prize for winning election to each "rung" in the sequence was to become one of the two consuls in a given year. Each office had a minimum age for election; there were also minimum intervals between holding successive offices and laws forbade repeating an office.

Centurion

Centurion

A centurion was a position in the Roman army during classical antiquity, nominally the commander of a century, a military unit originally consisting of 100 legionaries. The size of the century changed over time, and from the first century BC through most of the imperial era was reduced to 80 men.

Primus pilus

Primus pilus

The primus pilus or primipilus was the senior centurion of the first cohort in a Roman legion, a formation of five double-strength centuries of 160 men, was called the primus pilus; he was a career soldier and advisor to the legate. The Primus Pilus would remain in command for one year. They could continue to serve in the army after their term ended if there was a vacancy in command or if they wished to become an independent commander of an auxilia unit or the praefectus castrorum.

Cohort (military unit)

Cohort (military unit)

A cohort was a standard tactical military unit of a Roman legion. Although the standard size changed with time and situation, it was generally composed of 480 soldiers. A cohort is considered to be the equivalent of a modern military battalion. The cohort replaced the maniple following the reforms attributed to Gaius Marius in 107 BC. Shortly after the military reforms of Marius, and until the middle of the third century AD, ten cohorts made up a legion. Cohorts were named "first cohort,” "second cohort," etc. The first cohort consisted of experienced legionaries, while the legionaries in the tenth cohort were less experienced.

From the time of Gaius Marius onwards, legionaries received 225 denarii a year (equal to 900 sestertii); this basic rate remained unchanged until Domitian, who increased it to 300 denarii. In spite of the steady inflation during the 2nd century, there was no further rise until the time of Septimius Severus, who increased it to 500 denarii a year. However, the soldiers did not receive all the money in cash, as the state deducted a clothing and food tax from their pay. To this wage, a legionary on active campaign would hope to add the booty of war, from the bodies of their enemies and as plunder from enemy settlements. Slaves could also be claimed from the prisoners of war and divided amongst the legion for later sale, which would bring in a sizeable supplement to their regular pay.

All legionary soldiers would also receive a praemia (veterans' benefits) on completion of their term of service of 25 years or more: a sizeable sum of money (3,000 denarii from the time of Augustus) and/or a plot of good farmland (good land was in much demand); farmland given to veterans often helped in establishing control of the frontier regions and over rebellious provinces. Later, under Caracalla, the praemia increased to 5,000 denarii.

Pay scales

• Caligati: a pay grade receiving standard pay
• Sesquiplicarii: a pay grade receiving one and a half standard pay
• Duplicarius: a pay grade receiving double the standard pay.^[21]

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Gaius Marius

Gaius Marius

Gaius Marius was a Roman general and statesman. Victor of the Cimbric and Jugurthine wars, he held the office of consul an unprecedented seven times. He was also noted for his important reforms of Roman armies. He set the precedent for the shift from the militia levies of the middle Republic to the professional soldiery of the late Republic; he also improved the pilum, a javelin, and made large-scale changes to the logistical structure of the Roman army.

Denarius

Denarius

The denarius was the standard Roman silver coin from its introduction in the Second Punic War c. 211 BC to the reign of Gordian III, when it was gradually replaced by the antoninianus. It continued to be minted in very small quantities, likely for ceremonial purposes, until and through the Tetrarchy (293–313).

Sestertius

Sestertius

The sestertius, or sesterce, was an ancient Roman coin. During the Roman Republic it was a small, silver coin issued only on rare occasions. During the Roman Empire it was a large brass coin.

Domitian

Domitian

Domitian was a Roman emperor who reigned from 81 to 96. The son of Vespasian and the younger brother of Titus, his two predecessors on the throne, he was the last member of the Flavian dynasty. Described as "a ruthless but efficient autocrat", his authoritarian style of ruling put him at sharp odds with the Senate, whose powers he drastically curtailed.

Septimius Severus

Septimius Severus

Lucius Septimius Severus was Roman emperor from 193 to 211. He was born in Leptis Magna in the Roman province of Africa. As a young man he advanced through the customary succession of offices under the reigns of Marcus Aurelius and Commodus. Severus seized power after the death of the emperor Pertinax in 193 during the Year of the Five Emperors.

Veterans' benefits

Veterans' benefits

The US Department of Veterans Affairs provides a wide variety of benefits, e.g., educational assistance, healthcare, assisted living, home loans, insurance, and burial and memorial services, for retired or separated United States armed forces personnel, their dependents, and survivors. The VA provides compensation to disabled veterans who suffer from a medical disorder or injury that was incurred in, or aggravated by, their military service, and which causes social and occupational impairment. Many U.S. states also offer disability benefits for veterans.

Augustus

Augustus

Caesar Augustus, also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Principate, which is the first phase of the Roman Empire, and is considered one of the greatest leaders in human history. The reign of Augustus initiated an imperial cult as well as an era associated with imperial peace, the Pax Romana or Pax Augusta. The Roman world was largely free from large-scale conflict for more than two centuries despite continuous wars of imperial expansion on the empire's frontiers and the year-long civil war known as the "Year of the Four Emperors" over the imperial succession.

Caracalla

Caracalla

Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, better known by his nickname Caracalla was Roman emperor from 198 to 217. He was a member of the Severan dynasty, the elder son of Emperor Septimius Severus and Empress Julia Domna. Proclaimed co-ruler by his father in 198, he reigned jointly with his brother Geta, co-emperor from 209, after their father's death in 211. His brother was murdered by the Praetorian Guard later that year under orders from Caracalla, who then reigned afterwards as sole ruler of the Roman Empire. Caracalla found administration to be mundane, leaving those responsibilities to his mother. Caracalla's reign featured domestic instability and external invasions by the Germanic peoples.

From 104 BC onwards, each legion used an aquila (eagle) as its standard symbol. The symbol was carried by an officer known as aquilifer, and its loss was considered to be a very serious embarrassment, and often led to the disbanding of the legion itself. Normally, this was because any legion incapable of regaining its eagle in battle was so severely mauled that it was no longer effective in combat.^[22]

Reenacters portraying Roman legionaries of Legio XV Apollinaris.

In Gallic War (Bk IV, Para. 25), Julius Caesar describes an incident at the start of his first invasion of Britain in 55 BC that illustrated how fear for the safety of the eagle could drive Roman soldiers. When Caesar's troops hesitated to leave their ships for fear of the Britons, the aquilifer of the tenth legion threw himself overboard and, carrying the eagle, advanced alone against the enemy. His comrades, fearing disgrace, 'with one accord, leapt down from the ship' and were followed by troops from the other ships.

With the birth of the Roman Empire, the legions created a bond with their leader, the emperor himself. Each legion had another officer, called imaginifer, whose role was to carry a pike with the imago (image, sculpture) of the emperor as pontifex maximus.

Each legion, furthermore, had a vexillifer who carried a vexillum or signum, with the legion name and emblem depicted on it, unique to the legion. It was common for a legion to detach some sub-units from the main camp to strengthen other corps. In these cases, the detached subunits carried only the vexillum, and not the aquila, and were called, therefore, vexillationes. A miniature vexillum, mounted on a silver base, was sometimes awarded to officers as a recognition of their service upon retirement or reassignment.

Civilians could also be rewarded for their assistance to the Roman legions. In return for outstanding service, a citizen was given an arrow without a head. This was considered a great honour and would bring the recipient much prestige.

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Aquila (Roman)

Aquila (Roman)

An aquila was a prominent symbol used in ancient Rome, especially as the standard of a Roman legion. A legionary known as an aquilifer, the "eagle-bearer", carried this standard. Each legion carried one eagle.

Aquilifer

Aquilifer

An aquilifer was a soldier signifer bearing the eagle standard of a Roman legion. The name derives from the type of standard, aquila meaning "eagle", and ferre, the Latin word for bringing or carrying. Before that time, the wolf, boar, bull and horse were also used. The eagle standard was the most important possession of the legion, and its loss was a terrible disgrace.

Legio XV Apollinaris

Legio XV Apollinaris

Legio XV Apollinaris was a legion of the Imperial Roman army. It was recruited by Octavian in 41/40 BC. The emblem of this legion was probably a picture of Apollo, or of one of his holy animals.

Legio X Gemina

Legio X Gemina

Legio X Gemina, was a legion of the Imperial Roman army. It was one of the four legions used by Julius Caesar in 58 BC, for his invasion of Gaul. There are still records of the X Gemina in Vienna in the beginning of the 5th century. The legion symbol was a bull. Early on in its history, the legion was called X Equestris (mounted), because Caesar once used the legionaries as cavalry.

Imaginifer

Imaginifer

The imaginifer was one of the signiferi in a legion in the times of the Roman Empire, who carried the imago—the image—of the emperor.

Pontifex maximus

Pontifex maximus

The pontifex maximus was the chief high priest of the College of Pontiffs in ancient Rome. This was the most important position in the ancient Roman religion, open only to patricians until 254 BC, when a plebeian first occupied this post. Although in fact the most powerful office in the Roman priesthood, the pontifex maximus was officially ranked fifth in the ranking of the highest Roman priests, behind the rex sacrorum and the flamines maiores.

Vexillum

Vexillum

The vexillum was a flag-like object used as a military standard by units in the Ancient Roman army.

Vexillatio

Vexillatio

A vexillatio was a detachment of a Roman legion formed as a temporary task force created by the Roman army of the Principate. It was named from the standard carried by legionary detachments, the vexillum, which bore the emblem and name of the parent legion.

The military discipline of the legions was harsh. Regulations were strictly enforced, and a broad array of punishments could be inflicted.

Minor punishments

• Castigatio – being hit by the centurion with his staff or animadversio fustium (Tac. Annals I, 23)
• Reduction of rations or to be forced to eat barley instead of the usual grain ration
• Pecuniaria mulcta – reduction in pay, fines or deductions from the pay allowance
• Flogging in front of the century, cohort or legion
• Whipping with the flagrum (flagellum, flagella), or "short whip" – a much more brutal punishment than simple flogging. The "short whip" was used by slave volunteers, volones, who constituted the majority of the army in the later years of the Roman Empire.
• Gradus deiectio – Reduction in rank
• Missio ignominiosa – Dishonourable discharge
• Loss of time in service advantages
• Militiae mutatio – Relegation to inferior service or duties.
• Munerum indictio – Additional duties

Major punishments

• Fustuarium – a sentence for desertion or dereliction of duty, stealing, false witness, sexual misconduct and repeating three times a same offense. The legionary would be stoned or beaten to death by cudgels, in front of the assembled troops, by his fellow soldiers or those whose lives had been put in danger. Soldiers under sentence of fustuarium who escaped were not pursued but lived under sentence of banishment from Rome. In the event that a group of legionaries are to be subjected to this punishment, the tribune would make an alteration in order to spare the majority of the accused. The tribune would first select a handful of the guilty men, and those selected would be condemned to the original penalty under the fustuarium. The remainder of the accused would then be driven out of the camp and forced to live in an undefended location for a chosen period of time; they were also limited to eating only barley.^[23]
• Decimation – According to 17th century belief^[24](possibly folk etymology), the Romans practiced this punishment in which a sentence was carried out against an entire unit that had mutinied, deserted, or shown dereliction of duty. One out of every ten men, chosen by lots, would be beaten to death, usually by the other nine with their bare hands, who would be forced to live outside the camp and in some instances obliged to renew the military oath, the sacramentum.

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Roman military decorations and punishments

Roman military decorations and punishments

As with most other military forces the Roman military adopted an extensive list of decorations for military gallantry and likewise a range of punishments for military transgressions.

Castigation

Castigation

Castigation or chastisement is the infliction of severe punishment. One who administers a castigation is a castigator or chastiser.

Fustuarium

Fustuarium

In the military of ancient Rome, fustuarium or fustuarium supplicium was a severe form of military discipline in which a soldier was cudgeled to death.

Tribune

Tribune

Tribune was the title of various elected officials in ancient Rome. The two most important were the tribunes of the plebs and the military tribunes. For most of Roman history, a college of ten tribunes of the plebs acted as a check on the authority of the senate and the annual magistrates, holding the power of ius intercessionis to intervene on behalf of the plebeians, and veto unfavourable legislation. There were also military tribunes, who commanded portions of the Roman army, subordinate to higher magistrates, such as the consuls and praetors, promagistrates, and their legates. Various officers within the Roman army were also known as tribunes. The title was also used for several other positions and classes in the course of Roman history.

Decimation (punishment)

Decimation (punishment)

Decimation was a form of Roman military discipline in which every tenth man in a group was executed by members of his cohort. The discipline was used by senior commanders in the Roman army to punish units or large groups guilty of capital offences, such as cowardice, mutiny, desertion, and insubordination, and for pacification of rebellious legions.

Sacramentum (oath)

Sacramentum (oath)

In ancient Roman religion and law, the sacramentum was an oath or vow that rendered the swearer sacer, "given to the gods," in the negative sense if he violated it. Sacramentum also referred to a thing that was pledged as a sacred bond, and consequently forfeit if the oath were violated. Both instances imply an underlying sacratio, act of consecration.

Montesquieu wrote that "the main reason for the Romans becoming masters of the world was that, having fought successively against all peoples, they always gave up their own practices as soon as they found better ones."^[25]

Examples of ideas that were copied and adapted include weapons like the gladius (Iberians) and warship design (cf. Carthaginians' quinquereme), as well as military units, such as heavy mounted cavalry and mounted archers (Numidians and Parthians).

• Roman organisation was more flexible than those of many opponents. Over time, the legions effectively handled challenges ranging from cavalry, to guerrillas, and to siege warfare.
• Roman discipline (cf. decimation), organisation and systematisation sustained combat effectiveness over a longer period. These elements appear throughout the legion in training, logistics, field fortification etc.
• The Romans were more persistent and more willing to absorb and replace losses over time than their opponents. Wars with Carthage and the Parthians and most notably, the campaigns against Pyrrhus of Epirus, illustrate this.
• Roman leadership was mixed, but over time it was often effective in securing Roman military success.
• The influence of Roman military and civic culture, as embodied particularly in the heavy infantry legion, gave the Roman military consistent motivation and cohesion.
• Strict, and more importantly, uniform discipline made commanding, maintaining, and replacing Roman legionaries a much more consistent exercise.
• Roman military equipment (cf. Roman military personal equipment), particularly armor, was of better quality and far more ubiquitous, especially in the late Republican and Early Imperial era, than that of most of their opponents. Soldiers equipped with shields, helmets and highly effective body armor had a major advantage over warriors protected, in many cases, with nothing other than their shields, particularly in a prolonged engagement.
• Roman engineering skills were second to none in ancient Europe, and their mastery of both offensive and defensive siege warfare, specifically the construction and investiture of fortifications (cf. sudis, castra), was another major advantage for the Roman legions.
• Roman military training focused on the more effective thrusting of the sword rather than the slash.

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Montesquieu

Montesquieu

Charles Louis de Secondat, Baron de La Brède et de Montesquieu, generally referred to as simply Montesquieu, was a French judge, man of letters, historian, and political philosopher.

Gladius

Gladius

Gladius is a Latin word meaning "sword", but in its narrow sense it refers to the sword of ancient Roman foot soldiers. Early ancient Roman swords were similar to those of the Greeks, called xiphe. From the 3rd century BC, however, the soldiers of the Roman Republic adopted a sword based on the celtic sword used by the Celtiberians in Hispania late into the Punic Wars, known in Latin as the gladius hispaniensis, meaning "Hispanic-type sword". New variants of the gladius, such as the "Mainz gladius" and the "Pompeii gladius", were used from the first century AD and during the early centuries of the Roman Empire; in the third century AD the Roman infantry replaced the gladius with the "spatha".

Cataphract

Cataphract

A cataphract was a form of armored heavy cavalryman that originated in Persia and was fielded in ancient warfare throughout Eurasia and Northern Africa.

Numidians

Numidians

The Numidians were the Berber population of Numidia. The Numidians were one of the earliest Berber tribes to trade with Carthaginian settlers. As Carthage grew, the relationship with the Numidians blossomed. Carthage's military used the Numidian cavalry as mercenaries. Numidia provided some of the highest quality cavalry of the Second Punic War, and the Numidian cavalry played a key role in several battles, both early on in support of Hannibal and later in the war after switching allegiance to the Roman Republic.

Parthia

Parthia

Parthia is a historical region located in northeastern Greater Iran. It was conquered and subjugated by the empire of the Medes during the 7th century BC, was incorporated into the subsequent Achaemenid Empire under Cyrus the Great in the 6th century BC, and formed part of the Hellenistic Seleucid Empire after the 4th-century BC conquests of Alexander the Great. The region later served as the political and cultural base of the Eastern Iranian Parni people and Arsacid dynasty, rulers of the Parthian Empire. The Sasanian Empire, the last state of pre-Islamic Iran, also held the region and maintained the seven Parthian clans as part of their feudal aristocracy.

Decimation (punishment)

Decimation (punishment)

Decimation was a form of Roman military discipline in which every tenth man in a group was executed by members of his cohort. The discipline was used by senior commanders in the Roman army to punish units or large groups guilty of capital offences, such as cowardice, mutiny, desertion, and insubordination, and for pacification of rebellious legions.

Pyrrhus of Epirus

Pyrrhus of Epirus

Pyrrhus was a Greek king and statesman of the Hellenistic period. He was king of the Greek tribe of Molossians, of the royal Aeacid house, and later he became king of Epirus. He was one of the strongest opponents of early Rome, and had been regarded as one of the greatest generals of antiquity. Several of his victorious battles caused him unacceptably heavy losses, from which the term "Pyrrhic victory" was coined.

Roman military personal equipment

Roman military personal equipment

Roman military personal equipment was produced in large numbers to established patterns, and used in an established manner. These standard patterns and uses were called the res militaris or disciplina. Its regular practice during the Roman Republic and Roman Empire led to military excellence and victory. The equipment gave the Romans a very distinct advantage over their barbarian enemies, especially so in the case of armour. This does not mean that every Roman soldier had better equipment than the richer men among his opponents. According to Edward Luttwak, Roman equipment was not of a better quality than that used by the majority of Rome's adversaries. Other historians and writers have stated that the Roman army's need for large quantities of "mass produced" equipment after the Marian Reforms and subsequent civil wars led to a decline in the quality of Roman equipment compared to the earlier Republican era:The production of these kinds of helmets of Italic tradition decreased in quality because of the demands of equipping huge armies, especially during civil wars...The bad quality of these helmets is recorded by the sources describing how sometimes they were covered by wicker protections, like those of Pompeius' soldiers during the siege of Dyrrachium in 48 BC, which were seriously damaged by the missiles of Caesar's slingers and archers.It would appear that armour quality suffered at times when mass production methods were being used to meet the increased demand ..." and "...the reduced size curiasses would also have been quicker and cheaper to produce, which may have been a deciding factor at times of financial crisis, or where large bodies of men were required to be mobilized at short notice, possibly reflected in the poor-quality, mass produced iron helmets of Imperial Italic type C, as found, for example, in the River Po at Cremona, associated with the Civil Wars of AD 69 AD; Russell Robinson, 1975, 67Up until then, the quality of helmets had been fairly consistent and the bowls well decorated and finished. However, after the Marian Reforms, with their resultant influx of the poorest citizens into the army, there must inevitably have been a massive demand for cheaper equipment, a situation which can only have been exacerbated by the Civil Wars...

Sudis (stake)

Sudis (stake)

The sudis was a stake carried by Roman legionaries for employment as a field fortification, sometimes also called vallus. It is frequently, but incorrectly, called a pilum murale. Typically, two such stakes were carried by each soldier.

Castra

Castra

In the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire, the Latin word castrum, plural castra, was a military-related term.