Roman legion. Last legion

Of the 30 legions that were part of the Roman army of the era of principate, 19 still existed in the era of late antiquity. In the West of the Roman Empire, the regular army disappeared at the end of the 5th century. In the East, the legions were crushed, reduced in numbers and diluted with new military units, but continued to exist. What Roman legions remained in service by the 6th – 7th centuries, and what kind of legion mentioned in the inscription from 635 was the last of them?

Searches in the West

Jesus in military vestments, characteristic of the images of emperors, mosaic of the basilica of San Apollinare, Ravenna, 494-519.

The theme of the “last Roman legion” today is in demand by popular culture. Films are being made on this subject, books are being written and discussions are being held on the net, both among professionals and amateurs. In 2007, the film "The Last Legion" was shot in the UK, in 2010 in the USA - the film "Centurion", and in 2011, the Americans shot the film "Eagle of the Legion IX". These and some other films are united by a plot related to the decline of the Roman Empire and the search for the “last legion”.

There are many candidates for the “last legions”, and the authors of the relevant texts rarely take the trouble to confirm their point of view by pointing to the sources. Meanwhile, this problem is more complicated than it seems at first glance, since it is linked to the question of the fate of the ancient military organization, its structures, forms, chronological and territorial boundaries, continuity or the breaking of the tradition associated with the transition from antiquity to the Middle Ages.

   4th century Roman swords, Nidam, Denmark

The most important source of our knowledge of the late Roman army organization is Notitia dignitatum, or “Schedule of posts” - an official document created in the office of the Master of Posts ( magister officiorum), and containing a description of the structure of the military command, as well as the location of the troops.

The text of the document is complex and discovers the signs of successive changes to it. The drafters sought to bring it into line with a constantly changing military organization, so there is no unified dating of the document. It seems to modern scholars that the eastern half of the document dates from about 400, after which no changes were made to the document. The western half also reflects later changes, the time of its compilation dates from about 425.

   A thumbnail containing insignia magister officiorum from a richly illustrated codex Notitia dignitatum, XVI century All surviving copies of the document date back to the illuminated codex of the 11th century, which, in turn, comes from the original of the 5th century.

The picture of the military forces that the Roman Empire had at that time was impressive. In the West, the total number of troops reached 240,000, of which 130,000 were part of the border guard ( limitanei), and 110,000 were a field army ( comitatenses) The most powerful militarily was the force grouping, located along the borders on the Upper Danube. She included 117 troops. The Italian army consisted of 44 detachments, the Gallic army - 58, in Britain there were 46 detachments, in Illyria - 22, in Spain - 16, in Africa - 36 detachments.

True, researchers note a progressive decline in the quality of troops, which was associated with a narrowing of the recruitment base. Large losses of the field army at the beginning of the 5th century the government tried to compensate, on the one hand, by transferring border detachments into it, and on the other, by hiring barbarians for their big money with their own leaders as commanders. The result of these dubious measures was a further weakening of the defense of the empire, which was constantly attacked.

   Modern reconstruction of the Roman warrior of the late IV century. The warrior is dressed in a scaly shell and a luxuriously decorated helmet, wearing leggings on his feet. His armament consists of a spear and a sword, which is worn in a scabbard, suspended from a harness belt on his left side. The round shield with an iron ombon has a convex shape and is decorated with a coat of arms on the front side

The last half century of its existence, the Western Roman Empire has literally been bleeding. As early as 407, her troops were withdrawn from Britain, and the defense of the province was placed on the shoulders of the federal allies. In 455, the Vandals captured Africa, destroying or dissolving the remains of the Roman troops remaining here. In 457, after the death of Emperor Majorian, the Visigoths occupied Spain and southern Gaul.

The remnants of the Gallic army continued to stay in Belgik until, in 486, the Franks king Clovis defeated them and killed the last commander of Siagria. The army of Illyria lasted until the death of Yulia Nepot, who ruled in Dalmatia in 480. The confusion that prevailed at that time in the border lands on the Upper Danube is evidenced by Eugippius, the author of The Life of St. Severin. In 472, the soldiers of the IX Batavian cohort, standing in Passau, who had not received a salary for years, sent several people to Italy. No one else heard anything about them until their bodies sailed down the river. The soldiers dispersed in different directions.

“As long as the Roman Empire stood firmly, the soldiers of many cities, guarding the borders, lived at the expense of state salaries. But when this order of things ceased, military units disappeared along with the border ”(Eugip. Sev., XX).

The situation in the East

The Eastern Roman Empire was in a relatively better position. The pressure of enemies on its borders was less, and the government had a large amount of internal reserves - both financial and human. There was also a decrease in the base for military recruitment, however, unlike the Western Roman Empire, the involvement of barbarians for military service was practiced in moderation, and the basis of the army was always empire subjects. Among them, special significance belonged to immigrants from the Balkan provinces and natives of Asia Minor.

According to the data Notitia dignitatumThe army of the Eastern Roman Empire consisted of 100,000 field army warriors ( comitatenses) and 250,000 soldiers of the border troops ( limitanei) Field armies were divided into five equivalent groups, two of which were under the command of the presidential masters ( magister presentalis) were located near the capital and made up a strategic reserve (72 detachments), and the rest were under the command of the corresponding masters of Illyria (26 detachments), Thrace (29 detachments) and the East (31 detachments). The largest group of border troops was located along the Danube and numbered 65,000 soldiers, the rest were guarded along the Persian border in Egypt.

   VI century lamellar helmet, consisting of iron plates fastened with belts. Belonged to a Byzantine warrior or federation, Bulgaria

Roman army of the 5th – 6th centuries retained significant continuity with respect to the military structures of the classical era. The troops were divided into infantry and cavalry, and the importance of the latter increased significantly during the reforms of the last decades of the 4th century. The infantry continued to consist of legions in which citizens served, and auxiliary units in which stateless persons were recruited. Of the 174 legions listed in Notitia dignitatum, 19 ascended to the units formed by Augustus and his closest successors in the 1st century. AD The rest were created from the number of vexillations selected from them or recruited again in the second half of the 3rd - beginning of the 4th centuries.

In structure and size, the differences between the old and new legions were minimal - both of them were units with about 1000 members. The structure of auxiliary units was more varied. These included first auxilia ( auxilii), recruited from among the Romanized provincials; secondly allies ( socii) from among friendly empires of peoples; Third, the federals ( foederati), recruited under the contract for a certain period.

During the almost continuous wars of the 5th – 6th centuries. detachments were often crushed, transferred from place to place, some of them died, others were created anew. The border units were recruited into the marching armies, and upon completion of the assignment, they were either returned back or transferred to a new place. For example, the soldiers of the Third Italian Legion around 400 were distributed among the garrisons of five Danube fortresses, and in addition, they were part of the field army. The Second Italian Legion at the same time defended three border fortifications, including the Lavriac fortress on the upper Danube, where the headquarters of the prefect of the legion was located, and at the same time was part of the marching army stationed in Africa.

III Diocletian's legion was part of the army of the master of Thrace, another 4 detachments, bearing the same name, were in Egypt and Thebaid. The Norik Legion was fragmented into two parts. The headquarters of the V Macedonian Legion was located in Esk in Coastal Dacia, and some of its units were deployed in other settlements of the same province (in Varinian, Cebrus and Sucidava). Finally, another legion of the same name stood in the Nile Delta at Memphis.

   Roman banner of the 4th century from Egypt, State Museum of Fine Arts. A. S. Pushkina, Moscow

As a result of these changes, the number of units became different, the remaining names did not always correspond to the nominal structure and number. Already in the VI century. former unit names began to go out of use, being replaced by new ones. So, to designate the regular part, the term αριθμος   ("Arithmos", number, cf. lat. numerus   same value) or καθαλογος   ("Catalog" list). To designate a military unit in general, regardless of its structure and strength, the word βανδον   (“Bandon”, banner, cf. bandum   same value) as well ταγμα   ("Tagma", detachment). The latter term was especially popular with military theorists.

Such usage creates serious problems in identifying individual parts. So, we do not know for sure whether the warriors of the arithm of Theodosiakov ( στρατιώτης αριθμοθ των καθοσιωμένων Θεοδοσιακων ), known from the texts of papyrus VI-VII centuries. from Nessana to Palestine, by the Legion of the Ballistar Feodosiakov, according to the list Notitia dignitatum   who were subordinate to the master of the East, as A. Kh. M. Jones believed, or are a unit unknown by other sources numerus theodosiacus, according to B. Isaac. We also do not know whether the last name can be correlated with numerus theodosiacus   as part of the Roman garrison at the beginning of the 7th century, or we are talking here about completely different units.

Searches narrower

Epigraphic documents, especially Egyptian papyruses, make it possible to partially find out which military units were part of the Byzantine army of the 6th century, and to distinguish from their number those that originate from the old legions. The first place on this list should be given to the V Macedonian Legion, whose soldiers were part of the provincial garrison from at least the 3rd century on. Camp V of the Macedonian Legion, according to Notitia dignitatum, was in Memphis. The presence of the legion here during the fifth century. attested to by a number of papyri that mention λεγιώνος πέμπτης Μακεδονικης των εν νμφε; tribunus quintanorum; πέμπτης Μακεδονίκης.

Papyrus mentioning the vicar of the soldiers of the Macedonians and Scythians ( βικαρίου των στρατιωτων Σκυθων και των Μακεδόνων ), indicates that in the middle of the VI century. the legion was still in Egypt, but may have been transferred from Memphis to Antinople in Thebaid. If the name mentioned in papyrus Μακεδόνωι correlated with the V Macedonian legion then name Σκυθωι   belongs to the soldiers or IV Scythian legion, whose headquarters at the beginning of the V century. housed in Ores in Syria, or the eponymous Palatine Legion, which was under the command of the second presidential master. “Valiant Scythians” were mentioned several times in Egyptian papyrus in the second half of the 6th century.

Compared with the information on the old legions, the data on the new legions formed by Diocletian and his closest successors are somewhat more numerous. Of the six Palatine legions stationed according to Notitia dignitatum   in Egypt, the papyrus from Arsinoe, dating back to 531, brought to us the name of “Valiant Dacians,” στρατιώτης αριθμου των γενναιοτάτων Δακων , co-called previously known legion of the Dacians. In the same document, we find a mention of the Legion of Transtigritans ( στρατιώτης αριθμου των καθωσιωμένων Τρανστιγριτανων ), previously under the command of the military master of the East. Transtigritans are also found in other Egyptian papyruses from 406–538.

Somewhat apart is a large group of papyrus from Siena on the southern border of Egypt, mentioning a certain military detachment, which stood here as a garrison in the 580s. In some papyri, the squad is named λεγεωνος , which allows us to correlate it with the Maximian I Legion or Milites Miliarenseslisted in Notitia dignitatum   in the list of legions stationed as the garrison of Siena.

Outside of Egypt, information on the composition of the Byzantine army of the VI century. not so numerous. One such evidence is the story of Theophylact Simocatta about the battle of Salahon in Asia Minor in 586, in which the detachment of Kvartoparfyan took Κουαρτοπάρθων ) Under this name, undoubtedly, the IV Parthian Legion is represented, which Notitia dignitatum   placed in Circusesia on the Euphrates. By the time of the events described, the legion had already been transferred to Syria, and its headquarters was in Beroe.

Even more recent data is provided by the hagiographic source, The Life of the Forty Martyrs from Gaza. Describing the capture of the city by the Arabs in 635, the author mentions the Skif and Voluntari soldiers who were in the garrison. The first names are to the Scythians of the previously considered Egyptian papyri and relate either to the soldiers of the IV Scythian legion from Oresa, or to the corresponding Palatine legion. The second, in turn, is the VIII Voluntariy cohort, listed by the author Notitia dignitatum   as part of the garrison of Arabia.

   Citadel defense, woodcarving, Egypt, V c. Roman warriors on the relief wear chain mail with a long hem and sleeves to the elbow, helmets with a hair sultan and round shields. The images on the shields resemble thumbnails from Notitia Dignitatum. The attackers are armored riders, possibly Persians

Finally, the latest source at present is a building inscription dated 635 from Heliopolis (now Baalbek, located in eastern Lebanon). The text of the inscription mentions the Macedonian, who stood in the city as a garrison and were engaged in the renovation of fortifications. Most likely, these warriors belonged to the V Macedonian legion from Egypt.

Thus, according to the surviving written sources, it was the V Macedonian Legion that at that time was the oldest detachment of the Byzantine army, which maintained continuity with respect to the units of the army of the united empire. He fully deserves the right to be considered the "last Roman legion."

Literature:

1. Zuckerman C. Comtes et ducs en Egypte autor de l’an 400 et la date de la Notitia Dignitatum Orientis. // Antiquite tardive, 1998
2. Shuvalov P.V. The Secret of Justinian's Army. East Roman Army in 491–641 - St. Petersburg: Petersburg Oriental Studies.
3. Thompson E.A. Romans and Barbarians. The fall of the Western Empire. SPb., 2003.
4. Jones A.H. M. The death of the ancient world. - Rostov-on-Don: Phoenix, 1997.
5. Glushanin E.P. 1986. The border army of Byzantium IV century. / Byzantine Temporary, 1986.V.43.
6. Dixon K. R., Southern P. The Late Roman Army. - London, 1996.
7. Shuvalov P.V. The Secret of Justinian's Army. East Roman Army in 491 - 641 years. - St. Petersburg: Petersburg Oriental Studies.
8. 12. Isaac B. 1992. The Limits of Empire. The Roman Army in the East. - Oxford, 1992 .-- P.209. Negev A. The Architecture of Mampsis. - Tel Aviv, 1988. - P.1–2.
9. Borodin O. R. The evolution of troops in Byzantine Italy in the VI – VIII centuries. (military-organizational aspect). // Byzantine time-book, 1986, v. 46.P. 125.
10. Grusheva A.G. Nessan papyrus. The main problems of the socio-economic and political history of southern Palestine IV-VII centuries. // Orthodox Palestinian Collection 1998, n. 96 (33).
11. Haldon, J.F. Administrative Continuities a Not. Dig. Structural Transformations in East Roman Military Organization ca. 580-640 / L’Armee romaine et les barbares du 4e au 7e siecle. Colloque du CNRS. // Ed. M. Kazanski. - Paris, 1993 .-- P.46, n. 37.
12. Inscriptions grecques et latines de la Syrie / Ed. J.-P. Rey-Coquais. - Paris, 1967. - T.6, n. 2828.

The Legion consisted of 5-6 thousand (in the later periods of 4,320) foot soldiers and several hundred horsemen. Each legion had its own number and name. According to the surviving written sources, approximately 50 different legions were identified, although it is believed that their number in each historical period did not exceed twenty eight, but if necessary it could be increased.

At the head of the legion in the period of the Republic stood the military stands, in the period of the Empire - the legate.

Legion of the Roman Kings

Originally legion   called the entire Roman army, which was a militia of about 3 thousand infantry and 300 horsemen of the propertied people who gathered only during the war or for military training.

Thus, the military power of the curia and the community as a whole was made dependent on the natural reproduction of the male population. In the early tsarist period, when the Roman community had not yet reached its demographic limits and was open to accepting new genera from neighboring conquered tribes, these negative aspects were still hidden. But in the VII century. BC e., as follows from the written tradition, the formation of new curiae and the relatively easy adoption of new genera into existing ones disappear, and soon the inhibitory role of the chicken principle of army formation was especially pronounced during the clash of the Romans at the end of the 7th and 6th centuries. BC e. with such a strong people as the Etruscans.

In the VIII century BC. e. warriors fought on foot, and their weapons were spears, darts, swords, daggers and axes. Only the richest could afford armor, most often limited to a helmet and a small plate that covered only the chest.

In the VII-VI century BC. e. the Roman army was supposedly a typical Etruscan army (since the Romans were ruled by the Etruscans and the army included representatives of the Romans, Etruscans (forming the phalanx) and Latins (fighting, out of habit, in a free formation). The Etruscan-Roman army consisted of 40 centuries of hoplites (I rank), which were armed according to the Greek model, 10 centuries of spearmen with medium armament (II category), armed with an Italian model with a spear and a sword, and also with a helmet, leggings and Italian shield (scutum): 10 centuri of lightly armed spearmen (III category), who had a spear, sword, helmet and scutum; 10 centuries of skirmishers (IV category) who owned a spear, dart and scutum, and, finally, 15 centuries of slingers (V category). The size of the centuries depended on of what size an army was needed in. The army of veterans who made up the internal garrison was built in the same way.

Reform of Servius Tullius (VI century BC)

Organization: property qualification and age division (the older ones were in reserves and garrisons, singled out the so-called “juniors” (18 to 46 years old) and “seniors” (older than 46 years old), general military duty for citizens, the highest command - two military tribune.

Tactics: basic phalanx construction with cavalry on the flanks and light infantry out of action

• I category (property of more than 100 thousand aces) - Warriors of this category formed 80 centuries and had to have a shell (lorica), helmet (galea), greaves (ocrea), a round shield like clipeus, and from an offensive weapon (tela) - a spear (hasta) and a sword (gladius or mucro). Such full armament as a whole corresponds to the type of so-called hoplite equipment. Warriors of the 1st category stood in the phalanx in the front row.
• II category (property of more than 75 thousand aces) - Warriors of this category formed 20 centuries and should have a helmet (galea), greaves (ocrea), shield (scutum), sword (gladius) and spear (hasta). Historians give these fighters a place in the second row of troops.
• III category (property of more than 50 thousand aces) - Warriors of this category formed 20 centuries and should have a helmet, shield, sword and spear. In the ranks, they respectively occupied the 3rd row.
• IV category (property of more than 25 thousand aces) - Warriors of this category formed 20 centuries and should have a shield (scutum), a sword (gladius or mucro), as well as two spears (long hasta and throwing dart verrutum). Warriors of the 4th category occupied the last line in the battle, and also, according to some reports, covered the legion in case of withdrawal.
• V category (property of more than 11 thousand assets) - Warriors of this category formed 30 centuries and should have a sling. They were out of order and played a supporting role.

Centuries of various ranks were undoubtedly of different sizes.

Legion of the Early Republic

Legionnaire in the campaign. Reconstruction. Legionnaire fully armed; the helmet hangs on a special hook attached to the shell. On a stick (furca) a legionnaire carries luggage consisting of a chest, a net for provisions, a pot with a spoon and fur for water. In the event of an alarm, luggage could be dropped immediately

In a certain period of time (possibly in the early period of the Roman Republic, which was headed by two consuls), the legion (Roman army) was divided into two separate legions, each of which was subordinate to one of the consuls.

In the early years of the Roman Republic, military operations were mainly armed raids, and therefore it is not known whether the full combat power of the legion was used during the military operations.

The wars waged by the Roman Republic became more frequent and took the character of planned military operations. In the IV century BC e. Two legions were subordinate to each consul, and their total number increased to four. If necessary, a military campaign recruited additional legions.

From 331 BC e. at the head of each legion stood the military stands. The internal structure of the legion became more complicated, the battle order from the classical phalanx was changed to manipulative, and at the same time the tactics of the combat use of the legions were improved.

From the beginning of the 4th century BC e. the soldiers were given a small salary. The Legion began to number 3,000 heavy infantry (eng.)russian   (principles, gastati, triarii), 1,200 light infantry (velites) and 300 cavalry people.

Organization: originally 4,200 infantry in 30 tactical units - manipulations (consisting of 2 centuries of 60-120 warriors each), brought together in 10 cohorts, and 300 horsemen in 10 tours.

Tactics: the transition from the phalanx to the manipulative construction (a clear division into 3 lines and subunits-maniples in a row at intervals). The battle formation of the legion consisted of 3 lines of 10 maniples in each.

• gastati - 1200 people \u003d 10 maniples \u003d 20 centuries of 60 people - 1 row;
• principles - 1200 people \u003d 10 maniples \u003d 20 centuries of 60 people -2 row;
• triaries - 600 people \u003d 10 maniples \u003d 20 centuries of 30 people - 3 row;
• light infantry - velita, out of order (1200 people);
• cavalry on the flanks.

By the beginning of the 2nd Punic War (218 BC -201 BC), the number of infantry was increased to 5000-5200 by increasing the number of individual centuries.

In addition, detachments of allied forces were attached to the legion (ala, from alae   - wings, located on the flanks) under the command of the prefects, performing the functions of the stands of the legion. As a rule, the number of allied units was slightly larger than the size of the legion. Auxiliary units (also called auxiliaries) continued to be part of the army.

In connection with the ruin of the free peasantry, military service was abolished, salaries were increased for soldiers, and the Roman army became a professional mercenary army.

Legion Composition

In the era of the Republic, the following units were part of the legion:

Cavalry: The heavy cavalry (equities) initially represented the most prestigious branch of the army, where wealthy Roman youth could demonstrate their prowess and skill, thereby laying the foundations of their future political career. The cavalryman himself bought weapons and equipment - a round shield, helmet, armor, sword and spears. The Legion numbered approximately 300 cavalrymen, divided into divisions (turmies) of 30 people under the command of the decurion. In addition to heavy cavalry, there was also light cavalry, which was recruited from less affluent citizens and young wealthy citizens who were not suitable for age in gastati   or riders.

Light infantry (velita). Velitaarmed with darts and swords, did not have a strictly defined place and destination in battle order. They were used where necessary.

Heavy infantry. The main combat unit of the legion. It consisted of legionnaire citizens who could afford the equipment, which included a bronze helmet, shield, armor, and a short spear - a pilum dart. Gladius (short sword) is a favorite weapon. The heavy infantry was divided according to the combat experience of the legionnaires (before the reforms of Guy Maria, who abolished the division of the infantry into classes and turned the legions into a professional army) into three lines of battle formation:

Gastastia (hastatus) - the youngest - 1 row Principles (princeps) - warriors in the prime of life (25-35 years) - 2 row Triarias (triarius) - veterans - in the last row; they were used in battle only in the most desperate and difficult situations.

Each of the three lines was divided into tactical subunits-maniples of 60-120 soldiers, who made up 2 centuries, under the command of the eldest of two centurions (centurion II rank). Century was nominally composed of 100 warriors, but in reality it could count up to 60 people, especially in manipulations triaries.

In battle, the maniples were usually staggered, which was called quincunx. Manipulators of principles   covered the gap between gastatami, and those were manipulated triaries. Chess order is an early structure of building a legion. After the II century BC, a continuous construction prevails, without gaps.

Legion of the late republic

Exit from the camp (reconstruction)

Organization: as a result of the reform of Guy Maria cohorts   replace maniples as the main tactical unit of the legion. The cohort consists of 6 centuries. There were also specialized (e.g. firefighters) cohorts.

The Legion consisted of approximately 4,800 legionnaires and a significant number of support staff, servants and slaves. The legion could include up to 6,000 soldiers, although at times their number was reduced to 1,000 in order to deprive the willful military leaders of support. The legions of Julius Caesar totaled approximately 3300 - 3600 people.

Each legion was given auxiliary troops   almost the same number - this included numerous experts - sappers, scouts, doctors, standard bearers (the Roman army did not have a flag in the modern sense of the word - they were replaced by legion emblems in the form of eagles on a long pole), secretaries, personnel of throwing guns and siege towers, various service units and units from non-citizens (Roman citizenship was granted to them upon dismissal) - light cavalry, light infantry, workers in weapons workshops.

The political role of the legions

In the era of the late Republic and Empire, the legions began to play a serious political role. It is no accident that August, after the most severe defeat of the Romans in the Teutoburg Forest (9 A.D.), exclaimed, clutching his head, “Quintilius Var, return my legions to me.” They could provide the future emperor with the seizure and retention of power in Rome - or, conversely, deprive him of any hope. Trying to weaken the possible threat of the use of the military power of the legions by applicants for power in Rome, the governors of the provinces were forbidden to leave their province together with their subordinate troops. When Julius Caesar crossed the Rubicon and brought his troops to Italy, this caused a crisis in Rome.

The legions also played a huge role in the romanization of the barbarian population. Being located on the borders of the Empire, they attracted merchants from the center, and thus there was a cultural exchange between the Roman world and the barbarian.

Imperial legions

Under Emperor Augustus, the number of legions that had grown significantly during the civil wars was reduced to 25 by the end of his reign.

The transition in the era of the empire to the creation of more numerous legions of permanent composition was mainly due to internal reasons - the desire to ensure fidelity of the legions to the emperor, and not military leaders. The names of the legions came from the names of the provinces in which they were created (Italian, Macedonian).

Legion began to lead the legate ( legatus) - usually it was a senator who held this position for three years. Six military stands were directly subordinate to him - five staff officers and the sixth candidate for senators.

Legion Officers

Senior officers

• Legate of Augustus propretor (Legatus Augusti pro praetore) : Commander of two or more legions. The imperial legate also served as governor of the province in which the legions he commanded were housed. From the senatorial estate, the Imperial Legate was appointed by the emperor himself and usually held office for 3 or 4 years.

• Legion of the Legion (Legatus Legionis) : Commander of the Legion. The emperor usually appointed a former tribune to this post for three to four years, but the legate could hold his post for much longer. In the provinces where the legion was quartered, the legate was also the governor. Where there were several legions, each of them had its own legate, and all of them were under the general command of the governor of the province.

• Tribune Laticlavius (Tribunus Laticlavius) : This tribune was appointed to the legion by the emperor or the senate. Usually he was young and had less experience than the five military stands (Tribuni Angusticlavii - see below), nevertheless, his position was the second oldest in the legion, immediately after the legate. The name of the post comes from the word " laticlava”, Which means two broad purple stripes on the tunic laid to senatorial officials.

• Prefect camp (Praefectus Castrorum) : Third oldest legion post. Usually he was occupied by a promoted veteran soldier who had previously held the post of one of the centurions.