Roman navy in the context of "Roman soldier"

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⭐ Core Definition: Roman navy

The naval forces of the ancient Roman state (Latin: classis, lit. 'fleet') were instrumental in the Roman conquest of the Mediterranean Basin, but it never enjoyed the prestige of the Roman legions. Throughout their history, the Romans remained a primarily land-based people and relied partially on their more nautically inclined subjects, such as the Greeks and the Egyptians, to build their ships. Because of that, the navy was never completely embraced by the Roman state, and deemed somewhat "un-Roman".

In antiquity, navies and trading fleets did not have the logistical autonomy that modern ships and fleets possess, and unlike modern naval forces, the Roman navy even at its height never existed as an autonomous service but operated as an adjunct to the Roman army.

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πŸ‘‰ Roman navy in the context of Roman soldier

This is a list of Roman army units and bureaucrats.

  • Accensus – Light infantry men in the armies of the early Roman Republic, made up of the poorest men of the army.
  • Actuarius – A soldier charged with distributing pay and provisions.
  • Adiutor – A camp or headquarters adjutant or assistant.
  • Aeneator – Military musician such as a bugler
  • Agrimensor – A surveyor (a type of immunes).
  • Antesignano – Supposedly a light infantry unit of legionaries who were used for protection of marching columns and to provide security to legions.
  • Aquilifer – Bearer of the legionary eagle.
  • Ala – a military formation composed of conscripts from the Italian military allies.
  • Alaris – A cavalryman serving in an ala.
  • Auxilia – were introduced as non-citizen troops attached to the citizen legions by Augustus after his reorganisation of the Imperial Roman army from 30 BC.
  • Architecti – An engineer or artillery constructor.
  • Armicustos – A soldier tasked with the administration and supply of weapons and equipment. A quartermaster.
  • Ballistarius – An artillery operator (a type of immunes).
  • Beneficiarius – A soldier performing an extraordinary task such as military policing or a special assignment.
  • Bucellarii – were formations of escort troops.
  • Bucinator – A trumpeter or bugler.
  • Cacula – Servant or slave of a soldier.
  • Capsarior – A medical orderly.
  • Causarius – A soldier discharged for wounds or other medical reasons.
  • Celeres - A royal guard created by Romulus to guard the King of Rome.
  • Centurion – Officer rank, generally one per 80 soldiers, in charge of a centuria.
  • Clinicus – A medic.
  • Cohors amicorum – Military staff company functioning as suite and bodyguard of a high Roman official.
  • Comes – commanders of comitatenses. The authority of a comes was limited to his assigned territory. This title later evolved to the medieval title of Count.
  • Comes stabuli – An office responsible for the horses and pack animals.
  • Comitatenses – units of the field armies of the late empire. They were the soldiers that replaced the legionaries.
  • Cornicen – A bugler.
  • Doctor – A trainer, subdivisions for everything from weapons to horn blowing.
  • Draconarius – Bearer of a cavalry standard.
  • Decurion – Leader of a troop of cavalry (14-30 men). Not to be confused with decanus.
  • Decanus – Leader of a contubernium (a legionary tent group of 8 men). Elected by the members of the contubernium.
  • Discens – Miles (enlisted soldier) in training for an immunis position.
  • Duplarius – A soldier issued double pay, such as an Optio or a minor cavalry officer as part of a Turma
  • Dux – A general in charge of two or more legions. In the Third Century AD, an officer with a regional command transcending provincial boundaries, responsible directly to the emperor alone, usually appointed on a temporary basis in a grave emergency. In the fourth century AD, an officer in charge of a section of the frontier answering to the Magister Militum. Later developed into the medieval title Duke.
  • Duumviri navales – Two men elected to equip and repair the Roman navy.
  • Equites singulares Augusti – Elite cavalry unit tasked to guard the Roman Emperors. Usually commanded by a tribunus of praetorian rank.
  • Evocatus – "One who is called back." A soldier who had served out his time and obtained his discharge (missio), but had voluntarily enlisted again at the invitation of the consul or other commander.
  • Evocatus Augusti – Praetorian Guard who had served out his time and obtained his discharge (missio), but had voluntarily enlisted again.
  • Equites – Roman cavalry. Those citizens whose personal wealth was sufficient to own and equip a horse for cavalry, later evolved into a socioeconomic distinction unrelated to military service.
  • Foederati – For groups of "barbarian" mercenaries of various sizes who were typically allowed to settle within the empire after service in the imperial army. Foederati, unlike auxilia which were commanded by Roman officers, and enlisted under the promise of obtaining Roman citizenship after completing their term of service of 20 to 25 years, were enlisted as an entire tribal unit, serving under native commanders, and not eligible to receive citizenship. Originally paid in money, but as the finances of the Late Empire declined, service in exchange for land became the norm. The sack of Rome in the 5th century by Vandals and Ostrogoths were precipitated by the Senate's failure to pay foederati as promised after their military service. The system of land tenure established by the settlement of foederati, whose leaders were granted territories as their personal property, developed into the medieval system of feudalism.
  • Frumentarii – Officials of the Roman Empire during the 2nd and 3rd era. Often used as a Secret Service, mostly operating in uniform.
  • Hastatus – The youngest of the heavy infantry in the pre-Marian armies, who were less well-equipped than the older Principes and Triarii. These formed the first line of battle in front of the Principes.
  • Hastatus Prior – A centurion commanding a manipulus or centuria of hastati. A high-ranking officer within a manipulus or centuria.
  • Hastatus Posterior – A deputy to the hastatus prior
  • Hastiliarius – A weapons instructor.
  • Imaginifer – A standard-bearer carrying the imago – the standard which bore a likeness of the emperor, and, at later dates, his family.
  • Immunes – Soldiers who were "immune" from combat duty and fatigues through having a more specialist role within the army.
  • Jovians and Herculians – A senior palatine units
  • Katepano – A Byzantine military rank or military official.
  • Laeti – was a term used in the late empire to denote communities of foreigners permitted to settle on, and granted land in, imperial territory on condition that they provide recruits for the Roman military.
  • Legatus legionis – A legion commander of senatorial rank; literally the "deputy" of the emperor, who was the titular commander-in-chief.
  • Limitanei – A unit of frontier districts.
  • Legatus pro praetore – Provincial governor of senatorial rank with multiple legions under his command.
  • Legionary – The heavy infantry that was the basic military force of the ancient Roman army in the period of the late Roman Republic and the early Roman Empire.
  • Magister militum - High ranked commander in the late Roman Empire. Equivalent of a general.
  • Medicus – Physician or combat medic. Specializations included surgery (medicus vulnerarius), ophthalmology (medicus ocularius), and also veterinary (medicus veterinarius). At least some held rank equivalent to a centurion.
  • Megas doux – Commander-in-chief of the Byzantine navy.
  • Miles or Miles Gregarius – The basic private level foot soldier.
  • Numerus – A unit of foreign allies not integrated into the regular army structure. Later, a unit of border forces.
  • Numerus Batavorum – was a personal, imperial guards unit for the Roman emperors of the Julio-Claudian dynasty (30 BC – AD 68) composed of Germanic soldiers.
  • Optio – One per century as second-in-command to the centurion. Could also fill several other specialized roles on an ad hoc basis.
  • Palatini – were elite units of the late army.
  • Pedites – The infantry of the early army of the Roman kingdom. The majority of the army in this period.
  • Peditatus – A term referring to any infantryman in the Roman Empire.
  • Pilus Prior – Senior centurion of a cohort.
  • Pilus Posterior – Deputy to the pilus prior.
  • Praefectus Castrorum – Camp prefect, third-in-command of the legion, also responsible for maintaining the camp, equipment, and supplies. Usually a former primus pilus.
  • Praefectus Cohortis - Commander of a cohort.
  • Praefectus legionis agens vice legati – Equestrian officer given the command of a legion in the absence of a senatorial legatus. After the removal of senators from military command, the title of a legionary commander. ("...agens vice legati, dropped in later Third Century")
  • Praetorians – A special force of bodyguards used by Roman Emperors.
  • Praetorian prefect – Commander of the Praetorians.
  • Primani – was a legio palatina, active in the 4th and 5th century.
  • Primicerius – was a rank junior to the tribunus and senior to the senator.
  • Primus Ordinis – The commanding officer of each centuria in the first cohort with the exception of the first centuria of the cohort.
  • Primus Pilus (literally 'first file' ) – The centurion commanding the first cohort and the senior centurion of the entire Legion.
  • Princeps – Pre-Marian soldier, initially equipped with the Hasta spear, but later with the pilum, these men formed the second line of battle behind the Hastati in the pre-Marian armies. They were also chieftains in Briton like Dumnorix of the Regneses (he was killed by Gaius Salvius Liberalis' soldiers).
  • Princeps Prior – A centurion commanding a century of principes.
  • Princeps Posterior – A deputy to the princeps prior.
  • Principales – A group of ranks, including aquilifer, signifer, optio, and tesserarius. Similar to modern NCOs (Non-commissioned officers).
  • Protectores Augusti Nostri (a.k.a. Protectores Divini Lateris) – Honorific title for senior officers singled out for their loyalty to the Emperor and soldierly qualities. The protectores were an order of honor rather than a military unit. The order first appeared in the mid-200s AD.
  • Quaestionarius – An interrogator or torturer.
  • Retentus – A soldier kept in service after serving required term.
  • Rorarii – The final line, or reserve, in the ancient pre-Marius Roman army. These were removed even before the so-called "Marian reforms", as the Triarii provided a very sturdy anchor.
  • Sagittarii – Archers, including horse-riding auxiliary archers recruited mainly in North Africa, Balkans, and later the Eastern Empire.
  • Salararius – A soldier enjoying special service conditions or hired as a mercenary.
  • Scholae – was used in the late Roman Empire to signify a unit of Imperial Guards.
  • Scholae Palatinae – An elite troop of soldiers created by the Emperor Constantine the Great to provide personal protection of the Emperor and his immediate family.
  • Scorpionarius – An artilleryman operating a scorpio artillery piece.
  • Sesquiplicarii – A soldier issued one-and-a-half times pay, such as a Tesserarius or a minor cavalry officer as part of a Turma
  • Signifer – Standard bearer of the Roman Legion.
  • Simplares - A soldier paid standard pay; a regular legionaire or somebody paid the equivalent
  • Socii – Troops from allied states in the pre-Marian army before the Social War (91–88 BC)
  • Speculatores and Exploratores – The scouts and reconnaissance element of the Roman army.
  • Supernumerarii – Supernumerary soldiers who served to fill the places of those who were killed or disabled by their wounds. Also used for the cavalry contingent of a legion during the Principate, who despite being included on the cohort lists, camped separate to the infantry.
  • Strategos - General and military governor of a theme in the Byzantine Empire.
  • Stratelates – A Greek translation for the rank of magister militum that was used in the late Roman and Byzantine armies.
  • Stratopedarches – A term originally used to refer to a Roman camp prefect, it was later used for a Roman or Byzantine general or a Byzantine commander-in-chief.
  • Tablifer – A standard-bearer for the guard cavalry.
  • Tesserarius – Guard commander, one per centuria.
  • Tirones – A basic trainee.
  • Torquati - A soldier issued with a golden collar in reward for bravery or valor. Depending on circumstances, they may also be rewarded with double pay, making them Torquato Duplares
  • Triarii – Spearmen of the pre-Marian armies, equipped with the Hasta, who formed the third line of battle behind the Principes.
  • Tribuni angusticlavii – Military tribune of equestrian rank, five of whom were assigned to each legion.
  • Tribunus militum - Officer in the Roman army who ranked below the legate but above the centurion.
  • Tribunus militum laticlavius – Military tribune of senatorial rank. Second in command of a legion. Appointments to this rank seem to have ceased during the sole reign of Gallienus as part of a policy of excluding senators from military commands.
  • Tubicen – A trumpeter.
  • Urbanae – A special police force of Rome, created to counterbalance the Praetorians.
  • Velites – A class of light infantry in the army of the Roman Republic.
  • Venator – A hunter (a type of immunes).
  • Vexillarius – Bearer of a vexillum (standard).
  • Vigiles – were the firefighters and police.
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In this Dossier

Roman navy in the context of Ostia (Rome)

Ostia (/ΛˆΙ’stiΙ™/, Italian: [ΛˆΙ”stja]), officially Lido di Ostia, is a large neighbourhood in the Municipio X of the comune of Rome, Italy, near the ancient port of Rome, which is now a major archaeological site known as Ostia Antica. Ostia is also the only municipio or district of Rome on the Tyrrhenian Sea, and many Romans spend the summer holidays there. It is entirely situated within the municipality of Rome and is the city's seaside resort.

Ostia was the port city of ancient Rome; it had a strategic function for trade, especially for the supply of grain, and as the main base of the Roman navy. It had a fundamental function during the Punic Wars, and after the final destruction of Carthage, and the end of Macedon's independence; by the latter half of the 2nd century BC, Roman control over all of what was later to be dubbed Mare Nostrum ("our sea") had been established.

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Roman navy in the context of First Punic War

The First Punic War (264–241 BC) was the first of three wars fought between Rome and Carthage, the two main powers of the western Mediterranean in the early 3rdΒ centuryΒ BC. For 23 years, in the longest continuous conflict and greatest naval war of antiquity, the two powers struggled for supremacy. The war was fought primarily on the Mediterranean island of Sicily and its surrounding waters, and also in North Africa. After immense losses on both sides, the Carthaginians were defeated and Rome gained territory from Carthage.

The war began in 264Β BC with the Romans gaining a foothold on Sicily at Messana (modern Messina). The Romans then pressed Syracuse, the only significant independent power on the island, into allying with them and laid siege to Carthage's main base at Akragas. A large Carthaginian army attempted to lift the siege in 262Β BC but was heavily defeated at the Battle of Akragas. The Romans then built a navy to challenge the Carthaginians, and using novel tactics inflicted several defeats. A Carthaginian base on Corsica was seized, but an attack on Sardinia was repulsed; the base on Corsica was then lost. Taking advantage of their naval victories the Romans launched an invasion of North Africa, which the Carthaginians intercepted. At the Battle of Cape Ecnomus the Carthaginians were again beaten; this was possibly the largest naval battle in history by the number of combatants involved. The invasion initially went well and in 255Β BC the Carthaginians sued for peace; the proposed terms were so harsh that they fought on, defeating the invaders. The Romans sent a fleet to evacuate their survivors and the Carthaginians opposed it at the Battle of Cape Hermaeum off Africa; the Carthaginians were heavily defeated. The Roman fleet, in turn, was devastated by a storm while returning to Italy, losing most of its ships and over 100,000 men.

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Roman navy in the context of Battle of the Bagradas River (255 BC)

The Battle of the Bagradas River (the ancient name of the Medjerda), also known as the Battle of Tunis, was a victory by a Carthaginian army led by Xanthippus over a Roman army led by Marcus Atilius Regulus in the spring of 255 BC, nine years into the First Punic War. The previous year, the newly constructed Roman navy established naval superiority over Carthage. The Romans used this advantage to invade Carthage's homeland, which roughly aligned with modern-day Tunisia in North Africa. After landing on the Cape Bon Peninsula and conducting a successful campaign, the fleet returned to Sicily, leaving Regulus with 15,500 men to hold the lodgement in Africa over the winter.

Instead of holding his position, Regulus advanced towards the city of Carthage and defeated the Carthaginian army at the Battle of Adys. The Romans followed up and captured Tunis, only 16 kilometres (10Β mi) from Carthage. Despairing, the Carthaginians sued for peace, but Regulus's proposed terms were so harsh the Carthaginians decided to fight on. They gave charge of the training of their army, and eventually operational control, to the Spartan mercenary general Xanthippus.

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Roman navy in the context of Byzantine navy

The Byzantine navy was the naval force of the Byzantine Empire. Like the state it served, it was a direct continuation from its Roman predecessor, but played a far greater role in the defence and survival of the state than its earlier iteration. While the fleets of the Roman Empire faced few great naval threats, operating as a policing force vastly inferior in power and prestige to the army, command of the sea became vital to the very existence of the Byzantine state, which several historians have called a "maritime empire".

The first threat to Roman hegemony in the Mediterranean Sea was posed by the Vandals in the 5th century, but their threat was ended by the wars of Justinian I in the 6th century. The re-establishment of a permanently maintained fleet and the introduction of the dromon galley in the same period also marks the point when the Byzantine navy began departing from its late Roman roots and developing its own characteristic identity. This process would be furthered with the onset of the early Muslim conquests in the 7th century. Following the loss of the Levant and later Africa, the Mediterranean was transformed from a "Roman lake" into a battleground between the Byzantines and a series of Muslim states. In this struggle, the Byzantine fleets were critical, not only for the defence of the Empire's far-flung possessions around the Mediterranean basin, but also for repelling seaborne attacks against the imperial capital of Constantinople itself. Through the use of the newly invented "Greek fire", the Byzantine navy's best-known and feared secret weapon, Constantinople was saved from several sieges and numerous naval engagements resulted in Byzantine victories.

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Roman navy in the context of Size of the Roman army

By the size of the Roman army is meant the changes (increases and reductions) in the number of its contingents: legions, auxiliaries, Praetorian cohorts, Urban cohorts, vigiles, and naval forces over the course of twelve centuries – from 753 BC to AD 476 (the Fall of the Western Roman Empire).

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Roman navy in the context of Structural history of the Roman military

The structural history of the Roman military concerns the major transformations in the organization and constitution of ancient Rome's armed forces, "the most effective and long-lived military institution known to history." At the highest level of structure, the forces were split into the Roman army and the Roman navy, although these two branches were less distinct than in many modern national defense forces. Within the top levels of both army and navy, structural changes occurred as a result of both positive military reform and organic structural evolution. These changes can be divided into four distinct phases.

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Roman navy in the context of Classis Britannica

The Classis Britannica (literally, British fleet, in the sense of 'the fleet in British waters' or 'the fleet of the province of Britannia', rather than 'the fleet of the state of Britain') was a provincial naval fleet of the navy of ancient Rome. Its purpose was to control the English Channel and the waters around the Roman province of Britannia. Unlike modern (and some contemporary Roman) "fighting navies", its job was largely the logistical movement of personnel and support, and keeping open communication routes across the Channel.

There is no literary reference in the classical historians to the Classis Britannica by that name, and archaeological evidence is also tantalizingly scant (although tiles stamped CLBR are common along the east Kent coast and in London, suggesting either government buildings or an early instance of army surplus), meaning that details of its history and form are unfortunately based on a large degree of interpretation.

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