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04-23-2002, 08:49 PM

I'll travel down from home..

04-25-2002, 05:15 PM

just got confirmation today!! hurrah!!! 
 
13 presentations over a day and a half 
 
 
better get a stock of pencils ready!

***Praefectusclassis*** · 04-25-2002, 05:20 PM

Me too! I'll bring a pen, might hold out longer Greets 
 
Jasper

05-01-2002, 11:45 PM

I now know that I definitely can't take part in the conference (sent Prof. Eck instead E EM ) and our meeting; hope you all have a lot of benefit from it and are successful introducing FAMS/JAMS! 
 
Greetings, 
 
Martin

JRSCline · 05-11-2002, 09:38 AM

Hi all, 
Back for the weekend from the company commanders' course in Vilseck. 
 
Will stay at the Arran House Hotel as expected. See you fellows at UCL. I'll see if I can't get a registration set up before next week. 
 
Cheers 
Jenny

05-17-2002, 09:42 PM

Hope you all enjoy/have enjoyed yourselves at the London conference! Short report for the people who had to stay with their work, please! 
 
Greetings, 
 
Martin

05-21-2002, 07:17 PM

Salve, 
 
The conference started with a lecture on the commissioning of equestrian officers by A.R. Birley. Using sources like Pliny as well as inscriptions and the tablets found at Vindolanda he stressed the important role of social connections for appointment to equestrian offcier ranks. He drew attention to the importance of the 'horizontal' social network, ie that of individuals of similar social status, next to 'vertical' connections such as patronage. Especially for governors of large provinces it would have been necessary to tap from such resources in addition to their own network of friends and acquaintances to fill all vacancies. Sought after traits of military officers had more to do with learning and easy going manners than martial prowess or tactical genius. Lack of specialised military academies would have had little negative effect because as the imperial army was largely a peacetime army the rich landowner would have acquired the necessary skills for administrating and supplying a unit by running their own estates and by any prior public offices. Actual warfare would have been limited. 
 
The following lecture by L. Keppie had the commemoration of military service in the early Roman empire as its subject. Only gradually developed the need for military service to be commemorated as military service became a less widespread experience and duration of enlistment lengthened, thus making soldiering a separate career instead of a temporary affair. The style of commemorative objects varied at this date though the methods later to be more or less standardised were in development. Using mainly examples from Italian settlements it was indicated that most monuments recording service were in this period scattered over private properties rather than concentrated along the roads along towns and other communities, indicating that the primary public would have been the immediate familia. The importance of knowledge about the actual monuments of inscriptions was highlighted as some texts did not mention military service at all, while the decorations on the stone indicated strongly the military connections of the person commemorated. 
 
The next lecture by J.M. Carrie dealt with the place of late Roman soliders in society. It explored the methodology to be used for studying the relationship between military and civilian and the specific issues that developed with the gradual change in the structure of the Roman army and society. Older views on the subject are being replaced by new insights which take the great variety and complexity of the issues better into account. The difference between high empire and late empire has been overemphasised and it is possible to discern continuity next to change in a number of respects. 
 
D. Saddington spoke on the use of military terminology in the work of Velleius Paterculus and contemporary inscriptions, detailing the development of the Latin military vocabulary and interesting differences with later practice, most notable the absence of the title of legatus legionis in the early principate, legatus Augusti being the designation favoured. 
 
The lecture by M.A. Speidel (nephew of M.P.) was on the retirement grants to auxiliaries. It made a case for the regular disbursement of discharge bonuses, either missio numaria (cash grants) or - agraria (land grant), to peregrine auxilaries and naval troops in addition to the grant of citizenship and conubium. Available source evidence for retirement grants is largely circumstantial and not unambiuous and deserves closer study. Comparison with colonial armies of more recent date has influenced earlier thinking, though the relationship between auxiliary and citizen troops differed greatly in character. Lately research has shown smaller differences in service conditions between citizen and non citizen soldier then previously assumed and praemia are likely to be another area in which smaller differences existed than hitherto thought. 
 
The auxiliary deployment in the reign of Hadrian was the subject of the lecture by P. Holder. It charted changes in the composition and size of auxiliary garrisons of various provinces throughout the reign of this emperor. Though consisting of very interesting matter, the unreadable overheads ensured that the article will undoubtedly be of more value than the presentation. 
 
The lecture by D. Breeze was on the deployment of troops along Hadrian's wall and in particular the manning of the turets and milecastles. Using fort sizes and garrison types as well as epigraphic evidence it showed that milecastles and turrets were likely to be manned by detachments from nearby bases and could comprise both legionary as well as auxiliary troops. It also dealt with the 'missing' stations of units attested as serving on the wall but not directly associated with a particular installation by drawing attention to the varying deployment practices which meant that there was no one on one match between forts and units. 
 
R.S.O Tomlin spoke on the finds from Carlisle and their implications for our understanding of the Roman army. The content of the documents further undermines the concept of the Roman military machine as still propagated by many popular publications. It also provided further evidence of the lack of a strict Roman terminology for weaponry, a fact ofen ignored by modern authors. The finds In addition the Carlisle documents shed more light on food supply, ancient problems of addressing mail and composition of legionary task forces on duty away from their main bases. 
 
The lecture by V. Maxfield was on the ostraca from Egypt relating to th Roman army. The differences between military deployment in the north-west of the empire and this province were dealt with. Rather than based in the familiar forts Egyptian forces were deployed in small praesidia, not ncessarily fortified, and under the command of low ranking commanders, centuriones, optiones and unspecified curatores. Soldier and civilian lived mixed together in these outposts whose pattern contrasts with that known from other provinces. It showed the adaptability and flexibility of the Roman army to vary its practices to suit local requiremnts rather tan adhering to strict doctrine. The importance of food supply in the pot sherd documents also stressed however the similar concerns of the military throughout the empire. 
 
I. Haynes gave a lecture on religion on the Roman army. It dealt with the various types of religion associated with the army and its personel, official, approved and personal and the role of the army in diffusing religious ideas and practices among soldiers from varying background. Differences and similarities between the Feriale Duranum and other sources were given special attention as well as the development and transfer of the Batavian deity Magusanus. 
 
The lecture by W. Eck was on diplomata and the imperial government. It drew attention to several interesting details, among them the difference in dates found on these plates and the consequences of commercial production of such documents. Among them were the gradual simplification of inner texts, their reintroduction and subsequent deterioration. He argued that diplomata were not meant to be opened, but were permanently fixed with lead around the edging and that profit seeking producers cut edges to minimise their costs by neglecting the contents they thought nobody would be seeing anyway. He also suggested that lack of diploma's for much of the reign of Marcus Aurelius is no coincidence, but directly related to the military and financial troubles of his reign which precluded the discharge of timeserved troops for years on end. 
 
A. Bowman spoke on the latest finds from Vindolanda, including a text which was from a layer dated considerably later than the majority of others. Interestingly these confirmed the Latin designation of the tablets as tilia. Noteworthy was the announcement that later this year the Vindolanda tablets will be published online. 
 
Finally P. Weiss discussed the future of the study of Roman military diploma's. It dealth among other things with the trade in these items and the consequences for study and publication, the need for further organisation of the available evidence in order to maximise accessibility of publications. 
 
Regards, 
 
 
Sander van Dorst Edited by: <A HREF=http://pub45.ezboard.com/bromanarmytalk.showLocalUserPublicProfile?login=sandervandorst>Sander van Dorst</A> at: 5/22/02 9:28:52 am

05-21-2002, 10:32 PM

Sander, thanks a lot for these lecture summaries! As if one had been there himself... 
Did somebody mention where and when the proceedings will be published? 
 
Greetings, 
 
Martin

05-22-2002, 07:28 AM

Salve, 
 
If it was, I did not catch it. I would think it highly likely though that a publication of some form may be forthcoming. 
 
Regards, 
 
Sander van Dorst

07-02-2002, 02:43 AM

Hey, you guys ever gonna have a meeting over here in Nort America? 
It'd be fun... "Remember, pillage first....then burn."

***Praefectusclassis*** · 07-02-2002, 08:06 AM

Got any good suggestions? It'd better be a marvelous excuse to make that kind of expense worthwhile! Greets 
 
Jasper

07-03-2002, 01:08 AM

Yeah Jasper, you get to see all of us Canucks, and maybe play some real hockey and drink some real beer. We'll take care of you. 
 
Problem is that there isn't really anything historical in Canada that goes back far enough to bring a large crowd. Perhaps someplace in the US would be better. In fact, Pennsic Wars would be an excellent place to do it. Every year there is like 15 000 people in attendance, from SCAdians, vendors, to 8 legged dogs wielding dacian falxes. AND it lasts 2 weeks. Beat that. "Remember, pillage first....then burn."

***Praefectusclassis*** · 07-03-2002, 04:19 PM

Real beer? What, Heineken or Bud? That's no incentive, just about the opposite actually. Greets 
 
Jasper

07-03-2002, 08:24 PM

Bud...lol. Heinekin maybe, but you should try our Ice Wine. Invented in the Niagara Region, and is VERY expensive. A small bottle is about 80 bucks Canadian. Anyway, what about the whole pennsic thing? "Remember, pillage first....then burn."

***Praefectusclassis*** · 07-04-2002, 05:14 AM

I think I'd rather go for a proper big reenactment event than two weeks of SCA fighting. Greets 
 
Jasper

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