11-04-2013, 07:30 PM
I guess this subject has been covered here many times but for newbies like myself I would be interested to know what people think of this subject. From Augustus to Nero Italians constituted approx two thirds sinking to one half of all legionnaries with a much higher percentage in the west than in the east. From Vespasion to Trajan approx one fifth were Italian and by Hadrian approx one tenth Italian. All these Italians would have been Roman citizens because they originated in Italy. What about the provincial recruits. What was there status prior to enlistment. I have heard arguments stating that these provincials would have been Roman citizens (from Roman colonia, municipia, canabae and vici) and I have heard statements that Roman citizenship was not a necessity and any free person could join the legions being given citizenship at time of enlistment.
My personal take on this is that the vast majority of provincials must have been Roman citizens already at the time of recruitment. If it did not matter if one was a citizen or not why continue to recruit in Italy and in the provincial Roman colonia as the vast majority of the empires population would have been non-citizen and thus it would have been much easier to get recruits from this part of the population. Giving a very rough guide then at the time of Nero if we follow the logic that anyone could join the legions then only about 10% should have been Italian and approx another 10% provincial Roman citizens at recruitment and the rest been peregrini given citizenship on recruitment. From the epigraphical evidence this is not the case and the Roman state gained its recruits from Italy (decreasingly) and assumingly the provincial citizen body.
My take is that the legions recruited from the nearest most romanized areas and when this could not fulfil the required amount sought Italians. As the number of citizens increased in the provinces then the need for Italian (roman citizens) became less and less. Thus the "romaness" of the legions could be kept. In the east where citizens were much fewer greeks and galatians would have been recruited to bring up the numbers after recruits were first sought from amoungst the citizen body in the east. As the number of citizens increased in the east the need to recruit from amoungst the greek and galatian non-citizen community would have diminished.
Also In the julia claudian there may have been a perception that Italians still needed to be heavily recruited because they were more truely Roman than provincial citizens but as the number of provincial citizens increased and increasing numbers on the senate, equistrian order and even actual emperors were provincials, then this attitude changed and being Roman became a more empire wide thing and not just an Italian thing.
My personal take on this is that the vast majority of provincials must have been Roman citizens already at the time of recruitment. If it did not matter if one was a citizen or not why continue to recruit in Italy and in the provincial Roman colonia as the vast majority of the empires population would have been non-citizen and thus it would have been much easier to get recruits from this part of the population. Giving a very rough guide then at the time of Nero if we follow the logic that anyone could join the legions then only about 10% should have been Italian and approx another 10% provincial Roman citizens at recruitment and the rest been peregrini given citizenship on recruitment. From the epigraphical evidence this is not the case and the Roman state gained its recruits from Italy (decreasingly) and assumingly the provincial citizen body.
My take is that the legions recruited from the nearest most romanized areas and when this could not fulfil the required amount sought Italians. As the number of citizens increased in the provinces then the need for Italian (roman citizens) became less and less. Thus the "romaness" of the legions could be kept. In the east where citizens were much fewer greeks and galatians would have been recruited to bring up the numbers after recruits were first sought from amoungst the citizen body in the east. As the number of citizens increased in the east the need to recruit from amoungst the greek and galatian non-citizen community would have diminished.
Also In the julia claudian there may have been a perception that Italians still needed to be heavily recruited because they were more truely Roman than provincial citizens but as the number of provincial citizens increased and increasing numbers on the senate, equistrian order and even actual emperors were provincials, then this attitude changed and being Roman became a more empire wide thing and not just an Italian thing.
