Dictionary of Greek and Roman antiquities. Ed. by William Smith. Illustrated by numerous engravings on wood.

EXERCITUS. EXERCITUS. h (7
this time forward we find the legions and the seventy years afterwards, that we see Cicero passcavalry spoken of as completely distinct from each ing through all the highest dignities and attaining
other (e.g. Caesar, B. G. v. 11,18; Appian, B. C. to the consulship, although his experience of a
v. 5). Whether there was not to a certain extent military life was limited to a single campaign under
a return to the ancient system under the empire, is Pompeius Strabo.
a question which will fall to be considered in the Fifthl Period. From the establishment of the larnext section. perial government until the age of the Anta nines~
8. When, after the termination of the Social War, B. c. 31-A. D. 150.-We shall be enabled to form
a large proportion of the inhabitants of Italy were a correct idea of the materials which constituted an
admitted to the privilege of Roman citizens, the imperial army during the first two centuries of our
ancient distinction so long maintained between the era by passing under review the various kinds of
Legiones and the Socii at once disappeared, all who troops for which Hyginus proposes to provide aehad formerly served as Socii became as a matter commodation in the camp, whose construction he
of right incorporated with the legiones, and an describes [CASTRA]. We shall not take these
army during the last years of the republic and precisely in the order in which they are named by
under the earlier emperors consisted of Romanae him, but shall endeavour to arrange them sysLegiones et Auxilia s. Auxiliares, the latter term tematically.
comprehending troops of all kinds, except the A regular army during this period consisted of
legions and the imperial guards, whether infantry a certain number of Legiones and of Sspplenzenta,
or'cavalry, light armed or heavy armed, merce- the Supplementa being again divided into the imnaries in the pay of the state or contingents fur- perial guards, which appear under several different
nished at the cost of kings and cities in alliance forms, distinguished by different names; and the
with Rome. The infantry, not legionary, was for Auxilia, which were subdivided into Sociae Cothe most part organised in battalions called co- hortes and Nationes, the latter being for the most
eortes, the cavalry in squadrons called alse, the part barbarians.
numbers in each cohors and ala varying according 1. The Legiones, as we have already had oecato circumstances, and hence such phrases as alae sion to point out, although still composed of perazxiliaque cohortiums (Tacit. Ann. iv. 5); agmen sons who enjoyed the privileges of Roman citizens,
legionum alae coortesque praeveniebant. (Tacit. H. were now raised almost exclusively in the proii. 11.) Whenever the word socii is applied to vinces; and hence Tiberius, when about to undertroops after the date of the Marsic war, it is gene- take his long projected progress through the prorally to be regarded as equivalent to auxiliares, vinces, alleged as one of his excuses for quitting
although a distinction is occasionally drawn be- Italy, the necessity of recruiting the legions by
tween socii in the sense of the civilised allies or a regular levy or conscription. (Tae. Ann. iv.
subjects of Rome, and the barbarian Germans, 4.) The legion was divided into ten cohorts, aLd
Numidians, Spaniards and others who are more each cohort into six centuries; the first cohort,
specially termed auxiliares (AUXILIARES dicuntur which had the custody of the eagle, was double
in bello socii Romnanorzmu exterarumn nationum, Paul. the size of the others, and contained 960 men, the
Diac.). In the description of the army of Germa- remaining cohorts contained each 480 men; and
nicus, as marshalled to encounter Arminius, sociae consequently each ordinary century $0 men, the
cohortes is used in the most extended signification, total strength of the legion being thus 5280 men.
for we are told that the army was composed of 2. Legionum Veeillarii. The term Vexillarii or
auxiliares Galli Germanique, pedites sagittarii, Vexilla, which is found repeatedly in Tacitus, has
quatuor legiones, dune praetoriae cohortes ac delecti proved a source of the greatest embarrassment to
equites, quatuor legiones, levis armatura, equites commentators, and a vast number of hypotheses,
sagittarii, CETERAE sociorum cohortes. all of them highly unsatisfactory, have been pro.
9. The manner of levying troops in Italy must pounded in order to reconcile the statements of the
necessarily have changed with this change of cir- historian, which at first sight appear replete with
cumstances. We are destitute of any definite in- contradictions. But the difficulty has arisen enformation, but, in all probability, a system of con- tirely from almost all critics having entered upon
scription was established and carried out by means a wrong path from the very first, starting upon the
of Conquisitores, such as were occasionally appointed supposition that Vexillarii, in every case, denoted
in ancient times when difficulty was experienced troops of the same kind, whereas, in reality, the
in finding men (see Liv. xxii. 11; comp. Cic. ad word is a general term; and we must ascertain its
Att. vii. 10; Hirt, B. Alex. 2); and we find that signification in each particular case from the words
the Emperor Tiberius was not satisfied with ob- with which it is immediately joined or the general
taining volunteers, whom he regarded as, for the context of the passage. Vexillnum is used in the
most part, an indifferent class of soldiers, and in- earliest account of the manipular legion (Liv. viii.
sisted upon the necessity of recruiting the legions 8) to denote the standard of the ordo or maniple,
" delectibus." (Ann. iv. 4.) vexillarius being the standard bearer; and in pro10. The most important change of all, in so far cess of time, vexillum was employed to denote any
as society at large was concerned, was that to military standard whatsoever, except the sacred
which we have already adverted, the establishment eagle of the legion. By a careful examination of
namely of the military profession, and the distinc- the various passages in Tacitus where Vexillarii
tion now first introduced between the civilian and are mentioned, it will be seen that he designates'the soldier. This naturally led to the abrogation by this appellation any body of soldiers serving
of the rule, still in force when Polybius wrote, by apart from the legion under a separate ensign, or
which no one could hold any magistracy (QroM- even an army collectively. In this sense we must'rlfiv apXhyv) until he had completed ten years of understand such expressions as Vexillumz tironuma
military service, a rule which had fallen so comr- (Ann. ii. 78); Germanica yexilla (Hist. i. 31);
pletely into desuetude in the course of sixty or Germanis vexillis (Hist. i. 70); Texilis inferioris