Praetorians in the 3rd C. AD

[SemproniaDocta]

So I've been studying Rome professionally for well... it's gotta be something like 15 years now. Military affairs are not my specialty -- Roman sex and gender are -- so I'm asking for some help from the docti rebus militaribus.

I'm reviewing a book about the reign of Elagabalus, and the author suggests that the rank and file soldiers found no objection to the shenanigans of the Syrian emperor, while the Praetorians hated him for his apparent disinterest in all things military. In investigating the HA, Dio and Herodian, I was surprised to find references to the soldiers (stratiwtai and milites) in the City who seem not to be the equivalent to the Praetorians. Furthermore, these (same?) soldiers seem also to have been in Rome while Elagabalus was still wintering in Nicomedia -- and I presume that the Praetorians are with him in Nicomedia.

So here are my questions: What soldiers are stationed in Rome if not the Praetorians? Are they being confused with the Praetorians? If not, would the Praetorians ever stay in Rome while the Emperor was on campaign? And if they're not Praetorians, would they be legionaries? Any help would be so very, very much appreciated!

Ago gratias vobis, o docti rebus militaribus!

SemproniaDocta
aka Julie Langford-Johnson

[Robert Vermaat]

Hi Julie,

I moved your question to the proper section.

Answer? Well, maybe they belonged to II Parthica? Severus had stationed this legion permanently near Rome as a strategic reserve and a guard against usurpers. The legion went to Britain with Severus, to Germany with Caracalla, until their commander murdered him in 217. However, the legion abandoned him and sided with Elagabalus. He may have brought the legion back to Italy during his reign.

[Ti Cl Nero]

Salve,
I agree, Legio II Parthica is a possibility (at least generally speaking without knowing the exact context in which those milites are mentioned).
It was stationed in the Castra albana at Albano, close to Rome, and it didn't campaign abroad since 218 (Syria, where, as Robert mentioned, it sided with Elagabalus in his victory against Macrinus at Imnea-Antiochia) to 231 ( Parthian war of Severus Alexander).
Another possibility are the Cohortes Urbanae, also stationed in Rome, while the third of the Urban corps, the Vigiles , wouldn't probably be called milites.
Anyway, also Praetorians are a likely possibility (unless the source suggests differently) : cohortes praetoriae acted independently from each others, and usually not all of them followed campaigning emperors; part of them may still be kept to garrison Rome, and/or were sent to different areas within the strategic theatre (as did Otho in 69 AD in one of the few circumstances in which sources provide detailed employment of praetorians in battle: Tacitus I,87 ; II,11,14,18,24)
Vale