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sacramentum - DECIMvS MERCATIvS VARIANvS - 11-30-2005
[size=150:3g0rbi01]I[/size]s there anyone who can help me find the original sacramentum? Not the late rone that has been Christianized, but the earlier one from ca. 1st Century...
It'd be nice to have a translation with it too, but certainly, the Latin would b emuch appreciated.
Thanks, Marsh
Re: sacramentum - LUCIUS ALFENUS AVITIANUS - 11-30-2005
Some references of the sacramentum are founded at Livy, who tell us
"It had also been the custom among the soldiers, when the infantry were formed into companies of 100, and the cavalry into troops of 10, for all the men in each company or troop to take a voluntary oath to each other that they would not leave their comrades for fear or for flight, and that they would not quit the ranks save to fetch or pick up a weapon, to strike an enemy, or to save a comrade. This voluntary covenant was now changed into a formal oath taken before the tribunes. "
Livy, Ab urbe condita ,22.38
Traduction founded at [url:gtn5mnmo]http://mcadams.posc.mu.edu/txt/ah/Livy/Livy22.html[/url]
Other reference of the importance of the oath is in Cicero, Off. I, 11, 36
"But when the young man out of love for the service stayed on in the field, his father wrote to Popilius to say that if he let him stay in the army, he should swear him into service with a new oath of allegiance, for in view of the voidance of his former oath he could not legally fight the foe. So extremely scrupulous was the observance of the laws in regard to the (37 )conduct of war."
I think the original formula is missing. It's true?
Re: sacramentum - Tarbicus - 11-30-2005
There's one version here:
[url:1v2jmu0f]http://www.romanempire.net/romepage/ForumRomanum/mosmaiorum/mosmaiorum.htm#SACRAMENTUM[/url]
Where it comes from I have no idea.
This Republican one is attributed to Dionysius:
Quote: 'to follow the consuls to whatever wars they may be called, and neither desert the colours nor do anything else contrary to law.'from [url:1v2jmu0f]http://www.roman-empire.net/army/army.html[/url]
The Dictionary of Classical Antiquities has a definition (but no actual oath) spread over these 2 pages:
[url:1v2jmu0f]http://www.ancientlibrary.com/seyffert/0553.html[/url]
[url:1v2jmu0f]http://www.ancientlibrary.com/seyffert/0554.html[/url]
It seems to vary between periods, firstly being taken to the Senate and People, then to the Emperor and Legate.
Re: sacramentum - Kate Gilliver - 11-30-2005
There isn't a proper record of what was said or done when swearing the sacramentum; Vegetius' Christianised version (sorry, my Veg. is at work and I'm at home today so I can't give you a ref) may be the closest you'll get to what was said in the early imperial period.
Frontinus provides similar info to Livy about the content of the sacramentum, Stratagems, 4.1.4
L. Paulo et C. Varrone consulibus milites primo iure iurando adacti sunt; antea enim sacramento tantummodo a tribunis rogabantur, ceterum ipsi inter se coniurabant se fugae atque formidinis causa non abituros neque ex ordine recessuros nisi teli petendi feriendive hostis aut civis servandi causa.
In the consulship of Lucius Paulus and Gaius Varro, soldiers were for the first time compelled to take the ius iurandum. Up to that time the sacramentum was the oath of allegiance administered to them by the tribunes, but they used to pledge each other not to quit the force by flight, or in consequence of fear, and not to leave the ranks except to seek a weapon, strike a foe, or save a comrade.
Kate