Cohors III Ituraeorum

The Cohors III Ituraeorum [equitata] ( German  3rd cohort from Ituräa [partly mounted] ) was a Roman auxiliary unit . It is evidenced by military diplomas , inscriptions and papyri .

Name components

• Cohors : The cohort was an infantry unit of the auxiliary troops in the Roman army .

• III : The Roman number stands for the ordinal number, the third ( Latin tertia ). Hence the name of this military unit is pronounced as Cohors tertia ...

• Ituraeorum : from Ituraea . The soldiers of the cohort were recruited in the Iturea region when the unit was established .

• equitata : partially mounted. The unit was a mixed association of infantry and cavalry. The addition appears in an inscription.

Since there is no evidence of the addition of milliaria (1000 men) to the name , the unit was a Cohors quingenaria equitata . The nominal strength of the cohort was 600 men (480 infantry and 120 horsemen), consisting of 6 centuries of infantry with 80 men each and 4 tower cavalry with 30 horsemen each.

history

The cohort was stationed in the province of Aegyptus . It is listed on military diplomas for the years 83 to 206 AD.

The first evidence of unity in the province of Aegyptus is based on a diploma dated 83. In the diploma, the cohort is listed as part of the troops (see Roman Forces in Aegyptus ) that were stationed in the province. Further diplomas, dated from 98/105 to 206, prove unity in the same province.

The last evidence of the cohort is based on a papyrus dated 242/244.

Locations

Cohort locations in Aegyptus may have been:

• Luxor : two inscriptions were found here.
• Oxyrhynchos : various papyri (see Oxyrhynchus Papyri ) were found here, including the P.Oxy papyrus . VII 1022 .

Members of the cohort

The following members of the cohort are known.

Commanders

[] Celsianus (P.Oxy. VII 1022) Αυρελιος Μαθεματικος, a επαρχος Gaius Cornelius Lucretianus , a prefect

C (aius) Oclatius Modestus, a prefect ( CIL 9, 1619 ); he was also prefect of the Cohors II Pannoniorum . M (arcus) Plotius Faustus, a prefect ( AE 1889, 11 ); he was also the tribune of the Cohors I Flavia Canathenorum . Marcus Porcius Marcellus , a prefect

Others

Arrius Iuli [anus], a centurion ( AE 1952, 249 ) Γαιος Ιουλιος Αμεινναιος, a στρατιοτος (soldier)

Ιουλιος, a κεντυριας Ιουλιος Κρισπος, a τππεος (horseman)

Λουκιος, a Decurion Λουκιος Λονγινος

Μαρκος Ανφεστιος Γεμελλος, a στρατιωτης

Papyrus P.Mich. III 164

In the papyrus , which is dated to 242/244, two members of the cohort are listed:

[] efotes Hierax, a Decurio

[A] urelius A [r] pocra [t] ion, a centurion

Papyrus P.Oxy. VII 1022

In the papyrus dated 103, the following members of the cohort are listed:

[] Iulius Secundus, a recruit Avidius Arrian (), a Cornicularius

G. Iulius Maximus, a recruit G. Iulius Saturninus, a recruit

G. Longinus Priscus, a recruit G. Veturius Gemellus, a recruit

M. Antonius Valens, a recruit

In the letter, which was brought by a messenger rider ( singularis ) named Priscus , the governor of Egypt, Gaius Minicius Italus , orders the commander of the cohort, Celsianus , that he admit six recruits, named with identifying features, to the regular role of the unit ( in numeros referri ). The recruits had been drafted by the governor on February 19, 103 ( tirones probatos a me ) and the entry in the regular roll should also be made on this date. The letter was received on February 24, 103 and was received by Avidius Arrian , the Cornicularius of the unit, and then archived in the regimental archive ( tabularium ).

See also

List of Roman auxiliary units

Roman forces in Aegyptus

literature

• John Spaul : Cohors² The evidence for and a short history of the auxiliary infantry units of the Imperial Roman Army , British Archaeological Reports 2000, BAR International Series (Book 841), ISBN 978-1-84171-046-4

Individual evidence

1. ^ Inscription with equitata ( AE 2010, 1747 ).
2. ↑ Military diplomas of the years 83 ( CIL 16, 29 ), 98/105 ( RMD 5, 341 ), 105 ( RMD 1, 9 ), 156/161 ( CIL 16, 184 ), 179 ( RMD 3, 185 ) and 206 ( AE 2012, 1960 ).
3. ^ ^{A b} John Spaul , Cohors², pp. 437, 446-447
4. ^ Jörg Scheuerbrandt : Exercitus. Tasks, organization and command structure of Roman armies during the imperial era. Dissertation, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg im Breisgau 2003/2004, p. 174 Table 16 ( PDF ).
5. ↑ ^{a b} rom.mil.rec.1.20 = HGV ChLA 5 281 = Trismegistos 69888 = michigan.apis.1531. Papyri.info, accessed June 23, 2019 . 
6. ↑ Cornelia Römer : Diploma for a foot soldier from Koptos of March 23, 179 In: Zeitschrift für Papyrologie und Epigraphik , Volume 82 (1990), pp. 137–153, here p. 148 ( PDF ).
7. ^ Inscriptions from Luxor ( AE 2010, 1747 , CIL 3, 59 ).
8. ↑ ^{a b} rom.mil.rec.1.87 = HGV P.Oxy. 7 1022 = Trismegistos 78569. Papyri.info, accessed on June 23, 2019 (English). 
9. ↑ Oliver Stoll : How to get to my regiment? The tirones Asiani - some thoughts on the practice of drafting and commanding recruits in the Roman army. In: E. Dąbrowa (Ed.), Studies on the Greek and Roman Military History. Electrum 14 (Kraków 2008), pp. 95–118, here pp. 101, 108–109 ( online ).