Legio V Alaudae
Fifth Legion Alaudae | |
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Legio V Alaudae Legio Quinta Alaudae | |
Active | 52 BC until either AD 70 or AD 86 |
Country | Roman Republic (in the time of Julius Caesar) and Roman Empire |
Type | Roman legion (Marian) |
Nickname(s) |
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Military of ancient Rome |
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Legio V Alaudae ("Fifth Legion of the Lark"), sometimes also known as Legio V Gallica ("Fifth
History
Origin and early history
The legion was founded in
The last war of the Republic
After a
Service in Germania
After a few years, V Alaudae was moved to Gallia Belgica. While in Gaul the legion may have temporarily lost its standard when its commander Marcus Lollius was defeated by the Germanic Sugambri. The battle probably took place in the valley of the Meuse. Although we cannot be precise, it is likely that the transfer from Hispania Ulterior to Belgica had taken place in 19 BC, when Augustus' friend Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa invaded Germania. The legion was transferred to or Xanten by Augustus' stepson Drusus and it took part in his Germanic campaigns. The soldiers of V Alaudae crossed the Weser and reached the Elbe in 9 BCE. For some time, they may have lived at Oberaden or Haltern on the east bank of the Rhine. In 6 CE, several legions marched against king Maroboduus of the Marcomanni in Czechia; at the same time, the V Alaudae were to attack the Marcomanni along the Elbe. It was to be the most grandiose operation that was ever conducted by a Roman army, but a rebellion in Pannonia obstructed its execution.[2]
Not much later, the
In 28 CE, the fifth legion suppressed a Frisian revolt, but the emperor Tiberius nonetheless allowed the Frisians to be independent. Twelve years later, V Alaudae joined the emperor Caligula when he visited the delta of the Rhine. The famous anecdote, told by Suetonius, about the emperor commanding soldiers to collect shells on the beach, refers to the visit of the fifth to Lugdunum. The V Alaudae and XV Primigenia are thought to have been part of the expeditionary force that was led against the Frisians and Chauci by the Roman general Gnaeus Domitius Corbulo in 47 AD.
The operation was very successful, but the emperor Claudius ordered the Romans to keep the Rhine as the empire's frontier. The soldiers were now ordered to build fortifications along the Rhine and dig a canal from Matilo to the capital of the Cananefates, Voorburg; this canal still exists. Another non-military activity was the production of tiles. Every legion owned and operated a tilery. It is odd to notice that V Alaudae made these objects at Feldkassel, more than 90 kilometers away.
Year of Four Emperors
In 67 AD, many senators hated Nero. And several governors discussed his removal. Among these were Lucius Clodius Macer of Africa and Gaius Julius Vindex of one of the provinces in Gaul, who supported the governor of Hispania Tarraconensis, Servius Sulpicius Galba, when he proclaimed that he wanted to dethrone Nero. The army of Germania Inferior, which included the Legio V Alaudae marched to the south and defeated Gaius Julius Vindex.[2] Therefore, the army of Germania Inferior acclaimed their own commander, Vitellius, as emperor, and marched on Rome. They were successful, and Vitellius started his reign. However, in the east, general Vespasian had also decided to make a bid for power; the two armies clashed near Cremona in northern Italy, and the Rhine army turned out to be no match for the soldiers of Vespasian.
Revolt of the Batavi
Meanwhile, in Germania Inferior the Batavians revolted. A Roman expeditionary force, consisting of the remains of V Alaudae and XV Primigenia, was defeated near Nijmegen, and not much later, these two legions found themselves besieged at Xanten. Although I Germanica, XVI Gallica and a legion from Germania Superior, XXII Primigenia, tried to rescue them, the two legions at Xanten were forced to surrender in March 70 AD. Not much later, I Germanica and XVI Gallica surrendered as well. It took several months before the new emperor Vespasian could send a strong Roman army to recover the Rhineland and suppress the Batavian revolt, commanded by his relative Quintus Petillius Cerialis. The legions XVI Gallica and IIII Macedonica, which had guarded Mainz, were renamed XVI Flavia Firma and IIII Flavia Felix; the remains of I Germanica were added with Galba's Seventh legion and became known as VII Gemina. XV Primigenia and V Alaudae were never reconstituted.[2]
Attested members
Name | Rank | Time frame | Province | Source |
---|---|---|---|---|
Cethegus Labeo | legatus legionis
|
c. 28 | Rhine frontier | Annales , iv.73
|
Tiberius Plautius Silvanus Aelianus | legatus legionis | between 37 and 43 | Rhine frontier | CIL XIV, 3608 |
Cornelius Aquinus | legatus legionis | 68-69 | Rhine frontier | Tacitus, Histories, i.7 |
Fabius Fabullus | legatus legionis | 69-70 | Rhine frontier | Tacitus, Histories, iii.14 |
[...] C.f. C.n. L. Pi[...] | tribunus angusticlavius | 1st half of 1st C. | Rhine frontier | Epigraphica, 34 (1972), pp. 144f |
Aulus Egrilus A.f. A.n. A.pron. Rufus | tribunus angusticlavius | 2nd half of 1st C. | Rhine frontier | AE 1955, 168 |
Gnaeus Domitius Lucanus | tribunus laticlavius | c. 65 | Rhine frontier | CIL XI, 5210 |
Gnaeus Domitius Tullus | tribunus laticlavius | c. 65 | Rhine frontier | CIL XI, 5211 |
See also
Notes
References
Primary sources
- Tacitus, Annales
Secondary sources
- Jones, Brian W. (1992). The Emperor Domitian. Routledge.
- Parker, HMD (1971). The Roman Legions. Cambridge: W. Heffer & Sons LTD. p. 110. ISBN 0852700547.