Beyond the Battlefield - The Surprising Civil Duties of the Roman Legions

Since the reign of Hadrian, a single legion held the southern frontier of the Roman Empire. That legion was the 3rd Augusta. Though their formal headquarters were in the province of Numidia and under its governor, their reach far outgrew this, stretching into the provinces of Africa and Mauritania. Compared to other legions, they were largely isolated from northern conflicts, and guarded their provinces for centuries without departing. In this video, instead of covering their legion's history, as we normally do, we will use them as an example of the vast impact a stationed legion had on a province. A topic largely overlooked and underappreciated, so crucial were their provincial roles that when a legion departed from a province, it was a sizable blow to its economy and stability, and wise rulers tried to refrain from repositioning legions as much as possible. This video will give you a better understanding of how legions operated and ran provinces, and in turn, the whole empire. Before we carry on, I wanted to thank our sponsor, Surfshark VPN, for making this video possible for your enjoyment. Surfshark is a VPN service that protects your private information from hackers and identity thieves. It works by encrypting your device's IP address, thus turning you into an anonymous online user and protecting everything you do on the internet. It also changes your online location to any country you select. This is helpful not only for security, but also for unlocking content that could be restricted to your location. If you are looking for a TV show that is geo-blocked in your country, you can use Surfshark VPN to change your location. Then simply refresh the page, and you are now virtually in another country. One Surfshark account also works on an unlimited number of devices, to make sure you are always protected. Surfshark VPN offers all our viewers a generous 83% discount plus 3 extra months for free. So click the link in the description and use my promo code PHILAXEM for this special offer and get an extra layer of security at all times. For centuries, the Third Augusta had stood on guard in a frontier stretching thousands of kilometers along the limits of the Sahara, and bordering many desert tribes like the Gaetulians, Fusanians, and Garamantis, who proved troublesome at times. Naturally, the Legion's first unquestionable role was regarding military affairs in the region. On top of all this, and in times of need, the Legion had also provided support to other Roman forces operating as far as Dacia by sending strong detachments to take part in the Emperor's campaigns, where many legionaries and officers have brought back honor to the Legion by distinguishing themselves in combat. But the North African frontier can also be very treacherous, with the Third Augusta so thinly stretched. On occasion, the Third Augusta themselves have been in need of reinforcements, such as when a local soldier by the name of Tacfarinus deserted from the Roman army and with a sizable force started raiding settlements and convoys in a prolonged guerrilla war. In response, the Empire's veteran Ninth Legion was called in to put an end to the opposition. Through the centuries, a lot more detachments from Hispania, Syria, Germania, and Pannonia have also helped stem the tide before returning to their distant bases. For a more in-depth look, we have researched the region known as Tripolitania in more detail. The ancient geographer Strabo describes the region as, like a leopard's skin, spotted with inhabited places that are surrounded by waterless and desert land. Tripolitania, meaning the land of the three cities, encompassed the big cities of Sabratha, Ohea, and Leptis Magna. They were the most remote bastions of Roman power in Africa, far from the nearest legionary bases, with the frontier very exposed to the Garamantes and Fasanian nomads. At first, relations with the local tribes were not always violent. A very prosperous trade relationship between the cities of Tripolitania and the Garamantes had been established in the 1st century AD, while the Fasanian nomads had worked as farmers, tended their herds, and always migrated with the passing of the seasons without trouble. But the growth of agriculture disrupted the stability in the region, because the Roman expansion inland came at the expense of the nomadic tribes losing valuable land for pasture. It wasn't long until violence erupted, and the nomads started to harass the local settlers. The Romans retaliated by building fortifications and outposts manned by a small force of legionaries and auxiliaries to protect the newly settled lands. As such, Western Tripolitania saw some military activity during the reigns of Vespasian and Hadrian. But the Romans eventually subjugated or expelled the Gaetulians and Fasanians, a labor culminated by the many forts in the area. The 3rd Augusta took an active part in these operations, and left a small garrison to support the local auxiliary units. To discourage attacks on the eastern side of the region, the Roman forces undertook several offensives inland. It is in this state of affairs that we reach the reign of Emperor Septimius Severus. As a native of Leptis Magna, Severus undertook the task of expanding inland farther than anyone else, and converting the arid lands of the Tripolitanian pre-desert into profitable agricultural land. In 201 AD, detachments of the 3rd Augusta started building a series of three forts on the oasis of Golea, Geriat Elgarbia, and Kidamos. The building process was followed by a series of minor operations against the most warlike tribes. It is estimated that a maximum of three cohorts from the 3rd Augusta Legion took part in the whole operation. This campaign of Severus is briefly mentioned in the Historia Augusta. He freed Tripolis, the region of his birth, from fear of attack by crushing sundry warlike tribes. The strategic locations of the new forts were supposed to act as a shield for the agricultural settlements and cities behind them. They also secured the control of strategic lines of communication, and most importantly, regional water sources in the area. The Roman control of water put a lot of strain on the tribes, as it hindered their logistics, agriculture, and limited the movement of all raiding parties. One might think it impossible to neutralize a local enemy so adapted to the climate and terrain, but just the locations of the new forts helped to secure the inevitable peace and new trade lines with the Garamantes. After such a military expansion, the Legion's civil role had been an immense catalyst in the development of the entire province. They have built quality roads for faster transportation, oversaw the exploitation of valuable resources, and directed civilian construction projects. They also aided in performing administrative tasks for the province under the governor himself. Furthermore, the Third Augusta would aid in tax collection and serve as a police force to maintain public order and safety. A record from 244 AD gives testimony to the efforts undertaken by the Roman forces. By building a new fort, preserve the area distinguished as the frontier district of Cynthaeus and the road along it from the attacks of barbarians. This is but one notable example of the benefit of the many forts, which the men of the Third Augusta would have constructed periodically. The Legion's presence as a whole would go a long way in minimizing corruption, crime, and unrest, while bringing prosperity and fast development to the vast area between the forts. The forts themselves varied in size, and while Chidamus was composed of several centuries, totaling about 200 legionaries, Geriatel Garbia housed a combined garrison of approximately 1,000 men from the Third Augusta and an auxiliary cohort of Syrian archers. Directly outside each of the forts were small civilian settlements, which would have housed hundreds, ranging from native Libyans to veteran soldiers, who all took advantage of the safety and trade with the stationed soldiers. The three major forts were also complemented by a series of minor fortifications known as castella. These were manned by only a handful of soldiers, and acted as listening posts or stopping stations for caravans and traders. But supplying these forts in the harshness of the Saharan desert was no easy task, as the agricultural production of the region was not enough to cover the needs of the military forces stationed there. As such, the legionaries of the Third Augusta relied on shipment convoys carried by camels from the coast. The convoys were made of local tradesmen and military contractors employed by the Roman army. To oversee the process, some legionaries were tasked with keeping records of impending convoys. Everything from their quantity to the men responsible for sending and delivering the shipments was recorded. At Galea, examples of how the supply chain operated have survived to this day, including the following message from a soldier to his commander. To Octavius Festus Decurion, my commanding officer, Aemilius Aemilianus, soldier, sends greetings. I have sent you, Lord, by the camel driver Iasucton, nine spitualis of wheat, which is equivalent to a hundred and eight modii, the consuls in office after the consulship of Tuscus and Bassus, 21st January. This Roman tradition of intense record-keeping prevented the loss of supplies due to corruption or mistreatment, as everything can be tracked all the way to the supplier. In this example, the shipment totaled 670 kg of wheat, a mere fraction of all the necessities of the fort, which at this time hosted a cohort of 480 men of the Third Augusta. The name of the camel driver suggests he was Libyan, as were some of the soldiers in the fort, who were local recruits. The Third Augusta was also entrusted with maintaining the peace through very active communication and correspondence with nearby forts and settlements, like exchanging information about movements of civilians, traders, or military threats. As such, it was common to see letters like the following sent to the local commander's headquarters. The Garamantes arrived. They bring four donkeys and two Egyptians with letters to you, Tessus Emmaeus Opter, and a runaway slave. Controlling the movement of people and information across the frontier was vital for managing a province, and the disciplined legions were very efficient with this. Moreover, a diplomatic line of communications also existed between the Roman garrisons and local tribes, as they had agreements for trade, the exchange of letters, and even the return of runaway slaves as we see here. Evidently, the Tripolitanian frontier was far from a static military border, as many would assume. Instead, it was an extremely dynamic social border, where Roman troops were expected to control the movements in their sections of the frontier, and to stand on guard against any potential threat. Even when soldiers retire, they can still play a big role in a province. The military garrisons at the frontier were supported by a large network of civilian fortifications behind them. Roman and native settlers erected large rectangular fortified farms known as Cantinaria in the region. Today, more than 2,000 of these small structures had been found. In case of an emergency, the farms would have acted as fortified positions and rallying points for the civilians of the region to fall back to. They could then be transformed into improvised militia forces, as large numbers of veterans would have also been present among civilians. The city of Gyrza, for example, had a large number of ex-soldiers from the Auxilia and the 3rd Legion, like one named Migin, who lived to the venerable age of 111. Even in their 50s, these veterans could take up arms and bolster the size of the garrisons or delay enemy troops until reinforcements could arrive. Due to the presence of a single legion, it is unsurprising that the area is known to have boomed during the next few centuries. Vines, olives, dates and figs became the main produce of the region, something achieved by a huge investment in cisterns, dams and irrigation systems, as well as a stable level of peace that the Roman army was able to provide the area. Despite its great development, the frontier policy of Tripolitania came under intense scrutiny and criticism from parts of the upper echelons of the Roman Empire. The historian Cassius Dio thought the whole effort to have been a waste of money, as it only committed more precious Roman resources to another backwater region of the Empire. Either way, the legions of Rome showed that they were more than fighting units, that could bring peace and prosperity to even the most distant lands of the Empire, or violence and instability were they to ever depart from them. Regardless, it is a fact that the legions were a crucial cog in the huge machine that was the Roman Empire. Please like and subscribe if you enjoyed this video, and consider joining our Patreons who provide crucial support in the making of these videos. Feel free to check out others we've made, like on the training and military careers in the army. I hope to see you all in the next one.