The Legio IV Italica ("Italian Fourth Legion") was a

legion Legion may refer to: Military * Roman legion, the basic military unit of the ancient Roman army * Aviazione Legionaria, Italian air force during the Spanish Civil War * A legion is the regional unit of the Italian carabinieri * Spanish Legion, ...

of the

Imperial Roman army The Imperial Roman Army was the military land force of the Roman Empire from 27 BC to 476 AD, and the final incarnation in the long history of the Roman army. This period is sometimes split into the Principate (27 BC – 284 AD) and the Dominate ...

raised in AD 231 by emperor

Alexander Severus Marcus Aurelius Severus Alexander (1 October 208 – March 235), also known as Alexander Severus, was Roman emperor from 222 until 235. He was the last emperor from the Severan dynasty. Alexander took power in 222, when he succeeded his slain co ...

. The legion remained in existence as late as AD 400.

History

The legion was raised during the reign of

in 231, with Italian and Pannonian soldiers, and perhaps took soon part in the expedition against the

Sassanids The Sasanian Empire (), officially Eranshahr ( , "Empire of the Iranians"), was an Iranian empire that was founded and ruled by the House of Sasan from 224 to 651. Enduring for over four centuries, the length of the Sasanian dynasty's reign ...

in 231–231. Its first commander was an

Equestrian The word equestrian is a reference to equestrianism, or horseback riding, derived from Latin ' and ', "horse". Horseback riding (or riding in British English) Examples of this are: *Equestrian sports *Equestrian order, one of the upper classes in ...

'' praefectus legionis''

Maximinus Thrax Gaius Julius Verus Maximinus "Thrax" () was a Roman emperor from 235 to 238. Born of Thracian origin – given the nickname ''Thrax'' ("the Thracian") – he rose up through the military ranks, ultimately holding high command in the army of th ...

, the former common soldier and future emperor; reflecting the growing trend of appointed equestrian ''legati'' in place of

senatorial A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the eld ...

ones. The legion participated in all of Maximinus' campaigns in the Danubian area in 235–238. Under

Gordian III Gordian III (; 20 January 225 – February 244) was Roman emperor from 238 to 244. At the age of 13, he became the youngest sole emperor of the united Roman Empire. Gordian was the son of Maecia Faustina and her husband Junius Balbus, who d ...

, it returned to the eastern frontier in 242–244 to fight the Sassanids under the prefect Serapamo, with its base set perhaps in the province of

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia is a historical region of West Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the Fertile Crescent. Today, Mesopotamia is known as present-day Iraq and forms the eastern geographic boundary of ...

. Nischer speculates it may have later been based in the Gaul under

Diocletian Diocletian ( ; ; ; 242/245 – 311/312), nicknamed Jovius, was Roman emperor from 284 until his abdication in 305. He was born Diocles to a family of low status in the Roman province of Dalmatia (Roman province), Dalmatia. As with other Illyri ...

. The ''

Notitia dignitatum The (Latin for 'List of all dignities and administrations both civil and military') is a document of the Late Roman Empire that details the administrative organization of the Western and the Eastern Roman Empire. It is unique as one of very ...

'' attests the unit as a pseudo-

comitatenses The ''comitatenses'' and later the '' palatini'' were the units of the field armies of the late Roman Empire. They were the soldiers that replaced the legionaries, who had formed the backbone of the Roman military since the late republic. Org ...

legion under the

magister militum per Orientem Magister is Latin for "master" or "teacher". It may refer to: Positions and titles * Magister degree, an academic degree * Magister novitium, Roman Catholic novice teacher * Magister equitum, or Master of the Horse * Magister militum, a master o ...

. It perhaps survived until the reformation of

Justinian Justinian I (, ; 48214 November 565), also known as Justinian the Great, was Roman emperor from 527 to 565. His reign was marked by the ambitious but only partly realized ''renovatio imperii'', or "restoration of the Empire". This ambition was ...

in 545.Diehl, p. 146; Runciman, p. 125; Gonzales, p. 166.

References

Sources

Primary sources

Herodian Herodian or Herodianus () of Syria, sometimes referred to as "Herodian of Antioch" (c. 170 – c. 240), was a minor Roman civil servant who wrote a colourful history in Greek titled ''History of the Empire from the Death of Marcus'' (τῆς με ...

, ''Storia dell'Impero dopo Marco Aurelio'', VI. *''

Historia Augusta The ''Historia Augusta'' (English: ''Augustan History'') is a late Roman collection of biographies, written in Latin, of the Roman emperors, their junior colleagues, Caesar (title), designated heirs and Roman usurper, usurpers from 117 to 284. S ...

'', "The Two Maximini". Note that the Historia Augusta is a late-4th-century hoax. *

, ''Orientis''.

Secondary sources

*C. Diehl, ''Justinienne et la civilisation Byzantine au VI siecle'', vol.I, New York 1901. * *J. Kromayer e G. Veith, ''Heerwessen und kriegfuhrung die griechen und romer'', Munich, 1928. *E. Luttwak, ''La grande strategia dell'impero romano'', Milan, 1976. *J. C. Mann, ''A note on the legion IV Italica'', ZPE 126, Bonn. *E. C. Nischer, The army reforms of Dioclatian and Constantine and their modifications up to the time of the ''Notitia Dignitatum'', Journal of Roman Studies n.13, Londra 1923. *H. M. D. Parker, "The legions of Diocletian and Constantine", in'' Journal of Roman Studies'' 23, 1933, London. * Ritterling, Emil

*S. Runciman, ''La civilizacion bizantina'', Madrid 1942. {{Roman Legion Roman legions, 04 Italica 231 establishments Military units and formations established in the 3rd century

History

See also

References

Sources

Primary sources

Secondary sources