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Ala Gallorum Petriana (English: "Petritanus' Ala of Gauls") was a
Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lett ...
auxiliary unit. It is attested by military diplomas and inscriptions: in one inscription (RIB 957) it is referred to as Ala Augusta Petriana; in other inscriptions,
Tacitus Publius Cornelius Tacitus, known simply as Tacitus ( , ; – ), was a Roman historian and politician. Tacitus is widely regarded as one of the greatest Roman historians by modern scholars. The surviving portions of his two major works—the ...
in his ''
Histories Histories or, in Latin, Historiae may refer to: * the plural of history * ''Histories'' (Herodotus), by Herodotus * ''The Histories'', by Timaeus * ''The Histories'' (Polybius), by Polybius * ''Histories'' by Gaius Sallustius Crispus (Sallust), ...
'', and in the ''
Notitia dignitatum The ''Notitia Dignitatum'' (Latin for "The List of Offices") is a document of the late Roman Empire that details the administrative organization of the Western and the Eastern Roman Empire. It is unique as one of very few surviving documents o ...
'' it is called Ala Petriana. The unit was an ''ala milliaria''. The nominal strength of the '' ala'' was 720 men, consisting of 24 turmae each with 30 horsemen.


History

The Ala was stationed in the provinces of Germania, then afterwards
Britannia Britannia () is the national personification of Britain as a helmeted female warrior holding a trident and shield. An image first used in classical antiquity, the Latin ''Britannia'' was the name variously applied to the British Isles, Grea ...
. It is listed on
military diploma A Roman military diploma was a document inscribed in bronze certifying that the holder was honourably discharged from the Roman armed forces and/or had received the grant of Roman citizenship from the emperor as reward for service. The diploma ...
s for the years 98 to 135 AD. The unit was first stationed in the province of Germania in the 1st century. Perhaps the original name of the unit was Ala Pomponiana. At an uncertain time (possibly under
Quintus Petillius Cerialis Quintus Petillius Cerialis Caesius Rufus ( AD 30 — after AD 83), otherwise known as Quintus Petillius Cerialis, was a Roman general and administrator who served in Britain during Boudica's rebellion and went on to participate in the civil wars a ...
at 71/74), the Ala was transferred to the province of Britannia, where its presence is first attested by a military diploma dated to 98. Other diplomas dated from 122 to 135 attest the unit remained in Britannia. The unit is mentioned for the last time in the ''Notitia dignitatum''. It was under the direction of a '' prefectus'', who was subordinate the
Dux Britanniarum ''Dux Britanniarum'' was a military post in Roman Britain, probably created by Emperor Diocletian or Constantine I during the late third or early fourth century. The ''Dux'' (literally, "(military) leader" was a senior officer in the late Roman ...
.


Locations

Locations of the Ala in Germania were possibly: * Mogontiacum (modern
Mainz Mainz () is the capital and largest city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Mainz is on the left bank of the Rhine, opposite to the place that the Main joins the Rhine. Downstream of the confluence, the Rhine flows to the north-west, with Ma ...
); here the inscription of Caius Julius Augurinus, ''Prefectus'' of the Ala c. AD 56, was found. Locations of the Ala in Britannia include: * Coria (
Corbridge Corbridge is a village in Northumberland, England, west of Newcastle upon Tyne, Newcastle and east of Hexham. Villages nearby include Halton, Northumberland, Halton, Acomb, Northumberland, Acomb, Aydon and Sandhoe. Etymology Corbridge was kno ...
): the gravestone of Flavinus was found here.
RIB In vertebrate anatomy, ribs ( la, costae) are the long curved bones which form the rib cage, part of the axial skeleton. In most tetrapods, ribs surround the chest, enabling the lungs to expand and thus facilitate breathing by expanding the ches ...
br>1172
/ref> *
Petriana Uxelodunum (with the alternative Roman name of Petriana and the modern name of Stanwix Fort) was a Roman fort. It was the largest fort on Hadrian's Wall, and is now buried beneath the suburb of Stanwix, in Carlisle, Cumbria, England. Roman n ...
(
Stanwix Stanwix is a district of Carlisle, Cumbria in North West England. The ward population (called Stanwix Urban) had a population taken at the 2011 census of 5,934. It is located on the north side of River Eden, across from Carlisle city centre ...
at
Carlisle Carlisle ( , ; from xcb, Caer Luel) is a city that lies within the Northern English county of Cumbria, south of the Scottish border at the confluence of the rivers Eden, Caldew and Petteril. It is the administrative centre of the City ...
): the ''Notitia dignitatum'' places the unit here.


References

{{Reflist Military of ancient Rome GallorumPetriana