Or more precisely at what point were more standardised cavalry units introduced into Roman forces. I know late republican armies made heavy use of gallic and German cavalry at times, but when were units of auxiliary cavalry proper signed on for long periods of service and equipped with Roman gear started? <p>It's not a bug, it's a feature</p><i></i>
Salve,<br>
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The regiments of cavalry were among the first to be taken into service as regular standing units of auxiliaries. A very few regiments can be traced back to Caesarian times, eg the ala Scaevae was possibly a unit raised by the centurio Scaeva mentioned in the Caesarian corpus. In addition, the German body guard cavalry recruited by Caesar may have directly gone over into service with Octavianus/Augustus as the equites Batavi/custodes corporis. The strength of auxilary cavalry units tends to be lower though than that of the imperial alae (200 to 300 rather than 500). Standardised Roman equipment can be seen on the triumphal arch of Orange in France where the horsemen have similar armour and helmets as the legionary infantrymen. Depending on what interpretation one chooses about its dating that may be either before Christ or after the revolt of Sacrovir.<br>
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More can be read about this subject in:<br>
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Saddington, D.B., 'The development of the Roman auxiliary forces from Augustus to Trajan' in: ANRW II-3 (1975), 176-201.<br>
Saddington, D.B., The development of the Roman auxiliary forces from Caesar to Vespasian (Zimbabwe 1982).<br>
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Regards,<br>
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Sander van Dorst<br>
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