The ''contubernium'' (

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

for 'tenting-together') was the smallest sub-subunit organized unit of

soldier A soldier is a person who is a member of an army. A soldier can be a Conscription, conscripted or volunteer Enlisted rank, enlisted person, a non-commissioned officer, a warrant officer, or an Officer (armed forces), officer. Etymology The wo ...

s in the

Roman Army The Roman army () served ancient Rome and the Roman people, enduring through the Roman Kingdom (753–509 BC), the Roman Republic (509–27 BC), and the Roman Empire (27 BC–AD 1453), including the Western Roman Empire (collapsed Fall of the W ...

and was composed of ten

legionaries The ancient Rome, Roman legionary (in Latin ''legionarius''; : ''legionarii'') was a citizen soldier of the Roman army. These soldiers would conquer and defend the territories of ancient Rome during the Crisis of the Roman Republic, Republic and ...

, essentially the equivalent of a modern

squad In military terminology, a squad is among the smallest of Military organization, military organizations and is led by a non-commissioned officer. NATO and United States, U.S. doctrine define a squad as an organization "larger than a fireteam, ...

, although unlike modern squads contubernia seemed to serve no tactical role in battle. It was likely used to maintain morale and group solidarity by keeping soldiers in close contact with each other. The men within the contubernium were known as ''contubernales''. Ten contubernia, each led by a ''

decanus ''Decanus'' means "chief of ten" in Late Latin. The term originated in the Roman army and became used thereafter for Subaltern (military), subaltern officials in the Byzantine Empire, as well as for various positions in the Church, whence derives ...

'' experienced soldier who assumed leadership when there were no orders from above. Ten contubernium were grouped into a ''

centuria ''Centuria'' (; : ''centuriae'') is a Latin term (from the stem ''centum'' meaning one hundred) denoting military units originally consisting of 100 men. The size of the centuria changed over time, and from the first century BC through most of ...

'' of 100 men (eighty legionaries plus twenty support staff), which was commanded by a

centurion In the Roman army during classical antiquity, a centurion (; , . ; , or ), was a commander, nominally of a century (), a military unit originally consisting of 100 legionaries. The size of the century changed over time; from the 1st century BC ...

. Soldiers of a contubernium shared a

tent A tent is a shelter consisting of sheets of fabric or other material draped over or attached to a frame of poles or a supporting rope. While smaller tents may be free-standing or attached to the ground, large tents are usually anchored using g ...

, equipment and a mule for transporting supplies, and could be rewarded or punished together as a unit (see

Decimation (punishment) In Military of ancient Rome, the military of ancient Rome, decimation () was a form of military discipline in which every tenth man in a group was executed by members of his cohort. The discipline was used by senior commanders in the Roman army ...

Organization

The contubernium was, at least very late in the period, around the 4th century CE, led by a ''decanus'' or ''caput contubernii''. This officer might be considered roughly as the equivalent of a junior

non-commissioned officer A non-commissioned officer (NCO) is an enlisted rank, enlisted leader, petty officer, or in some cases warrant officer, who does not hold a Commission (document), commission. Non-commissioned officers usually earn their position of authority b ...

. It is possible that the title existed in the late Republic and early Principate. However, there is no evidence of a decanus exercising any kind of battlefield command role, regardless of any responsibilities they may have had in

garrison A garrison is any body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it. The term now often applies to certain facilities that constitute a military base or fortified military headquarters. A garrison is usually in a city ...

or camp. They were presumably appointed from within the contubernium and were most likely the longest-serving legionary. Their duties would likely have included organising the erection of the marching tent and ensuring their tent-mates kept things tidy. Two auxiliarists, roughly equivalent to modern logistical support troops, were part of each contubernium. They were responsible for the care of the contubernium's pack

mule The mule is a domestic equine hybrid between a donkey, and a horse. It is the offspring of a male donkey (a jack) and a female horse (a mare). The horse and the donkey are different species, with different numbers of chromosomes; of the two ...

, making sure that the legionaries had water during the march, and may have had special skills like

blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from #Other metals, other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such ...

ing or

carpentry Carpentry is a skilled trade and a craft in which the primary work performed is the cutting, shaping and installation of building materials during the construction of buildings, Shipbuilding, ships, timber bridges, concrete formwork, etc. C ...

. However, legionaries often fulfilled specialist roles themselves, so it is quite possible that the support personnel were simply grooms and servants.

References

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External links

Contubernales, A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities
Infantry units and formations of ancient Rome Roman legions