Noumeroi

The ''Noumeroi'' ( el, �ἱΝούμεροι, masculine plural) or ''Noumera'' ( �ὰNούμερα, neuter plural, from the Latin ''numerus'', "number" in the sense of "regiment") were a Byzantine infantry garrison unit for the imperial capital, Constantinople. Their main task involved the protection of the Great Palace of Constantinople and of the Noumera, one of the city's prisons.

History and functions

The origin and date of establishment of the ''Noumeroi'' is unknown.Guilland (1969), p. 48 They are first securely attested during the reign of Michael III (r. 842–867): the unit is mentioned in the ''Taktikon Uspensky'' of 842/843, and the name of one of its commanders, Leo Lalakon, also survives from the same period.Bury (1911), p. 65Kazhdan (1991), p. 641 J.B. Bury considered a seal of the 7th–8th centuries mentioning a "''droungarios tou nou erou?'" as an indication of a predecessor of the 9th-century unit, and based on the nomenclature of its subaltern officers hypothesized an origin in the East Roman army of the 6th century,Bury (1911), pp. 65–66 while John Haldon traces its hypothetical lineage to the late 7th century. The unit survived until the 11th century, when it ceases to be mentioned, indicating that it was dissolved.

The precise title of this unit remains uncertain. In Byzantine literature it is documented only in the genitive plural (τῶν Νουμέρων), which leaves unclear whether the unit title was ''Noumeroi'' (Νούμεροι) or ''Noumera'' (Νούμερα). Modern scholars over the past century have variously favoured both forms. The term ''noumeros'' (transliterated from la, numerus, in Greek also translated as ''arithmos'') was itself a common term for a regular military unit of indeterminate size used in Late Antiquity. It was only later, in the 8th and possibly even in the 9th century, that the name came to specify this particular unit.Guilland (1969), p. 49 The regiment in turn gave its name to the Noumera, a building adjoining the Hippodrome of Constantinople that served as their barracks and as a city prison. The French scholar Rodolphe Guilland identified the 9th-century Noumera with the prison known as Prandiara in earlier times.

The ''Noumeroi'' ranked among the imperial '' tagmata'', professional regiments stationed in and around Constantinople. Unlike most of the ''tagmata'', the ''Noumeroi'' were composed of infantry and never left Constantinople, being entrusted with guard duties in the city, specifically watching over the Noumera prison and sharing the protection of the Great Palace of Constantinople with two other ''tagmata'', the '' Vigla'' or ''Arithmos'', a cavalry unit which accompanied the emperor on campaign, and another infantry unit under the Count or Domestic of the Walls (''komēs/domestikos ton teichōn''). The latter had close ties with the ''Noumeroi'': they shared a common function and had the same internal structure, and until the reign of Michael III at least, the two commands seem to have been combined under a single officer, as attested in the person of a certain Nikephoritzes during this time. The Count and his men were originally responsible for the defence of the Anastasian Wall, and later, like the ''Noumeroi'', charged with the supervision of the Chalke prison and guard duties in the Great Palace.

Command structure

Like most of the ''tagmata'', the commander of the ''Noumeroi'' bore the title of Domestic (''domestikos tōn Noumerōn'', ), usually named simply ''ho noumeros'' (). Based on surviving seals, in the 9th century he usually bore the ranks of ''spatharios'' or '' prōtospatharios''. As with the other commanders of the ''tagmata'', the Domestic of the ''Noumeroi'' played an important role in court ceremonies, and was associated with the racing faction of the Blues, and the senior ''tagma'' of the ''Scholai'', while the Walls were associated with the Green faction and the second-most senior ''tagma'', the Excubitors.Guilland (1969), pp. 49–50

Like the other ''tagmata'', the Domestic was assisted by a '' topotērētēs'' (τοποτηρητής, lit. "placeholder, lieutenant"), a secretary called ''chartoularios'' (χαρτουλάριος), and a chief messenger called ''prōtomandatōr'' (πρωτομανδάτωρ).Bury (1911), p. 66 The subaltern officers were titled, in late antique fashion, ''tribounoi'' (, "tribunes") and ''vikarioi'' (βικάριοι, "''vicarii''"), corresponding to the ''komētēs'' ("counts") and ''kentarchoi'' ("centurions") of the other ''tagmata''. There were also a number of messengers (μανδάτορες, ''mandatores'') and door-keepers (πορτάριοι, ''portarioi''), the latter evidently related to the regiment's prison guard duties.

References

Sources

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*{{cite book , title=Byzantium and Its Army, 284-1081 , last=Treadgold , first=Warren T. , year=1995 , publisher=Stanford University Press , isbn=0-8047-3163-2

Constantinople
Infantry units and formations
Guards units of the Byzantine Empire