Legio XIIII Gemina

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The Capricorn as the heraldic animal of the Legio XIIII Gemina Martia Victrix, simplified representation
Standard sign ( signum ) of the Legion, replica in the Museum Carnuntinum
Operational area of ​​the Legion under Claudius in Britain
Gravestone of Gnaeus Musius, standard bearer of Legio XIIII
Lead pipe with inscription of Legio XIIII Gemina from Wiesbaden ( Aquae Mattiacorum )
Modern deck of the Roman bridge in Mainz, herein referred to as wood frame structure with segmental arches is shown
Brick stamp in the form of a tabula ansata of the legio XIV Gemina MV , 101–114 AD, found in the cloister of the monastery in Klosterneuburg
Consecration altar from Vienna. Around the year 102 Titus Vettius Rufus, centurion of Legio XIIII Gemina, consecrated this altar to the nymphs .
Aureus minted under Septimius Severus in 193 in honor of the Legion
IMPerator CAEsar Lucius SEPtimius SEVerus PERTinax AVGustus
LEGio XIIII GEMina Martia Victrix

The Legio XIIII Gemina (sometimes Legio XIV Gemina ) was a legion of the Roman army.

In the 1st and 2nd centuries, the Capricorn (mythological figure: half ibex, half fish) and the eagle are documented as legion emblems. Since the 3rd century, only the Capricorn has been used .

Caesar's Legio XIIII

Gallic War

The Legio XIIII may have been set up by Gaius Iulius Caesar in 57 BC in northern Italy during the conquest of Gaul .

In the winter of 54/53 BC The Legion was attacked by the Eburones under Ambiorix in their winter camp near Aduatuca and almost wiped out. Caesar established the Legion in 53 BC. And continued it in 52 BC. In the battle for Alesia .

Civil wars

Then she took part in the civil war against Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus , where she was initially stationed in Spain . In the summer of 49 BC BC she defeated the supporters of Pompey at Ilerda ( Lleida ) with the Legio VI Ferrata and Legio VIIII Hispana .

In 48 BC Caesar used the legion in the battle of Dyrrhachium and probably also in the battle of Pharsalus . Then the Legion was moved to Italy and disbanded. For the Bellum Africum ( African War ) that began with the Battle of Thapsus in 46 BC. Caesar reactivated the Legion's veterans. Then Caesar dissolved the legion around 46/45 BC. BC again.

Octavian's Legio XIIII

Triumvirate and Civil War

Whether Octavian the "old" Legio XIIII in the years 41/40 BC. BC or a "new" Legio XIIII set up is unsafe.

During the triumvirate , Octavian continued the Legion until 36 BC. Against Sextus Pompeius , who had occupied Sicily. During the civil war, the Legion fought until the defeat of Marc Anton in the Battle of Actium in 31 BC. On the side of Octavian.

Julian-Claudian dynasty

Legio XIIII veterans were resettled in Italy near Ateste ( Este ). The unit was filled with legionnaires from the disbanded forces of Marc Anton and merged to Legio XIIII Gemina and relocated to Illyria.

In the year 13 BC The Legio XIIII Gemina and Legio XVI Gallica were moved to the Rhine, in the newly built camp Mogontiacum ( Mainz ).

During the forays into Germania under Augustus, their general Drusus died in 9 BC. After a riding accident. Then the soldiers of Legio XIIII Gemina and Legio XVI Gallica erected a cenotaph , the Drususstein, in his honor in Mainz .

6 AD Gaius Sentius Saturninus led at least eight legions ( Legio VIII Augusta and Legio XV Apollinaris from Pannonia , Legio XX Valeria Victrix from Illyricum , Legio XXI Rapax from Raetia , Legio XIII Gemina , Legio XIIII Gemina and Legio XVI Gallica from Germania superior and an unknown unit) from the south against Marbod , the Marcomann king , while the Legio I Germanica , Legio V Alaudae , Legio XVII , Legio XVIII and Legio XIX Augusta under Tiberius marched north from Carnuntum. That represented half of the total military potential of the Romans at the time. Shortly after the campaign began in the spring of 6, Tiberius broke it off again when he received news of the Pannonian uprising . However, Tiberius signed a friendship treaty with Marbod beforehand in order to concentrate fully on the difficult task in Pannonia.

After Augustus' death in AD 14, it is mentioned in Mogontiacum ( Mainz ) when the Rhine Legions mutinied. However , they were soon calmed down by concessions from Germanicus . Eight legions took part in the Germanicus campaigns in Germania on the right bank of the Rhine from 14 to 16 AD. The legions II Augusta , XIII Gemina , XIIII Gemina and XVI Gallica belonged to the army group of Germanicus, while the I Germanica , V Alaudae , XX Valeria Victrix and XXI Rapax belonged to the army group of Aulus Caecina Severus .

In the years 39/40 Caligula moved the Legio IIII Macedonica for his campaign against the Chatten to Mogontiacum (Mainz) in Germania superior (Upper Germany). The war ended with a victory for Galba , the commander of the Upper Germanic army and later emperor, in the winter of 40/41. At first she probably shared the camp with the Legio XIIII Gemina , which was replaced by the Legio XXII Primigenia in 43 .

An evaluation of the Mainz inscriptions between 13 BC. and AD 43 showed that the members of Legio XIIII Gemina came 79% from Italy, 17 from Gaul and 3% from Austria.

In 42 Aulus Plautius , governor of the province of Pannonia , was entrusted with the invasion of Britain by Emperor Claudius . In 43 he landed with a force of four legions ( Legio II Augusta , Legio VIIII Hispana , Legio XIIII Gemina and Legio XX Valeria Victrix ) and conquered Britannia for the Roman Empire. He became the first governor of the new province .

From 43 to 55 the Legio XIIII Gemina , possibly together with the Legio VIIII Hispana , was stationed in Ratae Corieltavorum (Leicester). According to another research opinion, stationing in Lactodurum (Towcester) from 43 to 48 and in Manduessedum (Mancetter) from 48 to 56 is also possible.

Under the governor Publius Ostorius Scapula (47-52), the Legion was used in campaigns against the Kornen (around 47), Deceangli (48) and Brigantes (49?) Before it was moved to Lincolnshire .

In the 1950s the Legion fought against the Silurians , Ordovicians , and again against the Deceangli. In the late 1950s the Legion was relocated to Viroconium (Wroxeter).

For her role in the suppression of the Boudicca uprising in 61/62 AD she received the honorable surname Martia Victrix ("warlike and victorious"). Veterans of Legions XIIII Gemina Martia Victrix and XX Valeria Victrix were resettled in the destroyed Camulodunum (Colchester) and rebuilt the city.

Shortly after 65 the Legion from Viroconium (Wroxeter) was withdrawn and replaced by the Legio XX Valeria Victrix . It was moved to the Danube around 66/67 for Nero's planned Caucasus campaign against the Parthians . When the governors Gaius Iulius Vindex from Gallia Lugudunensis and Galba from Hispania Tarraconensis were preparing Nero's overthrow in 68 , the emperor set the legion on march to northern Italy.

Four imperial year and Flavian dynasty

In the Year of the Four Emperors 69, the Legion sided with the Emperor Otho . The legion marched with the other Pannonian and Illyrian legions to Italy, but only one vexillation of the XIIII Gemina arrived in time to take part in the first battle of Bedriacum on April 14, 69 . Otho's troops were defeated by Vitellius . Vitellius moved the Legion back to Viroconium (Wroxeter) in Britain. The Legion was not involved in the fighting between Vitellius and Vespasian.

In 68/69 AD a revolt broke out among the allied Batavians under Iulius Civilis in the course of the Roman civil war (year of the four emperors ) , which eventually spread to almost all Rhine-Germanic tribes. All forts north of Mogontiacum were besieged or destroyed.

The Legio XIV Gemina was transferred in 70 to strengthen against the insurgents from Britain to the mainland. Fabius Priscus led the legion against the Nervii and Tungerer in the province of Gallia Belgica , who surrendered. The Legion then marched to Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium and was ultimately also involved in the decisive battle at Vetera (Xanten) in July 70.

After the end of the Batavian uprising, the Legio XIIII Gemina and the Legio I Adiutrix were again stationed in Mogontiacum (Mainz). The old wood-earth warehouse was rebuilt in stone. The aqueduct for the supply of camps, canabae and baths with a daily output of about 6500 m³ was also rebuilt in stone by the legions. Presumably the Legion took part in all campaigns east of the Rhine in the following years.

In Aquae Mattiacorum ( Wiesbaden ) the legions I Adiutrix , XIIII Gemina , XXI Rapax and XXII Primigenia expanded the thermal baths in Flavian times . The leaden water pipes were made by Legio XIIII Gemina . The Legion also expanded the Wiesbaden fort. In Flavian times, vexillations of the Legio XIIII Gemina were stationed in Bingium (Bingen). Corresponding brick stamps on building material were found in Bingerbrück. A Legion brick factory was located in Hockenheim . In Mogontiacum, the Legion was busy with construction work on the Pons Ingeniosa ( Mainz Roman Bridge ). At times the Legion operated brickworks in Rheinzabern ( Tabernae ) and Frankfurt-Nied .

Domitian , lacking in military fame, drew the legions I Adiutrix , XIIII Gemina , XXI Rapax , VIII Augusta , XI Claudia and vexillations of the three British II Augusta , VIIII Hispana and XX Valeria Victrix in Germania superior in AD 83 together. Domitian crossed the Rhine and started the so-called chat wars against the powerful but "restless" chats who lived in the foreland of Mogontiacum (Mainz) in the Taunus and in the Giessen basin. It was probably about a weakening of the chat as the last major trouble spot near the Rhine. Domitian advanced far into the heartland of the Chatten, today's Hesse. With further campaigns, the Romans succeeded in subjugating the Wetterau area in 85 , which was part of Domitian's German policy (reorganization of the border). As a result, the border fortifications of the Taunus and Wetterau limes were built . Domitian took on the victorious surname Germanicus and formed two regular provinces from the areas of the Upper and Lower Germanic armies with propaganda efforts . After the end of the campaign, eight vexillations from the legions of Britain and Upper Germany under Caius Velius Rufus, the Primus Pilus of Legio XII Fulminata , were busy with extensive construction work in the area of ​​the Lingons (northern France).

In 89, the two legions XIIII Gemina and XXI Rapax, stationed together in Mogontiacum, joined the failed uprising of the governor of the province of Germania superior Lucius Antonius Saturninus against Domitian (81-96). But the uprising was put down after just 42 days by the troops of the governor of the province of Germania inferior , Aulus Bucius Lappius Maximus , even before Domitian had moved north with strong associations, including the Praetorians . Maximus burned Saturninus' letters to prevent others from being drawn into them. Domitian had the suppression of the revolt followed by the executions of most of the officers. Allegedly, Saturninus, who lost his life, wanted to come to the aid of Germanic tribes , but they could not cross the thawed Rhine .

Presumably it was the legion's building vexillations that left inscriptions in the castles Augustianis , Altenstadt , Marköbel , Höchst , Klosterneuburg , Gerulata , Höflein and Wagbach in the 1st and 2nd centuries .

The Legion was moved to Pannonia in 92 AD . Initially the Legion was stationed in Mursellae (Petrijevci near Osijek ) and later moved to Ad Flexum ( Mosonmagyaróvár ). There were battles with the Suebi and Sarmatians , which lasted up to the time of Nerva (96-98).

Adoptive Emperor and Antonine Dynasty

The Pannonian legionary camp Brigetio was either during the reign of Emperor Trajan (98-117) or, according to the building inscription recovered in the camp, around 124/128 AD by three vexillations (divisions) from the legions of the XIII Gemina , the XIIII Gemina and the XV Apollinaris erected. This is proven by found brick stamps. In the Dacian Wars (101-106) Trajans probably only took part in vexillations of the Legion. Veterans were resettled in Ulpia Traiana Sarmizegetusa , the capital of the new province of Dacia . After the war, the Legion returned to Vindobona (Vienna), but was moved to Carnuntum at the latest in 114 AD to replace the Legio XV Apollinaris there .

The Legion stayed in Carnuntum for more than three centuries until the end of Roman rule, although vexillations were also used elsewhere. An important civil settlement developed next to the camp, which Hadrian raised to a municipality in 124 .

Vexillations were used by Antoninus Pius (138–161) in North Africa against the Moors and by Lucius Verus (161–169) from 162 to 166 in the Parthian War. During the Marcomann Wars (166–180), Emperor Mark Aurel opened his headquarters in Carnuntum.

In Fort Favianis discovered brick temple mainly in call Vindobona stationed (Vienna) Legio X Gemina and Legio XIV Gemina from Carnuntum , the 150 probably only building vexillations had drafted for the construction of the camp. Perhaps the members of these two legions provided the garrison for a short time during the period of Stone Camp I.

Second year of the four emperors and Severer

After the assassination of Commodus' successor Pertinax in Rome on March 28, 193, Septimius Severus , the governor of Pannonia superior , was proclaimed emperor by the Carnuntum Legion on April 9 of the Second Four-Emperor's Year .

A large part of the Legion followed Septimius to Rome and helped him to the throne against Didius Julianus . A vexillation of the Legion was victorious against Pescennius Niger (193–194), the counter-emperor in the east, at the Cilician Gate and in 194 at the Battle of Issus .

Then she took part in Severus' Parthian campaign, which ended in 198 with the capture of the capital, Ctesiphon . The vexillation returned to Carnuntum in 202. In the last years of his reign, Septimius Severus moved a vexillation to Britain and undertook several campaigns there to preserve the Roman claim to power.

216/217 a vexillation accompanied Caracalla on his campaign against the Parthians and was temporarily stationed in Apamea on the Orontes and Zeugma . Under Caracalla's successor Macrinus , there was finally a three-day battle at Nisibis , in which the Romans were defeated and suffered heavy losses. Then negotiations began, which ended in the spring of 218 with a peace treaty.

Soldiers emperors and late antiquity

Presumably a vexillation took place in the wars of the Emperor Gordian III. (238–244) and / or Philippus Arabs (244–249) against the Sassanids . In 260 the Legion joined the usurper Regalianus (260-261). Then she supported Emperor Gallienus (260-268) against Postumus , the counter-emperor of the Imperium Galliarum , and was honored for her services with the nickname Pia VI Fidelis VI (six times dutiful and faithful). After Gallienus' death, the Legion changed sides again and supported the Gallic Emperor Victorinus (269-271).

In the 3rd century, the legion received the emperor's name several times as a nickname: Under Caracalla (211-217) and / or Elagabal (218-222) Antoniniana , under Severus Alexander (222-235) Severiana , under Gordian III. (238-244) Gordiana , under Philippus Arabs (244-249) Philippiana and under Maximian (286-305) Maximiana .

In the 4th century the Legion also had marines ( militum liburnariorum ) in its ranks. These served on Liburnians (light river patrol ships) to monitor the Danube and were counted among the Limitanei (border troops). The Quartodecimani , a unit ( vexillation ) split off from the Legion, were subordinate to the Magister militum per Thracias as Comitatenses (mobile field army) . In the early 5th century, a prefect only commanded the fifth cohort ( cohortis quintae ) of the legion in their former main camp, Carnuntum . These belonged to the Noric-Pannonian border troops of the Dux Pannoniae Primae et Norici Ripensis . From this time on, the legion's traces are lost.

literature

Web links

Commons : Legio XIIII Gemina  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

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  28. ^ Egon Schallmayer : The Limes: History of a Limit , Beck, Munich 2006, ISBN 978-3-406-48018-8 , pp. 49-52. and Reinhard Wolters : Die Römer in Germanien , CH Beck, Munich 2000, ISBN 3-406-44736-8 , p. 66 ff.
  29. Heinrich Beck , Dieter Geuenich , Heiko Steuer (Ed.): Reallexikon der Germanischen Altertumskunde . Volume 20: Metuonis - Natural Science Methods , de Gruyter, 2002, ISBN 978-3-11-017164-8 , p. 149
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  31. ^ Suetonius : Domitian 6.2 .
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  40. a b Markus Handy: Die Severer und das Heer (Studies on Ancient History, Vol. 10), Antike Verlag, Berlin 2009, ISBN 978-3-938032-25-1 , pp. 119-120.
  41. CIL 3, 4480
  42. Markus Handy: Die Severer und das Heer (Studies on Ancient History, Vol. 10), Antike Verlag, Berlin 2009, ISBN 978-3-938032-25-1 , p. 145.
  43. ^ AE 1948, 79
  44. AE 1976, 540 , AE 2005, 1228
  45. CIL 3, 1911
  46. ^ AE 1905, 242
  47. CIL 3, 11189
  48. Notitia Dignitatum Or. VIII.
  49. Notitia Dignitatum Occ. XXXIV,.