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A ''tribunus angusticlavius'' ("narrow-striped tribune"; plural: ''tribuni angusticlavii'') was a senior military officer in the
Roman legion The Roman legion ( la, legiō, ) was the largest military unit of the Roman army, composed of 5,200 infantry and 300 equites (cavalry) in the period of the Roman Republic (509 BC–27 BC) and of 5,600 infantry and 200 auxilia in the period of ...
s during the late
Roman Republic The Roman Republic ( la, Res publica Romana ) was a form of government of Rome and the era of the classical Roman civilization when it was run through public representation of the Roman people. Beginning with the overthrow of the Roman K ...
and the
Principate The Principate is the name sometimes given to the first period of the Roman Empire from the beginning of the reign of Augustus in 27 BC to the end of the Crisis of the Third Century in AD 284, after which it evolved into the so-called Dominate. ...
. The ''tribunus angusticlavius'' was a junior
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 ...
who was at least 20 years old, chosen from among 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 ...
, as opposed to the ''
tribunus laticlavius In the Roman army of the late Republic and the Principate, the ("broad-striped tribune") was one of the six military tribunes in a legion. Usually, they were a young man around the age of 20 that belonged to a wealthy family. Or they were frien ...
'', who was chosen from the Senatorial class. There were five to each
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 ...
, identified by a narrow purple stripe ('' angustus clavus'' or ''angusticlavus'') on their tunics. Despite their youth, the tribunes had previous experience, usually as a '' praefectus'' leading a quingenary auxiliary cohort. Their duties varied, mostly staff work, but also lead two cohorts. The next step of promotion was often as ''praefectus'' of a 500-strong cavalry '' ala''. There were 141 of these at a time.


References

{{Reflist Military ranks of ancient Rome