Retired men from the army

[Sprinks44]

I was wondering during Julius caesars time or even his own troops, when they retired did they gain land specifically farming land?

[M. Demetrius]

Usually, yes. Sometimes in the land they'd just conquered. I've often wondered just how that worked out, socially...

[Valerian Pertinax]

I seem to recall Goldsworthy mentioning (in The Complete Roman Army) that retired Centurions were men of significant respect in their communities, often being called upon to arbitrate problems. He didn't list a primary source for this assertion, but it seems reasonable. After all, weren't Centurions often used as civil administrators in the provinces?
As for a discharged rank-and-file legionnaire, I haven't any real idea past the land grant and whatever pay wasn't docked for food and equipment.

[Valerian Pertinax]

At least you've already met the neighbors, right?

[M. Demetrius]

:-D

[Epictetus]

Usually, yes. Sometimes in the land they'd just conquered. I've often wondered just how that worked out, socially...

Try Virgil's Eclogues. In this case, it wasn't newly conquered land. It is a rare (perhaps unique?) view of what it is like to have the farm that had been in your family for generations taken away to be given to retired soldiers.

[Frank]

Actually the veterans prefered land in Italy or the already romanized provinces. But in Caesars time land in Italy was rare.

Technically, when the romans conquered a new province, the entire land became property of SPQR (ager publicus). Now they gave some cities and/or tribes, which have been amici/allies their land back by contract (foedus). These free cities had sometimes even not to pay tax or had other beneficial rights and immunities. Other cities got their land back, too, but they had to pay tax on land (and other tax objects). Technically they have been tenants of roman land paying tenancy, but this traditional view was just shown in juridical analysis (e.g. Cicero, Ulpian). The third kind of land became officially ager publicus and was leased to big tenants, which further leased it fully or partially to smaller tenants (coloni). You should also consider, that in the wars thousand of local landwowners died or went into slavery. So they lost their property anyways.

When the roman state needed land for their veterans, they took usually this 3rd type of land and assigned it to the veterans. So it became private property of a roman citizen now. In Italy and the prefered provinces like Sicily and Africa, land was already property again, or it was leased by powerful romans, mostly of senatorial rank. The approach of the Grachi to cancel/restrict the lease-contracts of the big landowners failed in the late 2nd century BC. So in Caesars times, the prefered method was to found roman colonies as free cities of roman or latin right, and assign ager publicus in the provinces to these colonies and their veterans. Also additional measures for a better infrastructure and land reclamation was done.

That does not mean neccessarily, that the locals living on this land as coloni became homeless. Often veterans simply leased the land to the locals again. So for them nothing changed. Just the former big tenant was kicked out of business, if he did not cut a deal with the veterans. Some veterans prefered cash anyways, which became the rule in early empire.

The pension plan for the army was always a big issue in late republican times. The aristocrats tried to protect the big tenants, which were often of senatorial rank themselves and members of the senate. While the generals fighted for the rights of their soldiers (superficially). This conflict strengthened the influence of the big warlords over their legions and finally was one of many nails into the coffin of the republic. This changed with the emperors.

[M. Demetrius]

In most ways, the account below fits the back story of my Greco-Romanized persona. Hating farming while growing up on a Greek island, he ends up in the army, serves and retires. Given a farm, he finds he still hates farming, so leases his land to another, and gets a salary from the produce of the land.

Even being named after Demeter doesn't make a fellow like to dig in the dirt and grow crops.

[Robert Vermaat]

Even being named after Demeter doesn't make a fellow like to dig in the dirt and grow crops.

[CelticWebMerchant]

Isn´t it true that by the time a veteran gets retired he was rich enough to pay people to work the land for him?

[Frank]

Isn´t it true that by the time a veteran gets retired he was rich enough to pay people to work the land for him?

As described above, he could simply take the land, lease it to coloni and live from the rents in a small villa. He could also lease less land and farm on the rest with a few slaves.
In imperial times he would get about 12.000 HS in cash (thats worth about 10-15 ha land). Assuming the usual rates of 5-12% on investments these times, he would get 600-1400 HS per year. Thats enough to live in the province, without the need to work actually. But with a risk of course.

Nevertheless I would'nt call a retired miles gregalis rich. It is not bad. Better than a day laborer in the cities or a small tenant. But not really rich.
A duplicarius was perhaps somewhat rich, because he got 24.000 HS and could also save more money during his 20 years of service. And of course the centurions with 5 to 15 times the pay of a miles. Not talking about primi ordines or primpilares.