Roman Auxilia

Reviewed here: http://www.deremilitari.org/REVIEWS/Campbell_MonsGraupiusAD83.htm 

I mentioned the work of Stan Wolfson, which the reviewer would like to see more formally referenced. It can be found in BAR British Series 459 (Tacitus, Thule and Caledonia: The achievements of Agricola's navy in their true perspective), which only came to my attention after Mons Graupius had gone to press.

The reviewer also complains that, when I mentioned Martin Henig's views on p.87, "the only information supplied is the journal, volume year, and publication date". He wishes that I had "quoted from Henig’s work so that the reader could consider the argument in a greater context". The context can be found cached at: http://web.archive.org/web/20160403143300/http://archaeologyuk.org/ba/ba37/ba37feat.html )

Also reviewed on Amazon: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Mons-Graupius-AD-83-Campaign/dp/1846039266/

Aren't Amazon reviews wonderful? In amongst sensible opinion and objective critique, there are often some crackpot comments that raise a laugh.

A couple of reviewers comment on my "unquestioning acceptance" of Bennachie as the site of the battle. The Osprey Campaign format requires the author to decide upon a location, in order to draw up the Bird's-Eye View panoramas; the identification of a likely battlefield also allows the site to be depicted in the three colour paintings.

There is no real problem here, as "scholarly opinion has in recent decades favoured a location for the battle in Aberdeenshire (Mount Bennachie near Inverurie has been a firm favourite)" -- I quote the words of Professor Lawrence Keppie, a veteran scholar of Roman Scotland (in the peer-reviewed journal War In History, vol 14, 2007).

Nevertheless, I laid my cards squarely on the table (p. 91) when I emphasized that there have been other candidates, and even explained the criteria upon which Bennachie has been assessed as the most likely location.

One reviewer complained that "He also doesn't even reference James Fraser's extensive recent book about Mons Graupius in the bibliography, perhaps because it presents a contrary view about the location", but this is not the reason. The real reason can be found in Classical Quarterly Vol. 65.1 (2015), pp. 407-410, where I have comprehensively dismantled Fraser's case.

Also reviewed here: https://www.amazon.ca/Mons-Graupius-AD-83-battle/product-reviews/1846039266/
and (in German) here: http://www.amazon.de/product-reviews/1846039266/
and (in French) here: http://www.amazon.fr/product-reviews/1846039266/

Das Roll-up gibt eine kurze, allgemein verständliche Einführung zu den beiden römischen Schiffswracks aus der Zeit um 100 n. Chr., die 1986 in Oberstimm (Markt Manching) entdeckt und 1994 vollständig geborgen wurden. Seit 2006 bilden die Wracks Highlights der Dauerausstellung im kelten römer museum manching. +++ Das Roll-up wurde im Rahmen des Kooperationsprojektes »Die Rückkehr des Römerschiffs« erstellt, an dem das kelten römer museum manching, die Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg und weitere Institutionen beteiligt waren. Im Juli und August 2018 begab sich ein 1:1-Nachbau des Oberstimmer Schiffswracks 2 entlang der Donau auf große Tour: die Fridericiana Alexandrina Navis (kurz F.A.N.). Sie bot interessierten Besuchern die einzigartige Gelegenheit, sich selbst in die Riemen zu legen und damit Geschichte hautnah zu erleben.

A Clausewitzian analysis of the Imperial Roman Army.

Using the Year of the Four Emperors (69 AD) as a case study, the Roman Army of the Principate is examined in its ability to live up to the standards laid down in Karl von Clausewitz's seminal military manual, 'On War'. This is done in an attempt to establish, as objectively as possible, whether the Roman Army lived up to its professional reputation.

Formatting is all messed up on 'View' but works after downloading.

Roman helmets with face-masks constitute a category of military equipment that is rare and at the same time spectacular. They imitate human heads, bare or helmeted; rich decorations include mythological motives and apotropaic elements. Moreover, they are often made of precious bronze and sometimes even silvered. Those qualities make them focus the attention both of specialists working on Roman military equipment and the wide public.
Several such masks were found on the territory of Roman Dacia. Two were found in the river Olt and are believed to have been washed away from military sites. Another comes from a ditch of the Roman fort Gilău and has been interpreted as having been lost by its owner. All are believed to have been used as parade equipment by Roman cavalrymen. All belong to a rare category of helmets representing female heads.
However, it seems improbable that the loss of an item of that size and value would have remained unnoticed, and that it could be easily washed away by the river - remembering also the scarcity of such finds both within the province and the whole Empire. A study of religious practices of Roman military allows us to propose a re-interpretation of these artifacts. Rather then lost pieces of parade equipment we should probably view them as offerings deposited by members of the military or whole units to ensure the success of their various undertakings. This not only matches their findspots well, but also finds several analogies in the context of finds outside of Dacia.

https://www.despertaferro-ediciones.com/revistas/numero/guerreros-de-la-antigua-iberia-cuadernos-de-historia-militar-3/
La destreza bélica de los diversos pueblos de la Península Ibérica llamó la atención de Roma desde el momento en que este territorio pasó a formar parte de su perspectiva geopolítica, en el marco de su prolongado pulso con Cartago. Enrolados inicialmente en calidad de aliados y mercenarios, los contingentes armados hispanos acabarían por conformar una parte muy destacada de las más valoradas fuerzas auxiliares del ejército romano, tanto durante la República como bajo el Principado. La provincialización de Hispania y la paulatina integración de sus moradores en los cuerpos ciudadanos romanos, finalmente, convirtieron a la Península en una importante fuente de reclutamiento para las legiones y otras fuerzas, nunca totalmente desplazada por otras regiones a lo largo del periodo imperial. La pertinaz resistencia de buena parte de las tribus y entidades peninsulares a la expansión del dominio romano en la región, al igual que sucediera primero con Cartago, enfrentó a la superpotencia itálica con panoplias, tácticas y estrategias, vinculadas a la guerra de guerrillas y al empleo de caballería, especialmente valiosas para un ejército como el romano, basado en el empleo masivo de la infantería pesada. Caracterizadas por una notable permeabilidad a la adopción de innovaciones ajenas, las fuerzas armadas romanas, como veremos, se nutrieron de contingentes hispanos de múltiples formas a lo largo de su historia, a fin no solo de aprovechar una valiosa fuente de recursos humanos o para salvar las propias carencias, sino para volver contra el enemigo sus mismas armas. Así, a su modo, los guerreros de la antigua Iberia dejarían su particular e indeleble rúbrica en el desarrollo histórico del Imperio romano y, por lo tanto, en la Historia misma del Mediterráneo y la Antigüedad en su conjunto.

Roman Battle Tactics: from Marius to Trajan - Ziv Yoffe
מאז הרפורמות של קאמילוס (Camillus) במאה ה-4 לפנה"ס, במשך כ-500 שנה סיפחה רומא תחת שליטתה עוד ועוד אזורים וארצות, עד לקבלת השליטה המלאה על כל הים התיכון. בשיא כוחה, נעו גבולות האימפריה הרומית מבריטניה, לים השחור, ועד צפון אפריקה. ללא ספק היו אלו ההצלחות הצבאיות הרבות אשר הביאו לרומא את ההגמוניה בים התיכון. מה אם כן היה סוד ההצלחה של הלגיונות? במחקר זה נבדוק את אמנות הקרב של הרומאים בתקופת הרפובליקה המאוחרת והאימפריה המוקדמת, וננסה לאפיין, עד כמה שניתן במסגרת מצומצמת זו, את הנקודות העיקריות של נושא זה. חשוב לזכור, כפי שנראה גם בהמשך, שלכל קרב היו את התכונות הייחודיות שלו, ולכן השימוש במילה "לאפיין" הינו בעייתי, אם כי בכל זאת ננסה להעניק מסגרת מוגדרת כלשהיא.
בפרק הראשון נציג את המסגרת של סוגי מבני הלחימה שהלגיונות הציבו לקראת כל קרב. הפרק השני הינו גרעין המחקר, בו נבדוק את דרך הלחימה של הלגיונר עצמו, הגורם החשוב ביותר על השלכות הקרב, וכן ננסה לבדוק את כלל ההתנהלות של מהלך העימות הפיזי. בפרק השלישי נבדוק את הגורמים הנוספים שנלחמו לצד הלגיונות בקרב, קרי חיל העזר והארטילריה. פרק זה מחולק ל-2 חלקים עיקריים: הדיון בפרשים והדיון ברגליים. הפרק יראה שלחילות הללו, ברוב המקרים, לא הייתה חשיבות רבה על הכרעת הקרב, למעט קרבות בעלי בעייתיות טופוגרפית וההצלחות בעקיפה ותקיפת אגפי האויב. גם הפרק הרביעי, המוקדש לפיקוד הלגיונות, יחולק ל-2 חלקים: הדרך בה הגנרל שלט על הנעשה בצבאו במהלך הקרב והעביר את פקודותיו, וכן דיון על חשיבותו של הגנרל עצמו בצבאות הרומיים.

Identity is a much debated topic in Roman Britain. This study examines the evolution of Batavian military identity in Roman Britain from 1st - 4th century CE. The ethnogenesis (and ethnonemesis) of Batavian identity in Britain and beyond was not self-created but was formed, developed, and ultimately destroyed through the interaction with and actions of the Roman Empire as the dominant military and economic power.
Over time, the nested “brand identity” of a military elite became pre-eminent over the link with the Batavian homeland with even non-Batavian soldiers self-identifying as “Batavi”. By the end of the Western Roman Empire, the Batavian identity could not be recreated as a separate Post-Roman ethnos. Possible developments in identity theory are also discussed.

Dit onderzoek is uitgevoerd ten behoeve van de afronding van de master archeologie aan de Rijksuniversiteit Groningen. Het afstudeeronderzoek betreft een inventarisatie en interpretatie van Romeins wapen- en paardentuig uit het terpen- en wierdengebied van Noord-Nederland.

Le rôle joué par l'armée romaine sur le territoire de la Lorraine actuelle a été longtemps sous-estimé. De nombreuses sources historiques, épigraphiques et surtout archéologiques témoignent pourtant de la présence des légions et de leurs auxiliaires depuis la guerre des Gaules jusque dans la première moitié du Ve siècle ap. J.-C.

Die Rolle, die der römischen Armee auf dem Territorium des heutigen Lothringen spielte war lange Zeit unterschätzt, obwohl viele historische, epigraphische und archäologische Quellen die Präsenz der Legionen und ihre Hilfstruppen seit dem Gallischen Krieg bis in der ersten Hälfte des fünften Jahrhunderts nach Christus bezeugen.

Augustus, it is generally held, reshaped the auxilia of the Roman army by replacing the traditional auxiliary forces by newly established, standardised and permanent formations named alae, cohortes, and cohortes equitatae. Together with the legions he then moved these forces to the outer provinces. However, there is no direct evidence for a single measure or coherent reform of Augustus’ to establish a unitary auxiliary system. The pertinent sources rather suggests that his measures consisted of reducing (but not completely replacing) traditional military structures in favour of formations that had been developed during the Late Republic. Thus, both old-style (viz. ‘irregular’ or ‘ad hoc’) contingents, paid and supplied by their tribes and communities from within provincial territory and from beyond, and new-style (viz. ‘regular’ or ‘professional’) auxiliary units that were paid and supplied by Rome and subjected to disciplina Augusta, continued to make up the auxilia of the Roman imperial army, albeit in revised orders of magnitude. The Augustan reorganization of the auxilia necessarily entailed a review and in many cases also adjustments of the existing relations between Rome and its subjects and allies. The present paper argues that in the light of the extant evidence this is most likely to have taken place in the aftermath of the battle of Actium. Service conditions, however, were changed only in 13 B.C.

This paper will present all preserved fragments of armour from the " Roshava Dragana " burial mound in Bulgaria. This is the first assessment of its type for this date set. Armour found in burials can be attributed to two or three types; they include the remains of chain mail, fragments of scale framework and badly preserved plate set. This armament was staffed with an excellent quality silvered Roman face-mask helmet. Apart from this helmet, the suit of armament was not Roman, having either a Sarmatian or Parthian origin. The most intriguing comes from burial 2 at " Roshava Dragana " mound where Sarmatian tamgas on the golden pommel of the sword and on the bronze belt's buckle and images of two-headed dogs on the plates of the armour were discovered. The burial-mound is one of the largest of the mounds in Bulgaria in which influential and respected nobleman may have been buried. In our opinion, the most important and respected man in the neighborhood was Titus Flavius Dinis, the son of Skeles of the tribe Quirina. He was archiereus of so called koinon Thrakon – the general assembly of the cities in the province of Thrace. It is possible that villa Chatalka and burial mound " Roshava Dragana " were connected with the Dinis family. Although there is no direct evidence for the participation of Dinis in campaigns against the Sarmatians and Dacians. But some parts of defensive armament from " Roshava Dragana " mound can be attributed as a trophy. Based on the analysis of the remaining elements of the armour, we can assume that many of them have parallels on the Sarmatian territory and in armament of neighbouring regions. Apparently, this armour could have been made in Panticapaeum, since the only parallel for a two-headed dog image, like on the armour, has been found there.

Les auxilia palatina constituent une catégorie nouvelle d’unités de première ordre dans l’armée romaine tardive. Formellement mis en place à l’époque tétrarchique, à la suite d’une phase de genèse dans les armées d’accompagnement des princes probablement entamée dans le 2e tiers du IIIe siècle, les auxilia sont des formations de fantassins à effectif restreint, et dont la majeure partie a rejoint sous Constantin la catégorie militaire privilégiée des palatini. L'objectif de cet article est d'interroger l'identification éventuelle de spécificités tactiques de ce groupe particulier de l'armée romaine.

Pannonie supérieure 3. Cohors (quingenaria) Canathenorum sag(ittariorum)? equitata Une cohors (quingenaria) Canathenorum est attestée en Pannonie supérieure à l'époque sévérienne 12. On considère donc qu'elle arriva en Pannonie sans doute en même temps que les Syriens et les Éméséniens (ci-dessous). Elle n'est généralement pas tenue pour une création de l'époque antonine mais est parfois identifiée avec la cohors I Augusta Canathenorum et Trachonitarum 8

alexander Boix, Der attische Aryballos MiChael dreChsler, Die Funde aus dem römischen Auxiliarkastell Till-Steincheshof Constanze höpken, Amphoren aus Köln: Ein Beitrag zu Wirtschaftsverbindungen Niedergermaniens in der römischen Kaiserzeit Jutta ruMsCheid, Mosaiken aus Grabanlagen in Edessa rainer Voigt, Zwei syrische Mosaikinschriften aus Edessa sophie helas, Gabii/Latium. Die Befestigungen von archaischer bis in mittelrepublikanische Zeit. Erster Vorbericht MiChael heinzelMann -Belisa Muka, Dimal in Illyrien -Vorbericht zur dritten Ausgrabungskampagne 2013 nina Fenn -Christiane röMer-strehl -lisa Berger, Dimal in Illyrien -eine Siedlung im Bergland Albaniens mit weitreichenden Handelskontakten im Mittelmeerraum. Vorbericht aus der Fundbearbeitung MiChael heinzelMann -Manuel Buess, Amiternum -eine archäologische Regionalstudie im zentralen Abruzzenraum. Vorbericht zu den abschließenden geophysikalischen Prospektions-und Ausgrabungskampagnen 2012/2013 philipp Von ruMMel -Manuela BroisCh -Christian a. sChöne, Geophysikalische Prospektionen in Simitthus (Chimtou, Tunesien). Vorbericht zu den Kampagnen

Arkeoloji Anabilim Dalı, Yüksek Lisans, Temmuz/2015 Danışman: Doç. Dr. Vedat KELEŞ MÖ 300"lerde I. Seleukos Nikator tarafından Fırat Nehri kıyısında kurulan Zeugma, Hellenistik Dönem"de ve sonrasında özellikle Roma Dönemi"nde Doğu ve Batı arasında önemli bir askeri karakol/üs, ticari ve kültürel merkez olmuştur. Roma"nın MÖ 1. yy."da görülen politikası gereği kent, MÖ 63 yılında G. Pompeius"un "Doğu Organizasyonu" sırasında vasal bir krallık olan Kommagene Krallığı"na verilmiş ve böylece düşman bölgeler ile Roma arasında bir tampon bölge oluşturulmuştur. MS 1. yy."da Roma, bu politikasında değişim yaparak tampon bölgeleri kaldırmış ve bu alanlara lejyon"lar yerleştirmiştir. Bu bağlamda kente, ilk olarak MS 18 yılında Legio X Fretensis konuşlandırılmış, bu lejyon"un Yahudi İsyanları"nı bastırmak için Kudüs"e gitmesi ardından MS 66 yılında ise Legio IIII Scythica kente konuşlandırılmıştır.

Estudio sobre los equites y los symmachiarii cántabros del ejército romano, y su relación
con la maniobra de caballería denominada Cantabricus densus/Cantabricus circulus y el estandarte llamado Cantabrum.
Study on the Cantabrian equites and symmachiarii of the Roman army and its relationship with the cavalry manoeuver called Cantabricus densus/Cantabricus circulus and the standard Cantabrum.

A series of considerations lead us to evaluate how not so easily the Sarmatian / Yazigi troops could have been dispersed and assimilated among the population of Britain in the second century after Christ and subsequently, thus potentially being able to effectively influence culture and local mythology of Britain for a long time, even for centuries, inspiring the substratum of later Arthurian legends.

Complete article, main language German, summaries in English, Dutch and French.
Steincheshof was identified as a Roman fort site through surveying in 2009 and investigated by trial trenching in 2010/2011. A first camp of 3.2 hectares from the Tiberian to Neronian period had no ascertainable solid buildings except for a wooden box well, some hearths partly constructed of millstone fragments, and various pits, one of them with a slight timber fixing. The unit stationed here is unknown. Not later than
the Vespasianic period, a second fort of 2,4 hectares was built on the same site. It had at least two types of long rectangular buildings, the narrower of which were the halftimbered troops’ quarters, which were completely renovated four times. Remarkable are the unusual room layout of Barrack A, where two living rooms had a common anteroom, and the well-preserved armguard found there. A vicus has been located and there is evidence for graves. The fort existed until at least A. D. 171 and presumably housed the cohors II civium Romanorum equitata, which had previously been garrisoned in Herwen (The Netherlands).

RESUMEN: Se analiza la historia y evolución de una unidad auxiliar del ejército romano de origen hispano, la Cohors I Lucensium equitata, demostrando que solamente existió una unidad de este nombre y no dos, como la historiografía ha sostenido durante más de un siglo. También se reliza un esbozo prosopográfico de los hombres que prestaron servicio en ella. ABSTRACT: The history and evolution of an auxiliary unit of the Roman army of Hispanic origin is analyzed, the Cohors I Lucensium equitata, showing that there was only one unit with this name and not two, as the historiography has argued for over a century. One prosopographical sketch of men who served in it is also shown.

To the cavalrymen and infantrymen who have served in the alae and cohorts which are called ... So reads one version of the opening formula which introduces the unit list in an auxiliary diploma.' Each list enumerates the alae and cohorts in the named province which had soldiers who were eligible for the privileges awarded by the emperor on the date of the promulgation of the constitution. Such a list is therefore a snapshot of the garrison of the province and may not include all the units based there if any did not have soldiers who qualified for the privileges at that time. If a sequence of such snapshots can be built up then it might prove possible to produce a history of that garrison during the period covered by the diploma issues.

The study is divided into four chapters and it is based on the analysis of literary, epigraphical and archaeological sources which testify to the presence of Roman military units in the Dalmatian area from the reigns of Augustus to Hadrian. The first chapter deals with the historical development of Roman garrison in Dalmatia, and it is primarily based on the study of literary and epigraphical sources which provide the basis for the reconstruction of the military, and—consequently—the administrative history of Dalmatia during the mentioned period. Special attention is devoted to the subject of the Pannonian War of Tiberius, the Illyrican War of AD 6–9, the question of the division of Illyricum, as well as the Tiberius’ inscriptions on road construction.
The pivotal part (the second and the third chapter) is devoted to the military units; that is, to the legionary and auxiliary units that have left a trace on the Dalmatian soil. The discussion in these chapters is mostly based on the analysis of the epigraphical sources. Both of the chapters are set in the way in which the first part deals with the history of military units, while the second part is dedicated to the analysis of different elements of the inscriptions of Roman soldiers (origin of soldiers, hierarchy, years lived and served in the army, soldiers’ nomenclature, and so on). Both chapters contain thorough catalogues which include the reading of all inscriptions of Roman soldiers and Roman military units in Dalmatia, dated to the period from Augustus to Hadrian.
The fourth chapter handles the military strongholds which were occupied by the mentioned units. It is primarily based on the study of aerial photographs and satellite images, but also—in a smaller degree—on the data provided by the archaeological excavations. Three garrisons in the hinterland of coastal colonies are especially separated: (1) Burnum and the garrison on the Liburnian frontier; (2) Tilurium and the garrison in the hinterland of Salona; and (3) the garrison in the hinterland of Narona.

"Keywords: fighting style, skirmish, archer, slinger, spearman

This study presents and analyses the style and fighting tactics tackled by the skirmishing troops of the Roman army, with special attention to those that were garrisoned in Dacia, as well. The purpose of the paper is to broach this subject from the point of view of the populations that enter the structure of these troops, of the military equipment and of the place the unit was quartered.
Concerning the equipment and the fighting style, the study will include three types of troops: archers, spear-throwers and slingers."

A military diploma recently found in Posada (NU) testifi es that the cohortes I gemina Sardorum et Corsorum and II gemina Ligurum et Corsorum were still present in Sardinia in year 102 A.D., during the consulship of T. Didius Secundus and L. Publilius Celsus. The cohors II gemina was under the command of Locius Terentius Serenus, otherwise unknown. Hannibal Tabilatis f., a native of Nur (---) Alb (---), his wife and fi ve children obtained advanteges by this measure. Although the family was surely linked to the Sardi who lived in the Barbaria, it had already undertaken an irreversible acculturation process that led progressively to take on the typical customes of the Roman world.

The paper deals with a unique face­mask helmet, found in 1854 and stored in the national museum in Belgrade, show­
ing cultural exchange. on the one hand, this exemplar was made with great skill in the Roman style. But on the other
hand, the bearded helmet from the national museum in Belgrade is unusual due to the fact that its design and appear­
ance enable us to recognise a combination of several armament traditions: The bottom edge is bent in the form of a
hem and has a lot of holes intended either for attaching a lining or suspending a neck protection in the form of a
lamellar or scale aventail, which is not typical of Roman helmets and applied in the Roman army only by soldiers of the
eastern auxiliary units. a similar line of holes on the edge can be observed on another unusual helmet, found in Bryas­
tovets / BG. The existence of these elements on Roman parade helmets is direct evidence that the owner of the helmet
could be an eastern auxiliary warrior, because scale aventails had been part of some Sarmatian helmets of the 1st and
2nd centuries aD.

This paper deals with finds of clay slingshots discovered during the archaeological investigations of the Roman military camp Novae in the Iron Gates gorge. Castle Novae is situated in eastern Serbia,18 km downstream from the entrance to the Iron
Gates gorge, at the confluence of the Čezava river with the Danube.

RESUMEN: La cohors I Ascalonitanorum fue una unidad auxiliar del éjercito romano creada por Corbulón en 63 y desaparecida a comienzos del siglo III. Durante toda su existencia estuvo asignada a la
provincia romana de Syria, guarneciendo la frontera del Éufrates.
ABSTRACT: The cohors I Ascalonitanorum was an auxiliary unit of the Roman army created by Corbulo in 63 AD., and disappeared at the beginning of the 3rd century. Throughout its existence it was
assigned to the Roman province of Syria, garrisoning the Euphrates border.