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Non-legionary Troops in Roman Britain: Part One, The Units

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 November 2011

Michael G. Jarrett
Michael G. Jarrett
Affiliation:
School of History and Archaeology, University of Wales College of Cardiff
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Extract

It is the intention of this paper to establish, insofar as the evidence permits, the auxiliary units in the army of Roman Britain and their forts of garrison at different periods. In Part One all such units are listed and the evidence for movement within Britain is cited, even when that evidence is no more than a single diploma which records presence in Britain. For units which served or may have served in other provinces as well as Britain the non-British evidence is cited selectively: the latest record before transfer to Britain or the first after movement away from the province; and records of vexillations serving in other provinces.

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Articles
Information
Britannia , Volume 25 , November 1994 , pp. 35 - 77
Copyright
Copyright © Michael G. Jarrett 1994. Exclusive Licence to Publish: The Society for the Promotion of Roman Studies

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References

1 P.A. Holder, The Roman Army in Britain (1980), 104-33; cf- review by Dobson, B., Britannia xiv (1983), 362–4.CrossRefGoogle Scholar

2 e.g. Birley, E., ‘Roman garrisons in Wales’, Arch. Camb. cii (1952-1953), 9–19; V.E. Nash-Williams, The Roman Frontier in Wales, 2nd edn by M.G. Jarrett (1969); D.J. Breeze and B.Dobson, The Army of Hadrian's Wall (1972); Hadrian's Wall (3rd edn, 1987), 242-58.Google Scholar

3 M.M. Roxan, RIB 2401, Table 1.

4 Bowman, A.K. and Thomas, J.D., Vindolanda: the Latin Writing-Tablets, Britannia Mono. IV (1983) (=Tab. Vindol.)Google Scholar; eidem, .‘New texts from Vindolanda’, Britannia xviii (1987), 125–42.Google Scholar

5 Swinbank, B., Trans. Archit. Arch. Soc. Durham Northumberland x (1953), 382–403.Google Scholar

6 M.G. Jarrett, Maryport, Cumbria: a Roman Fort and its Garrison (1976), 8-13.

7 As by coh. I (Aelia) Hispanorum mill. at Maryport under Hadrian or coh. I Aelia Dacorum mill. at Birdoswald in the third century. Throughout this paper indicates a cross-reference to a fuller discussion.

8 Richmond, I.A., ‘Roman leaden sealings from Brough-under-Stainmore’, Trans. Cumb. West. Antiq. Arch. Soc. N.S. (=CW2) xxxvi (1936), 104–25; cf. RIB 2411. Coh. VII Thracum may however have been in garrison.Google Scholar

9 E. Birley, op. cit. (note 2); for a development of his argument see M.G. Jarrett in M.G. Jarrett and B. Dobson (eds), Britain and Rome (1966), 27-34. The idea, like so many, originated in G. L. Cheesman, The Auxilia of the Roman Imperial Army (1914), 49-52. For some reservations and problems see M.M. Roxan in D. Planck (ed.), Studien zu den Militärgrenzen Roms III, Vorträge des 13 lnternationalen Limeskongresses (1983), 773-8.

10 O. Seeck (ed.), Notitia Dignitatum (1876); the specifically British sections are Oc. XXVIII, Oc. XXIX and Oc. XL. Cf. R. Goodburn and P. Bartholomew, Aspects of the Notitia Dignitatum (1976).

11 op. cit. (note 3). Note that ‘double-strength’ units (alae and cohortes milliariae) precede units of standard size (quingenariae).

12 CIL XI.969, cf. Birley, E., ‘Alae named after their commanders’, Ancient Society ix (1978), 260–73.Google Scholar

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14 CIL XIII.8270, cf. Birley, op. cit. (note 12).

15 RIB 1337; cf. 1334 (238-44); 1348.

16 RIB 1329; cf. Jarrett, M.G., Britannia ix (1978), 289–92.CrossRefGoogle Scholar

17 RIB 1462 (205-8); 1465 (221); 1466 (221-2); 1467 (223); 1480. ND Oc. XL.38.

18 RIB 2411.82; 2411.83.

19 Britannia x (1979), 346, no. 7 = AE 1979, 388. RIB 2411.81 is a lead seal found at Chesters but not certainly originating there.Google Scholar

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27 op. cit. (note 1), 33.

28 CIL XIII.8306 = ILS 2534; CIL XIII.8668. Cf. Alföldy, op. cit. (note 22), 17-19. For a discussion, with references, see V.A. Maxfield, The Military Decorations of the Roman Army (1981), 226. Arrival in Britain in the Flavian period, and no subsequent transfer to another province, would fit a common pattern.

29 RIB 1433; cf. Birley, E. in Moro, G. (ed.), Beiträge zur älteren europäischen Kulturgeschichte I (1953), 180.Google Scholar

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32 CIL VI.31162; cf. E. Stein, Die kaiserlichen Beamten und Truppenkörper im römischen Deulschland unter dem Prinzipat (1932), 153-4; Jarrett, M.G., ‘Thracian units in the Roman army’, Israel Exploration Journ. xix (1969), 218, no. 8.Google Scholar

33 RIB 606 with JRS lix (1969), 235, no. 4.Google Scholar

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35 RIB 1909 (205-8); JRS li (1961), 194, no. 12 (276-82). The other inscriptions are listed under Birdoswald.Google Scholar

36 ND Oc. XL.44; cf. M.W.C. Hassall, ‘Britain in the Notitia’, in Goodburn and Bartholomew, op. cit. (note 10), 131-6.

37 RIB 2093, 2097; JRS liv (1964), 178, no.6.Google Scholar

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41 RIB 814. Jarrett, op. cit. (note 39), 149; Davies, op. cit. (note 38), 8-9.

42 RIB 976 (213?); 977 (c. 213); 978, 979 (both 222); 968; 980.

43 Davies, op. cit. (note 38), 11, with n. 50.

44 ND Oc. XL.49; for Axelodunum/Uxellodunum see A.L.F. Rivet and C. Smith, The Place-names of Roman Britain (1979), 221, with references.

45 CIL XVI.181, 182; Radnoti, A., Germania xxxix (1961), 93–117; AE 1984, 529; 706.Google Scholar

46 Tab. Vind. 47-50, 117-19; cf. Britannia xviii (1987), 127Google Scholar. Bowman, A. K. and Thomas, J. D., ‘A military strength report from Vindolanda’, JRS lxxxi (1991), 62–73.Google Scholar

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49 Davies, R.W., ‘The training grounds of the Roman cavalry’, Arch. Journ. cxxv (1968), 73–100.Google Scholar

50 ibid.

51 E. Birley, op. cit. (note 30), 61; Davies, opp. cit. in notes 38 and 47. The vexillation is not now thought to be recorded on RMD 25, of 121-5: see AE 1979, 591.

52 RIB 1234 (205-7); I 235 (213), 1215-17, 1230-1, 1241, [1243?].

53 RIB 1083, mentioning Antistius Adventus as governor; 1076 and 1072 are not dated.

54 Casey, P.J., Noel, M., and Wright, J., ‘The Roman fort at Lanchester, Co. Durham: a geophysical survey and discussion of garrisons’. Arch. Journ. cxlix (1992), 69–81.Google Scholar

55 RIB 1272 (c. 213); 1279 (216); 1280 (220); 1281 (225-35); 1262 (238-44); 1263; 1285; 1288.

56 K.A. Steer, ‘Roman and native in North Britain: the Severan reorganisation’, in I. A. Richmond (ed.), Roman and Native in North Britain (1958), 91-111.

57 M.M. Roxan, ‘Pre-Severan auxilia named in the Notitia Dignitatum’, in Goodburn and Bartholomew, op. cit. (note 10), 59-79.

58 CIL XVI.52; the interpretation is not secure. G. Alföldy, Noricum (1974), 258, with references.

59 CIL XVIII.9047 = 20736 = ILS 2767; cf. Jarrett, M.G., ‘An album of the equestrians from North Africa in the emperor's service’, Epig. Stud. IX (1972), 146–232, no. 65.Google Scholar

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61 RIB 2170, from Bar Hill, reading c[ R. ob vi[rtutem etfi]dem. Davies, R.W., PSAS cviii (1976-1977), 170, suggested that the unusually full expression implies very recent grant of citizenship to the unit; an argument for placing it at Bar Hill in the first Antonine period.Google Scholar

62 RIB 830, 837-8, 842-3. For its commanders at Maryport see Jarrett, M.G., ‘Roman officers at Maryport’, CW2 lxv (1965), 115–32; T. Attius Tutor might have been prefect in the early 160s.Google Scholar

63 Breeze, D.J. and Dobson, B., PSAS cii (1969-1970), 120.Google Scholar

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66 Tacitus, Hist. 1.6; 1.59; II.27.

67 Tacitus, Hist. IV.15; IV.19.

68 Birley, op. cit. (note 30), 54-5.

69 CIL XVI passim, cf. Roxan, RMD and RMD 2. Dietz, K., ‘Das älteste Militärdiplom für die Provinz Pannonia Superior’, Bericht des R-G. K. lxv (1984), 159–268, suggests that each milliary cohort was formed by merging two of the earlier quingenary units (see pp. 242-6 in particular); this conveniently explains the cohorts of which we have no record, though the pairings put forward inspire little confidence. If he is correct in this, cohors III Batavorum formed half of coh. I Batavorum mill. c.R., first recorded in Upper Pannonia in 113 (Roxan, RMD 2, 86). I have taken no account of this in my discussion of Cohort 15.Google Scholar

70 Dr Roxan tells me that a diploma for Raetia of 116, naming cohors VIIII Batavorum (milliaria), will be published by Wolff, H. in Ostbairische Grenzmarken xxxv (1993); Wolff apparently suggests that it served in Trajan's second Dacian War before being posted to Raetia.Google Scholar

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73 ibid., 134, referring to Tab. Vind. 2.2.

74 ILS 2738; for a discussion, JRS xxxii (1942), 139.Google Scholar

75 CIL XVI.162, 165; Roxan, RMD 84; cf. Roxan, M.M.. ‘The auxilia of Mauretania Tingitana’, Latomus xxxii (1973), 838–55.Google Scholar

76 As suggested by Holder, op. cit. (note 1), 18.

77 RIB 2313 with Britannia iv (1973), 336–7 = AE 1975. 581.Google Scholar

78 Britannia xi (1980), 405, no. 6, as restored = AE 1980, 603.

79 E. Birley, Roman Britain and the Roman Army (1953), 20.

80 JRS xlvii (1957), 229, no. 14; legionaries certainly undertook building work at Chesters in the early years of Pius, but may not have been in garrison.Google Scholar

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83 RIB 2170. Jarrett, op. cit. (note 9), 38; and Davies, R.W., ‘Roman Scotland and Roman auxiliary units’, PSAS cviii (1976-7), 169–73Google Scholar argue for Period I; Steer, K.A., Arch. Ael.4 xlii (1964), 1–40 for Period II.Google Scholar

84 RIB 1091, 1092; 1074 and 1075 are not dated.

85 A.R. Birley, The Fasti of Roman Britain (1981), 123-7, gives references and a fuller discussion than would be appropriate here.

86 RIB 1299-1301; 2411.109 (a lead seal); ND Oc. XL.33.

87 M.M. Roxan at RIB 2401.8, with references. Though unlikely coh. I Morinorum cannot be excluded from consideration.

88 Birley, E., ‘The Beaumont inscription, the Notitia Dignitatum, and the garrison of Hadrian's Wall’, CW2 xxxix (1939), 190–226.Google Scholar

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93 RIB 722; JRS li (1961), 192, no. 4 = AE 1962, 260, amended AE 1970, 327.Google Scholar

94 RIB 730 (197-8); 740 (205-8); 732-4; 741.

95 RIB 1323, with references and discussion.

96 CIL XVI.158; cf. Alfoldy, op. cit. (note 22), 70-1, following Cichorius, Stein and others.

97 Jarrett, op. cit. (note 32), 220, Units 17 and 19, n. 43.

98 CIL XVI. 158; the diploma for 98 is still, alas, unpublished. The record of II Thracum renders improbable Alföldy's suggestion (op. cit. (note 22), 71) that the unit was available to Agricola.

99 ND Oc. XL.50; the discussion of this unit in Jarrett, op. cit. (note 32), should be ignored.

100 W. Wagner, Die Dislokation der römischen Auxiliaformationen (1938); Alföldy, op. cit. (note 22), 73.

101 Birley, E., CW2 lviii (1958), 49.Google Scholar

102 CIL XVI.161, 165, 169?, 170?; Roxan, M.M., ‘The auxilia of Mauretania Tingitana’, Latomus xxxii (1973), 838–55.Google Scholar

103 D.C.A. Shotter, ‘The Roman garrisons at Lancaster’, in Jones, G.D.B. and Shotter, D.C.A., Roman Lancaster, Brigantia Monograph 1 (1988), 212–19.Google Scholar

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106 R.S.O. Tomlin, ‘Numerus supervenientium Petuariensium’, in Wacher, J.S., Excavations at Brough-on-Humber, 1958-61, Rep. Res. Comm. Soc. Antiqs. xxv (1969), 74–5.Google Scholar

107 For the fullest discussion of the British evidence see Stephens, G.R., ‘The metrical inscription from Carvoran, RIB 1791’, Arch. Ael.5 xii (1984), 149–56.Google Scholar

108 PIR21.765. The references to Britain in Satires give strong support to the case.