凯撒到图拉真的罗马军队

MEN-AT-ARMS SERIES~ 46MILITARY THE ROMAN ARMY FROM CAESAR TO TRAJAN MICHAEL SIMKINS RON EMBLETON First published in Great Britain in 1984 by Osprey Publishing, Elms Court, Chapel Way, Botley, Oxford OX2 9 Lp, United Kingdom. Email: info@ospreypublishing.com © 1984 Osprey Publishing Ltd. Reprinted 1985 (twice), 1986, 1987, 1988 (three times), 1990,1991,1992,1993,1994,1995,1996,1997,1998, 1999,2000 All rights reserved. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study, research, criticism or review, as permitted under the Copyright Designs and Patents Act, 1988, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, electrical, chemical, mechanical, optical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright owner. Enquiries should be addressed to the Publishers. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data Simkins, Michael The Roman Army from Caesar to Trajan. [Rev. ed.] -(Men-at-Arms series; 46) I. Rom Army-History I. Title II. Series 355'·00937 U35 Filmset in Great Britain Printed in China through World Print Ltd. Editor's note This book is a revised and entirely re-illustrated treatment of the edition first published under the same title and MAA series number in 1974. FOR A CATALOGUE OF ALL BOOKS PUBLISHED BY OSPREY MILITARY AND AVIATION PLEASE WRITE TO: The Marketing Manager, Osprey Direct USA, PO Box 130, Sterling Heights, MI 483II-OI30, USA. Email: info@ospreydirectusa.com The Marketing Manager, Osprey Direct UK, PO Box 140, Wellingborough, Northants, NN8 4ZA, nited Kingdom. Email: info@ospreydirecLco.uk VISIT OSPREY AT www.ospreypublishing.com The Roman Armyfrom Caesarto Trqjan SOME PRINCIPAL EVENTS IN ROMAN MILITARY HISTORY, FROM THE DEATH OF CAESAR TO THE REIGN OF TRAJAN. 33 BC: 32 BC: between them and Antonius marries Octavia, the sister of Octavianus. Antonius campaigns against the Par- thians. Mistrust and rivalry between the two leaders worsens, largely as a result of Antonius' association with the Egyp- tian queen, Cleopatra. Antonius formally divorces Octavia in favour of Cleopatra, and the breech between the two leaders becomes irreconcilable. IAn olliciall) constituted dictatorial committee. 44 BC: 43 BC: 42 BC: 40 BC: Conspirators assassinate the Dictator, Gaius Julius Caesar. Marcus An- tonius, a close friend of Caesar, takes control and inflames public opinion against the conspirators, forcing Brutus and Cassius, the prime movers, to flee Italy. The great-nephew of the Dictator, Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus, suc- ceeds in gaining the support of the Senate against Antonius and emerges as his rival for power. Octavianus defeats Antonius at Mutina and the latter retreats across the Alps to Gallia Narbonensis. Oc- tavianus becomes reconciled with An- tonius later in the year, and together with Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, who replaced Caesar as chief priest, they form the Second Triumvirate l . Octavianus and Antonius engage and defeat Brutus and Cassius at Philippi in Macedonia. Both conspirators commit suicide. Octavianus and Antonius agree to divide the rule of the Roman world The grave stele ofCaius Valerius Crispus, a legionary ofLegio vm Augusta, who served during the first half of the 1st century ~ee colour plate CI. (In the collection of the Stadtisches Musewn., Wiesbaden) 3 31 BC: Antonius and Cleopatra are defeated in AD 54: a naval engagement off Actium and retreat to Egypt. 30 BC: Octavianus takes Egypt and both Antonius and Cleopatra commit sui- cide. Octavianus becomes the effective AD 60: ruler of the Roman world. 27 BC: Octavianus takes the titles 'Imperator' and 'Augustus', and becomes the first Roman Emperor. 25 BC: Galatia is annexed as a Roman province. 16-15 BC: Tiberius and ero Drusus, stepsons of AD 61: Augustus, annexe the provinces of AD 64: Noricum and Raetia. 12--g BC: The territory north of Illyricum is annexed by Tiberius as the province of Pannonia. Birth of Christ AD 9: Three legions under P. Quinctilius AD 66: Varus-the XVIIth, XVIIIth and XIXth-are destroyed in the Teut- AD 68: oburg Forest: an extremely serious loss of men and equipment which forestalls Roman intentions of annexation across the Rhine. AD 14: Augustus dies and the Rhine and Pannonian legions mutiny. His suc- cessor, Tiberius Cladius Nero, quells AD 69: the revolt and army conditions are improved to avoid further trouble. AD 14-16: Germanicus undertakes three cam- paigns against the Germans east of the Rhine and reaches the River Elbe, but no permanent presence is established. AD 37: Tiberius dies and is succeeded by the insane Gaius Caesat, nicknamed 'Cal- igula'. Gaius Caesar may have been a victim of lead poisoning. l AD 41: Gaius Caesar is assassinated by officers of the Praetorian Guard at the age of29 and is succeeded by Tiberius Claudius Drusus. AD 43: Four legions invade Britain under the command of Aulus Plautius. Claudius briefly visits the new province. 1Dec/ille alld Fall: II 'fTe the Romallj Poisalled? Peter Cooper, FPS, The Pharmaceutical Journal, December 22 and 29, 1973. Claudius dies, probably poisoned by his second wife, Agrippina the Younger, who secures the succession for her son Nero Claudius Caesar Drusus Ger- manicus, who assassinates her in AD 59. The Druids and other anti-Roman elements on Mona Insulis (Anglesey) are massacred by Suetonius Paulinus; this operation is followed immediately by a serious revolt in south-east Britain, led by the implacable Icenian Queen Boudica. Paulinus crushes the Boudican Revolt. A large area of the city of Rome is destroyed by fire. The Christian sect is blamed initially, but the Emperor himself is suspected latterly of de- liberately firing the city to make way for the construction of his Golden House. A major revolt breaks out in Judaea; Vespasianus is sent to restore order. Julius Vindex, Governor of Central Gaul revolts against Nero, but is killed at the battle of Vesontio (Besan~on). The aging Sulpicius Galba, Governor of earer Spain, revolts also and is supported by the Senate. He marches on Rome, and Nero commits suicide. The Year of the Three Caesars. Galba becomes unpopular and earns the particular displeasure of Marcus Sal- vius Otho by not choosing him as his successor. Otho arranges Galba's mur- der and succeeds wi th the support of a large number of legions. However, Aulus Vitellius is hailed Emperor by the Rhine legions and marches on Rome. He defeats Otho at the first battle of Bedriacum, near Cremona, and Otho commits suicide. Vitellius succeeds, only to learn that the eastern legions have declared for their general Vespasianus. The forces of Vitellius are defeated by the pro-Vespasianus gen- eral Primus at the second battle of Bedriacum. Flavius Sabinus Ves- pasianus succeeds and the civil war closes. A section of the triwnphal relief from Trajan's Forwn, later incorporated into the Arch of Constantine. The sculpture shows cavalry wearing mail and scale body defences, and legionary infantry wearing cuirasses with laminations on the breast instead of breast-plates. (Trajan's Column, Rome) AD 70: AD 81: The city of Jerusalem falls to the besieging Roman force under the command of Vespasianus' son Titus. General Flavius Silva is sent to invest the Herodian fortress ofMasada, which has been occupied by a band of Sicarii and others of the anti-Roman faction. Masada falls. The besieged Je~s com- mit suicide rather than surrender to the Romans. Vespasianus dies after a stable reign and is succeeded by his son Titus. Titus dies prematurely at the age of42, having completed the building of the great Flavian amphitheatre at Rome, known today as the Colosseum, begun by his father in AD 72. Titus is succeeded by" his younger brother, Titus Flavius DOInitianus. (Rumours that Domitianus was responsible for Titus' early death were never proven; however, Domitianus was an un- pleasant character and was doubtless bitterly jealous of his popular brother.) AD 89: AD 96: AD 98: Antonius Saturninus, Governor of Upper Germany, revolts against Dom- itianus, but is brought to battle and defeated on the plain of Andernach by Maximus, the Governor of Lower Germany. Domitianus is finally murdered, bring- ing the Flavian Dynasty to an end. He is succeeded by Marcus Cocceius Nerva. erva dies having adopted the 44-year- old Governor of Upper Germany, Marcus Ulpius Trajanus, as his successor-a most fortunate choice. Trajanus proves to be an excellent soldier and a statesman, a rare com- bination. Considered to be the finest Roman Emperor, he extends the Empire to its largest geographical size. 5 IJltroductioJl 'Had previous chroniclers neglected to speak in praise ofHistory in general, it might perhaps have been necessary for me to recommend everyone to choose for study and welcome such treatises as the present, since man has no more ready corrective of conduct than knowledge of the past. .. For who is so worthless or indolent as not to wish to know by what means and under what system of polity the Romans in less than 53 years have succeeded in subjecting nearly the whole inhabited world to their sole government, a thing unique in history?' (Polybius) Probably the most fruitful of the Romans for such study are their soldiers-men of great courage, determination and ability, whose faces still stare silently out at us with an air of grave dignity from sculptures once bright with paint and bronze ornament. Though the common soldiers have left no known written account of their experiences, the earth has yielded large quantities of objects in varying states of preservation, which have enabled modern man to learn much of the life of the ancient soldier. Literature, too, has survived from antiquity, providing us with valuable clues and even direct and accurate descriptions of military equipment, which are increasingly being verified by archaeo- logical finds. Quite detailed information has also been derived from sculptural works, the foremost of these being the great column erected in the early second century AD by the Emperor Marcus Ulpius Trajanus to commemorate his victories over the Dacians. We can still see, spiralling up this 13Z-foot monument, the army of Trajan performing the various deeds of the campaign and going about their multitude ofmilitary tasks. This has, ofcourse, proved to be of inestimable value to historians not only from the aspect ofmilitary equipment, but also 6 with regard to the appearance offorts and bridges of a more temporary nature of which little or nothing survives. The partial reconstruction of a turf and timber rampart and gate in its original position at the Lunt Fort, Baginton, near Coventry is largely based upon information derived from this monu- ment. While Trajan's Column (a two-part cast ofwhich may be seen in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London) has proved to contain some surprisingly accurate details ofRoman military practice, it must still be treated with a great deal of caution, especially with regard to the proportions of certain objects such as shields; these are invariably shown on a reduced scale. A similar concession was made to aesthetics by narrowing the cheek-guards of helmets in order that the faces of the men would become more visible. This vast work, which was no doubt painted originally, like so many other ancient sculptures, would also have bristled with bronze weapons where now there are only empty hands; the bronze has long since vanished into the crucibles of later ages. The Roman military of this period may be divided into two distinct parts, the legions and the auxilia, with a marked social division between them. The ranks of a legion were entirely filled by Roman citizens. This does not mean that they were all men ofItalian origin, but that the individual, be he a Gaul, Iberian, or whatever, possessed the coveted 'citizenship', which was hereditary-for example, it will be recalled that the father ofSaul of Tarsus was granted the citizenship for services to the Roman army in the capacity of tentmaker. This would have meant that, had he possessed the required mental and physical development, the young Saul would have been eligible for service with a legion. As we know, he did make use ofone of '. Key to the disposition of the Legions circa AD 80: (I) Legio IX Hispana at York. (2) Legiones XX Valeria and II Adiutrix at Chester. (3) Legio II Augusta at Caerleon. (4) Legiones XXII Primigenia and X Gemina at Nijmegen. (5) Legio VI Victrix at Neuss. (6) Legio XXI Rapax at Bonn. (7) Legio XIV Gemina at Mainz. (8) Legio I Adiutrix at or near Mainz. (9) Legio VIII Augusta at Strasbourg. (IO) Legio XI Claudia at Windish. (II) Legio XV Apollinaris at Carnuntum. (12) Legio xm Gernina at Poetovio. (13) Legio VII Claudia at Viminiacum. the rights bestowed by his citizenship, In that he made legal appeal to the very head of the Roman State, the Emperor himself. A large number of the legionary soldiers were skilled tradesmen. Skills which would be acquired during the early years of their service enabled the men to increase their rates of pay and to be promoted to the rank of immunis. No doubt this rank excused them from such necessary but irksome tasks as latrine duty. The presence of these skilled men within the ranks rendered a legion, as far as possible, a self-sufficient unit, which could provide its own forts and fortifications and other structures, such as DISPOSITION OF THE LEGIONS circa 80 A.D. ( (14) Legio V Macedonica at Oescus. (15) Legio I Italica at Novae. (16) Legio V Alaudae on or near the Danube. (17) Legio IV Flavia Firma at Burnum. (18) Legio XVI Flavia Firma at Satala. (19) Legio XII Fulminata at Melitene. (20) Legio VI Ferrata at Samosata. (21) Legio IV Sythica at Cyrrhus. (22) Legio m Gallica at Danabe near Damascus. (23) Legio X Fretensis at Jerusalem. (24) Legio XXII Deiotariana at Alexandria. (25) Legio m Cyrenaica at Coptos near Luxor. (26) Legio m Augusta at Ammaedara near Tebessa. (27) Legio VII Gemina at Leon. bridges and war machinery. Since the men were being trained almost wholly as military engineers and professional killers, it is hardly surprising that one seldom encounters a well-lettered inscription or artistic relief that was the product of their hands. Such things require a great deal of aptitude and experience, and when accomplished works of the kind are found in a military context they are more likely to be the efforts of civilians employed specifically for such purposes. The legions were supported by the non-citizen auxilia, which in Caesar's time was not a regular arm of the Roman forces and therefore did not 7 A section of a relief at Rome showing Praetorian guards carrying javelins with lead (or possibly cast bronze) loads, and long shields of the late Republic, which had become a traditional part of their equipment by the I st century AD when this reliefwas carved. (The Cancelleria Relief, in the collection of the Vatican Museum) conform to standard Roman unit strengths. Under Augustus, auxiliary units were integrated into the Roman army on a permanent basis, with a fixed annual recruitment, and organised after the Roman manner in three types ofunit (see diagram). The infantry cohorts were named after either their tribal or national origin. The cavalry, on the other hand, were often identified by the name of the commanding officer in the early days, those titles remaining part of the unit's identification even though the man concerned was long dead: e.g. Ala Augusta Gallorum Petriana Milliaria Civium Romanorum-after Titus Pomponius Petra, whose name was to be found a century later when his old unit was serving on Hadrian's Wall at Carlisle. The third type of auxiliary unit, the Cohors Equitata, was regarded as inferior to the other two, and this was clearly reflected in their equipment. Evidently this inferior status did not detract from the valour of the soldiers in one case at least, for a 8 surviving bronze diploma refers to the honourable discharge before expiration of service of an entire Cohors Equitata-the Ulpia Torquata, which was raised in Britain and had distinguished itself in the Dacian Wars under Trajan. To obtain such a diploma was the ambition of every auxiliary-horse and foot alike-for it meant that the citizenship of Rome, probably the main inducement to enlist, was now theirs, and they were free to return home. Honourable discharge was normally achieved by serving out the agreed time period, some 25 years; and now tha,t the auxiliary soldier was a citizen he would enjoy privileges under Roman law which also improved his family's prospects within the Roman system. I t appears that the Romans even took care over the morale of their auxiliaries, at least in the early days of the Empire, by posting the units fairly close to their place of origin, presumably in order to prevent feelings of disquiet among the troops at being cut off from familiar surroundings. Later, as necessity dictated, such niceties were overlooked and units were posted far afield, which occasioned at least two mutinies. Naturally enough, the legionaries regarded the non-citizens of the auxilia as inferiors; but it was the auxiliaries who really manned the frontiers of the Empire and policed the Provinces, and it was they who fought and won the final battle of the invasion of Britain. Their contribution to the establishment of the Roman World may perhaps have been rather badly underestimated in favour of the 'esprit de corps' of the legions. At the time of Vespasian some of the existing auxiliary units were enlarged and new units of greater strength were raised. These consisted of ten- century infantry cohorts, 24-trooP cavalry regi- ments, and a ten-century cohort with eight cavalry troClps as a larger form ofCohors Equitata. These new units were called Milliaria or 'thousand strong', but in fact contained rather fewer men. The smaller auxiliary units were called Q,uingenaria or 'five hundred strong', again being slightly weaker in practice than the title suggests. As generations came and went, the sons of time- expired auxiliaries, now of citizen status, joined the same locally-based units with which their fathers had served; the rigid distinction between the legions and the auxilia began to fade, though it did not finally disappear until the reIgn of the Emperor Caracalla in AD 2 12. kJlflJS Tillillillj!,flllfl (//I/JlPflif,ll l~ollfi//(~,' Enrolment under normal circumstances, that is to say in time of comparable peace, was a rather similar process to that in use in some armies today. The applicant was ordered to appear before a board of examining officers, men experienced in the selection of the most suitable fighting material. The ideal was a man six pes tall (about five feet ten inches), of good eyesight and a strong, well- proportioned physique, a man of generally good bearing. After passing the board the young man, usually about 18 years old, began a period called probatio, during which he underwent a more stringent medical examination. His character would also be closely scrutinised during this period, and he would no doubt be asked many questions; lazy men, thieves and the extremely immoral were not welcome in the Roman army, and when serious lapses did occur, such as a man being caught asleep on sentry duty, they were dealt with very everely indeed, often with fatal results. Once accepted for service, recruits swore an oath of allegiance to the Emperor, probably before the Eagle of his legion, and was then posted to a special training camp, several examples ofwhich have been identified in Britain. There the raw men were taught to dig ditches, build ramparts and look after their equipment, part of which they had to purchase out of their pay-usually the items which they would have had to buy in civil life as a matter of course. Inescapably, a large pa