Roman Auxiliaries - The Unsung Heroes of Rome
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- Опубліковано 19 гру 2022
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This video covers the lesser known branch of the Roman Imperial Army; the Auxilia, which is composed of soldiers from all corners of the Roman Empire, and outside it! This video will hopefully serve as a deep introduction to the Auxiliaries for both history buffs and those who have never heard of them before, for they are the Forgotten Heroes of Rome!
Primary sources:
-Tac. Agr. 35 -Tab. Vindol. II. 156 romaninscriptionsofbritain.or... -Tab. Vindol. II. 180 romaninscriptionsofbritain.or... -Tab. Vindol. II. 181 romaninscriptionsofbritain.or... -Tab. Vindol. I. 344 romaninscriptionsofbritain.or... -Tab. Vindol. I. 628 romaninscriptionsofbritain.or... -P. Dura. 82. findit.library.yale.edu/bookr... -P. Dura. 100. papyri.info/ddbdp/rom.mil.rec... -P. Dura. 101. papyri.info/ddbdp/rom.mil.rec... -Marcus Aurelius Lucilius: CIL 02-14, 4147 eda-bea.es/pub/record_card_2.p... -Secundus: Ephemeris Napocensis, EphNapoc-2020-296 db.edcs.eu/epigr/bilder.php?s...
Secondary sources:
-Bowman, A. K. Life and Letters on the Roman Frontier: Vindolanda and Its People. London: British Museum Publications, 1994. -Busquets Artigas, S. Los Externa auxilia en el siglo final de la República romana (133-27 a.C.). Barcelona: Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 2014. -D. J, Breeze. (1969). The immunes and principles of the Roman army. Doctoral thesis, Durham University. etheses.dur.ac.uk/10478/ -Gilliam, R. O; Fink, R. O. & Welles, C. B. Excavations at Dura-Europos. Final Report V, I. The parchments and papyri. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1959. -Gilliam, J. F. Dura Rosters and the Constitutio Antoniniana, in Historia: Zeitschrift für Alte Geschichte, Bd. 14, H. 1 (Jan., 1965), 74-92. -Ruiz de Arbulo, J. “La dedicatoria a Mars Campester del centurión T. Aurelius Decimus y el campus de la guarnición imperial de Tarraco en el siglo II d.C. Algunas reflexiones sobre la topografía militar de la capital provincial”, in CuPAUAM 37-38, 2011-12, 553-569. -Spaul, J. E. H. Ala2 The Auxiliary Cavalry Units of the Pre-Diocletianic Imperial Roman Army. Nectoreca Press: Andover, 1994. -Spaul, J. E. H. Cohors2 The Evidence for and a Short History of the Auxiliary Infantry Units of the Imperial Roman Army. Bristish Archaeological Reports International Series 841, 2000. -Speidel, M. Roman Army Pay Scales, in The Journal of Roman Studies 82, 87-106. -Speidel, M. P. Riding for Caesar: The Roman Emperors Horse Guard. Harvard University Press, 1997. -Tentea, O. “Cohors I Ituraeorum Sagittariorum Equitata Milliaria”, in ORBIS ANTIQVVS: Studia in honorem Ioannis Pisonis, Cluj-Napoca: National History Museum of Transylvania, 2004, 804-814. - Розваги
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@Thomas McCarthy that’s definitely a possibility!
They also often weren't trained in the Roman style but were allowed to fight as they saw fit, especially during the age of the Republic, we can read this in the account of Caesars invasion of Spain, where he fights Pompeys army, and among them, Iberians, equipped as Roman legionaries, but fighting as heavy skirmishers, in their native style and tactics, causing some headache for Caesars officers.
I'm pretty sure the Iberians Caesar faced were still legionaries.
They had adopted the Iberian style of warfare having been accustomed to it there
@@RexGalilae - No, because to be a legionaire you had to be a Roman citizen (strict requirement) and provinciales were not Roman citizens with very rare exceptions but what we'd call colonial subjects. While auxiliares and others would be later granted citizenship (after due service), especially common in the period of the civil wars, this situation would continue in general terms all the way to Caracalla's Edict. Only then the provinciales became citizens and could thus properly rise in the ranks of the Roman Army... and soon we see a lot of them becoming emperors even, because that's what happens when you live in a military dictatorship and most soldiers and commanders are colonial subjects.
@@LuisAldamiz
You look like you have a chip on your shoulder for no reason lol but to answer your point, entire legions were trained in the legionary style from the non citizen pools of the empire. Think of Pompey and Caesar's Hispanic and Gallic Legions and Brutus's Macedonian Legions.
The whole appeal of becoming a legionary was citizenship. Auxiliae were recruited from outside the empire's core territories (Germanic Cavalry, Batavian Infantry) or were specialist troops not trained like legionaries (Numidians, Rhodians).
The difference was administrative and tactical rather than a matter of citizenship like shown in the video.
@@RexGalilae - A chip on my shoulder? That's a very weird thing to say to anyone. I have no idea what you mean by that.
I guess that a major appeal of becoming auxiliary (not legionaire) was indeed acquiring the citizenship, along with the pay, probably still good for colonial (provincial) standards even if much smaller than that of Roman soldiers. As the video illustrates most auxiliaries were recruited from within the Roman borders. Some times those borders extended into Batavia or even much of Germania, as happened when Arminius served in the Illyrian wars.
While there were citizen auxiliaries, as shown in the video, most were so because the cohort had been given such prize because of bravery in battle or other reasons at the discretion of the legate.
In order to become a legionaire you had to be Roman citizen to begin with and most were Italians, provincials were not Roman citizens in most cases.
I understand that you can be ignorant about that but it's a reality: don't argue, research.
@@RexGalilae You got butthurt that you got shit on by history.
In Spain and Latin America when a person is in an emergency or in distress they scream , "Auxilio" , the equivalent of "Help" in English.
The word "Auxilio" comes from these Roman times and the Auxiliary Roman units.
Wow didht know. In New York auxiliary police force support the main police department
"Our blood may not be Roman... BUT IT FLOWS WITH THE SAME PRIDE AND HONOR AS THE EMPEROR'S HIMSELF!
*Motto of the auxiliaries*
OMG they internalized the values of their oppressors!!
@HAYAOLEONE bro stfu I can tell you never served in any armed forces
@@edhipolito6694 😂
@@HAYAOLEONE So it seems. I guess that's what happens when the civilization that conquers you is efficient enough to still be mostly considered an overall improvement over what they had before by the standards of their own society due to the improvements they brought with them. Most curious.
@@HAYAOLEONE Rome offered better oportunities than their native states, the same as an aboriginal in the US army today
One reason for their popularity was that the Gauls (3:19) had were writings such as *Commentarii de Bello Gallico*. Hearing Caesar himself praise their ability to war did much to improve their reputation and thus desire to employ them!
Also Romans were bad at cavalry and Celts were good at it.
I think this was excellent. And great information many people quite don’t understand how much of the fighting Auxilia troops really did.
You are right about that. Thanks for the kind words!
that aspect would explain some mindboggling battle reports from africa where appearantly europeans mowed so many tribesmen with no losses. i would give it to them maybe the first few Times but after that its very fishy especially when they didnt had that many white people in africa in the first place and a bunch of african empires were sole firearm military
Great to see that these auxiliaries are just as complex as modern units and Roman legions.
Keep in mind the Praefectus and Tribunes of the auxilia in the imperial period were still largely from the Equestrian and senatorial class of Roman society respectively.
8:23 Empire loves their damn lists
What's an empire without bureaucracy? A mere barbaric horde, overextended quite possibly.
"It has been an honor, Jarl Ulfric."
I love these kinds of videos, not just for their historical information but also because it'll be good for my slightly OCD tendency to want to compose armies as standardized as possible in games like Rome 2 for 'realism'. Knowing the real auxiliary cohorts weren't exactly standardized either makes things much easier.
One thing you need to realize is that armies were composed with respect to what was available and the threats they faced. If you are in a different situation, you don't have to make your armies the same as Rome did. You're creating alternate history.
You forget to mention Illyrians, who give maybe the best Emperors, generals and soldiers in Roman history. Also, Dalmatian cavalry soldiers was one of the best.
You are the best channel at giving out information about the Roman Empire and its legions
I enjoyed learning the forgotten heroes of Rome, Auxiliaries - it is such a wonderful lively presentation.
If you enjoyed this video, consider subscribing, as we have many more to come!
I would like to thank you all for your support and wish you a happy upcoming new year! :)
Please do more on maceneries in depth
Why were the syrains good in the archers
Please do plymarans
Happy new year to all of you too! Thank you for making such interesting videos! Much love! 💖
Thank you. Best wishes for the new year as well.
Really well done dude. Especially liked the bit about the name of the Cohort. I'm not the brightest so wouldn't have figured that out without you spelling it out for me lol. Keep it up, great seeing your channel grow- thoroughly deserved!
one of the best if not the best narrator in you tube...correct intonation, pausing & delivery...even better than most newscasters nowadays...
UA-cam recommendations only deliver both interesting and well made content infrequently and it's only once in a blue moon that a real belter like this channel shows up.
All things Roman is right up my street, I'm over the moon (a blue one) 🙂👍
Thank you and welcome aboard! Glad you found the channel.
So, our fellow veteran Secundus, a Briton, served in a cohort composed mainly by Nervians (~Belgium) and Pacensians (~Portugal), and was married to a Greek woman. "Roma caput mundi", indeed!
And it is recorded in 1.900 years old tablet. You can say he found love far away from home 😂
Wait, Pacensians are Spanish or Portuguese? Paz Augusta is Badajoz
Haven't had the chance to leave a comment for a hot minute . You really are doing great , dont stop the hard work . I've been playing ALOT of rome 2 with a buddy who i bought it for . i've been teaching him about Rome while he plays as Macedon . I was just telling about the Auxilia last game . I'll have to throw some into the next legion i raise for my invasion of Sicily.
Love how inclusive the Roman’s were, as long as you were working for Rome it didn’t matter where you were from or what you looked like
Wow, this was extremely well-done, thank you!
Excellent and enlightening video, keep it up!
It'd be nice to have another video focusing on auxiliaries, maybe distinguished soldiers such as those mentioned here but with a little more depth to their stories. Thank you for this! Interesting vids as always. Ave Roma.
Good to see the Auxillary forces getting the praise they deserve, they often did the dirty, praise-less fighting. Or filled gaps in the army such as cavalry.
What I would do to see a movie "Life of a Roman auxiliary" and following their battles, story and social interactions... instead we get black mermaid movies
lol
Seriously though. We could have a movie about a Syrian horseman fighting for Rome in the heart of Germania, and all of it actually happened.
But no, black mermaids it is...
'We' get black mermaid movies? I've not watched it or even seen the trailer 🤷♂️
Very nice video, thank you. Very informative in spite of the many unavoidable lacuna.
Excellent work man !
Great job man!
wonderful video
Many thanks!
Fantastic video!
I tried to share this video on Reddit and it got down voted within 2 minutes. I don't understand why people hate the idea that Samurai, Knights, and Legionaires didn't do most of the fighting, and didn't use their swords as primary weapons. Honestly it's cool to learn the real and nuanced history of wardare.
That's Redditors for you. Second to worst, first being Twitter users.
What was the legionaires primary weapon in elongated face to face battle if not the gladius?
@@r0ky_M The Scutum of course. But you're kind of asking a trick question, because like a samurai or a yeoman, Legionaires spent most of a battle using ranged weapons. The only difference, is the bow was less common for them. Usually slings, were the main weapon.
@@flyboymike111357
Primary personal offensive weapons include the likes of; gladius, pugio, pilum and plumbata...the scutum/shield is not considered a primary weapon..it's ranks more as a protective measure like helmet and body armour.
@@r0ky_M You use a shield as a weapon, especially in the fighting style of the period. That's why a lot of types of soldier were named after their shield. Shields aren't armor. They're weapons.
Awesome video as usual!
Terrific Video! ⚔
Great content, subscribed!
Very Nice ❤ Thank you for this Video from Germany!
Very interesting! Keep it up
Roman History is just amazing ty for your work.
Whats the Name of the Song in the backround?
What an interesting history of our world!
This is what we always wanted the films to be like
I have always wondered this! So many auxiliaries died for the glory of rome and arent mentioned enough.
I love your new video! Lots of unique facts for the enthusiastic layman. By the way, what video game engine or mod did you use for your cool Auxillia depictions?
We are very glad you enjoyed! For the depictions, we used the mod Divide et imperative in the game Total War Rome 2.
so cool seeing the translation
Auxiliaries waiting for Roman citizenship be like:
I wouldn’t say they are forgotten though. In video games they bring good unit diversity for gameplay and are hence not forgotten
the noncitizen meatshield
Windu: you may die for Rome; but i do not grant you the title of citizen
Forgotten? Wasnt at least half the army by the time of the late roman empire composed by auxiliaries? Regardless, fantasic video as usual Mr Filaxim. Nothing better to drive an hour or two than a good roman history video.
During the Republican Era, then most of them became Roman
Thanks for the kind comment, glad you enjoyed! I chose the word "forgotten" in the sense that they are underappreciated as of today. Hopefully this video does something to tip that balance!
Yes but they are forgotten in the sources often and the author forgot to even mention them altogether in his/her previous video on the structure of the Roman legions. Some of us protested this oversight and now he/she corrected the oversight with a very good video on the matter.
Great video. I am curious about how different were the role and equipment of the Auxiliary during the 3rd century crisis as compared to the early Principate period. Could you point me to any source? Thanks!
Good stuff!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Very good video
Epitaph of Marcus Aurelius Lucilius .. (a uk site )
To Marcus Aurelius Lucilius, son of Lucius, of the Papiria Tribe, of Poetovio, from the singulares of the emperor, centurion of Legion I Adiutrix, Legion II Traiana, Legion VIII Augusta, Legion XIII Gemina, Legion VII Claudia, Legion VII Gemina, 3rd spearman at the front (III hasta prior), 60 years old, 40 years of military service. Ulpia Iuventina, his wife and heir, had this made for the most pious and kindest husband.
At the battle of Mons Graupius in the north of England in AD 83 auxiliary units decided the battle without the legions even being engaged.
Very smooth pitch
Thanks
cool video
Lovely video mate, but I don't want any skin-care products! 😁 Actually, on a more serious note, the pure snobbery of the Romans and the way they treated their Auxilia in the early Empire, goes a long way to explain Civilis Batavian revolt. "You can do boring frontier duty, you can fight and die for us, but we won't pay you what you're worth, and we'll always be better then you. Oh, and we'll take all the credit".
That's more of a trope and a myth. It is true that there was always a bit of prejudice and snobbery, but keep in mind that many of the Imperial Era historians were not military men per se or had very little knowledge like Tacitus. So, always take such statements with a pile of salt. Because they might be reflecting senatorial prejudice (they did act the same way with pure roman citizens of lower status) than an on the ground military point of view. So it's more of a grey zone.
Also, service in the Auxilia was a quick way for non citizen noble to make a career in the Imperial Administration. The commander at Vindolanda, Cerialis, was a second generation batavian citizen noble and he had a pure roman blood wife. It seems his background didn't hamper him in the slightest
@@JonEtxebeberriaRodriguez Weren't all patricians/senatores expected to have some sort of military career? I believe so.
@@LuisAldamiz In republican times yes, but by the time of the Empire Senators had a more limited participation in military affairs. They still commanded the armies, governed the provinces with legions in them and 1/6 of legionary tribunes were senators. But the actual commanding of auxiliaries, military tribunes etc. was dominated by the equestrian class and the urban aristocracies of the provinces. They were the ones that filled the lower echelons of the imperial apparatus
@@JonEtxebeberriaRodriguez - Fair enough, I guess. I was of course thinking in republican times, which is most of the history of Rome (unless you consider the Dominate/Byzantium as "Rome", I guess).
@@LuisAldamiz One example illustrates the fact perfectly. Cicero rose to fame in the courts of Rome not in the battlefield. He did command a small army in Cilicia but he basically delegated everything to his entourage and served a minimum time as a tribune begrudginly. Even when he was offered a province to govern he drag his feet because he didn't want to go. His best friend Atticus, a fellow senator basically dedicated his life to the study of greek and never engaged in high politics. This does tell us about a growing diversification in the ranks of the senate, with some members moving away from the old military tradition and instead rising to fame thanks to oratory, administrative skills or judicial knowledge
Dude can you make hapy saturnalia short to send to everyone for Christmas
Great idea! Will do ;)
@@HistoriaMilitum thank you
What are your thoughts on the edict of Caracalla and its impact on the institution of the Auxilia? For example, a Gaulic Peregrinus joins his local Auxilia Ala a month before the edict. He would be just shy of 23 years of service as a Roman citizen in an Auxilia when the Crisis of the 3rd century kicks off.
I imagine the disappearance of the Peregrini class had a big impact on recruitment demographics at the expense of the Legions. My reasoning is, if citizens could receive the same pay and benefits serving closer to home in a regional Auxilia cohort, there is less incentive to go travel to join the Italic Legions. This is especially so once the Crisis is in full swing.
Congratulations, excellent work. A small correction concerning the theoretical auxiliary units strength. Most of the scholars agree on the following numbers:
Ala milliaria: 768 equites,distributed in 24 turmae of 32 cavalrymen
Ala : 512 equites and 16 turmae
Cohors milliaria equitata: 800 infantrymen and 256 cavalrymen distributed in 10 centuries of 80 men each and 8 turmae.
Cohors milliaria: 800 infantrymen and 10 centuries of 80 men each.
Cohors quingenaria equitata: 480 infantrymen and 128 equites distributed in 5 centuries and 5 turmae. Probably one centuria was double strength. But it is possible that the additional 80 men were evenly distributed among the 5 centuries.
Cohors quingenaria: 480 infantrymen and 5 centuriae even in this case the additional 80 men were possibly concentrated in one double strength century or equally distributed among the 5 centuries.
These of course are theoretical figures,since frequently the units were under strength. Occasionally, according to some original documents, the number of soldiers could even exceed the theoretical strength.
Thanks for your comment and your appreciations.
We assumed that many of our viewers do have a previous knowledge about the auxiliaries. Also, our aim was not to do another video on the auxilia explaining the usual points (sizes, strengths, composition in theoretical numbers). After all, is hard to cover everything in a 10-15 minute video. Instead we tried to focus on how complex these units were. Nobody talks about the alphabetazitation and how they learnt latin, how tribal or local ties still existed in the units, they worshipping their own gods, that sometimes citizens were also recruited etc... It is a brief "deep" intro into the complexity of the auxiliaries so people might feel the urge to seek out more than the usual information.
Sorry if it sounds a bit harsh, I don't intend to lecture or discredit you, just trying to give you the idea and the thought process involved behind the scenes 😅😊 so you can see that if things were left out is not because of lack of knowledge or incompetence 😅
@@JonEtxebeberriaRodriguez agreed!
The best archers were from Syria,the best cav from Gallia and Germania.
History says the best cav was from Numidia.
Best equites were batavians and nervians. Augustus and Nero had germanic bodyguards, don't remember the name.
well aurelian mostly relied on dalmatian and north african cav to win his battles so theres that i guess
Best skirmishers and saboteurs were Spanish. Good infantry too, specially the Cantabros, Navarros and Vascos.
Definitely not a topic that's spoken about enough
I am once again anticipating the arrival of Rome total war the board game at my house.
Didnt mention a single time illyrians which played a huge role in late roman empire.
The white hat 'PILEUS' which albanians wear until today became a symbol of late roman empire and was also stamped on roman coins.
makes me wonder how many awesome heroes we will never know about or forget. will the heroes in ww2 like desmond doss be forgotten?
2:55 in the subtitles >< LOL!!!
The editor wasn't wrong LOL
That was a bit of behind the scenes for you, haha. Thanks for pointing it out!
Imagine a syrian archer travelling to Rome, spain and britain and seeing the world, did this happen???
It did happen indeed, in our Harzhorn video we covered a man from Osrhoene (Northwestern Iraq/Syria) named Barsemis who took part on a battle deep in Germania
It was deliberate policy, at least after the Batavian revolt. Auxiliaries didn't serve in the provinces where they were raised, to reduce the chance of them joining any rebellion. But there were patterns; more than half of the auxiliary units raised in Britannia were stationed in Dacia and Pannonia, while significant numbers of Balkan (and specifically Pannonian/Sarmatian) auxiliaries were sent to Britannia.
Does anyone know what mod they use for these?
1:50 Start
Great video! But what about the Republic? Who were the Socii auxiliaries of the Republic? Can you please do a video about them?
At the end of the day, they conquered half of the territories of the empire.
Again, very well done
Thank you! 😊 Actually there are a handful of sources about them. Not a lot if you compare to the imperial auxiliaries but it's something. The most recent one is a PhD dissertation done by Salvador Busquets Artigas in spanish. It is extensively quoted in the field of republican history.
About the Socii... they are the forgotten part of every republican army for no reason
It is a good video but his-story stinks... Something is off
I'm enjoying Roman history a lot! It's a favorite. By now, if only, It would be a Roman world.
Your example of Cohors I being unclear. Not sure that is the case. The Latin is pretty clear that it was a cohort of mounted archers.
Great video, would anyone know the source for 6:45 where the narrator says that auxiliaries would wear their own cloaks, belts, facial hair, weapons and face paint?
Sure, the source comes from archaeological finds in auxiliary camps and artistical representations in roman sources. As an example, the first generation of batavian auxiliaries still retained their native belt designs, helmets and brooches in their clothing. Even well into the Empire and serving abroad they still retained some minor aspects of their own culture like a special design of pottery. Syrians for example kept their own clothing and helmets and that has been attested in stone monuments too. It was only progressively that they started adopting much of the roman ways but sometimes not everything
@@JonEtxebeberriaRodriguez .. AFAIK, on Trajan's Column, "Roman" archers are depicted wearing pointy helmets an long over-knee tunics. Completely different from any type of soldier on the Column.
British empire utilize "auxiliary" too. Indians, Nepalese, African colonies, even Aussies and Canadians. French - arabs from colonies or coloured african from more exotic colonies ..
Roman auxilia could be considered the colonial troops of its days. :)
Lemme just say.... I love this narrator, idk just suits the story he's narrating.
When you need such troops in large numbers your empire is already done.
There is a lot of misconception and myths around the auxilia. The allies of Rome enjoy the security and prosperity of the roman peace in home with high degrees of autonomy (in the time this system was in place, latter the situation will change) and half of the plunder in campaign. They fought in the flanks of the legionaires and they endure the same hardships. A system much more just that todays "allies" in proxy wars.
What game is that
In Rome total war 2 Auxalry have very little use except againstcav..
Divide et Impera mod really give the auxilia some love. They have fantastic units and crazy variety
What game is this
8:22 "Empire loves their damn lists"
Wonder to what it is referring to... 😉
Military reforms of Marius*
The commercial though 😅
"commanded by Sextus... and Eugenia... his wife."
Explore Golgumbaz
historians need to learn to see
ROOOOOOOMMAA INVICTA
Nah, shout out to the Valites 🐺
Erin fucking Marino is in this video xD
They served for 25 years !?. Couldnt have been much left to live for after that with a broken body.
It depend wildly. Some lucky auxiliaries spent their entire 25 years career without firing a shot in anger. Their entire service was composed of training, patrolling, drudgery and chores. And physical activities, mostly in open air, made them only stronger.
🤠👍🏿
Great video as always but I think the Hispania Auxiliaries were more important and strong than what people regard them, the people from this land were always described as agile, skillful and enduring specially in guerilla warfare, it took the Romans more than 200 years to fully subdue the whole region comparing to Gaul which is about the same size took them basically little more than 10 years to fully subdue.
It's the burden of the conquered to serve the conquerors. Vae victis.
I consider Assassins creed odyssey one of their best along with black flag and the Italian trio. If you are a gamer, play it.
poor Secundus never had a chance to become number 1
IV the algorithm
Tout individu de peuple conqui😢s peuvent devenir des auxilia...pour ça devait se tondre la tête etre volontaire dans les legions auxilia...suivre le entraînement et discipline romaine, ils étaient moins payés que les réguliers...survivre a 25 ans de service...la l'empire avait besoin...ils étaient des unités de combat...pas de batisseurs ni ingénieurs...avaint ses propres ailes de cavalerie...au debut ils étaient cantones de la ils étaient originaires,mais du a las revoltes ...comme les bataves...ils seront envoyés la l'empire avait besoin de mater des revoltes...loin de chez eux...comme certaines cohertes des tungrii...en Britania,pendant les revoltes a l'époque de Claude...des britons en Dacia...des chevaliers sarmatae en Britania,etc...etc...
Am I the only one who thinks that "Romans love their lists" is a pun on Skyrim's opening scene?
It is 😉 (I'm Filaxim's researcher and the guy who wrote the episode). Good catch!
Well, that is actually awesome.
@@TelcontarTargaryen It would have been a waste to let it pass. A good pun is sometimes better than three lines of explanation. Sadly putting a Ralof on the screen would have ruined the seriousness of the video 😅
So. Why was the Imperial bodyguard Germanic?
They were loyal.
You mean the German Guard or the Equites Singulares that came afterwards?
When Caesar came to the Rhine around 55 bc, he had taken an elite german bodyguard because they where the strongest fighters. Bigger and more ferocious warriors then the Celts
Augustus made them in to the pretorians guard when he became princeps.
Most feared were the Batavians. The only German tribe under roman rule who did not pay taxes. They only had to provide soldiers. These men could cross rivers in full battle line and where the elite storm troopers of their time.
The book Tacitus wrote about hs father-in-law Agricola tells in great details of their fighting skills if you are interested.
@@JonEtxebeberriaRodriguez I am Germanic so I just want to glorify Germanics. And attack anyone who tries to skirt around the truth. Which was that the Germanics were super cool.
Rodriguez is Germanic name ultimately, btw. Visigoths ftw!
@@JonEtxebeberriaRodriguez i think he means the Praetorian Guard.
wow..he didnt mention the illyrians one time..😂
ILLYRIANS the best. 25 Roman imperator it's ILLYRIANS origin.Constantine the great ,Justinian
Putin, could take some lessons here and from the earlier one I watched on Logistics, But WAIT the Ukrainians might have some unpleasant input, for after they are the enemy.