08-17-2016, 11:32 PM
(This post was last modified: 08-18-2016, 12:30 AM by Marcel Frederik Schwarze.)
How strong was a cavalry-λοχος (contubernium, file) in the Strategicon? Was it really 8 or 16 strong as with infantry - led by the δεκανους and (!) λοχαγους - or did we have to calculate with another number?
To get a better picture it is important to evaluate the possibility of promotions of complete military units ... let's ask the question if it's possible that a legio has been promoted to an auxilium. If this is possible, what about a degradation of a military unit?
The Cod. Iust. clearly shows that basically and technically all old troop designations (e.g. cohors, legio, ala etc.) were still existing in the 6th century - however, the generic term for all units was the αριθμος or numerus in latin. The other slabs of perge are naming the unit almost exclusively an αριθμος. That in the same source members of this regiment are also called στρατιωτικὰς λεγεονας is an interesting detail which shows the biography and career of this unit up to the 6th century. Whether the unit was originally founded as such, is uncertain.
To get a better picture it is important to evaluate the possibility of promotions of complete military units ... let's ask the question if it's possible that a legio has been promoted to an auxilium. If this is possible, what about a degradation of a military unit?
The Cod. Iust. clearly shows that basically and technically all old troop designations (e.g. cohors, legio, ala etc.) were still existing in the 6th century - however, the generic term for all units was the αριθμος or numerus in latin. The other slabs of perge are naming the unit almost exclusively an αριθμος. That in the same source members of this regiment are also called στρατιωτικὰς λεγεονας is an interesting detail which shows the biography and career of this unit up to the 6th century. Whether the unit was originally founded as such, is uncertain.
