Cohors IV Gallorum (Britannia)
The Cohors IV (or IIII ) Gallorum [Antoniniana] [Probiana] [Severiana Alexandriana] [equitata] ( German 4th cohort of the Gauls [the Antoninian] [the Probian] [the Severian Alexandrian] [partly mounted] ) was a Roman auxiliary unit . It is evidenced by military diplomas and inscriptions.
Name components
- Gallorum : the Gaul . The soldiers of the cohort were recruited from the various tribes of the Gauls in the Roman province of Gallia Lugdunensis when the unit was established .
- Antoniniana : the Antoninian. An honorific designation that refers to either Caracalla (211-217) or Elagabal (218-222). The addition is suspected in the inscription (RIB 1686) at a point that was subsequently chiseled out.
- Probiana : the probian. An honorary title that refers to Probus (276–280). The addition appears in the inscription (RIB 1710).
- Severiana Alexandriana : the Severian Alexandrian. An honorary title that refers to Severus Alexander (222-235). The addition is suspected in the inscriptions (RIB 1686, 1706) in places that were subsequently chiseled out.
- equitata : partially mounted. The unit was a mixed association of infantry and cavalry. The addition occurs in the inscriptions (RIB 1227, 1979).
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 Britannia . It is listed on military diplomas for the years AD 98-178.
The first evidence of unity in Britannia is based on a diploma dated 98. In the diploma, the cohort is listed as part of the troops (see Roman Forces in Britannia ) that were stationed in the province. Other diplomas, dated 122 to 178, prove unity in the same province.
The unit is mentioned for the last time in the Notitia dignitatum with the designation Cohors quarta Gallorum for the location Vindolanda . It was part of the troops under the command of the Dux Britanniarum under the direction of a tribune .
Locations
Cohort locations in Britain may have been:
- Bremenium ( High Rochester ): The building inscription ( AE 1983, 641 ) proves the presence of a vexillation of the cohort together with a vexillation of the Cohors II Nerviorum in Bremenium.
- Camboglanna (Castlesteads): The inscriptions (RIB 1979, 1980) were found here.
- Lagentium ( Castleford )
- Castlehill: The inscription (RIB 2195) was found here.
- Habitancum (Risingham): The inscriptions (RIB 1227, 1249) were found here.
- Templeborough: Two headstones (RIB 619, 620) and bricks with stamps like C IIII G were found here.
- Vindolanda (Chesterholm): Inscriptions document the presence of the cohort in Vindolanda for the years 213 to 276/282. In addition, the unit is listed in the Notitia dignitatum for that location.
The first location in Britain is likely to have been Castleford, followed by Templeborough, where the cohort was presumably stationed during Trajan's reign . Under Hadrian the unit was probably in Castlesteads on Hadrian's Wall . Under Antoninus Pius , the cohort may have been stationed in Castlehill on Antoninus Wall . From the late 2nd century to the beginning of the 3rd century the unit was believed to be in Risingham, north of Hadrian's Wall. The last known location of the cohort is Vindolanda.
Members of the cohort
The following members of the cohort are known.
Commanders
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Others
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Further cohorts with the designation Cohors IV Gallorum
There were three other cohorts with this designation:
- the Cohors IV Gallorum (Mauretania Tingitana) . She is documented by military diplomas from 88 to 161 and was stationed in Mauretania Tingitana .
- the Cohors IV Gallorum (Moesia) . She is documented by diplomas from 75 to 153 and was stationed in Moesia inferior , Thracia , Cilicia and Syria .
- the Cohors IV Gallorum (Raetia) . It is documented by diplomas from 86 to 167/168 and was stationed in Raetia .
See also
Web links
- 2271 - Cohors IV Gallorum. Roman Inscriptions of Britain (RIB), accessed October 17, 2017 .
Remarks
- ↑ The scenario given here follows the explanations of Farkas István Gergő and Anthony R. Birley . It assumes that the Cohors IV Gallorum (Britannia) was continuously stationed in the province of Britannia and that the Cohors IV Gallorum (Moesia) stationed in the provinces of Moesia Inferior and Thracia is an independent unit. John Spaul, however, assumes that this is a single unit.
Individual evidence
- ^ A b c Anthony R. Birley : Cives Galli de (ae) Galliae concordesque Britanni: a Dedication at Vindolanda In: L'antiquité classique . In: www.persee.fr (Ed.): Tome . tape 77 , 2008, p. 175–176 , doi : 10.3406 / antiq.2008.3718 (English, persee.fr ).
- ^ A b c 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 , Pp. 151-152, 163-165
- ^ 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 Table 1 ( PDF p. 159 ).
- ↑ Military diplomas of the years 98 ( ZPE-189-233 ), 122 ( CIL 16, 69 ), 127 ( RMD 4, 240 , ZPE-162-225 ), 130/131 ( ZPE-156-246 ), 145 ( CIL 16 , 93 ), 158 ( RMD 5, 420 ) and 178 ( RMD 3, 184 , RMD 4, 293 , RMD 4, 294 , ZPE-156-254 ).
- ^ Notitia dignitatum in partibus Occidentis XL ( online ).
- ^ Paul A. Holder: A Roman Military Diploma from Ravenglass, Cumbria. In: Bulletin of the John Rylands Library. Volume 79, number 1 (1997), pp. 3–42, here p. 18 ( PDF p. 16 ).