Contarii

The Contarii ( singular : Contarius ) were riders of the Roman auxiliary troops who were armed with a 3–4 m long lance, the Contus .

The Contarii held the lance across the horse's withers in both hands, not protected by a shield. At first they did not wear heavy armor, but they did represent a step in the development of armored cavalry ( cataphracts ) .

In pursuit of fleeing enemy infantry, the shock lance was held with both hands on one side of the horse. The fleeing enemy was stabbed in the back of the knees or calves to prevent him from fleeing any further. The reliefs show that the riders did not have a shield with them.

The Contarii had their own units , such as the Ala I Ulpia Contariorum, since the Trajan period .

See also

• List of ranks and branches of service in the Roman army

literature

• John W. Eadie: The development of Roman mailed cavalry. In: Journal of Roman Studies . Vol. 57, No. 1/2, 1961, pp. 167-173.
• JB Campbell: Contarii. In: The New Pauly (DNP). Volume 3, Metzler, Stuttgart 1997, ISBN 3-476-01473-8 , column 153.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Michael P. Speidel : Hadrian's Lancers In: Antiquités africaines Volume 42 (2006), pp. 117–123, here pp. 118–119 ( online ).