Cohors prima Delmatarum ("1st Cohort of Dalmatae") was a

Roman auxiliary The (, lit. "auxiliaries") were introduced as non-citizen troops attached to the citizen Roman legion, legions by Augustus after his reorganisation of the Imperial Roman army from 30 BC. By the 2nd century, the Auxilia contained the same ...

infantry regiment. It is named after the

Dalmatae The Delmatae, alternatively Dalmatæ, during the Roman period, were a group of Illyrian tribes in Dalmatia, contemporary southern Croatia and western Bosnia and Herzegovina. The region of Dalmatia takes its name from the tribe. The Delmatae ap ...

, an Illyrian-speaking tribe that inhabited the

Adriatic The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) ...

coastal mountain range of the eponymous

Dalmatia Dalmatia (; hr, Dalmacija ; it, Dalmazia; see #Name, names in other languages) is one of the four historical region, historical regions of Croatia, alongside Croatia proper, Slavonia, and Istria. Dalmatia is a narrow belt of the east shore of ...

. The ancient geographer

Strabo Strabo''Strabo'' (meaning "squinty", as in strabismus) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. The father of Pompey was called "Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-sighted that he could see ...

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 The (Latin for 'War of the Batos') was a military conflict fought in the Roman Empire, Roman province of Illyricum (Roman province), Illyricum in the 1st century AD, in which an alliance of native peoples of the two regions of Illyricum, Roman D ...

of 6–9 AD. The revolt was started by Dalmatae auxiliary forces and soon spread all over

and

Pannonia Pannonia (, ) was a province of the Roman Empire bounded on the north and east by the Danube, coterminous westward with Noricum and upper Italy, and southward with Dalmatia and upper Moesia. Pannonia was located in the territory that is now wes ...

. The resulting war was described by the Roman writer

Suetonius Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus (), commonly referred to as Suetonius ( ; c. AD 69 – after AD 122), was a Roman historian who wrote during the early Imperial era of the Roman Empire. His most important surviving work is a set of biographies ...

as the most difficult faced by Rome since the

Punic Wars The Punic Wars were a series of wars between 264 and 146BC fought between Roman Republic, Rome and Ancient Carthage, Carthage. Three conflicts between these states took place on both land and sea across the western Mediterranean region and i ...

two centuries earlier. But after the war, the Dalmatae became a loyal and important source of recruits for the Roman army. 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

Claudius Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (; 1 August 10 BC – 13 October AD 54) was the fourth Roman emperor, ruling from AD 41 to 54. A member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, Claudius was born to Nero Claudius Drusus, Drusu ...

(r. 41–54)Holder (1980) 112 Of these, 9 appear to have survived into the 2nd century.Spaul (2000) 302-14 The regiment was probably raised by founder-emperor

Augustus Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pri ...

(r. 30BC – 14AD) after 9 AD. It was certainly in existence by the time of

(r. 41–54). Its early movements are unknown. Holder suggests that the regiment may have taken part in the

Roman invasion of Britain The Roman conquest of Britain refers to the conquest of the island of Britain by occupying Roman forces. It began in earnest in AD 43 under Emperor Claudius, and was largely completed in the southern half of Britain by 87 when the Staneg ...

(43) or the suppression of the revolt of

Boudicca Boudica or Boudicca (, known in Latin chronicles as Boadicea or Boudicea, and in Welsh as ()), was a queen of the ancient British Iceni tribe, who led a failed uprising against the conquering forces of the Roman Empire in AD 60 or 61. She ...

(61), but there is no evidence. It first appears in the datable epigraphic record in 122, in

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, Great ...

. It was still there in 138–61, the time of its last datable inscription.Spaul (2000) 302 It is attested in the following Roman forts in Britannia:

High Rochester Bremenium is an ancient Roman fort (castrum) located at Rochester, Northumberland, England. The fort is one of the defensive structures built along Dere Street, a Roman road running from York to Corbridge and onwards to Melrose. Significa ...

Maryport Maryport is a town and civil parish in the Allerdale borough of Cumbria, England, historically in Cumberland. The town is situated just outside the Lake District National Park, at the northern end of the former Cumberland Coalfield. Locatio ...

(138–61) and Chesters (138–61). The names of 12 ''praefecti'' (regimental commanders) are attested. From the locations of their votive or funerary stones, it can be deduced that at least 4 were central/southern Italians: from Aquino, Beneventum, the city of Rome (c. 120), and

Tusculum Tusculum is a ruined Roman city in the Alban Hills, in the Latium region of Italy. Tusculum was most famous in Roman times for the many great and luxurious patrician country villas sited close to the city, yet a comfortable distance from Rome ( ...

. Another was a member of the

Santones The Santoni or Santones ( grc, Σαντόνων, Σάντονες) were a Gallic tribe dwelling in the later region of Saintonge during the Iron Age and the Roman period. Name These people are noted as ''Santonum'', ''Santonos'' and ''Santoni ...

Gallic tribe of western

Gaul Gaul ( la, Gallia) was a region of Western Europe first described by the Romans. It was inhabited by Celtic and Aquitani tribes, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, most of Switzerland, parts of Northern Italy (only during ...

, and one from Baláca (

). In addition, a '' centurio'' (infantry officer) is attested.

Citations

{{reflist

References

* Holder, Paul ''Studies in the Auxilia of the Roman Army'' (1980) * Spaul, John ''COHORS 2'' (2000) Auxiliary infantry units of ancient Rome Dalmatia (Roman province) Military history of Roman Britain

See also

Citations

References