The ''tres militiae'' ("three military posts") was a career progression of the Roman Imperial army for men of the

equestrian order The ''equites'' (; literally "horse-" or "cavalrymen", though sometimes referred to as "knights" in English) constituted the second of the property-based classes of ancient Rome, ranking below the senatorial class. A member of the equestrian ...

. It developed as an alternative to the ''

cursus honorum The ''cursus honorum'' (; , or more colloquially 'ladder of offices') was the sequential order of public offices held by aspiring politicians in the Roman Republic and the early Roman Empire. It was designed for men of senatorial rank. The '' ...

'' of the senatorial order for enabling the

social mobility Social mobility is the movement of individuals, families, households or other categories of people within or between social strata in a society. It is a change in social status relative to one's current social location within a given societ ...

of equestrians and identifying those with the aptitude for administration. The three posts, typically held over a period of two to four years, were ''Praefectus cohortis'' (

prefect Prefect (from the Latin ''praefectus'', substantive adjectival form of ''praeficere'': "put in front", meaning in charge) is a magisterial title of varying definition, but essentially refers to the leader of an administrative area. A prefect's ...

of a cohort), ''

Tribunus angusticlavius A ''tribunus angusticlavius'' ("narrow-striped tribune"; plural: ''tribuni angusticlavii'') was a senior military officer in the Roman legions during the late Roman Republic and the Principate. The ''tribunus angusticlavius'' was a junior military ...

'' (

military tribune A military tribune (Latin ''tribunus militum'', "tribune of the soldiers") was an officer of the Roman army who ranked below the legate and above the centurion. Young men of Equestrian rank often served as military tribune as a stepping stone t ...

), and ''Praefectus alae'' (prefect of an '' ala'' ). Men who passed through the ''tres militiae'' often became prefect of the food supply ''(

Praefectus annonae The ("prefect of the provisions"), also called the ("prefect of the grain supply") was a Roman official charged with the supervision of the grain supply to the city of Rome. Under the Republic, the job was usually done by an aedile. However, in ...

)'',

prefect of Egypt During the Roman Empire, the governor of Roman Egypt ''(praefectus Aegypti)'' was a prefect who administered the Roman province of Egypt with the delegated authority ''(imperium)'' of the emperor. Egypt was established as a Roman province in con ...

, or

praetorian prefect The praetorian prefect ( la, praefectus praetorio, el, ) was a high office in the Roman Empire. Originating as the commander of the Praetorian Guard, the office gradually acquired extensive legal and administrative functions, with its holders b ...

s, the highest prefectures available to equestrians. The emperor

Trajan Trajan ( ; la, Caesar Nerva Traianus; 18 September 539/11 August 117) was Roman emperor from 98 to 117. Officially declared ''optimus princeps'' ("best ruler") by the senate, Trajan is remembered as a successful soldier-emperor who presi ...

played a major role in establishing a regular career track for equestrians.Bennett, ''Trajan,'' p. 5. The first of the ''tres militiae'' was command as a prefect of a ''cohors quingenaria'', one of approximately 150

auxiliary units The Auxiliary Units or GHQ Auxiliary Units were specially-trained, highly-secret quasi military units created by the British government during the Second World War with the aim of using irregular warfare in response to a possible invasion of the Un ...

of 500 men from the provinces. Promotion required a transfer to a

legion Legion may refer to: Military * Roman legion, the basic military unit of the ancient Roman army * Spanish Legion, an elite military unit within the Spanish Army * Legion of the United States, a reorganization of the United States Army from 1 ...

with the rank of ''tribunus angusticlavus'', "military tribune of the narrow stripe," referring to the narrower width of the ''clavus'' (reddish-purple stripe) that distinguished the

toga The toga (, ), a distinctive garment of ancient Rome, was a roughly semicircular cloth, between in length, draped over the shoulders and around the body. It was usually woven from white wool, and was worn over a tunic. In Roman historical tra ...

of an equestrian from that of a senator. Each legion had five ''angusticlavi'', but even with about 30 legions, there were probably only 20 or so vacancies each year. An alternative post for the second ''militia'' was as auxiliary tribune with a ''cohors milliaria'', one of 30 regiments of a thousand men each. The third ''militia'' was prefect of an ''ala,'' one of 70 cavalry wings of 500 men each. In some exceptional cases, a man might receive a fourth promotion as prefect of a thousand-man ''ala,'' though fewer than ten such ''alae'' existed. A man would be in his mid-thirties or older at the conclusion of his ''tres militiae,'' which could boost his career in politics or business at home. Some men instead moved on to posts in Imperial administration, especially as

procurator Procurator (with procuracy or procuratorate referring to the office itself) may refer to: * Procurator, one engaged in procuration, the action of taking care of, hence management, stewardship, agency * ''Procurator'' (Ancient Rome), the title of ...

.Elio Lo Cascio, "The Emperor and His Administration," in ''The Cambridge Ancient History: The Crisis of Empire, A.D. 193–337'' (Cambridge University Press, 2005), vol. 12, p. 149.

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