Roman forces in Aegyptus

The province of Aegyptus around AD 400

The Roman armed forces in Aegyptus ( Latin exercitus Aegyptus ) existed from 30 BC. From the legions and auxiliary troops stationed in the Roman province of Aegyptus .

In the course of the administrative and army reform under Emperor Diocletian , the provinces of the Roman Empire were redistributed and combined into twelve dioceses (see list of Roman provinces from Diocletian ). According to the Notitia Dignitatum , the Dioecesis Aegypti consisted of the provinces Aegyptus , Arcadia , Augustamnica , Thebais , Libya inferior and Libya superior .

Legions

The following legions (or parts of them) were stationed in the province of Aegyptus at the following locations at different times :

• Nicopolis near Alexandria : the legions II Traiana fortis , III Cyrenaica and XXII Deiotariana

Auxiliary troops

On military diplomas .. From the years 83-206 AD 6 are Alae and 12 cohorts listed for the province, but not all were stationed at the same time in the province:

Ala Apriana Ala Augusta Ala I Commagenorum Ala I Thracum Mauretana Ala Veterana Gallica

Ala Vocontiorum Cohors I Apamenorum Cohors I Augusta Lusitanorum Cohors I Flavia Cilicum Cohors I Hispanorum

Cohors II Ituraeorum Cohors III Ituraeorum Cohors I Pannoniorum Cohors Scutata Civium Romanorum Cohors I Thebaeorum

Cohors II Thebaeorum Cohors II Thracum Cohors I Ulpia Afrorum

Notitia dignitatum

In the Notitia dignitatum two military leaders are listed for the Dioecesis Aegypti , to whom the troops stationed in the diocese were subordinate.

Comes limitis Aegypti

The following units are listed under his command:

Ala prima Aegyptiorum Ala secunda Aegyptiorum Ala Apriana Ala tertia arabum Ala Arcadiana nuper constituta Ala secunda Armeniorum Ala secunda Assyriorum Ala prima Herculia

Ala quinta Praelectorum Ala quinta Raetorum Ala septima Sarmatarum Ala Theodosiana nuper constituta Ala prima Tingitana Ala secunda Ulpia Afrorum Ala octava Vandilorum Ala veterana Gallorum

Cohors secunda Astarum Cohors prima Augusta Pannoniorum Cohors prima Epireorum Cohors tertia Galatarum Cohors secunda Ituraeorum Cohors quarta Iuthungorum Cohors quarta Numidarum Cohors prima sagittariorum

Cohors secunda Thracum Equites Saraceni Thamudeni Equites stablesiani Legio secunda Traiana Legio tertia Diocletiana Legio quinta Macedonica Legio tertiadecima gemina

1. ↑ ^{a b c d e f g h i} The unit was stationed in the province of Augustamnica .

Dux Thebaidos

The following units are listed under his command:

Ala prima Abasgorum Ala quarta Britonum Ala tertia dromedariorum Ala prima Francorum Ala Germanorum Ala secunda Herculia dromedariorum Ala septima Herculia voluntaria Ala prima Hiberorum Ala secunda Hispanorum Ala prima Iovia catafractariorum

Ala Neptunia Ala octava Palmyrenorum Ala prima Quadorum Ala prima Valeria dromedariorum Ala octava [..] Cohors nona Alamannorum Cohors prima apamenorum Cohors undecima Chamauorum Cohors prima felix Theodosiana Cohors septima Francorum

Cohors great Lusitanorum Cohors sexta saginarum Cohors scutata civium Romanorum Cohors quinta Suentium Cohors nona Tzanorum Cuneus equitum Maurorum scutariorum Cuneus equitum scutariorum Equites felices Honoriani Equites promoti indigenae Equites sagittarii indigenae

Legio prima Maximiana Legio prima Valentiniana Legio secunda Valentiniana Legio secunda Flavia Constantia Thebaeorum Legio secunda Traiana Legio tertia Diocletiana Milites Miliarenses

Commander in Chief

→ Main article : List of prefects of Egypt

The Praefectus Alexandreae et Aegypti was the governor of the province of Aegyptus and the commander in chief of the legions and auxiliary forces stationed in Egypt.

See also

• List of Roman legions
• List of Roman auxiliary units

Individual evidence

1. ^ Jörg Scheuerbrandt : Exercitus. Tasks, organization and command structure of Roman armies during the imperial era. Dissertation, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg im Breisgau 2003/2004, pp. 98-99, 174 table 16 ( PDF pp. 100-101, 176 table 16 ).
2. ↑ Military diplomas of the years 83 ( CIL 16, 29 ), 98/105 ( RMD 5, 341 ), 105 ( RMD 1, 9 ), 156/161 ( CIL 16, 184 ), 179 ( RMD 3, 185 ) and 206 ( AE 2012, 1960 ).
3. ^ Notitia dignitatum in partibus Orientis XXVIII ( online ).
4. ^ Notitia dignitatum in partibus Orientis XXXI ( online ).