Cohors IV Delmatarum
Encyclopedia
Cohors quarta Delmatarum ("4th Cohort of Dalmatae") was a Roman auxiliary infantry regiment raised in the 1st century AD and continuing to serve into the 2nd century.
, an Illyrian-speaking tribe that inhabited the Adriatic coastal mountain range of the eponymous Dalmatia
. The ancient geographer Strabo
describes these mountains as extremely rugged, and the Dalmatae as backward and warlike. He claims that they did not use money long after their neighbours adopted it and that they "made war on the Romans for a long time". He also criticises the Dalmatae, a nation of pastoralists, for turning fertile plains into sheep pasture. Indeed, the name of the tribe itself is believed to mean "shepherds", derived from the Illyrian word delme ("sheep"). The final time this people fought against Rome was in the Illyrian revolt of 6-9 AD. The revolt was started by Dalmatae auxiliary forces and soon spread all over Dalmatia
and Pannonia
. The resulting war was described by the Roman writer Suetonius
as the most difficult faced by Rome since the Punic Wars
two centuries earlier. But after the war, the Dalmatae became a loyal and important source of recruits for the Roman army.
(r. 41-54) Of these, 9 appear to have survived into the 2nd century.
The regiment was probably raised by founder-emperor Augustus
(r. 30BC-14AD) after 9 AD. It was certainly in existence by the time of Claudius
(r. 41-54). Its early movements are unknown. Holder suggests that the regiment may have taken part in the Roman invasion of Britain (43) or the suppression of the revolt of Boudicca in 61. But this ignores the evidence of three 1st century tombstones from the Rhine forts of Bingen
and Bingerbrück
in Germania
, where it was clearly stationed. The regiment first appears in the datable epigraphic record in 103, in Britannia
. It was still there in 126-30, the time of its last datable inscription, a building inscription at the Roman fort of Hardknot (Cumbria). The latter is incomplete, but is plausibly though not conclusively attributed to IV Delmatarum. The regiment's disappearance from the epigraphic record in the early 2nd century has led Spaul to suggest that the regiment was merged with another to form the cohors I Pannoniorum et Delmatarum equitata c.R. attested in Germania Inferior
in 127 and beyond. But the record overall is too incomplete to support any firm conclusions.
. A second man, whose middle name only, Pactumerius, has survived, left a votive stone at Madaura
in Numidia
(Mdaurusch, Algeria). The origin of the third, Lucius Aprius Liburnus, is revealed by his cognomen (third name): of the Liburni tribe, western neighbors of the Dalmatae. In addition, the names of 3 caligati (common soldiers) survive on the 1st century tombstones from Bingen. All were Illyrians: 1 Dalmata, 1 Liburnus and 1 Daverzus.
The Dalmatae
The cohort is named after the DalmataeDalmatae
The Dalmatae or Delmatae were an ancient people who inhabited the core of what would then become known as Dalmatia after the Roman conquest - now the eastern Adriatic coast in Croatia, between the rivers Krka and Neretva...
, an Illyrian-speaking tribe that inhabited the Adriatic coastal mountain range of the eponymous Dalmatia
Dalmatia
Dalmatia is a historical region on the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea. It stretches from the island of Rab in the northwest to the Bay of Kotor in the southeast. The hinterland, the Dalmatian Zagora, ranges from fifty kilometers in width in the north to just a few kilometers in the south....
. The ancient geographer Strabo
Strabo
Strabo, also written Strabon was a Greek historian, geographer and philosopher.-Life:Strabo was born to an affluent family from Amaseia in Pontus , a city which he said was situated the approximate equivalent of 75 km from the Black Sea...
describes these mountains as extremely rugged, and the Dalmatae as backward and warlike. He claims that they did not use money long after their neighbours adopted it and that they "made war on the Romans for a long time". He also criticises the Dalmatae, a nation of pastoralists, for turning fertile plains into sheep pasture. Indeed, the name of the tribe itself is believed to mean "shepherds", derived from the Illyrian word delme ("sheep"). The final time this people fought against Rome was in the Illyrian revolt of 6-9 AD. The revolt was started by Dalmatae auxiliary forces and soon spread all over Dalmatia
Dalmatia (Roman province)
Dalmatia was an ancient Roman province. Its name is probably derived from the name of an Illyrian tribe called the Dalmatae which lived in the area of the eastern Adriatic coast in Classical antiquity....
and Pannonia
Pannonia
Pannonia was an ancient province of the Roman Empire bounded north and east by the Danube, coterminous westward with Noricum and upper Italy, and southward with Dalmatia and upper Moesia....
. The resulting war was described by the Roman writer Suetonius
Suetonius
Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus, commonly known as Suetonius , was a Roman historian belonging to the equestrian order in the early Imperial era....
as the most difficult faced by Rome since the Punic Wars
Punic Wars
The Punic Wars were a series of three wars fought between Rome and Carthage from 264 B.C.E. to 146 B.C.E. At the time, they were probably the largest wars that had ever taken place...
two centuries earlier. But after the war, the Dalmatae became a loyal and important source of recruits for the Roman army.
Origins and service history
According to Holder, a total of 12 cohortes Delmatarum appear to have been raised after the suppression of the Illyrian revolt in two series, of 7 and 5 respectively. All these units were in existence by the time of emperor ClaudiusClaudius
Claudius , was Roman Emperor from 41 to 54. A member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, he was the son of Drusus and Antonia Minor. He was born at Lugdunum in Gaul and was the first Roman Emperor to be born outside Italy...
(r. 41-54) Of these, 9 appear to have survived into the 2nd century.
The regiment was probably raised by founder-emperor Augustus
Augustus
Augustus ;23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14) is considered the first emperor of the Roman Empire, which he ruled alone from 27 BC until his death in 14 AD.The dates of his rule are contemporary dates; Augustus lived under two calendars, the Roman Republican until 45 BC, and the Julian...
(r. 30BC-14AD) after 9 AD. It was certainly in existence by the time of Claudius
Claudius
Claudius , was Roman Emperor from 41 to 54. A member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, he was the son of Drusus and Antonia Minor. He was born at Lugdunum in Gaul and was the first Roman Emperor to be born outside Italy...
(r. 41-54). Its early movements are unknown. Holder suggests that the regiment may have taken part in the Roman invasion of Britain (43) or the suppression of the revolt of Boudicca in 61. But this ignores the evidence of three 1st century tombstones from the Rhine forts of Bingen
Bingen am Rhein
Bingen am Rhein is a town in the Mainz-Bingen district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.The settlement’s original name was Bingium, a Celtic word that may have meant “hole in the rock”, a description of the shoal behind the Mäuseturm, known as the Binger Loch. Bingen was the starting point for the...
and Bingerbrück
Bingerbrück
Bingerbrück is a Stadtteil of Bingen am Rhein, on the opposite side of the river Nahe from the old town of Bingen. It was self-administering until 1969.- Binger Mäuseturm :...
in Germania
Germania
Germania was the Greek and Roman geographical term for the geographical regions inhabited by mainly by peoples considered to be Germani. It was most often used to refer especially to the east of the Rhine and north of the Danube...
, where it was clearly stationed. The regiment first appears in the datable epigraphic record in 103, in Britannia
Britannia
Britannia is an ancient term for Great Britain, and also a female personification of the island. The name is Latin, and derives from the Greek form Prettanike or Brettaniai, which originally designated a collection of islands with individual names, including Albion or Great Britain. However, by the...
. It was still there in 126-30, the time of its last datable inscription, a building inscription at the Roman fort of Hardknot (Cumbria). The latter is incomplete, but is plausibly though not conclusively attributed to IV Delmatarum. The regiment's disappearance from the epigraphic record in the early 2nd century has led Spaul to suggest that the regiment was merged with another to form the cohors I Pannoniorum et Delmatarum equitata c.R. attested in Germania Inferior
Germania Inferior
Germania Inferior was a Roman province located on the left bank of the Rhine, in today's Luxembourg, southern Netherlands, parts of Belgium, and North Rhine-Westphalia left of the Rhine....
in 127 and beyond. But the record overall is too incomplete to support any firm conclusions.
Known personnel
The names of 3 praefecti (regimental commanders) are attested. Titus Iunius Severus was a Spaniard from DeniaDénia
Dénia is a city in the province of Alicante, Spain, on the Costa Blanca halfway between Alicante and Valencia, the judicial seat of the comarca of Marina Alta...
. A second man, whose middle name only, Pactumerius, has survived, left a votive stone at Madaura
Madaura
Madaura may refer to:*the city of Madaurus*Lucius Apuleius of Madaura...
in Numidia
Numidia
Numidia was an ancient Berber kingdom in part of present-day Eastern Algeria and Western Tunisia in North Africa. It is known today as the Chawi-land, the land of the Chawi people , the direct descendants of the historical Numidians or the Massyles The kingdom began as a sovereign state and later...
(Mdaurusch, Algeria). The origin of the third, Lucius Aprius Liburnus, is revealed by his cognomen (third name): of the Liburni tribe, western neighbors of the Dalmatae. In addition, the names of 3 caligati (common soldiers) survive on the 1st century tombstones from Bingen. All were Illyrians: 1 Dalmata, 1 Liburnus and 1 Daverzus.