(

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 "master of soldiers"; : ) was a top-level military command used in the

late Roman Empire In historiography, the Late or Later Roman Empire, traditionally covering the period from 284 CE to 641 CE, was a time of significant transformation in Roman governance, society, and religion. Diocletian's reforms, including the establishment of t ...

, dating from the reign of

Constantine the Great Constantine I (27 February 27222 May 337), also known as Constantine the Great, was a Roman emperor from AD 306 to 337 and the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity. He played a Constantine the Great and Christianity, pivotal ro ...

. The term referred to the senior military officer (equivalent to a war theatre commander, the emperor remaining the supreme commander) of the empire. The office continued to exist end evolve during the early

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived History of the Roman Empire, the events that caused the ...

. In

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

sources, the term is translated either as ''

strategos ''Strategos'' (), also known by its Linguistic Latinisation, Latinized form ''strategus'', is a Greek language, Greek term to mean 'military General officer, general'. In the Hellenistic world and in the Byzantine Empire, the term was also use ...

'' or as '' stratelates'' (although these terms were also used non-technically to refer to commanders of different ranks).

Establishment and development of the command

The office of ''magister militum'' was created in the early 4th century, most likely when the Western Roman emperor

defeated all other contemporary Roman emperors, which gave him control over their respective armies. Because the

Praetorian Guard The Praetorian Guard (Latin language, Latin: ''cohortes praetoriae'') was the imperial guard of the Imperial Roman army that served various roles for the Roman emperor including being a bodyguard unit, counterintelligence, crowd control and ga ...

s and their leaders, the

Praetorian Prefect The praetorian prefect (; ) 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 becoming the Emperor's chief ai ...

s, had supported Constantine's enemy,

Maxentius Marcus Aurelius Valerius Maxentius ( 283 – 28 October 312) was a Roman emperor from 306 until his death in 312. Despite ruling in Italy and North Africa, and having the recognition of the Senate in Rome, he was not recognized as a legitimate ...

, he disbanded the Guard and deprived the Prefects of their military functions, reducing them to a purely civil office. To replace them, he created two posts: a commander of the

infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

, the ''magister peditum'' ("master of foot"), and a more prestigious

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from ''cheval'' meaning "horse") are groups of soldiers or warriors who Horses in warfare, fight mounted on horseback. Until the 20th century, cavalry were the most mob ...

commander, the ''

magister equitum The , in English Master of the Horse or Master of the Cavalry, was a Roman magistrate appointed as lieutenant to a dictator. His nominal function was to serve as commander of the Roman cavalry in time of war, but just as a dictator could be n ...

'' ("master of horse"). These offices had precedents in the immediate imperial past, both in function and idea; the latter title had existed since republican times, as the second-in-command to a Roman ''dictator''. Under Constantine's successors, the titles were also established at a territorial level: ''magistri peditum'' and ''magistri equitum'' were appointed for every

praetorian prefecture The praetorian prefecture (; in Ancient Greek, Greek variously named ) was the largest administrative division of the Late Antiquity, late Roman Empire, above the mid-level Roman diocese, dioceses and the low-level Roman province, provinces. Praeto ...

(''per Gallias'', ''per Italiam'', ''per Illyricum'', ''per Orientem''), and, in addition, for

Thrace Thrace (, ; ; ; ) is a geographical and historical region in Southeast Europe roughly corresponding to the province of Thrace in the Roman Empire. Bounded by the Balkan Mountains to the north, the Aegean Sea to the south, and the Black Se ...

and, sometimes,

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

. On occasion, the offices would be combined in a single person, then styled ''magister equitum et peditum'' or ''magister utriusque militiae'' ("master of both forces"). Overall, lower-level ''magistri'' were assigned according to circumstances, with varying numbers employed in a given area. Some were directly in command of the local mobile field army of the '' comitatenses'', which acted as a rapid reaction force. Other ''magistri'' remained at the immediate disposal of the emperors, and by the late fourth century or early fifth century were termed ''in praesenti'' ("in the presence" of the emperor). Over the course of the fourth century in the

Western Roman Empire In modern historiography, the Western Roman Empire was the western provinces of the Roman Empire, collectively, during any period in which they were administered separately from the eastern provinces by a separate, independent imperial court. ...

, the system of two imperial ''magistri'' remained largely intact, with usually one ''magister'' having paramount authority (such as Bauto or Merobaudes, the main power behind the appointment of emperor Valentinian II.) This tendency culminated in Arbogast, who inherited the position of western ''magister militum'' and used it to functionally usurp emperor Valentinian II, either killing him or driving him to suicide before appointing his own puppet emperor, Eugenius. In the west, the position (often under the title of ''magister utriusque militiae'' or MVM) remained very powerful until the formal end of the empire, and was held by

Stilicho Stilicho (; – 22 August 408) was a military commander in the Roman army who, for a time, became the most powerful man in the Western Roman Empire. He was partly of Vandal origins and married to Serena, the niece of emperor Theodosius I. He b ...

, Aetius, Ricimer, and others. In the east, emperor Theodosius I (379-395) expanded the system of two ''magistri militum'' to include an additional three ''magistri''. For a long time these generals were used in an ad hoc manner, being employed wherever they were needed. Eventually in the fifth century their positions became more firmly established, and there were two senior generals, who were each appointed to the office of ''magister militum praesentalis''. After the final partition of the Roman Empire in 395, the office continued to exist both in the

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

and Eastern parts of the divided Empire. One of the most notable examples of prominence and increasing importance of that military office occurred with Marcellinus, who was ''magister militum'' in

Dalmatia Dalmatia (; ; ) is a historical region located in modern-day Croatia and Montenegro, on the eastern shore of the Adriatic Sea. Through time it formed part of several historical states, most notably the Roman Empire, the Kingdom of Croatia (925 ...

, acting not only as regional military commander, but also as effective governor in the entire region, from 454 to 468.

Continuation and evolution in the Byzantine Empire

The office of ''magister militum'' consequently evolved in nture and scope during the early

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman E ...

period. During the reign of Emperor

Justinian I 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 ...

(527-565), with increasing military threats and the expansion of the Byzantine Empire, the posts of the eastern generals were overhauled: the ''magister militum per Armeniam'' in the Armenian and Caucasian provinces, formerly part of the jurisdiction of the ''magister militum per Orientem'', the ''magister militum per Africam'' in the reconquered African provinces (534), with a subordinate ''magister peditum'', and the ''magister militum

Spania Spania () was a Roman province, province of the Eastern Roman Empire from 552 until 624 in the south of the Iberian Peninsula and the Balearic Islands. It was established by the List of Byzantine emperors, Emperor Justinian I in an effort to res ...

e'' (c. 562). In the course of the 6th century, internal and external crises in the provinces often necessitated the temporary union of the supreme regional civil authority with the office of the ''magister militum''. In the establishment of the ''exarchates'' of

Ravenna Ravenna ( ; , also ; ) is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. It was the capital city of the Western Roman Empire during the 5th century until its Fall of Rome, collapse in 476, after which ...

and

Carthage Carthage was an ancient city in Northern Africa, on the eastern side of the Lake of Tunis in what is now Tunisia. Carthage was one of the most important trading hubs of the Ancient Mediterranean and one of the most affluent cities of the classic ...

in 584, this practice found its first permanent expression. In various provinces of the Exarchate of Ravena, from Venetia to

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

, ''magistri militum'' were appointed both as local millitary commanders and provincial governors. For example, such was Mauricius, who was ''magister militum'' of Byzantine Venetia in 639. After the loss of the eastern provinces to the

Muslim conquest The Muslim conquests, Muslim invasions, Islamic conquests, including Arab conquests, Arab Islamic conquests, also Iranian Muslim conquests, Turkic Muslim conquests etc. *Early Muslim conquests **Ridda Wars **Muslim conquest of Persia ***Muslim conq ...

in the 640s, the surviving field armies and their commanders formed the first '' themata''.

Later, less formal use of the term

In later periods, various military commanders sometimes also took this title in

medieval Italy The history of Italy in the Middle Ages can be roughly defined as the time between the collapse of the Western Roman Empire and the Italian Renaissance. Late antiquity in Italy lingered on into the 7th century under the Ostrogothic Kingdom and ...

, for example in the

Papal States The Papal States ( ; ; ), officially the State of the Church, were a conglomeration of territories on the Italian peninsula under the direct sovereign rule of the pope from 756 to 1870. They were among the major states of Italy from the 8th c ...

and in the

Republic of Venice The Republic of Venice, officially the Most Serene Republic of Venice and traditionally known as La Serenissima, was a sovereign state and Maritime republics, maritime republic with its capital in Venice. Founded, according to tradition, in 697 ...

, whose Doge claimed to be the successor to the Exarch of Ravenna. The term is referred to by Emperor

Constantine VII Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus (; 17 May 905 – 9 November 959) was the fourth Byzantine emperor of the Macedonian dynasty, reigning from 6 June 913 to 9 November 959. He was the son of Emperor Leo VI and his fourth wife, Zoe Karbonopsina, an ...

in his

De Administrando Imperio (; ) is a Greek-language work written by the 10th-century Byzantine Emperor Constantine VII. It is a domestic and foreign policy manual for the use of Constantine's son and successor, the Emperor Romanos II. It is a prominent example of Byz ...

in a digression on 6th century Italian history, where he refers to ''mastromilis'' meaning 'captain-general of the army' in the 'Roman tongue'. By the time of writing in the mid-10th century working knowledge of Latin was mostly absent in the Byzantine imperial court. By the 12th century, the term was being used to describe a man who organized the military force of a political or feudal leader on his behalf. In the '' Gesta Herwardi'', the hero is several times described as ''magister militum'' by the man who translated the original

Old English Old English ( or , or ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. It developed from the languages brought to Great Britain by Anglo-S ...

account into

Medieval Latin Medieval Latin was the form of Literary Latin used in Roman Catholic Church, Roman Catholic Western Europe during the Middle Ages. It was also the administrative language in the former Western Roman Empire, Roman Provinces of Mauretania, Numidi ...

. It seems possible that the writer of the original version, now lost, thought of him as the ''hereward''' ( and ) – the supervisor of the military force. That this later use of these terms was based on the classical concept seems clear.

List of ''magistri militum''

Unspecified commands

* 383–385/8: Bauto, ''magister militum'' under Valentinian IIPLRE I, p. 1114 * 385/8–394: Arbogast, ''magister militum'' under Valentinian II and EugeniusPLRE I, p. 1114 * 383–388: Andragathius * ?–480: Ovida

''Comes et magister utriusque militiae''

* 392–408:

* 411–421: Constantius (III) * 422–425: Castinus * 425–430: Felix * 431–432: Bonifacius * 432–433: Sebastianus * 433–454: Aetius * 456: Remistus * 456: Messianus * 456–472: Ricimer * 472–473:

Gundobad Gundobad (; ; 452 – 516) was King of the Burgundians (473–516), succeeding his father Gundioc of Burgundy. Previous to this, he had been a patrician of the moribund Western Roman Empire in 472–473, three years before its collapse, suc ...

* 474–475: Ecdicius * 475–476:

Orestes In Greek mythology, Orestes or Orestis (; ) was the son of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra, and the brother of Electra and Iphigenia. He was also known by the patronymic Agamemnonides (), meaning "son of Agamemnon." He is the subject of several ...

''Per Gallias''

* 352–355: Claudius Silvanus * 362–364: Jovinus, ''magister equitum'' under Julian and JovianPLRE I, p. 1113 * ?–419: Gaudentius * 425–430: Aetius * 435–439: Litorius * 452–458: Agrippinus * 458–461: Aegidius * 461/462: Agrippinus * 462-473: Gundioc * ?–472: Bilimer

''Per Hispanias''

* 441–442: Astyrius * 443: Merobaudes * 446: Vitus

''Per Ilyricum''

* ?–350:

Vetranio Vetranio (died ) was briefly an imperial usurper and emperor in the Roman Empire in 350, during which time he controlled Illyricum between the rival emperors Magnus Magnentius and Constantius II, eventually capitulating to the latter. Life ...

, ''magister peditum'' under ConstansPLRE I, p. 1112 * 361: Iovinus, ''magister equitum'' under JulianPLRE I, p. 1113 * 365–375: Equitius, ''magister utriusquae militiae'' under

Valentinian I Valentinian I (; 32117 November 375), also known as Valentinian the Great, was Roman emperor from 364 to 375. He ruled the Western Roman Empire, Western half of the empire, while his brother Valens ruled the Byzantine Empire, East. During his re ...

* 395–?

Alaric I Alaric I (; , 'ruler of all'; ; – 411 AD) was the first Germanic kingship, king of the Visigoths, from 395 to 410. He rose to leadership of the Goths who came to occupy Moesia—territory acquired a couple of decades earlier by a combine ...

* 448/9 Agintheus (known from Priscus to have held office as the latter's embassy proceeded towards the court of Attila). * 468–474:

Julius Nepos Julius Nepos (died 9 May 480), or simply Nepos, ruled as Roman emperor of the West from 24 June 474 to 28 August 475. After losing power in Italy, Nepos retreated to his home province of Dalmatia, from which he continued to claim the western i ...

* 477–479:

Onoulphus Onoulphus, also Onoulf, Unulf and Hunulf (died 493) was a general of the late fifth century of Scirian origin. He served as '' magister militum per Illyricum'' from 477 to 479 as a general of the Eastern Roman Empire, then afterwards was a general ...

* 479–481: Sabinianus Magnus * 528: Ascum * 529–530/1: Mundus (1st time) * 532–536: Mundus (2nd time) * c. 538: Justin * c. 544: Vitalius * c. 550: John * 568–569/70: Bonus * 581–582: Theognis

''Per Orientem''

* c. 347: Flavius Eusebius, ''magister utriusquae militiae'' * 349–359: Ursicinus, ''magister equitum'' under ConstantiusPLRE I, p. 1112 * 359–360: Sabinianus, ''magister equitum'' under

Constantius II Constantius II (; ; 7 August 317 – 3 November 361) was Roman emperor from 337 to 361. His reign saw constant warfare on the borders against the Sasanian Empire and Germanic peoples, while internally the Roman Empire went through repeated civ ...

PLRE I, p. 1112 * 363–367: Lupicinus, ''magister equitum'' under Jovian and

Valens Valens (; ; 328 – 9 August 378) was Roman emperor from 364 to 378. Following a largely unremarkable military career, he was named co-emperor by his elder brother Valentinian I, who gave him the Byzantine Empire, eastern half of the Roman Em ...

PLRE I, p. 1113 * 371–378: Iulius, ''magister equitum et Peditum'' under

PLRE I, p. 1113 * 383: Richomeres, ''magister equitum et peditum''PLRE I, p. 1114 * 383–388: Ellebichus, ''magister equitum et peditum''PLRE I, p. 1114 * 392: Eutherius, ''magister equitum et peditum''PLRE I, p. 1114 * 393–396: Addaeus, ''magister equitum et peditum''PLRE I, p. 1114 * ?~399: Gainas * 395/400: Fravitta * 433–446: Anatolius * 447–451:

Zeno Zeno may refer to: People * Zeno (name), including a list of people and characters with the given name * Zeno (surname) Philosophers * Zeno of Elea (), philosopher, follower of Parmenides, known for his paradoxes * Zeno of Citium (333 – 264 B ...

* 460s: Ardabur Aspar * –469: Iordanes * 469–471:

* 483–498: Ioannes Scytha * c. 503–505: Areobindus Dagalaiphus Areobindus * 505–506: Pharesmanes * ?516–?518: Hypatius * ?518–529: Diogenianus * 520–525/526: Hypatius * 527: Libelarius * 527–529: Hypatius * 529–531:

Belisarius BelisariusSometimes called Flavia gens#Later use, Flavius Belisarius. The name became a courtesy title by the late 4th century, see (; ; The exact date of his birth is unknown. March 565) was a military commander of the Byzantine Empire under ...

* 531: Mundus * 532–533: Belisarius * 540: Buzes * 542: Belisarius * 543–544: Martinus * 549–551: Belisarius * 555: Amantius * 556: Valerianus * 569: Zemarchus * 572–573:

Marcian Marcian (; ; ; 392 – 27 January 457) was Roman emperor of the Byzantine Empire, East from 450 to 457. Very little is known of his life before becoming emperor, other than that he was a (personal assistant) who served under the commanders ...

* 573: Theodorus * 574: Eusebius * 574/574–577:

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 ...

* 577–582: Maurice * 582–583: John Mystacon * 584–587/588: Philippicus * 588: Priscus * 588–589: Philippicus * 589–591: Comentiolus * 591–603: Narses * 603–604 Germanus * 604–605 Leontius * 605–610 Domentziolus

''Per Armeniam''

* Sittas *Dorotheus (530-532) *Peter, direct predecessor of John Tzibus * John Tzibus (?–541) * Valerian * Dagisthaeus (?–550) * Bessas (550–554) *

Martin Martin may refer to: Places Antarctica * Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land * Port Martin, Adelie Land * Point Martin, South Orkney Islands Europe * Martin, Croatia, a village * Martin, Slovakia, a city * Martín del Río, Aragón, Spain * M ...

* Justin * John Mystacon * Heraclius the Elder (c. 595)

''Per Thracias''

* 377–378: Saturninus, ''magister equitum'' under

PLRE I, p. 1113 * 377–378: Traianus, ''magister peditum'' under

PLRE I, p. 1114 * 378: Sebastianus, ''magister peditum'' under

PLRE I, p. 1114 * 380–383: Saturninus, ''magister peditum'' under

Theodosius I Theodosius I ( ; 11 January 347 – 17 January 395), also known as Theodosius the Great, was Roman emperor from 379 to 395. He won two civil wars and was instrumental in establishing the Nicene Creed as the orthodox doctrine for Nicene C ...

PLRE I, p. 1114 * 392–393:

, ''magister equitum et peditum''PLRE I, p. 1114 * 412–414: Constans * 441: Ioannes the Vandal, ''magister utriusque militiae'' * 464–467/468:

Basiliscus Basiliscus (; died 476/477) was Eastern Roman emperor from 9 January 475 to August 476. He became in 464, under his brother-in-law, Emperor Leo I (457–474). Basiliscus commanded the army for an invasion of the Vandal Kingdom in 468, which ...

* 468–474: Armatus * 474: Heraclius of Edessa * 511: Hypatius * 512– 513: Cyrillus * 513– 515: Alathar * 515: Vitalian * 525-c. 530: Germanus * 530–533: Chilbudius * 550–c. 554: Artabanes * 588: Priscus (1st time) * 593: Priscus (2nd time) * 593–594: Peter (1st time) * 594–c. 598: Priscus (2nd time) * 598–601: Comentiolus * 601–602: Peter (2nd time)

''Praesentalis''

* 351–361: Arbitio, ''magister equitum'' under

PLRE I, p. 1112 * 361–363: Nevitta, ''magister equitum'' under JulianPLRE I, p. 1113 * 363–379: Victor, ''magister equitum'' under

PLRE I, p. 1113 * 366–378: Arinthaeus, ''magister peditum'' under

PLRE I, p. 1113 * 364–369: Iovinus, ''magister equitum'' under

PLRE I, p. 1113 * 364–366: Dagalaifus, ''magister peditum'' under

PLRE I, p. 1113 * 367–372: Severus, ''magister peditum'' under

PLRE I, p. 1113 * 369–373: Theodosius, ''magister equitum'' under

PLRE I, p. 1113 * 375–388: Merobaudes, ''magister peditum'' under

, Gratian and

Magnus Maximus Magnus Maximus (; died 28 August 388) was Roman emperor in the West from 383 to 388. He usurped the throne from emperor Gratian. Born in Gallaecia, he served as an officer in Britain under Theodosius the Elder during the Great Conspiracy ...

* 388–395: Timasius * 394–408:

, ''magister equitum et peditum''PLRE I, p. 1114 * 399–400: Gainas * 400: Fravitta * 409: Varanes and ArsaciusPLRE I, p. 152 * 419–: Plinta * 434–449: Areobindus? * 443–451:

Apollonius Apollonius () is a masculine given name which may refer to: People Ancient world Artists * Apollonius of Athens (sculptor) (fl. 1st century BC) * Apollonius of Tralles (fl. 2nd century BC), sculptor * Apollonius (satyr sculptor) * Apo ...

* 450–451: Anatolius * 475–477/478: Armatus * 485–: Longinus * 492–499: John the Hunchback * 518–520: Vitalian * 520–?:

* 528: Leontius * 528–529: Phocas * 520–538/9: Sittas * 536: Germanus * 536: Maxentianus * 546–548: Artabanes * 548/9–552: Suartuas * 562: Constantinianus * 582: Germanus (uncertain) * 585–c. 586: Comentiolus * 626: Bonus (uncertain)

''Per Africam''

Western Empire

* 373–375: Theodosius, ''magister equitum ''PLRE I, p. 1113 * 386–398:

Gildo Gildo (died 398) was a Roman Berber general in the province of Mauretania Caesariensis. He revolted against Honorius and the Western Roman Empire ( Gildonic war), but was defeated and possibly killed himself or was assassinated. Etymology The ...

, ''magister equitum et peditum''PLRE I, p. 395

Eastern Empire

* 534–536:

Solomon Solomon (), also called Jedidiah, was the fourth monarch of the Kingdom of Israel (united monarchy), Kingdom of Israel and Judah, according to the Hebrew Bible. The successor of his father David, he is described as having been the penultimate ...

* 536–539: Germanus * 539–544:

* 544–546: Sergius * 545–546: Areobindus * 546: Artabanes * 546–552:

John Troglita John Troglita (, ) was a 6th-century Byzantine Empire, Byzantine general. He participated in the Vandalic War and served in North Africa as a regional military governor during the years 533–538, before being sent east to the wars with the Sassan ...

* 578–590: Gennadius

In Byzantine Italy

Venetia

* Mauricius (639) * 8th century: Marcellus * 737: Domenico Leoni under Leo III * 738: Felice Cornicola under Leo III * 739: Theodatus Hypatus under Leo III * 741: Ioannes Fabriacius under Leo III * 764–787: Mauricius Galba

References

Sources

* * * * * * *

Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire ''Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire'' (abbreviated as ''PLRE'') is a work of Roman prosopography published in a set of three volumes collectively describing many of the people attested to have lived in the Roman Empire from AD 260, the date ...

(PLRE), Vols. I-III {{DEFAULTSORT:Magister Militum Ancient Roman titles Positions of authority Byzantine military offices Late Roman military ranks Military ranks