Cohors II Vasconum

The Cohors II Vasconum [civium Romanorum] [equitata] ( German 2nd cohort of the Vascones [of the Roman citizens] [partly mounted] ) was a Roman auxiliary unit . It is evidenced by military diplomas and an inscription.

Name components

Vasconum or Basconum : [the] vascones . The soldiers of the cohort were recruited from the Basque people when the unit was established. The variant Basconum can be found on the military diploma of 122 .

civium Romanorum : the Roman citizen or with Roman citizenship. The soldiers of the unit had been granted Roman citizenship at one point for outstanding valor. However, this did not apply to soldiers who were accepted into the unit after this point in time. They received Roman citizenship only with their honorable farewell ( Honesta missio ) after 25 years of service. The addition appears in the military diplomas, but not in the inscription.

equitata : partially mounted. In an inscription dated from 193 to 217 AD, the cohort appears as II Vasconum equit (atae) . ( CIL 2, 1086 )

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

history

The first evidence of unity in the province of Britannia is based on a military diploma dated to AD 105. In the diploma, the cohort is listed as part of the troops (see British Army ) that were stationed in Britain. Another military diploma, dated 122, proves the unity in Britain under the governor Aulus Platorius Nepos .

Locations

The locations of the cohort in Britain are not known.

Commanders

No commanders of the unit are known.

Further cohorts with the designation Cohors II Vasconum

According to Margaret M. Roxan , there was another cohort, the Cohors II Hispana Vasconum , stationed in Mauretania Tingitana .

Web links

Cohors Secundae Vasconorum civium Romanorum. roman-britain.co.uk, accessed February 12, 2017 .

Individual evidence

↑ ^a ^b Margaret M. Roxan: The Auxilia of the Roman Army raised in the Iberian Peninsula Volume 1. (PDF 23.5 MB) discovery.ucl.ac.uk, 1973, pp. 308-310 (305-307) , accessed on February 12, 2017 (English).
^ 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. 157 ( PDF p. 159 table 1 ).

↑ Margaret M. Roxan: The Auxilia of the Roman Army raised in the Iberian Peninsula Volume 2. (PDF 9.8 MB) discovery.ucl.ac.uk, 1973, p. 118 (697) , accessed on February 12, 2017 (English).

↑ Military diplomas of the years 105 ( CIL 16, 51 ) and 122 ( CIL 16, 69 ). Undated military diplomas on which the unit is listed: ( AE 2008, 800 )

[mmr1-1] Margaret M. Roxan: The Auxilia of the Roman Army raised in the Iberian Peninsula Volume 1. (PDF 23.5 MB) discovery.ucl.ac.uk, 1973, pp. 308-310 (305-307) , accessed on February 12, 2017 (English).

[js-2] 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. 157 ( PDF p. 159 table 1 ).

[mmr2-3] Margaret M. Roxan: The Auxilia of the Roman Army raised in the Iberian Peninsula Volume 2. (PDF 9.8 MB) discovery.ucl.ac.uk, 1973, p. 118 (697) , accessed on February 12, 2017 (English).

[MD-4] Military diplomas of the years 105 ( CIL 16, 51 ) and 122 ( CIL 16, 69 ). Undated military diplomas on which the unit is listed: ( AE 2008, 800 )