Auxilia units

[Folkert van Wijk]

I was wandering auxilia unit's would most likely have been starded by "recruting" from a surten area. But my question is how quick would the identity have been mixed up by other tribes and maybe even other cultures? Do solitary soldiers of that time have been transfert or have moved around alot those day's?

Grave stellea seem to show that Roman warriors moved from one unit to another every now and then... Right?

[D B Campbell]

Grave stellea seem to show that Roman warriors moved from one unit to another every now and then... Right?

Hmmm ... not the auxiliary grunts. Just their Roman officers. But the entire unit could be shipped off to a different province. Is that what you were thinking of?

[jvrjenivs]

I think that if units mare raised they are of 'full strenght', so only after they need replacements (which can be very quick, but sometimes also can take a while) they can be started mixing. Next question is if they would stay were they were originally raised. If so, they wouldn't mix much, I would say, as they would be recruiting locally. If they were relocated away, they would be easily starting to mix. So, for sure after one generation away, the unit could easily have lost it original identity.

[WorkMonkey1]

Surely if they're a specialist auxilia group, like african cavalry, or slingers from the med they would have to be raised in that area in order for them to have been brought up with the neccessary skills to enable them to do the job that the auxilia unit was raised for in the first place. No point having an elite slinging group from the Balearics then watering it down with troops raised from Gaul who don't know what they're doing.

[D B Campbell]

Surely if they're a specialist auxilia group ...

This certainly seems to happen at Intercisa (Donaújváros, Hungary) where there is evidence of continued recruitment of Hamians into the cohors I Hemesenorum sagittaria equitata, a specialist unit of Syrian (mounted?) archers. As far as I know, there is no sign of the local Pannonians being recruited into this unit. (Maybe someone else has more information?)

[Lunico]

I'm getting interested in the Auxilia infantry but don't know much about them. Is it correct that the hasta was their primary weapon during battle? Did they fight in tight formations like the Legionairs? Why were they equipped with oval shields instead with the rectangular scutum? Were they still able to form a testudo with their oval shields?

[popularis]

I was wandering auxilia unit's would most likely have been starded by "recruting" from a surten area. But my question is how quick would the identity have been mixed up by other tribes and maybe even other cultures? Do solitary soldiers of that time have been transfert or have moved around alot those day's?

This - according to Drinkwater [1], IIRC - is what happens in Gaul, where the recruitment areas for auxiliary units broadened over time (and especially after the Civilis revolt), diluting the originally strong ethnic identity of the auxiliary units. I don't know about other areas though, and the change may well have been made specifically for the Gallic units.

Grave stellea seem to show that Roman warriors moved from one unit to another every now and then... Right?

As above, it's more normal for this to happen as a result of promotion than of ordinary soldiers being "posted" from one unit to another.

Blue skies

Tom

[1] Drinkwater, J.F. (1978), ‘The Rise and Fall of the Gallic Iulii: Aspects of the Development of the Aristocracy of the Three Gauls under the Early Empire’, Latomus 37 (1978) 817-850.

[Caratacus]

Logic (!) dictates that an auxiliary unit would not have been based where it was originally raised. The British did the same thing in India. You did not use Punjabis in the Punjab! If you had to use them to suppress disorder, then you would not want them to be facing their fathers and uncles, nephews or brothers! The Indian Mutiny was largely put down by Sikhs and Ghurkas.

If you move a unit from one end of the Empire to another, it seems unlikely that they would be able to retain their original ethnic mix. After a bit, all that would be left would have been the original name. It's like saying that the 24th Foot (South Wales Borderers) were all Welshmen - well, there were a lot of Taffs there, but also a lot from the midlands as well.

The ones I always feel really sorry for were the cohors Hamiorum sagittariorum quingenaria! To go from Syria to Cumbria - they must really have cheesed someone off, no end!

Mike Thomas
(Caratacus)

[D B Campbell]

But my question is how quick would the identity have been mixed up by other tribes and maybe even other cultures?

This ... is what happens in Gaul, where the recruitment areas for auxiliary units broadened over time (and especially after the Civilis revolt), diluting the originally strong ethnic identity of the auxiliary units.

Equally, if the bulk of your recruits come from Spain, Gaul and Thrace, there's bound to be a change in the ethnic make-up of any reinforced unit. This is what (we think) happened to the ala Gallorum et Thracum Classiana: probably starting as a Gallic unit (the ala Classiana), it received so large an influx of Thracians that it changed its name to reflect the new make-up.

[Folkert van Wijk]

I ask this also because when I look at shield bosses finds from auxilia forts I do see a mix of styles with in one time frame.
I do like to beliefe that the style of shieldbosses is related to etnics (at least as a start)
Could one such a fort be used by diffent auxilia units at the same time? (I quess this also depents on the size of the fort and the size of the units...?)

Questions questions....

[Peroni]

The ones I always feel really sorry for were the cohors Hamiorum sagittariorum quingenaria! To go from Syria to Cumbria - they must really have cheesed someone off, no end!

'Dear Mum, Please send more socks and pants - it's bloody freezing here!!'

[D B Campbell]

The ones I always feel really sorry for were the cohors Hamiorum sagittariorum quingenaria! To go from Syria to Cumbria - they must really have cheesed someone off, no end!

Paul Holder has just drawn my attention to a new diploma for the army of Britain under Hadrian (ZPE 174, 2010).

It was issued to a veteran of cohors I Hamiorum sagittariorum named Longinus, son of Sestius (both common Western names), who hailed from "Moms". I initially hoped that this was a scribal error for Homs (a town in Syria, reasonably close to the Hamian hometown of Hama -- but it would surely have been rendered as "Emesa", the usual ancient form of the name). However, the editors accept "Moms" as a legitimate, if unknown, placename (suggesting a link with Momasson/Momoasson in Cappadocia).

I am undecided whether this proves that the cohort continued to recruit specialist archers from the east, or whether it shows that recruits for this "specialist" unit were taken from any and all provinces. (Probably the latter.)

(Incidentally, the new diploma strengthens the case for Hadrian's personal presence in the East during the early stages of the Bar Kokhba revolt.)

[Peroni]

Yes! I did know about this diploma I'm glad it's published now! (ZPE-174-189) No batavians mentioned on it though)

http://www1.ku-eichstaett.de/epigr/uah- ... -189_4.jpg

This one was of particular interest. As as far as I am aware, it is the only epigrahy of the cohort in Britain with the name of an ordinary soldier. All of the altar dedications etc in stone are with the names of prefects.

I spent a looooong time searching for any possible places for modern 'Moms'

Very Romanised names used by both the soldier and his father.

[zakhx150]

Bringing more numeri to the discussion... There is evidence for a numerus of Britains in Upper Germany, the Brittones Murrenses taking their name from the River Murr in their Provincial base. Association with a region and a locality as specific as this could (and I stress COULD) denote the recruitment of locals into their units.

On a tangent, is there actually any concrete evidence for recruitment by numeri ?
Obviously they are away from their home provinces and dont necessarily follow the (more) standard unit sizes of the auxilia alae so had greater flexibiliy in how many individuals they utilised but they must have required recruits occsaionally, or merged with similar units?

A brief glance at Southern, P. 1989 "The numeri of the Imperial Roman army", Britannia 20: 81-140 didn't answer this. (In my defence it is a big article so I apologise I missed something ovbious therein)

[LvpvsRomanvs]

I'm getting interested in the Auxilia infantry but don't know much about them. Is it correct that the hasta was their primary weapon during battle? Did they fight in tight formations like the Legionairs? Why were they equipped with oval shields instead with the rectangular scutum? Were they still able to form a testudo with their oval shields?

Why not raise these questions in a new topic? I'm sure people will help out.

- Lorenzo/Virilis