Roman Auxillaries

[Aquilae1]

Hello to everyone

I am new to the forum, so hopefully I am posting this on the right subject. But I am interested in Roman auxiliary units, specifically in the Judea area. The question I have at the moment is I have read that normally Roman citizens were in the legions and noncitizens would be an auxiliary units. (Saying this I understand that in unique circumstances citizenship could be granted to men in the Auxillaries for bravery, etc.)

But I have read recently of some auxiliary units that were made up of Roman citizens from Italy, such as: "Cohors Prima Italica Civium Romanorum, the Cohors Secunda Italica Civium Romanorum, and the Italian Cohors Prima Augusta". I am just curious why Roman citizens would make up, or being enlisted in, auxiliary units, especially in this case being from Italy? Any resources or reading material that I could be pointed towould be appreciated.

Thank you,
Troy

[Condottiero Magno]

Non-Romans, provided they were freemen, could be recruited into the legions, with citizenship granted later, and Legio XXII Deiotariana was formed from the remaining troops levied by King Deiotarus of Galatia, when his kingdom was integrated into the empire. Units of citizen auxiliaries, could be an emergency temporary measure, but could also be for reasons of economy: cheaper to recruit and train a 480-800 man cohort, to supplement existing forces in an area, than a new 5000+ unit. In later periods, it was cheaper to raise and tack on another battalion onto an existing regiment, usually made up of a cadre of veterans, than to raise a whole new regiment, requiring additional colonels and staff.

[A_Volpe]

Where are you getting this information about XXII Deiotariana?

It was [my] understanding his forces were modeled after the Roman legions

As for Italians going to Auxiliary units, that seems to be the case for the early (Augustan-Tiberian) Empire, and I believe that's what is being referenced in Biblical writings, but seems to stop being done by Vespasian or Titus, apparently when the expanse of the provinces was enough that non-Romans could bolster the numbers for a [newly] recruited Auxiliary unit, but also apparently to place a status distinction of citizen and non-citizen forces after things like the Batavian revolt, when aux units are sent as far away from home as possible to try and reduce the chances of that kind of revolt from reoccurring.

But, yes, It's been generally accepted that "Normally" non-citizens are supposed to go the Auxiliaries, and Citizens (likely with the proper paperwork and money) were allowed into the Legions. (The paperwork/money thing IIRC was becoming a more common requirement by the 2nd/3rd Century AD, again, because of the expanse of the Empire, more "proof" seems to have been asked for to determine if one was a "true" Roman citizen or not)

[John W Davison]

Hi Troy,

To answer the question of why join an auxiliary unit when you can join a legion, I think the citizen cohorts should probably be considered to be of similar status as legionary units. In the aftermath of early Principate-period emergencies such as the Varian disaster or the Pannonian revolt, the Roman state was basically in a position where part of its auxiliary (non-citizen) forces had fought against it, and these cohorts were raised to provide additional troops who were "loyal to the regime".

In motivational terms (i.e. why join for lower pay?), I think citizen troops from these cohorts received bequests in Augustus' will, so they should probably be seen (at least when first raised) as simply independent units. A legion was equivalent to something like a modern division (well, modern in the sense of 19th-20th C, as only the likes of the US or China still retain such large ground armies today that a formation the size of a division exists), while a cohort is more like a battalion. Clearly it is easier to organise such a smaller-sized unit quickly, and the key requirements of the Roman state at the time were loyalty and speed of mobilisation.

You can get a free preview from "Blood of the Provinces", (it is quite pricey to actually purchase the book) which might be of interest: look at the pages from about 40 to 50 for some of this, by clicking the "Google Preview" button on OUP's site:

http://ukcatalogue.oup.com/product/9780199655342.do

Actually, I juts looked at Cheesman and he deals with these around p65 so also take a look at this:

https://ia700303.us.archive.org/28/items...eerich.pdf

Incidentally, if you are interested in the auxiliaries in Judaea, there was an article in "Ancient Warfare I.1":

http://www.karwansaraypublishers.com/pw/...rfare-i.1/

Regards, John

[Aquilae1]

I want to thank each of you for your responses, as well as the resources, they have been most helpful!

To sum up, would I be correct in saying, that the existence of citizen aux units, in the time of the reigns of Augustus and Tiberius, were a "possible" necessity because of expansion and regional military set-backs, such as the Varus disaster, and the Pannonian revolt, and that these citizen cohorts provided a stability within the auxilaries.

With the "carot", if you will, being the "beguests" of Augustus. This not to mention the possible cost / time savings of making then Aux instead of legions, sound right?

To connect this to my interest of Rome's occupation of Judea I have read from one author that these Italian Aux Cohorts, (see my earlier post), may have acted as a more neutral peace-keeping force; at least in the Roman mind, than the Sebaste Aux Cohorts in exhistence as there had been much turmoil between the Jews and the local Seabaste, (that had been intially raised by Herod), as well as bad blood historcally between the two ethnic groups. (As noted by Josephus)

It has also been suggested, in another article, that it may have been, to the Judean governor's advantage to have "Italian" Aux units stationed in Caesarea for his own protection.... Does anyone have thoughts on these last two points?

thank you again for all your comments (John, Andy, Condottiero Magno)

[Sextus Saturninus]

Ave!,
I myself portray an Auxiliary but I am stationed with the Sixth Legion in northern Britain. The auxiliaries were usually non citizens but occasionally were citizens from Italy that were recruited as Auxiliaries but had the privileges of Legionaries. The bible itself mentions " The Italian Cohort " as being stationed in Judea around the time of 0ad. Pontius Pilate governed the province, but it was only an equestrian province, and as a result it only had auxiliaries. The nearest Legions were in Egypt and Syria, and they were only called in in times of serious disturbances in the area AKA full on REVOLT!

The auxiliaries would not be locals but might have adopted local customs and religions. Auxiliaries were usually not stationed next to their homeland and were NEVER stationed anywhere near it after the disaster called the Batavian Revolt. In the revolt, the auxiliaries were stationed next to their homeland and when the tribe revolted, the auxiliaries joined the cause.

[Jonathan Rash]

I've enjoyed reading this conversation as I myself am most interested in the Roman army in Judea from 4BC to around 66AD. There seems to be a dearth of information regarding that time period. Can anyone recommend reading and research material regarding the Romans in Judea during Biblical times? My e-mail is [email protected] if anyone wants to respond to me there. Thanks a bunch and I appreciate any input anyone may have.

[Sextus Saturninus]

Why not ask your questions here? We will answer them :-)

[Renatus]

Can anyone recommend reading and research material regarding the Romans in Judea during Biblical times?

You could try M. P. Speidel, 'The Roman Army in Judaea under the Procurators. The Italian and the Augustan Cohort in the Acts of the Apostles', Ancient Society 13/14 (1982/83), 233-240 = M. P. Speidel, Roman Army Studies II (Stuttgart, 1992), 224-232.

[Robert Vermaat]

Why not ask your questions here? We will answer them :-)

He did ask a question. And you did not answer him.

We do, in fact, have had a few threads about Roman forces in Judaea:
http://www.romanarmytalk.com/17-roman-mi...tml#325937
http://www.romanarmytalk.com/17-roman-mi...tml#334544
http://www.romanarmytalk.com/17-roman-mi...tml#303008
http://www.romanarmytalk.com/17-roman-mi...tml#301066

[Del Varner]

The four links supplied appear to be dead.

[Robert Vermaat]

The four links supplied appear to be dead.

After more than 7 years - that's migration for you.

Use the search function for 'Judaea'.

[Nathan Ross]

After more than 7 years - that's migration for you.

It certainly is! As this subject is one of the ones that seems to come up most frequently, perhaps it might be worth linking to a few of the longer and more detailed threads from years gone by...

Garrison of Jerusalem - AD30 (2002)

The AD33 crucifixion detail in Judea (2009)

Auxilia stationed in Jerusalem, AD30-AD50 (2011)

Legion near Judea at time of Jesus (2015)