Questions about Roman army service c. 395 A.D.

[Flavivs Aetivs]

Hello folks. I have a few specific questions on random minutiae related to Roman military service in late antiquity, specifically the late 4th - early 5th centuries, roughly Stilicho's time.

Let's see what I can do for you.

• How many years was the term of service? I've seen 25 years mentioned as the standard, but if I'm not mistaken weren't the foederati recruited on a more short-term basis?

I've heard 20 was standard for the Professional Army (or Barbarians recruited into Roman units). As for foederati they generally came and went as they were needed until the death of Aetius. After that they replaced the professional army.

• In countless armies throughout history, there has been a system whereby soldiers deployed in the field could send money home to their families. Is it safe to assume the Roman legions had something similar?

I don't know, but I'd imagine it would be possible. Many families tagged along with the armies in this era, especially barbarian armies.

• Did the Roman state still supply the weapons, armor, etc. for each soldier? I read that before the Byzantine emperor Anastasius I (491-518), the troops were provided gear by the state but the cost of it was deducted from their pay, and that one of his reforms gave the troops their pay "in full" but with the caveat that they had to purchase their own gear. Was this the situation in the Western Empire too?

No. In the Western Roman Empire until the death of Aetius we have evidence that the Roman Army recieved their equipment from the state-run Fabricae.

• What was the citizenship status of a person born to a "barbarian" father and a Roman mother?

I don't think it mattered, Aetius was born to a Gothic father (Gaudentius who was a citizen) and a Roman mother. He became the most powerful man in the empire. Stilicho was the same way, although I think he was 100% Vandal. Citizenship no longer mattered.

• What were the procedures for recruiting and enlistment of soldiers? Did they do recruiting drives at regularly scheduled intervals, say, each January or each spring? Was there a standard "boot camp" as with modern armies, or were Roman soldiers trained on an ad hoc basis? Did they have specifically designated staging/muster grounds that they used in the empire's heartland, say in Ravenna, Antioch, etc., where the recruits were assembled and trained before being assigned to a legion?

I don't know, but someone else might.

• Would it be safe to assume that the bulk of the recruits were teenagers? I seem to remember reading somewhere that 17 was the age at which a kid became eligible for Roman military service.

I'd imagine most recruits were in their 20's or 30's until the collapse of the Roman frontiers in 406-onward. After that it was anyone and everyone you could get because manpower ran short.