Cohors I Musulamiorum

This article deals with the Cohors I Musulamiorum stationed in the provinces of Syria and Lycia et Pamphylia . For the unit stationed in the province of Mauretania Caesariensis see Cohors I Flavia Musulamiorum .

The Cohors I Musulamiorum [equitata] ( German  1st cohort of the Musulamer [partially mounted] ) was a Roman auxiliary unit . It is evidenced by military diplomas and inscriptions.

Name components

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

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

• Musulamiorum : the Musulamer . When the unit was set up, the soldiers of the cohort were recruited from the North African Musulamer people in the area of Numidia .

• equitata : partially mounted. The unit was a mixed association of infantry and cavalry.

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 provinces of Syria and Lycia et Pamphylia (in that order). It is listed on military diplomas for the years 88-138 AD.

The unit may have been set up as early as AD 41. She was probably already in the province of Syria around 62/63 and possibly also took part in the battles against the Parthians in Armenia under Gnaeus Domitius Corbulo . The first evidence of unity in Syria is based on diplomas dated to 88. In the diplomas, the cohort is listed as part of the troops (see Roman Forces in Syria ) that were stationed in the province. Other diplomas, dated 91, prove unity in the same province. The cohort was probably still in Syria around 113 .

Possibly the unit took part in the Parthian War of Trajan (98-117) and was then stationed under Hadrian (117-138) in Lycia et Pamphylia . The first evidence of unity in the province is based on a diploma dated 138. Lycia et Pamphylia belonged to the Roman provinces in which only one or two auxiliary units were stationed, which took over general police and administrative tasks there. In the diploma, the Cohors I Musulamiorum is listed as the only unit from which soldiers were discharged.

Presumably the cohort took part in the Parthian War of Lucius Verus around 161/166, in which it went down.

Locations

The locations of the cohort are not known.

Members of the cohort

The following members of the cohort are known:

Commanders

C (aius) Pupius Severus, a tribune ( AE 2013, 1643 ). He was also prefect of the Cohors II Lingonum . Γ. Μεστριος Σερουιλιανος (G. Mestrius Servilianus), a χειλιαρχος (ILS 9472) Gresius Firmus , a tribune: he is named on the diploma of 138 as a commander.

L (ucius) Numisius Laetus, a prefect ( AE 1908, 149 ) Marcus Caecilius September : he is named on a diploma of 88 as a commander.

Others

[?], a foot soldier: the diploma of 138 was issued for him. Bithus, a foot soldier: a diploma of 88 ( CIL 16, 35 ) was issued to him.

Γναιος Φιλοπατορος (Cn. Philopator), a στρατιωτης (soldier) and beneficiarius (IGR 3,677) Ρουφος Κορνηλιανος (Rufus Cornelius), a centurion (IGR 3,677)

See also

• List of Roman auxiliary units
• Roman forces in Syria

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

Remarks

1. ↑ The diploma of 138 contains the formulation peditibus et equitib (us) qui militaver (unt) in coh (orte) I Musulamior (um) (foot soldiers and horsemen who served in the cohort).
2. ↑ According to Peter Weiß , the accumulation of military diplomas from the province of Syria for the years 88 and 91 can be explained by the fact that the auxiliary units stationed there were refreshed by new recruits 25 years earlier. Werner Eck and Margaret M. Roxan had previously pointed out the likely connection with the war against the Parthians under Corbulo.
3. ↑ The recipient of the diploma of 138 came from the city of Cyrrhus and was recruited 25 years earlier. According to John Spaul and Julian Bennett, it is therefore obvious that the cohort was in Syria around 113 .
4. ↑ According to Julian Bennett, it can be concluded from the inscription of G. Mestrius Servilianus that he was probably commander of the cohort in Lycia et Pamphylia around 123/125 .

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Military diplomas of the years 88 ( Chiron-2006-252 , Chiron-2006-253 , CIL 16, 35 ), 91 ( Chiron-2006-214 , RMD 4, 214 , ZPE-183-234 ) and 138 ( RMD 3, 161 ).
2. ^ ^{A b c d} John Spaul , Cohors², pp. 466, 472.
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. 172 Table 14 ( PDF ).
4. ↑ Peter Weiß : The auxiliaries of the Syrian army from Domitian to Antoninus Pius. An interim balance after the new military diplomas In: Chiron , Volume 36 (2006), pp. 249-298, here pp. 257-261, 285.
5. ↑ ^{a b c d e} Julian Bennett : The Roman Army in Lycia and Pamphylia , ADALYA X, 2007, pp. 131–151 here pp. 135, 140–141, 148 ( PDF ).