Cohors I Flavia Cilicum

The Cohors I Flavia Cilicum [equitata] ( German  1st cohort the Flavian from Cilicia [partly mounted] ) was a Roman auxiliary unit . It is evidenced by military diplomas , inscriptions and papyri .

Name components

• Flavia : the Flavian. The honorary designation refers to the Flavian emperors Vespasian , Titus or Domitian . Possibly the unit was set up under Vespasian, who abolished the client state Cilicia Tracheia in 74 AD and established a province.

• Cilicum : from Cilicia . The soldiers of the cohort were recruited on the territory of the Roman province of Cilicia when the unit was established .

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

Since there is no evidence of the addition of milliaria (1000 men) to the name , the unit was a Cohors 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 recruitment of the 83 dismissed soldiers must have taken place at 58. When the Cohors I Flavia Cilicum was set up, these soldiers were taken over by other units and formed the core of the new unit.

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 the inscription ( AE 1905, 54 ), which is dated to 217/218.

Locations

Cohort locations in Aegyptus may have been:

• Elephantine
• Mons Claudianus
• Syene
• Thebes
• Wadi Hammamat

Members of the cohort

The following members of the cohort are known.

Commanders

The following commanders had the rank of prefect :

Balbianus ( Papyrus Oxyrhynchus XLI 2978) Blaesius Marianus

Celer Ti. Julius Alexander

In addition, the following centurions are known who were assigned by the Legio II Traiana fortis to command the cohort. Four centurions led the unit in Syene, Furnius Diabus led it in Elephantine. The reason for this was probably that 3 auxiliary units were stationed in Syene and it was considered sufficient if they were led by a single prefect as the site commander.

Furnius Diabus ( AE 1905, 54 ) Statilius Taurus ( CIL 3, 6025 ) T. Aridius Marcellinus ( AE 1896, 41 )

T. Aurelius Restitutus ( AE 1974, 664 ) Valerius Cordus ( AE 1896, 42 )

Others

Aunitus Candidus, a centurion C. Luconius, a horseman ( AE 1956, 54 ) G. Benius Celer

Julius, a centurion Maevius Margellus, a soldier who was transferred to the Cohors I Augusta Lusitanorum in 155 Scaevius, a Decurio ( AE 1956, 54 )

Further cohorts with the designation Cohors I Cilicum

There was another cohort, the Cohors I Cilicum . She is documented by military diplomas from 75 to 157 and was stationed in the province of Moesia .

See also

• List of Roman auxiliary units
• Roman forces in Aegyptus

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c d e f} Julian Bennett: The Regular Roman Auxiliary Regiments Formed from the Provinces of Asia Minor , ANATOLICA XXXVII, 2011, pp. 251-274 here pp. 265-267 ( PDF pp. 15-17 ).
2. ^ ^{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 978-1841710464 , pp. 391, 399– 400
3. ^ 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 p. 176 ).
4. ↑ Military diplomas of the years 83 ( CIL 16, 29 ), 98/105 ( RMD 5, 341 ), 105 ( RMD 1, 9 ), 179 ( RMD 3, 185 ) and 206 ( ZPE-208-237 ).