Cohors I Hamiorum sagittariorum ("1st Cohort of Hamian Archers") was a Roman auxiliary infantry unit of archers raised near the ancient city of Hama, Syria. It was a cohors quingenaria consisting of 480 men. The unit's origins are unknown and it is unclear when the unit was first created; however, its existence can be definitively attested in the reign of

Hadrian Hadrian ( ; ; 24 January 76 – 10 July 138) was Roman emperor from 117 to 138. Hadrian was born in Italica, close to modern Seville in Spain, an Italic peoples, Italic settlement in Hispania Baetica; his branch of the Aelia gens, Aelia '' ...

. Military diplomas from the years 122 (CIL 16.69), 124 (CIL 16.70), 127 (RMD 240), and 135 AD (CIL 16.82) show that the unit was stationed in

Britannia The image of Britannia () is the national personification of United Kingdom, Britain as a helmeted female warrior holding a trident and shield. An image first used by the Romans in classical antiquity, the Latin was the name variously appli ...

Magnis (Carvoran) Magnis or Magna was a Roman fort near Hadrian's Wall in northern Britain. Its ruins are now known as and are located near Carvoran, Northumberland, in northern England. It was built on the Stanegate frontier and Roman road, linking Coria ...

. It is the only regiment of archers known to be stationed in Britain. The unit was transferred to

Caledonia Caledonia (; ) was the Latin name used by the Roman Empire to refer to the forested region in the central and western Scottish Highlands, particularly stretching through parts of what are now Lochaber, Badenoch, Strathspey, and possibly as ...

sometime during the reign of

Antoninus Pius Titus Aelius Hadrianus Antoninus Pius (; ; 19 September 86 – 7 March 161) was Roman emperor from AD 138 to 161. He was the fourth of the Five Good Emperors from the Nerva–Antonine dynasty. Born into a senatorial family, Antoninus held var ...

according to three inscriptions found at the Bar Hill Fort on the

Antonine Wall The Antonine Wall () was a turf fortification on stone foundations, built by the Romans across what is now the Central Belt of Scotland, between the Firth of Clyde and the Firth of Forth. Built some twenty years after Hadrian's Wall to the south ...

. In 163 or 164 AD, the regiment was transferred back to Carvoran. The regiment's whereabouts prior to its deployment in Britain are not known, but some scholars, such as Paul Holder, have posited that the regiment first arrived in Britain during the

Roman conquest of Britain The Roman conquest of Britain was the Roman Empire's conquest of most of the island of Great Britain, Britain, which was inhabited by the Celtic Britons. It began in earnest in AD 43 under Emperor Claudius, and was largely completed in the ...

in 43 AD. A military diploma from the

Balkans The Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throug ...

suggests that it is possible that the regiment could have participated in Trajan's Dacian Wars before it was sent to Britain.

References

2nd-century disestablishments in the Roman Empire 2nd-century establishments in the Roman Empire Auxiliary infantry units of ancient Rome Military units and formations established in the 2nd century {{AncientRome-mil-stub

See also

References