The naval forces of the ancient Roman state ( Latin : classis , lit. 'fleet') were instrumental in the Roman conquest of the Mediterranean Basin , but it never enjoyed the prestige of the Roman legions . Throughout their history, the Romans remained a primarily land-based people and relied partially on their more nautically inclined subjects, such as the Greeks and the Egyptians , to build their ships. Because of that, the navy was never completely embraced by the Roman state, and deemed somewhat "un-Roman".
205-552: In antiquity, navies and trading fleets did not have the logistical autonomy that modern ships and fleets possess, and unlike modern naval forces, the Roman navy even at its height never existed as an autonomous service but operated as an adjunct to the Roman army . During the course of the First Punic War , the Roman navy was massively expanded and played a vital role in the Roman victory and
410-503: A massive and concerted campaign , Pompey cleared the seas of the pirates in only three months. Afterwards, the fleet was reduced again to policing duties against intermittent piracy. In 56 BC, for the first time a Roman fleet engaged in battle outside the Mediterranean. This occurred during Julius Caesar 's Gallic Wars , when the maritime tribe of the Veneti rebelled against Rome. Against
615-524: A besieged city, the Romans called on the allied Greek cities of southern Italy, the socii navales , to provide ships and crews. It is possible that the supervision of these maritime allies was one of the duties of the four new praetores classici , who were established in 267 BC. The first Roman expedition outside mainland Italy was against the island of Sicily in 265 BC. This led to the outbreak of hostilities with Carthage , which would last until 241 BC. At
820-631: A campaign on the Arabian Peninsula. Aelius Gallus , the prefect of Egypt ordered the construction of 130 transports and subsequently carried 10,000 soldiers to Arabia. But the following march through the desert towards Yemen failed and the plans for control of the Arabian peninsula had to be abandoned. At the other end of the Empire, in Germania , the navy played an important role in the supply and transport of
1025-563: A cavalry contingent attached). Around 80 AD, a minority of auxiliary regiments were doubled in size. Until about 68 AD, the auxilia were recruited by a mix of conscription and voluntary enlistment. After that time, the auxilia became largely a volunteer corps, with conscription resorted to only in emergencies. Auxiliaries were required to serve a minimum of 25 years, although many served for longer periods. On completion of their minimum term, auxiliaries were awarded Roman citizenship, which carried important legal, fiscal and social advantages. Alongside
1230-837: A core of units which were both professional and disciplined. It contained formidable guards units such as the Varangians , the Athanatoi , a unit of heavy cavalry stationed in Constantinople , the Vardariotai and the Archontopouloi , recruited by Alexios from the sons of dead Byzantine officers, foreign mercenary regiments, and also units of professional soldiers recruited from the provinces. These provincial troops included kataphraktoi cavalry from Macedonia, Thessaly and Thrace, and various other provincial forces such as Trebizond archers from
1435-679: A costly victory for the Pergamene– Rhodian alliance, but the Macedonian fleet lost many warships, including its flagship, a deceres . Soon after, Pergamon and Rhodes appealed to Rome for help, and the Republic was drawn into the Second Macedonian War . In view of the massive Roman naval superiority, the war was fought on land, with the Macedonian fleet, already weakened at Chios, not daring to venture out of its anchorage at Demetrias . After
1640-504: A cultural sense and the Greek language did not become extinct on the island, facilitating its re-hellenisation much later under the Byzantines. The once prosperous and contented island went into sharp decline when Verres became governor of Sicily (73 to 71 BC). In 70 BC noted figure Cicero condemned the misgovernment of Verres in his oration In Verrem . Various groups used the island as
1845-560: A disastrous storm. By 28, the Romans lost further control of the Rhine mouth in a succession of Frisian insurgencies. From 43 to 85, the Roman navy played an important role in the Roman conquest of Britain . The classis Germanica rendered outstanding services in multitudinous landing operations. In 46, a naval expedition made a push deep into the Black Sea region and even travelled on the Tanais . In 47
2050-604: A geographical perspective, also forming a part of Sicily is the Maltese Archipelago, the islands home to the republic of Malta . The autonomous region also includes several neighbouring islands: the Aegadian Islands , the Aeolian Islands, Pantelleria and Lampedusa . The mountains of Sicily form a significant part of the island's diverse landscape, with Mount Etna , one of the world's most active volcanoes, being
2255-451: A maritime background such as Greeks, Phoenicians, Syrians and Egyptians, formed the bulk of the fleets' crews. During the early Principate, a ship's crew, regardless of its size, was organized as a centuria . Crewmen could sign on as marines , rowers/seamen, craftsmen and various other jobs, though all personnel serving in the imperial fleet were classed as milites ("soldiers"), regardless of their function; only when differentiation with
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#17328451670702460-501: A merchant vessel, or the minor craft ( navigia minora ) like the scapha . The navy consisted of a wide variety of different classes of warships, from heavy polyremes to light raiding and scouting vessels. Unlike the rich Hellenistic Successor kingdoms in the East however, the Romans did not rely on heavy warships, with quinqueremes (Gk. pentērēs ), and to a lesser extent quadriremes (Gk. tetrērēs ) and triremes (Gk. triērēs ) providing
2665-417: A mixed conscript and volunteer corps serving an average of 10 years, to all-volunteer units of long-term professionals serving a standard 25-year term (conscription was only decreed in emergencies). In the later 1st century, the size of a legion's First Cohort was doubled, increasing legionary personnel to c. 5,500. Alongside the legions, Augustus established the auxilia , a regular corps of similar numbers to
2870-667: A new fleet was built, this revolt was subdued. During the Batavian rebellion of Gaius Julius Civilis (69–70), the rebels got hold of a squadron of the Rhine fleet by treachery, and the conflict featured frequent use of the Roman Rhine flotilla. In the last phase of the war, the British fleet and legio XIV were brought in from Britain to attack the Batavian coast, but the Cananefates , allies of
3075-730: A number of fully equipped troops up to a specified maximum each year. The Second Punic War (218–201 BC) saw the addition of a third element to the existing dual Roman/Italian structure: non-Italian mercenaries with specialist skills lacking in the legions and alae : Numidian light cavalry , Cretan archers , and Balearic slingers . From this time, these units always accompanied Roman armies. The Republican army of this period, like its earlier forebear, did not maintain standing or professional military forces, but levied them, by compulsory conscription, as required for each campaigning season and disbanded thereafter (although formations could be kept in being over winter during major wars). The standard levy
3280-597: A power base at different times: slave insurgents occupied it during the First (135−132 BC) and Second (104−100 BC) Servile Wars . Sextus Pompey had his headquarters there during the Sicilian revolt of 44 to 36 BC. Christianity first appeared in Sicily during the years following AD 200; between this time and AD 313, when Emperor Constantine the Great lifted the prohibition on Christianity,
3485-444: A provincial governor's police force. As a large, disciplined and skilled force of fit men, they played a crucial role in the construction of a province's Roman military and civil infrastructure: in addition to constructing forts and fortified defences such as Hadrian's Wall , they built roads, bridges, ports, public buildings, entire new cities (Roman colonies), and also engaged in large-scale forest clearance and marsh drainage to expand
3690-624: A revolt by the Chauci , who took to piratical activities along the Gallic coast, was subdued by Gnaeus Domitius Corbulo . By 57 an expeditionary corps reached Chersonesos (see Charax, Crimea ). It seems that under Nero , the navy obtained strategically important positions for trading with India; but there was no known fleet in the Red Sea . Possibly, parts of the Alexandrian fleet were operating as escorts for
3895-771: A significant number of Sicilians had become martyrs , including Agatha , Christina , Lucy , and Euplius . Christianity grew rapidly in Sicily over the next two centuries. Sicily remained a Roman province for around 700 years. The Western Roman Empire began falling apart after the invasion of Vandals , Alans, and Sueves across the Rhine on the last day of 406. Eventually the Vandals, after roaming about western and southern Hispania (present-day Iberia ) for 20 years, moved to North Africa in 429 and occupied Carthage in 439. The Franks moved south from present-day Belgium. The Visigoths moved west and eventually settled in Aquitaine in 418;
4100-505: A skilled and experienced crew and a fast and agile ship like a trireme or quinquereme. In the Hellenistic period, the larger navies came instead to rely on greater vessels. This had several advantages: the heavier and sturdier construction lessened the effects of ramming, and the greater space and stability of the vessels allowed the transport not only of more marines, but also the placement of deck-mounted ballistae and catapults . Although
4305-405: A volcanic complex. The three volcanoes of Vulcano , Stromboli and Lipari are also active, although the last is usually dormant. Off the southern coast of Sicily, the underwater volcano of Ferdinandea , which is part of the larger Empedocles volcano , last erupted in 1831. It is located between the coast of Agrigento and the island of Pantelleria (which itself is a dormant volcano). From
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#17328451670704510-515: Is Mount Etna , the tallest active volcano in Europe, and one of the most active in the world, currently 3,357 m (11,014 ft) high. The island has a typical Mediterranean climate . It is separated from Calabria by the Strait of Messina . It is one of the five Italian autonomous regions and is generally considered part of Southern Italy . The earliest archaeological record of human activity on
4715-604: Is due to Sicily being geographically on the northern edge of the African Plate . Mount Etna is the largest active volcano in Europe and casts black ash over the island with its recurrent eruptions. It stands 3,403 metres (11,165 ft) high as of September 2024. It is the highest mountain in Italy south of the Alps . Etna covers an area of 1,190 km (459 sq mi) with a basal circumference of 140 km (87 mi). This makes it
4920-581: Is one of the 20 regions of Italy . With 4.8 million inhabitants, including 1.3 million in and around the capital city of Palermo , it is the most populous island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is named after the Sicels , who inhabited the eastern part of the island during the Iron Age . Sicily has a rich and unique culture in arts , music , literature , cuisine , and architecture . Its most prominent landmark
5125-504: Is remembered for the ingenious inventions of Archimedes , such as mirrors that burned ships or the so-called " Claw of Archimedes ", which kept the besieging army at bay for two years. A fleet of 160 vessels was assembled to support Scipio Africanus ' army in Africa in 202 BC, and, should his expedition fail, evacuate his men. In the event, Scipio achieved a decisive victory at Zama , and the subsequent peace stripped Carthage of its fleet. Rome
5330-430: Is set at ca. 311 BC, when, after the conquest of Campania , two new officials, the duumviri navales classis ornandae reficiendaeque causa , were tasked with the maintenance of a fleet. As a result, the Republic acquired its first fleet, consisting of 20 ships, most likely triremes , with each duumvir commanding a squadron of 10 ships. However, the Republic continued to rely mostly on her legions for expansion in Italy;
5535-802: Is the largest protected natural area of Sicily; it contains the largest forest in Sicily, the Caronia . The Hundred Horse Chestnut ( Castagno dei Cento Cavalli ), in Sant'Alfio , on the eastern slopes of Mount Etna, is the largest and oldest known chestnut tree in the world at 2,000–4,000 years old. Sicily has a wide variety of fauna. Species include the European wildcat , red fox , least weasel , pine marten , fallow deer , wild boar , crested porcupine , European hedgehog , common toad , Vipera aspis , golden eagle , peregrine falcon , Eurasian hoopoe and black-winged stilt . Roe deer were driven to extinction on
5740-412: The primus pilus , was elevated to equestrian rank upon completion of his single-year term of office. The senior officers of the army, the legati legionis (legion commanders), tribuni militum (legion staff officers) and the praefecti (commanders of auxiliary regiments) were all of at least equestrian rank. In the 1st and early 2nd centuries, they were mainly Italian aristocrats performing
5945-732: The Aetolian League and later the Kingdom of Pergamon , but a combined Roman–Pergamene fleet of ca. 60 ships patrolled the Aegean until the war's end in 205 BC. In this conflict, Rome, still embroiled in the Punic War, was not interested in expanding her possessions, but rather in thwarting the growth of Philip's power in Greece. The war ended in an effective stalemate, and was renewed in 201 BC, when Philip V invaded Asia Minor . A naval battle off Chios ended in
6150-646: The Alcantara flows through the province of Messina and enters the sea at Giardini Naxos , and the Simeto , which flows into the Ionian Sea south of Catania . Other important rivers on the island are the Belice and Platani in the southwest. Sicily has for the most part a typical Mediterranean climate ( Köppen climate classification : Csa ) with mild and wet winters and hot, dry summers with changeable intermediate seasons. On
6355-647: The Battle of Actium in 31 BC, where Antony had assembled 500 ships against Octavian's 400 ships. This last naval battle of the Roman Republic definitively established Octavian as the sole ruler over Rome and the Mediterranean world. In the aftermath of his victory, he formalized the Fleet's structure, establishing several key harbors in the Mediterranean (see below). The now fully professional navy had its main duties consist of protecting against piracy, escorting troops and patrolling
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6560-510: The Battle of the Lipari Islands in 260 BC, was a defeat for Rome, the forces involved were relatively small. Through the use of the Corvus , the fledgling Roman navy under Gaius Duilius won its first major engagement later that year at the Battle of Mylae . During the course of the war, Rome continued to be victorious at sea: victories at Sulci (258 BC) and Tyndaris (257 BC) were followed by
6765-609: The Elymians and the Sicels . The most prominent and by far the earliest of these were the Sicani , who ( Thucydides writes) arrived from the Iberian Peninsula (perhaps Catalonia ). Some modern scholars, however, suggest classifying the Sicani as possibly an Illyrian tribe. Important historical evidence has been discovered in the form of cave drawings by the Sicani, dated from the end of
6970-522: The Emirate of Sicily began to fragment as intra-dynastic quarreling fractured the Muslim government. In 1038, seventy years after losing their last cities in Sicily, the Byzantines under the Greek general George Maniakes invaded the island together with their Varangian and Norman mercenaries. Maniakes was killed in a Byzantine civil war in 1043 before completing a reconquest and the Byzantines withdrew. Later
7175-574: The English Channel , in the next years Caesar used this newly built fleet to carry out two invasions of Britain . The last major campaigns of the Roman navy in the Mediterranean until the late 3rd century AD would be in the civil wars that ended the Republic. In the East, the Republican faction quickly established its control, and Rhodes, the last independent maritime power in the Aegean, was subdued by Gaius Cassius Longinus in 43 BC, after its fleet
7380-767: The Euphrates and Tigris rivers was founded. Also during the wars against the Marcomanni confederation under Marcus Aurelius several combats took place on the Danube and the Tisza . Under the aegis of the Severan dynasty , the only known military operations of the navy were carried out under Septimius Severus , using naval assistance on his campaigns along the Euphrates and Tigris , as well as in Scotland . Thereby Roman ships reached inter alia
7585-857: The First Punic War (264 to 241 BC) and won, making Sicily–with the exception of Syracuse–the first Roman province outside of the Italian Peninsula by 242 BC. In the Second Punic War (218 to 201 BC), the Carthaginians attempted to recapture Sicily. Some of the Greek cities on the island who were loyal to Rome switched sides to help the Carthaginians, prompting a Roman military response. Archimedes , who lived in Syracuse, helped defend his city from Roman invasion; Roman troops killed him after they captured Syracuse in 213 BC. The Carthaginian attempt failed, and Rome became more unrelenting in its annihilation of
7790-513: The Kingdom of England . The court of Roger II became the most luminous centre of culture in the Mediterranean, both from Europe and the Middle East, like the multi-ethnic Caliphate of Córdoba , then only just eclipsed. This attracted scholars, scientists, poets, artists, and artisans of all kinds. Laws were issued in the language of the community to whom they were addressed in Norman Sicily, at
7995-558: The Kingdom of the Two Sicilies . From the 1282 Sicilian Vespers until the 1860 Expedition of the Thousand , Sicily was ruled by Aragon and then Spain , either in personal union with the crown or by a cadet branch , with the exception of a period of Savoy and then Habsburg rule in 1713–1735. The island became part of the newly unified Italy in 1860 following the Expedition of
8200-582: The Persian Gulf and the top of the British Isles . As the 3rd century dawned, the Roman Empire was at its peak. In the Mediterranean, peace had reigned for over two centuries, as piracy had been wiped out and no outside naval threats occurred. As a result, complacency had set in: naval tactics and technology were neglected, and the Roman naval system had become moribund. After 230 however and for fifty years,
8405-688: The Pleistocene epoch around 8000 BC. The Elymians , thought to have come from the area of the Aegean Sea , became the next tribe to join the Sicanians on Sicily. No evidence survives of warring between tribes, but the Sicanians moved eastwards when the Elymians settled in the northwest corner of the island. The Sicels are thought to have originated in Liguria ; they arrived from mainland Italy in 1200 BC and forced
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8610-404: The Qanat to improve irrigation systems for agriculture. Around 1050, the western half of Sicily was ethnically and culturally distinct from central and eastern Sicily. During this time, there was also a small Jewish presence in Sicily, evidence seen in the catacombs discovered on the island. Palermo was initially ruled by the Aghlabids ; later it was the centre of the Emirate of Sicily, which
8815-464: The Roman Kingdom (753 BC–509 BC) to the Roman Republic (509 BC–27 BC) and the Roman Empire (27 BC–476 AD), and its medieval continuation, the Eastern Roman Empire . It is thus a term that may span approximately 2,206 years (753 BC–1453 AD), during which the Roman armed forces underwent numerous permutations in size , composition, organisation, equipment and tactics, while conserving a core of lasting traditions. Until c. 550 BC , there
9020-399: The Roman Republic 's eventual ascension to hegemony in the Mediterranean Sea . In the course of the first half of the 2nd century BC, Rome went on to destroy Carthage and subdue the Hellenistic kingdoms of the eastern Mediterranean, achieving complete mastery of the inland sea, which they called Mare Nostrum . The Roman fleets were again prominent in the 1st century BC in the wars against
9225-420: The Roman army of the mid-Republic , or the Polybian army, was the manipular organization of its battle-line. Instead of a single, large mass (the phalanx ) as in the Early Roman army , the Romans now drew up in three lines consisting of small units (maniples) of 120 men, arrayed in chessboard fashion, giving much greater tactical strength and flexibility. This structure was probably introduced in c. 300 BC during
9430-406: The Samnite Wars . Also probably dating from this period was the regular accompaniment of each legion by a non-citizen formation of roughly equal size, the ala , recruited from Rome's Italian allies, or socii . The latter were approximately 150 autonomous states which were bound by a treaty of perpetual military alliance with Rome. Their sole obligation was to supply to the Roman army, on demand,
9635-409: The Shetland Islands . There is some speculation about a Roman landing in Ireland, based on Tacitus reports about Agricola contemplating the island's conquest, but no conclusive evidence to support this theory has been found. Under the Five Good Emperors the navy operated mainly on the rivers; so it played an important role during Trajan 's conquest of Dacia and temporarily an independent fleet for
9840-478: The Trajan's Dacian Wars or Salamina for the Battle of Salamis ). They were distinguished by their figurehead ( insigne or parasemum ), and, during the Civil Wars at least, by the paint schemes on their turrets, which varied according to each fleet. In classical antiquity , a ship's main weapon was the ram ( rostra , hence the name navis rostrata for a warship), which was used to sink or immobilize an enemy ship by holing its hull. Its use, however, required
10045-435: The legions . In 15 BC an independent fleet was installed at the Lake Constance . Later, the generals Drusus and Tiberius used the Navy extensively, when they tried to extend the Roman frontier to the Elbe . In 12 BC Drusus ordered the construction of a fleet of 1,000 ships and sailed them along the Rhine into the North Sea . The Frisii and Chauci had nothing to oppose the superior numbers, tactics and technology of
10250-454: The massive Battle of Cape Ecnomus , where the Roman fleet under the consuls Marcus Atilius Regulus and Lucius Manlius inflicted a severe defeat on the Carthaginians. This string of successes allowed Rome to push the war further across the sea to Africa and Carthage itself. Continued Roman success also meant that their navy gained significant experience, although it also suffered a number of catastrophic losses due to storms, while conversely,
10455-412: The " Year of the four emperors ", the praetorian fleets supported Emperor Otho against the usurper Vitellius , and after his eventual victory, Vespasian formed another legion, legio II Adiutrix , from their ranks. Only in the Pontus did Anicetus , the commander of the Classis Pontica , support Vitellius. He burned the fleet, and sought refuge with the Iberian tribes, engaging in piracy. After
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#173284516707010660-444: The 455 sack of Rome, at Agrigento, but were defeated decisively by Ricimir in a naval victory off Corsica in 456. The island remained under Roman rule until 469. The Vandals lost possession of the island 8 years later in 477 to the East Germanic tribe of the Ostrogoths , who then controlled Italy and Dalmatia. The island was returned to the Ostrogoths by payment of tribute to their king Odoacer . He ruled Italy from 476 to 488 in
10865-426: The 5th century AD. Sicily was ruled during the Early Middle Ages by the Vandals , the Ostrogoths , the Byzantine Empire , and the Emirate of Sicily . The Norman conquest of southern Italy led to the creation of the County of Sicily in 1071, that was succeeded by Kingdom of Sicily , a state that existed from 1130 until 1816 under various dynasties, and in 1816 it was unified with the Kingdom of Naples into
11070-680: The 6th century, a standing navy was reformed. The East Roman (Byzantine) navy would remain a formidable force in the Mediterranean until the 11th century. The bulk of a galley's crew was formed by the rowers, the remiges (sing. remex ) or eretai (sing. eretēs ) in Greek. Despite popular perceptions, the Roman fleet, and ancient fleets in general, relied throughout their existence on rowers of free status, and not on galley slaves . Slaves were employed only in times of pressing manpower demands or extreme emergency, and even then, they were freed first. In Imperial times, non- citizen freeborn provincials ( peregrini ), chiefly from nations with
11275-408: The Arabs failed to make permanent gains. They returned to Syria with their booty. Raids seeking loot continued until the mid-8th century. The Eastern Roman Emperor Constans II moved from Constantinople to Syracuse in 660. The following year he launched an assault from Sicily against the Lombard Duchy of Benevento , which occupied most of southern Italy. Rumors that the capital of the empire
11480-494: The Athenian army and their ships, selling most of the survivors into slavery . The Greek kingdom of Syracuse controlled most of eastern Sicily while Carthage controlled the western side. The two cultures began to clash, leading to the Greek-Punic wars (between 580 and 265 BC). The Greek states had begun to make peace with the Roman Republic in 262 BC, before the Romans sought to annex Sicily as their republic's first province . Rome attacked Carthage's holdings in Sicily in
11685-408: The Batavians, were able to destroy or capture a large part of the fleet. In the meantime, the new Roman commander, Quintus Petillius Cerialis , advanced north and constructed a new fleet. Civilis attempted only a short encounter with his own fleet, but could not hinder the superior Roman force from landing and ravaging the island of the Batavians , leading to the negotiation of a peace soon after. In
11890-439: The Black Sea coast of Anatolia . Alongside troops raised and paid for directly by the state the Komnenian army included the armed followers of members of the wider imperial family and its extensive connections. In this can be seen the beginnings of the feudalisation of the Byzantine military. The granting of pronoia holdings, where land, or more accurately rights to revenue from land, was held in return for military obligations,
12095-444: The Black Sea. These invasions began during the rule of Trebonianus Gallus , when for the first time Germanic tribes built up their own powerful fleet in the Black Sea. Via two surprise attacks (256) on Roman naval bases in the Caucasus and near the Danube , numerous ships fell into the hands of the Germans, whereupon the raids were extended as far as the Aegean Sea ; Byzantium , Athens , Sparta and other towns were plundered and
12300-409: The Burgundians settled in present-day Savoy in 443. The Vandals found themselves in a position to threaten Sicily – only 100 miles away from their North African bases. After taking Carthage, the Vandals, personally led by King Gaiseric , laid siege to Palermo in 440 as the opening act in an attempt to wrest the island from Roman rule. The Vandals made another attempt to take the island one year after
12505-405: The Carthaginian navy suffered from attrition. The Battle of Drepana in 249 BC resulted in the only major Carthaginian sea victory, forcing the Romans to equip a new fleet from donations by private citizens. In the last battle of the war, at Aegates Islands in 241 BC, the Romans under Gaius Lutatius Catulus displayed superior seamanship to the Carthaginians, notably using their rams rather than
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#173284516707012710-429: The Channel, and in 296, with a concentric attack on Londinium the insurgent province was retaken. By the end of the 3rd century, the Roman navy had declined dramatically. Although Emperor Diocletian is held to have strengthened the navy, and increased its manpower from 46,000 to 64,000 men, the old standing fleets had all but vanished, and in the civil wars that ended the Tetrarchy , the opposing sides had to mobilize
12915-416: The East Roman army. The army of the Principate underwent a significant transformation, as a result of the chaotic 3rd century . Unlike the Principate army, the army of the 4th century was heavily dependent on conscription and its soldiers were more poorly remunerated than in the 2nd century. Barbarians from outside the empire probably supplied a much larger proportion of the late army's recruits than in
13120-424: The Empire with Britannia and parts of the northern Gallic coast. With a single blow Roman control of the channel and the North Sea was lost, and emperor Maximinus was forced to create a completely new Northern Fleet, but in lack of training it was almost immediately destroyed in a storm. Only in 293, under Caesar Constantius Chlorus did Rome regain the Gallic coast. A new fleet was constructed in order to cross
13325-403: The Empire's definitive division into Eastern and Western halves in 395. A few decades afterwards, the Western army disintegrated as the Western Empire collapsed. The East Roman army , on the other hand, continued intact and essentially unchanged until its reorganization by themes and transformation into the Byzantine army in the 7th century. The term late Roman army is often used to include
13530-437: The Imperial period, and functioned either as a commander of several squadrons or as an executive officer under a civilian admiral, equivalent to the legionary primus pilus . All these were professional officers, usually peregrini , who had a status equal to an auxiliary centurion (and were thus increasingly called centuriones [classiarii] after ca. 70 AD). Until the reign of Antoninus Pius , their careers were restricted to
13735-434: The Indian trade. In the Jewish revolt , from 66 to 70, the Romans were forced to fight Jewish ships, operating from a harbour in the area of modern Tel Aviv , on Israel 's Mediterranean coast. In the meantime several flotilla engagements on the Sea of Galilee took place. In 68, as his reign became increasingly insecure, Nero raised legio I Adiutrix from sailors of the praetorian fleets. After Nero's overthrow, in 69,
13940-439: The Italian peninsula. Unlike the first war, the navy played little role on either side in this war. The only naval encounters occurred in the first years of the war, at Lilybaeum (218 BC) and the Ebro River (217 BC), both resulting Roman victories. Despite an overall numerical parity, for the remainder of the war the Carthaginians did not seriously challenge Roman supremacy. The Roman fleet was hence engaged primarily with raiding
14145-410: The Normans invaded in 1061 and after taking Apulia and Calabria , Roger I occupied Messina with an army of 700 knights. In 1068, Roger I was victorious at Misilmeri . Most crucial was the siege of Palermo, whose fall in 1071 eventually resulted in all Sicily coming under Norman control. The conquest was completed in 1091 when they captured Noto the last Arab stronghold. Palermo continued to be
14350-522: The Praetors' authority, at least nominally. In 493 BC, shortly after the establishment of the Roman Republic , Rome concluded a perpetual treaty of military alliance (the Foedus Cassianum ), with the combined other Latin city-states. The treaty, probably motivated by the need for the Latins to deploy a united defence against incursions by neighbouring hill-tribes, provided for each party to provide an equal force for campaigns under unified command. It remained in force until 358 BC. The central feature of
14555-484: The Principate peak of c. 440,000. The main change in structure was the establishment of large armies that accompanied the emperors ( comitatus praesentales ) and were generally based away from the frontiers. Their primary function was to deter usurpations . The legions were split up into smaller units comparable in size to the auxiliary regiments of the Principate. In parallel, legionary armour and equipment were abandoned in favour of auxiliary equipment. Infantry adopted
14760-523: The Republic, command of a fleet was given to a serving magistrate or promagistrate , usually of consular or praetorian rank. In the Punic Wars for instance, one consul would usually command the fleet, and another the army. In the subsequent wars in the Eastern Mediterranean, praetors would assume the command of the fleet. However, since these men were political appointees, the actual handling of
14965-407: The Roman fleet are obscure. A traditionally agricultural and land-based society, the Romans rarely ventured out to sea, unlike their Etruscan neighbours. There is evidence of Roman warships in the early 4th century BC, such as mention of a warship that carried an embassy to Delphi in 394 BC, but at any rate, the Roman fleet, if it existed, was negligible. The traditional birth date of the Roman navy
15170-512: The Roman fleets were still engaged in open warfare. The decline of the Empire in the 3rd century took a heavy toll on the navy, which was reduced to a shadow of its former self, both in size and in combat ability. As successive waves of the Völkerwanderung crashed on the land frontiers of the battered Empire, the navy could only play a secondary role. In the early 5th century, the Roman frontiers were breached, and barbarian kingdoms appeared on
15375-507: The Roman knightly order) were eligible to serve as senior officers. Iuniores of the highest social classes ( equites and the First Class of commoners) provided the legion's cavalry, the other classes the legionary infantry. The proletarii (those assessed at under 400 drachmae wealth) were ineligible for legionary service and were assigned to the fleets as oarsmen. Elders, vagrants, freedmen, slaves and convicts were excluded from
15580-685: The Roman navy was drastically reduced, depending on its Socii navales . In the absence of a strong naval presence however, piracy flourished throughout the Mediterranean, especially in Cilicia , but also in Crete and other places, further reinforced by money and warships supplied by King Mithridates VI of Pontus , who hoped to enlist their aid in his wars against Rome. In the First Mithridatic War (89–85 BC), Sulla had to requisition ships wherever he could find them to counter Mithridates' fleet. Despite
15785-440: The Romans seized a shipwrecked Carthaginian quinquereme, and used it as a blueprint for their own ships. The new fleets were commanded by the annually elected Roman magistrates , but naval expertise was provided by the lower officers, who continued to be provided by the socii , mostly Greeks. This practice was continued until well into the Empire, something also attested by the direct adoption of numerous Greek naval terms. Despite
15990-541: The Romans. When these entered the river mouths of Weser and Ems , the local tribes had to surrender. In 5 BC the Roman knowledge concerning the North and Baltic Sea was fairly extended during a campaign by Tiberius , reaching as far as the Elbe : Plinius describes how Roman naval formations came past Heligoland and set sail to the north-eastern coast of Denmark, and Augustus himself boasts in his Res Gestae : "My fleet sailed from
16195-462: The Second Punic War had been excluded from service in the legions by the minimum property requirement: during that war, extreme manpower needs had forced the army to ignore the requirement, and this practice continued thereafter. Maniples were gradually phased out as the main tactical unit, and replaced by the larger cohorts used in the allied alae , a process probably complete by the time
16400-645: The Sicanians to move back across Sicily and to settle in the middle of the island. Other minor Italic groups who settled in Sicily included the Ausones ( Aeolian Islands , Milazzo ) and the Morgetes of Morgantina . The Phoenician settlements in the western part of the island predate the arrival of Greek colonists. From about 750 BC, the Greeks began to live in Sicily ( Ancient Greek : Σικελία – Sikelia ), establishing many significant settlements. The most important colony
16605-503: The Thousand, an invasion led by Giuseppe Garibaldi , and a plebiscite. Sicily was given special status as an autonomous administrative division on 15 May 1946, 18 days before the 1946 Italian institutional referendum . Sicily has a roughly triangular shape, earning it the name Trinacria . To the north-east, it is separated from Calabria and the rest of the Italian mainland by the Strait of Messina , about 3 km (1.9 mi) wide in
16810-472: The Veneti, the Romans were at a disadvantage, since they did not know the coast, and were inexperienced in fighting in the open sea with its tides and currents. Furthermore, the Veneti ships were superior to the light Roman galleys. They were built of oak and had no oars, being thus more resistant to ramming . In addition, their greater height gave them an advantage in both missile exchanges and boarding actions. In
17015-456: The accession of a new emperor. In addition, on completion of their term of service, they were given a generous discharge bonus equivalent to 13 years' salary. Auxiliaries were paid much less in the early 1st century, but by 100 AD, the differential had virtually disappeared. Similarly, in the earlier period, auxiliaries appear not to have received cash and discharge bonuses, but probably did so from Hadrian onwards. Junior officers ( principales ),
17220-559: The affairs of the Balkan peninsula. Initially, in 229 BC, a fleet of 200 warships was sent against Queen Teuta , and swiftly expelled the Illyrian garrisons from the Greek coastal cities of modern-day Albania . Ten years later, the Romans sent another expedition in the area against Demetrius of Pharos , who had rebuilt the Illyrian navy and engaged in piracy up into the Aegean. Demetrius was supported by Philip V of Macedon , who had grown anxious at
17425-606: The age of seven or eight until 17 or 18 Theodoric had become a Byzantine hostage; he resided in the great palace of Constantinople, was favored by Emperor Leo I ( r. 457–474 ) and learned to read, write and do arithmetic. After taking areas occupied by the Vandals in North Africa, Justinian I retook Italy as an ambitious attempt to recover the lost provinces in the West. The re-conquests marked an end to over 150 years of accommodating policies with tribal invaders. His first target
17630-452: The army auxiliaries, while some (mostly of Greek provenance) were peculiar to the fleet. An inscription from the island of Cos , dated to the First Mithridatic War , provides us with a list of a ship's officers, the nautae : the gubernator ( kybernētēs in Greek) was the helmsman or pilot, the celeusta ( keleustēs in Greek) supervised the rowers, a proreta ( prōreus in Greek)
17835-636: The army of the 1st and 2nd centuries. The size of the 4th-century army is controversial. More dated scholars (e.g. A. H. M. Jones , writing in the 1960s) estimated the late army as much larger than the Principate army, half the size again or even as much as twice the size. With the benefit of archaeological discoveries of recent decades, many contemporary historians view the late army as no larger than its predecessor: under Diocletian c. 390,000 (the same as under Hadrian almost two centuries earlier) and under Constantine no greater, and probably somewhat smaller, than
18040-429: The army was required were the adjectives classiarius or classicus added. Along with several other instances of prevalence of army terminology, this testifies to the lower social status of naval personnel, considered inferior to the auxiliaries and the legionaries. Emperor Claudius first gave legal privileges to the navy's crewmen, enabling them to receive Roman citizenship after their period of service. This period
18245-458: The army, the Empire required the use of large numbers of mercenaries. After Andronikos II took to the throne, the army fell apart and the Byzantines suffered regular defeats at the hands of their eastern opponents, although they would continue to enjoy success against the crusader territories in Greece. By c. 1350, following a destructive civil war and the outbreak of the Black Death , the Empire
18450-402: The auxilia. This was reflected in better pay and benefits. In addition, legionaries were equipped with more expensive and protective armour than auxiliaries. However, in 212, the emperor Caracalla granted Roman citizenship to all the empire's inhabitants. At this point, the distinction between legions and auxilia became moot, the latter becoming all-citizen units also. The change was reflected in
18655-541: The beginning of the Komnenian period, the Byzantine army was reduced to a shadow of its former self: during the 11th century, decades of peace and neglect had reduced the old thematic forces, and the Battle of Manzikert in 1071 had destroyed the professional tagmata , the core of the Byzantine army. At Manzikert and later at Dyrrhachium , units tracing their lineage for centuries back to Late Roman army were wiped out, and
18860-455: The best examples of unspoiled coastal wilderness in Sicily. Marine Life of the Straits of Messina includes varieties of birds and marine life, including larger species such as greater flamingo and fin whale . The name Sicilia was given to the Roman province in 241 BC. It is named after the Sicels , who inhabited the eastern part of the island during the Iron Age . The ancient name of
19065-510: The border rivers, suppression of piracy, and escort duties for the grain shipments to Rome and for imperial army expeditions. Lighter ships were far better suited to these tasks, and after the reorganization of the fleet following Actium, the largest ship kept in service was a hexareme, the flagship of the Classis Misenensis . The bulk of the fleets was composed of the lighter triremes and liburnians (Latin: liburna , Greek: libyrnis ), with
19270-408: The borders, in roughly 17 of the 42 provinces of the empire in the reign of Hadrian (r. 117–138). The military chain of command was relatively uniform across the Empire. In each province, the deployed legions' legati (legion commanders, who also controlled the auxiliary regiments attached to their legion) reported to the legatus Augusti pro praetore (provincial governor), who also headed
19475-582: The capital of the Byzantine Empire, from the surrounding land. The last decisive battle was fought by the Palaiologan army in 1453, when Constantinople was besieged and fell on 29 May. The last isolated remnants of the Byzantine state were conquered by 1461. This article contains the summaries of the detailed linked articles on the historical phases above, Readers seeking discussion of the Roman army by theme, rather than by chronological phase, should consult
19680-532: The capital under the Normans . The Normans formed a small but violent ruling class. They destroyed many of the Arab towns in Sicily, and very few physical remains survive from the Arab era. The Norman Hauteville family appreciated and admired the rich and layered culture in which they now found themselves. They also introduced into Sicily their own culture, customs, and politics from Normandy . Many Normans in Sicily adopted
19885-405: The character of the army necessarily changed from a temporary force based entirely on short-term conscription to a standing army in which the conscripts, whose service was in this period limited by law to six consecutive years, were complemented by large numbers of volunteers who were willing to serve for much longer periods. Many of the volunteers were drawn from the poorest social class, which until
20090-482: The church of Rome to that of Constantinople, placing the island within the eastern branch of the Church. In 826 Euphemius , the Byzantine commander in Sicily, having apparently killed his wife, forced a nun to marry him. Emperor Michael II caught wind of the matter and ordered general Constantine to end the marriage and cut off Euphemius' head. Euphemius rose up, killed Constantine, and then occupied Syracuse; he, in turn,
20295-632: The civil administration. The governor in turn reported directly to the emperor in Rome. There was no army general staff in Rome, but the leading praefectus praetorio (commander of the Praetorian Guard ) often acted as the emperor's de facto military chief-of-staff. Legionary rankers were relatively well-paid, compared to contemporary common labourers. Compared with their subsistence-level peasant families, they enjoyed considerable disposable income, enhanced by periodic cash bonuses on special occasions such as
20500-456: The coasts, especially in the southwest, the climate is affected by the African currents and summers can be hot. Snow falls above 900 metres, but it can fall in the hills. The interior mountains, especially Nebrodi , Madonie , and Etna , enjoy a mountain climate, with heavy snowfalls during winter. The summit of Mount Etna is usually snow-capped from October to May. In the summer, the sirocco –
20705-575: The crushing Roman victory at Cynoscephalae , the terms imposed on Macedon were harsh, and included the complete disbandment of her navy. Almost immediately following the defeat of Macedon , Rome became embroiled in a war with the Seleucid Empire . This war too was decided mainly on land, although the combined Roman–Rhodian navy also achieved victories over the Seleucids at Myonessus and Eurymedon . These victories, which were invariably concluded with
20910-687: The disappearance of the old praetorian fleets in Italy, but comments on the continued activity of the Danube fleet. In the 5th century, only the eastern half of the Empire could field an effective fleet, as it could draw upon the maritime resources of Greece and the Levant. Although the Notitia Dignitatum still mentions several naval units for the Western Empire , these were apparently too depleted to be able to carry out much more than patrol duties. At any rate,
21115-493: The disappearance, during the 3rd century, of legionaries' special equipment, and the progressive break-up of legions into cohort-sized units like the auxilia. By the end of Augustus' reign, the imperial army numbered some 250,000 men, equally split between legionaries and auxiliaries (25 legions and c. 250 auxiliary regiments). The numbers grew to a peak of about 450,000 by 211 (33 legions and c. 400 auxiliary regiments). By then, auxiliaries outnumbered legionaries substantially. From
21320-456: The early Principate. Many elements of the late army's defence posture were similar to those associated with forward defence, such as a looser forward location of forts, frequent cross-border operations, and external buffer-zones of allied barbarian tribes. Whatever the defence strategy, it was apparently less successful in preventing barbarian incursions than in the 1st and 2nd centuries. This may have been due to heavier barbarian pressure, and/or to
21525-432: The equivalent of non-commissioned officers in modern armies, could expect to earn up to twice basic pay. Legionary centurions , the equivalent of mid-level commissioned officers, were organised in an elaborate hierarchy. Usually risen from the ranks, they commanded the legion's tactical sub-units of centuriae (c. 80 men) and cohorts (c. 480 men). They were paid several multiples of basic pay. The most senior centurion,
21730-479: The event, when the two fleets encountered each other in Quiberon Bay , Caesar's navy, under the command of D. Brutus, resorted to the use of hooks on long poles, which cut the halyards supporting the Veneti sails. Immobile, the Veneti ships were easy prey for the legionaries who boarded them, and fleeing Veneti ships were taken when they became becalmed by a sudden lack of winds. Having thus established his control of
21935-465: The expansion of Roman power in Illyria. The Romans were again quickly victorious and expanded their Illyrian protectorate, but the beginning of the Second Punic War (218–201 BC) forced them to divert their resources westwards for the next decades. Due to Rome's command of the seas, Hannibal , Carthage's great general, was forced to eschew a sea-borne invasion, instead choosing to bring the war over land to
22140-623: The field army numbered around 20,000 men which was increased to about 30,000 men in John II's reign. By the end of Manuel I's reign the Byzantine field army had risen to 40,000 men. The Palaiologan army refers to the military forces of the Byzantine Empire from the late 13th century to its final collapse in the mid 15th century, under the House of the Palaiologoi . The army was a direct continuation of
22345-424: The fleet. Only in the 3rd century were these officers equated to the legionary centurions in status and pay, and could henceforth be transferred to a similar position in the legions. Merchant vessels were commanded by the magister navis . If privately owned, the owner was called exercitor navis . The modern term of " master " to designate a captain of a merchant vessel derives from the magister navis . During
22550-406: The fleets and of separate squadrons was entrusted to their more experienced legates and subordinates. It was therefore during the Punic Wars that the separate position of praefectus classis ("fleet prefect") first appeared. Initially subordinate to the magistrate in command, after the fleet's reorganization by Augustus, the praefectus classis became a procuratorial position in charge of each of
22755-422: The following articles: History Corps Strategy and tactics Equipment Other Sicily Sicily ( Italian : Sicilia , Italian: [siˈtʃiːlja] ; Sicilian : Sicilia , Sicilian: [sɪˈ(t)ʃiːlja] ; officially Regione Siciliana ) is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea , south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and
22960-455: The forces of the Nicaean army, which itself was a fractured component of the formidable Komnenian army . Under the first Palaiologan emperor, Michael VIII, the army's role took an increasingly offensive role whilst the naval forces of the Empire, weakened since the days of Andronikos I Komnenos, were boosted to include thousands of skilled sailors and some 80 ships. Due to the lack of land to support
23165-424: The general Marius assumed command in 107 BC. (The so-called " Marian reforms " of the army hypothesised by some scholars are today seen by other scholars as having evolved earlier and more gradually.) In the period after the defeat of Carthage in 201 BC, the army was campaigning exclusively outside Italy, resulting in its men being away from their home plots of land for many years at a stretch. They were assuaged by
23370-467: The growth of smallholdings , undermining the dominance of the latifundia . The Arabs further improved irrigation systems. The language spoken in Sicily under Arab rule was Siculo-Arabic and Arabic influence is present in some Sicilian words today. Although long extinct in Sicily, the language has developed into what is now the Maltese language on the islands of Malta today. A description of Palermo
23575-406: The habits and comportment of Muslim rulers and their Byzantine subjects in dress, language, literature, even to the extent of having palace eunuchs and, according to some accounts, a harem. While Roger I died in 1101, his wife Adelaide ruled until 1112 when their son Roger II of Sicily came of age. Having succeeded his brother Simon as Count of Sicily, Roger II was ultimately able to raise
23780-448: The highest and most notable peak. Other important mountain ranges include the Nebrodi , Madonie and Peloritani mountains ranges. Several rivers drain the island, most of which flow through the central area and enter the sea at the south of the island. The Salso flows through parts of Enna and Caltanissetta before entering the Mediterranean Sea at the port of Licata . To the east,
23985-460: The imposition of peace treaties that prohibited the maintenance of anything but token naval forces, spelled the disappearance of the Hellenistic royal navies, leaving Rome and her allies unchallenged at sea. Coupled with the final destruction of Carthage , and the end of Macedon's independence , by the latter half of the 2nd century BC, Roman control over all of what was later to be dubbed mare nostrum ("our sea") had been established. Subsequently,
24190-429: The infantry retained its traditional reputation for excellence. The 3rd and 4th centuries saw the upgrading of many existing border forts to make them more defensible, as well as the construction of new forts with much higher defensive specifications. The interpretation of this trend has fuelled an ongoing debate whether the army adopted a defence-in-depth strategy or continued the same posture of "forward defence" as in
24395-452: The infantry. Although originally low in numbers, the Roman infantry was extremely effective and developed some influential battle strategies. The early Roman army was based on a compulsory levy from adult male citizens which was held at the start of each campaigning season, in those years that war was declared. There were no standing or professional forces. During the Regal Era (to c. 500 BC),
24600-526: The invaders; Roman consul M. Valerian told the Roman Senate in 210 BC that "no Carthaginian remains in Sicily". As the Roman Republic's granary , Sicily ranked as an important province, divided into two quaestorships : Syracuse to the east and Lilybaeum to the west. Roman rule introduced the Latin language to the island, which underwent a slow process of latinisation but Sicily remained largely Greek in
24805-514: The island (dating to the second half of the third millennium BC) seem to offer new insights into the culture of primitive Sicily. The impact of at least two influences is clear: the European one coming from the Northwest, and the Mediterranean influence of an eastern heritage. The original classical-era inhabitants of Sicily comprised three defined groups of the ancient peoples of Italy : the Sicani ,
25010-546: The island is Trinacria (Greek Τρινακρία "having three headlands") for its triangular shape, likely a re-interpretation of earlier ( Homeric ) Thrinacia . The Greek name was rendered as Trīnācrĭa in classical Latin ( Virgil , Ovid ). Humans first colonized Sicily towards the end of the Late Pleistocene , around 16,000 years ago, by people associated with the Epigravettian culture. Discoveries of dolmens on
25215-520: The island is from around 14,000 BC. By around 750 BC, Sicily had three Phoenician and a dozen Greek colonies along its coasts, becoming one of the centers of Magna Graecia . The Sicilian Wars of 580–265 BC were fought between the Carthaginians and Greeks, and the Punic Wars of 264–146 BC were fought between Rome and Carthage. The Roman province of Sicilia ended with the fall of the Roman Empire in
25420-597: The island was turned into an agricultural region. This gradually dried the climate, leading to a decline in rainfall and the drying of rivers. The central and southwest provinces are practically devoid of forest. In Northern Sicily, there are three important forests; near Mount Etna, in the Nebrodi Mountains and in the Bosco della Ficuzza Natural Reserve near Palermo . The Nebrodi Mountains Regional Park, established on 4 August 1993 and covering 86,000 hectares (210,000 acres),
25625-403: The island. The Sicilian wolf ( Canis lupus cristaldii ) was an endemic wolf subspecies that was driven to extinction in the 20th century. During the Late Pleistocene , a species of dwarf elephant , Palaeoloxodon mnaidriensis inhabited the island, with its latest records on Sicily dating to around 20,000 years ago. The Riserva naturale dello Zingaro (Zingaro Natural Reserve) is one of
25830-606: The island. Linguistically, the island shifted from being one-third Greek- and two-thirds Arabic-speaking at the time of the Norman conquest to becoming fully Latinised . In terms of religion the island became completely Roman Catholic (bearing in mind that until 1054 the Churches owing allegiance to the Pope and the Patriarch of Constantinople belonged to one Church); Sicily before the Norman conquest
26035-430: The large amounts of booty that they shared after victories in the rich eastern theatre. But in Italy, the ever-increasing concentration of public lands in the hands of big landowners, and the consequent displacement of the soldiers' families, led to great unrest and demands for land redistribution. This was successfully achieved, but resulted in the disaffection of Rome's Italian allies, who as non-citizens were excluded from
26240-520: The largest city, Syracuse, held out until 878 and the Greek city of Taormina fell in 962. It was not until 965 that all of Sicily was conquered by the Arabs . In the 11th-century Byzantine armies carried out a partial reconquest of the island under George Maniakes , but it was their Norman mercenaries who would eventually complete the island's reconquest at the end of the century. The Arabs initiated land reforms , which increased productivity and encouraged
26445-466: The largest of the three active volcanoes in Italy , being about two and a half times the height of the next largest, Mount Vesuvius . In Greek mythology , the deadly monster Typhon was trapped under the mountain by Zeus , the god of the sky. Mount Etna is widely regarded as a cultural symbol and icon of Sicily. The Aeolian Islands in the Tyrrhenian Sea , to the northeast of mainland Sicily form
26650-472: The latter apparently providing the majority of the provincial fleets. In time, the term "liburnian" came to mean "warship" in a generic sense. Roman ships were commonly named after gods ( Mars , Iuppiter , Minerva , Isis ), mythological heroes ( Hercules ), geographical maritime features such as Rhenus or Oceanus , concepts such as Harmony, Peace, Loyalty, Victory ( Concordia , Pax , Fides , Victoria ) or after important events ( Dacicus for
26855-530: The legions, recruited from the peregrini (non-citizen inhabitants of the empire – about 90% of the empire's population in the 1st century). As well as comprising large numbers of extra heavy infantry equipped in a similar manner to legionaries, the auxilia provided virtually all the army's cavalry (heavy and light), light infantry, archers and other specialists . The auxilia were organised in c. 500-strong units called cohortes (all-infantry), alae (all-cavalry) and cohortes equitatae (infantry with
27060-426: The liburnians. This prominence of lighter craft in the historical narrative is perhaps best explained in light of subsequent developments. After Actium, the operational landscape had changed: for the remainder of the Principate, no opponent existed to challenge Roman naval hegemony, and no massed naval confrontation was likely. The tasks at hand for the Roman navy were now the policing of the Mediterranean waterways and
27265-458: The mainland Apennines . The cone of Mount Etna dominates the eastern coast. In the southeast lie the lower Hyblaean Mountains , 1,000 m (3,300 ft). The mines of the Enna and Caltanissetta districts were part of a leading sulphur -producing area throughout the 19th century, but have declined since the 1950s. Sicily and its surrounding small islands have some highly active volcanoes. This
27470-499: The mainstay of the Roman fleets from the Punic Wars to the end of the Civil Wars. The heaviest vessel mentioned in Roman fleets during this period was the hexareme , of which a few were used as flagships. Lighter vessels such as the liburnians and the hemiolia , both swift types invented by pirates, were also adopted as scouts and light transport vessels. During the final confrontation between Octavian and Mark Antony, Octavian's fleet
27675-456: The makeshift nature of the Roman fleet however, in 86 BC Lucullus defeated the Pontic navy at Tenedos . Immediately after the end of the war, a permanent force of ca. 100 vessels was established in the Aegean from the contributions of Rome's allied maritime states. Although sufficient to guard against Mithridates, this force was totally inadequate against the pirates, whose power grew rapidly. Over
27880-519: The massive buildup, the Roman crews remained inferior in naval experience to the Carthaginians, and could not hope to match them in naval tactics , which required great maneuverability and experience. They, therefore, employed a novel weapon that transformed sea warfare to their advantage. They equipped their ships with the corvus , possibly developed earlier by the Syracusans against the Athenians . This
28085-473: The mid-5th century, the Western Empire essentially lacked a war navy. Matters became even worse after the disastrous failure of the fleets mobilized against the Vandals in 460 and 468, under the emperors Majorian and Anthemius . For the West, there would be no recovery, as the last Western Emperor, Romulus Augustulus , was deposed in 476. In the East however, the classical naval tradition survived, and in
28290-399: The military component of their cursus honorum (conventional career path). Later, provincial career officers became predominant. Senior officers were paid very high salaries, multiples of at least 50 times basic. A typical Roman army during this period consisted of five to six legions. One legion was made up of ten cohorts. The first cohort had five centuria each of 160 soldiers. In
28495-431: The military levy, save in emergencies. The legionary cavalry also changed, probably around 300 BC onwards from the light, unarmoured horse of the early army to a heavy force with metal armour (bronze cuirasses and, later, chain-mail shirts). Contrary to a long-held view, the cavalry of the mid-Republic was a highly effective force that generally prevailed against strong enemy cavalry forces (both Gallic and Greek) until it
28700-484: The more protective equipment of the Principate cavalry. The role of cavalry in the late army does not appear to have been enhanced as compared with the army of the Principate. The evidence is that cavalry was much the same proportion of overall army numbers as in the 2nd century and that its tactical role and prestige remained similar. Indeed, the cavalry acquired a reputation for incompetence and cowardice for their role in three major battles in mid-4th century. In contrast,
28905-558: The mouth of the Rhine eastward as far as the lands of the Cimbri to which, up to that time, no Roman had ever penetrated either by land or by sea...". The multiple naval operations north of Germania had to be abandoned after the battle of the Teutoburg Forest in the year 9 AD. In the years 15 and 16, Germanicus carried out several fleet operations along the rivers Rhine and Ems, without permanent results due to grim Germanic resistance and
29110-627: The name of the Byzantine (Eastern Roman) Emperor. The Vandals kept a toehold in Lilybaeum , a port on the west coast. They lost this in 491 after making one last attempt to conquer the island from this port. The Ostrogothic conquest of Sicily (and of Italy as a whole) under Theodoric the Great began in 488. The Byzantine Emperor Zeno had appointed Theodoric as a military commander in Italy. The Goths were Germanic, but Theodoric fostered Roman culture and government and allowed freedom of religion. In 461 from
29315-454: The navy was most likely geared towards combating piracy and lacked experience in naval warfare, being easily defeated in 282 BC by the Tarentines . This situation continued until the First Punic War : the main task of the Roman fleet was patrolling along the Italian coast and rivers, protecting seaborne trade from piracy. Whenever larger tasks had to be undertaken, such as the naval blockade of
29520-505: The navy was reduced mostly to patrol, anti-piracy and transport duties. By far, the navy's most vital task was to ensure Roman grain imports were shipped and delivered to the capital unimpeded across the Mediterranean. The navy also manned and maintained craft on major frontier rivers such as the Rhine and the Danube for supplying the army. On the fringes of the Empire, in new conquests or, increasingly, in defense against barbarian invasions,
29725-456: The new Ostrogoth king Totila counterattacked, moving down the Italian peninsula, plundering and conquering Sicily in 550. Totila was defeated and killed in the Battle of Taginae by Byzantine general Narses in 552 but Italy was in ruins. At the time of the reconquest Greek was still the predominant language spoken on the island. Sicily was invaded by the Arab forces of Caliph Uthman in 652, but
29930-404: The new artificial harbor of Portus Julius built at Cumae , and soldiers and rowers levied, including over 20,000 manumitted slaves. Finally, Octavian and Agrippa defeated Sextus in the Battle of Naulochus in 36 BC, putting an end to all Pompeian resistance. Octavian's power was further enhanced after his victory against the combined fleets of Mark Antony and Cleopatra , Queen of Egypt , in
30135-458: The next decade, the pirates defeated several Roman commanders, and raided unhindered even to the shores of Italy, reaching Rome's harbor, Ostia . According to the account of Plutarch , "the ships of the pirates numbered more than a thousand, and the cities captured by them four hundred." Their activity posed a growing threat for the Roman economy, and a challenge to Roman power: several prominent Romans, including two praetors with their retinue and
30340-503: The north, and about 16 km (9.9 mi) wide in the southern part. The northern and southern coasts are each about 280 km (170 mi) long measured as a straight line, while the eastern coast measures around 180 km (110 mi); total coast length is estimated at 1,484 km (922 mi). The total area of the island is 25,711 km (9,927 sq mi), while the Autonomous Region of Sicily (which includes
30545-573: The now-abandoned Corvus to achieve victory. After the Roman victory, the balance of naval power in the Western Mediterranean had shifted from Carthage to Rome. This ensured Carthaginian acquiescence to the conquest of Sardinia and Corsica, and also enabled Rome to deal decisively with the threat posed by the Illyrian pirates in the Adriatic . The Illyrian Wars marked Rome's first involvement with
30750-453: The nucleus of the army, with the addition of the armed retainers of Alexios' relatives and the nobles enrolled in the army and the substantial aid of a large force of allied Cumans , which won the Battle of Levounion against the Pechenegs (Petcheneks or Patzinaks). Yet, through a combination of skill, determination and years of campaigning, Alexios, John and Manuel Komnenos managed to restore
30955-606: The outbreak of the Third Mithridatic War , Marcus Antonius (the father of Mark Antony ) was appointed praetor with extraordinary imperium against the pirate threat, but signally failed in his task: he was defeated off Crete in 72 BC, and died shortly after. Finally, in 67 BC the Lex Gabinia was passed in the Plebeian Council , vesting Pompey with unprecedented powers and authorizing him to move against them. In
31160-492: The peak, numbers probably underwent a steep decline by 270 due to plague and losses during multiple major barbarian invasions. Numbers were restored to their early 2nd-century level of c. 400,000 (but probably not to their 211 peak) under Diocletian (r. 284–305). After the empire's borders became settled (on the Rhine - Danube line in Europe) by 68, virtually all military units (except the Praetorian Guard ) were stationed on or near
31365-515: The permanent fleets. These posts were initially filled either from among the equestrian class, or, especially under Claudius , from the Emperor's freedmen , thus securing imperial control over the fleets. From the period of the Flavian emperors , the status of the praefectura was raised, and only equestrians with military experience who had gone through the militia equestri were appointed. Nevertheless,
31570-450: The pirates, and in the civil wars that brought down the Republic, whose campaigns ranged across the Mediterranean. In 31 BC, the great naval Battle of Actium ended the civil wars culminating in the final victory of Augustus and the establishment of the Roman Empire . During the Imperial period, the Mediterranean became largely a peaceful "Roman lake". In the absence of a maritime enemy,
31775-429: The power of the Byzantine Empire by constructing a new army from scratch. This process should not, however, at least in its earlier phases, be seen as a planned exercise in military restructuring. In particular, Alexios I was often reduced to reacting to events rather than controlling them; the changes he made to the Byzantine army were largely done out of immediate necessity and were pragmatic in nature. The new force had
31980-485: The practice of keeping large armies of the best troops in the interior, depriving the border forces of sufficient support. The Komnenian period marked a rebirth of the Byzantine army . At the beginning of the Komnenian period in 1081, the Byzantine Empire had been reduced to the smallest territorial extent. Surrounded by enemies, and financially ruined by a long period of civil war, the empire's prospects looked grim. At
32185-514: The praetors, each commanding one legion of 4,500 men. It is likely that the hoplite element was deployed in a Greek-style phalanx formation in large set-piece battles . However, these were relatively rare, with most fighting consisting of small-scale border-raids and skirmishing. In these, the Romans would fight in their basic tactical unit, the centuria of 100 men. In addition, separate clan-based forces remained in existence until c. 450 BC at least, although they would operate under
32390-621: The prefects of the Classis Germanica , the Classis Britannica and later the Classis Pontica were centenarii (i.e. earning 100,000 sesterces), while the other fleet prefects were sexagenarii (i.e. they received 60,000 sesterces). The generic Roman term for an oar-driven galley warship was "long ship" (Latin: navis longa , Greek: naus makra ), as opposed to the sail-driven navis oneraria (from onus, oneris: burden ),
32595-503: The prefects remained largely political appointees, and despite their military experience, usually in command of army auxiliary units, their knowledge of naval matters was minimal, forcing them to rely on their professional subordinates. The difference in importance of the fleets they commanded was also reflected by the rank and the corresponding pay of the commanders. The prefects of the two praetorian fleets were ranked procuratores ducenarii , meaning they earned 200,000 sesterces annually,
32800-482: The province's available arable land. Soldiers, mostly drawn from polytheistic societies, enjoyed wide freedom of worship in the polytheistic Roman system. They revered their own native deities, Roman deities and the local deities of the provinces in which they served. Only a few religions were banned by the Roman authorities, as being incompatible with the official Roman religion and/or politically subversive, notably Druidism and Christianity . The later Principate saw
33005-420: The ram continued to be a standard feature of all warships and ramming the standard mode of attack, these developments transformed the role of a warship: from the old "manned missile", designed to sink enemy ships, they became mobile artillery platforms, which engaged in missile exchange and boarding actions . The Romans in particular, being initially inexperienced at sea combat, relied upon boarding actions through
33210-585: The redistribution. This led to the mass revolt of the socii and the Social War (91-88 BC). The result was the grant of Roman citizenship to all Italians and the end of the Polybian army's dual structure: the alae were abolished and the socii recruited into the legions. Under the founder–emperor Augustus (ruled 30 BC – 14 AD), the legions , c. 5,000-strong all-heavy infantry formations recruited from Roman citizens only, were transformed from
33415-484: The regular forces, the army of the Principate employed allied native units (called numeri ) from outside the empire on a mercenary basis. These were led by their own aristocrats and equipped in traditional fashion. Numbers fluctuated according to circumstances and are largely unknown. As all-citizen formations, and symbolic guarantors of the dominance of the Italian hegemony, legions enjoyed greater social prestige than
33620-471: The resources and commandeered the ships of the Eastern Mediterranean port cities. These conflicts thus brought about a renewal of naval activity, culminating in the Battle of the Hellespont in 324 between the forces of Constantine I under Caesar Crispus and the fleet of Licinius , which was the only major naval confrontation of the 4th century. Vegetius , writing at the end of the 4th century, testifies to
33825-629: The responsible provincial fleets were heavily debilitated. It was not until the attackers made a tactical error, that their onrush could be stopped. In 267–270 another, much fiercer series of attacks took place. A fleet composed of Heruli and other tribes raided the coasts of Thrace and the Pontus . Defeated off Byzantium by general Venerianus, the barbarians fled into the Aegean, and ravaged many islands and coastal cities, including Athens and Corinth . As they retreated northwards over land, they were defeated by Emperor Gallienus at Nestos . However, this
34030-437: The rise in popularity among the military of Eastern mystery cults , generally centred on one deity, and involving secret rituals divulged only to initiates. By far the most popular in the army was Mithraism , an apparently syncretist religion which mainly originated in Asia Minor . The Late Roman army is the term used to denote the military forces of the Roman Empire from the accession of emperor Diocletian in 284 until
34235-414: The rise of the naval power of the Vandal Kingdom under Geiseric in North Africa, and its raids in the Western Mediterranean, were practically uncontested. Although there is some evidence of West Roman naval activity in the first half of the 5th century, this is mostly confined to troop transports and minor landing operations. The historian Priscus and Sidonius Apollinaris affirm in their writings that by
34440-408: The river frontiers of Europe. It remained however engaged in active warfare in the periphery of the Empire. Under Augustus and after the conquest of Egypt there were increasing demands from the Roman economy to extend the trade lanes to India. The Arabian control of all sea routes to India was an obstacle. One of the first naval operations under princeps Augustus was therefore the preparation for
34645-411: The second through tenth cohorts there were six centuria of 80 men each. These do not include archers, cavalry or officers. Soldiers spent only a fraction of their lives on campaign. Most of their time was spent on routine military duties such as training, patrolling, and maintenance of equipment, etc. Soldiers also played an important role outside the military sphere. They performed the function of
34850-438: The settlers built many temples throughout Sicily, including several in the Valley of the Temples at Agrigento . Politics on the island became intertwined with those of Greece; Syracuse became desired by the Athenians who set out on the Sicilian Expedition (415–413 BC) during the Peloponnesian War . Syracuse gained Sparta and Corinth as allies and, as a result, defeated the Athenian expedition. The victors destroyed
35055-401: The shores of Africa and guarding Italy, a task which included the interception of Carthaginian convoys of supplies and reinforcements for Hannibal's army, as well as keeping an eye on a potential intervention by Carthage's ally, Philip V. The only major action in which the Roman fleet was involved was the siege of Syracuse in 214–212 BC with 130 ships under Marcus Claudius Marcellus . The siege
35260-441: The shores of the western Mediterranean. One of them, the Vandal Kingdom with its capital at Carthage , raised a navy of its own and raided the shores of the Mediterranean, even sacking Rome , while the diminished Roman fleets were incapable of offering any resistance. The Western Roman Empire collapsed in the late 5th century . The navy of the surviving eastern Roman Empire is known as the Byzantine navy . The exact origins of
35465-454: The situation changed dramatically. The so-called " Crisis of the Third Century " ushered a period of internal turmoil, and the same period saw a renewed series of seaborne assaults, which the imperial fleets proved unable to stem. In the West, Picts and Irish ships raided Britain, while the Saxons raided the North Sea, forcing the Romans to abandon Frisia . In the East, the Goths and other tribes from modern Ukraine raided in great numbers over
35670-437: The smaller surrounding islands of Lipari , Egadi , Ustica , and Pantelleria ) has an area of 27,708 km (10,698 sq mi). The terrain of inland Sicily is mostly hilly and is intensively cultivated wherever possible. Along the northern coast, the mountain ranges of Madonie , 2,000 m (6,600 ft), Nebrodi , 1,800 m (5,900 ft), and Peloritani , 1,300 m (4,300 ft), are an extension of
35875-402: The standard levy was probably of 9,000 men, consisting of 6,000 heavily armed infantry (probably Greek-style hoplites ), plus 2,400 light-armed infantry ( rorarii , later called velites ) and 600 light cavalry ( equites celeres ). When the kings were replaced by two annually elected praetores in c. 500 BC, the standard levy remained of the same size, but was now divided equally between
36080-448: The status of the island to a kingdom in 1130, along with his other holdings, which included the Maltese Islands and the Duchies of Apulia and Calabria . Roger II appointed the powerful Greek George of Antioch to be his "emir of emirs" and continued the syncretism of his father. During this period, the Kingdom of Sicily was prosperous and politically powerful, becoming one of the wealthiest states in all of Europe—even wealthier than
36285-406: The subsequent loss of Asia Minor deprived the Empire of its main recruiting ground. In the Balkans, at the same time, the Empire was exposed to invasions by the Norman Kingdom of Sicily , and by Pecheneg raids across the Danube . The Byzantine army's nadir was reached in 1091, when Alexios I Komnenos could manage to field only 500 soldiers from the Empire's professional forces. These formed
36490-420: The time when the culture was still heavily Arab and Greek. Governance was by rule of law which promoted justice. Muslims, Jews, Byzantine Greeks , Lombards, and Normans worked together fairly amicably. During this time many extraordinary buildings were constructed. However this situation changed as the Normans imported immigrants from Normandy , England , Lombardy, Piedmont, Provence and Campania to secure
36695-457: The time, the Punic city was the unchallenged master of the western Mediterranean, possessing a long maritime and naval experience and a large fleet. Although Rome had relied on her legions for the conquest of Italy, operations in Sicily had to be supported by a fleet, and the ships available by Rome's allies were insufficient. Thus in 261 BC, the Roman Senate set out to construct a fleet of 100 quinqueremes and 20 triremes. According to Polybius ,
36900-415: The use of the Corvus . Although it brought them some decisive victories, it was discontinued because it tended to unbalance the quinqueremes in high seas; two Roman fleets are recorded to have been lost during storms in the First Punic War . Roman army The Roman army ( Latin : exercitus Romanus ) was the armed forces deployed by the Romans throughout the duration of Ancient Rome , from
37105-413: The west; Val Demone in the northeast; and Val di Noto in the southeast. As dhimmis , that is as members of a protected class of approved monotheists, the Eastern Orthodox Christians were allowed freedom of religion , but had to pay a tax, the jizya (in lieu of the obligatory alms tax, the zakat , paid by Muslims), and were restricted from active participation in public affairs. By the 11th century,
37310-427: The western Mediterranean Sea (264–201 BC); and (3) the struggle against the Hellenistic monarchies for control of the eastern Mediterranean (201–91 BC). During the earlier phase, the normal size of the levy (including allies) was in the region of 40,000 men (two consular armies of c. 20,000 men each). During the latter phase, with lengthy wars of conquest followed by permanent military occupation of overseas provinces,
37515-413: The wind from the Sahara – can be felt. Rainfall is scarce, and in some provinces a water crisis can occur. According to the Regional Agency for Waste and Water, on 10 August 1999, the weather station of Catenanuova (EN) recorded an unofficial maximum temperature of 48.5 °C (119 °F). On 11 August 2021, a new highest temperature record for Europe with a reading of 48.8 °C (119.8 °F)
37720-431: The years 82 to 85, the Romans under Gnaeus Julius Agricola launched a campaign against the Caledonians in modern Scotland . In this context the Roman navy significantly escalated activities on the eastern Scottish coast. Simultaneously multiple expeditions and reconnaissance trips were launched. During these the Romans would capture the Orkney Islands ( Orcades ) for a short period of time and obtained information about
37925-402: The young Julius Caesar , were captured and held for ransom . Perhaps most important of all, the pirates disrupted Rome's vital lifeline, namely the massive shipments of grain and other produce from Africa and Egypt that were needed to sustain the city's population. The resulting grain shortages were a major political issue, and popular discontent threatened to become explosive. In 74 BC, with
38130-404: Was Sicily, leading to the Gothic War (535–554) between the Ostrogoths and the Eastern Roman Empire, also known as the Byzantine Empire . Justinian's general Belisarius was assigned to the military task. Sicily was used as a base for the Byzantines to conquer the rest of Italy, including Naples , Rome, and Milan . It took five years before the Ostrogoth capital Ravenna fell in 540. However,
38335-399: Was a long plank with a spike for hooking onto enemy ships. Using it as a boarding bridge, marines were able to board an enemy ship, transforming sea combat into a version of land combat, where the Roman legionaries had the upper hand. However, it is believed that the Corvus weight made the ships unstable, and could capsize a ship in rough seas. Although the first sea engagement of the war,
38540-470: Was able to defeat them at the Battle of Naissus , ending the Gothic threat for the time being. Barbarian raids also increased along the Rhine frontier and in the North Sea . Eutropius mentions that during the 280s, the sea along the coasts of the provinces of Belgica and Armorica was "infested with Franks and Saxons". To counter them, Maximian appointed Carausius as commander of the British Fleet . However, Carausius rose up in late 286 and seceded from
38745-402: Was beginning to become a notable element in the military infrastructure towards the end of the Komnenian period, though it became much more important subsequently. In 1097, the Byzantine army numbered around 70,000 men altogether. By 1180 and the death of Manuel Komnenos, whose frequent campaigns had been on a grand scale, the army was probably considerably larger. During the reign of Alexios I,
38950-486: Was composed of quinqueremes, together with some "sixes" and many triremes and liburnians, while Antony, who had the resources of Ptolemaic Egypt to draw upon, fielded a fleet also mostly composed of quinqueremes, but with a sizeable complement of heavier warships, ranging from "sixes" to "tens" (Gk. dekērēs ). Later historical tradition made much of the prevalence of lighter and swifter vessels in Octavian's fleet, with Vegetius even explicitly ascribing Octavian's victory to
39155-433: Was decisively beaten by the Carthaginian general Hannibal 's horsemen during the Second Punic War. This was due to Hannibal's greater operational flexibility owing to his Numidian light cavalry. The Polybian army's operations during its existence can be divided into three broad phases. (1) The struggle for hegemony over Italy, especially against the Samnite League (338–264 BC); (2) the struggle with Carthage for hegemony in
39360-444: Was defeated and driven out to North Africa. He offered the rule of Sicily to Ziyadat Allah , the Aghlabid Emir of Tunisia , in return for a position as a general and a place of safety. A Muslim army was then sent to the island consisting of Arabs , Berbers , Cretans , and Persians . The Muslim conquest of Sicily was a see-saw affair and met with fierce resistance. It took over a century for Byzantine Sicily to be conquered;
39565-478: Was defeated off Kos . In the West, against the triumvirs stood Sextus Pompeius , who had been given command of the Italian fleet by the Senate in 43 BC. He took control of Sicily and made it his base, blockading Italy and stopping the politically crucial supply of grain from Africa to Rome. After suffering a defeat from Sextus in 42 BC, Octavian initiated massive naval armaments, aided by his closest associate, Marcus Agrippa : ships were built at Ravenna and Ostia,
39770-430: Was doubled during the Samnite Wars to four legions (two per consul), for a total of c. 18,000 Roman troops and four allied alae of similar size. Service in the legions was limited to property-owning Roman citizens, normally those known as iuniores (age 16–46). The army's senior officers, including its commanders-in-chief, the Roman consuls, were all elected annually at the People's Assembly. Only equites (members of
39975-560: Was given by Ibn Hawqal , an Arab merchant who visited Sicily in 950. A walled suburb, called the Al-Kasr (the palace), is the centre of Palermo to this day, with the great Friday mosque on the site of the later Roman cathedral. The suburb of al-Khalisa (modern Kalsa ) contained the Sultan 's palace, baths, a mosque, government offices, and a private prison. Ibn Hawqal estimated there were 7,000 butchers trading in 150 shops. The Muslim rule introduced lemons, oranges and sugar cane, as well as cotton and mulberries for sericulture, and introduced
40180-524: Was in Syracuse ; others grew up at Akragas , Selinunte , Gela , Himera and Zancle . The native Sicani and Sicel peoples became absorbed into the Hellenic culture with relative ease, and the area became part of Magna Graecia along with the coasts of the south of the Italian peninsula , which the Greeks had also colonised. Sicily had fertile soils, and the successful introduction of olives and grape vines fostered profitable trading. Greek culture significantly centered around Greek religion , and
40385-574: Was initially set at a minimum of 26 years (one year more than the legions), and was later expanded to 28. Upon honorable discharge ( honesta missio ), the sailors received a sizable cash payment as well. As in the army, the ship's centuria was headed by a centurion with an optio as his deputy, while a beneficiarius supervised a small administrative staff. Among the crew were also a number of principales (junior officers) and immunes (specialists exempt from certain duties). Some of these positions, mostly administrative, were identical to those of
40590-447: Was merely the prelude to an even larger invasion that was launched in 268/269: several tribes banded together (the Historia Augusta mentions Scythians, Greuthungi , Tervingi , Gepids , Peucini, Celts and Heruli ) and allegedly 2,000 ships and 325,000 men strong, raided the Thracian shore, attacked Byzantium and continued raiding the Aegean as far as Crete , while the main force approached Thessalonica . Emperor Claudius II however
40795-408: Was no "national" Roman army, but a series of clan-based war-bands which only coalesced into a united force in periods of serious external threat. Around 550 BC, during the period conventionally known as the rule of king Servius Tullius , it appears that a universal levy of eligible adult male citizens was instituted. This development apparently coincided with the introduction of heavy armour for most of
41000-426: Was no longer capable of raising troops and the supplies to maintain them. The Empire came to rely upon troops provided by Serbs, Bulgarians, Venetians, Latins, Genoans and Ottoman Turks to fight the civil wars that lasted for the greater part of the 14th century, with the latter foe being the most successful in establishing a foothold in Thrace. The Ottomans swiftly expanded through the Balkans and cut off Constantinople,
41205-409: Was now the undisputed master of the Western Mediterranean, and turned her gaze from defeated Carthage to the Hellenistic world. Small Roman forces had already been engaged in the First Macedonian War , when, in 214 BC, a fleet under Marcus Valerius Laevinus had successfully thwarted Philip V from invading Illyria with his newly built fleet. The rest of the war was carried out mostly by Rome's allies,
41410-417: Was set near the city of Syracuse . Total precipitation is highly variable, generally increasing with elevation. In general, the southern and southeast coast receives the least rainfall (less than 50 cm (20 in)), and the northern and northeastern highlands the most (over 100 cm (39 in)). Sicily is an often-quoted example of man-made deforestation , which has occurred since Roman times when
41615-483: Was the look-out stationed at the bow, a pentacontarchos was apparently a junior officer, and an iatros (Lat. medicus ), the ship's doctor. Each ship was commanded by a trierarchus , whose exact relationship with the ship's centurion is unclear. Squadrons, most likely of ten ships each, were put under a nauarchus , who often appears to have risen from the ranks of the trierarchi . The post of nauarchus archigubernes or nauarchus princeps appeared later in
41820-403: Was to be moved to Syracuse probably cost Constans his life, as he was assassinated in 668. His son Constantine IV succeeded him. A brief usurpation in Sicily by Mezezius was quickly suppressed by this emperor. Contemporary accounts report that the Greek language was widely spoken on the island during this period. In 740 Emperor Leo III the Isaurian transferred Sicily from the jurisdiction of
42025-445: Was under the nominal suzerainty of the Fatimid Caliphate . During the reign of this dynasty revolts by Byzantine Sicilians continuously occurred especially in the east where Greek-speaking Christians predominated. Parts of the island were re-occupied before revolts were quashed. Under the Arab rule the island was divided in three administrative regions , or "vals", roughly corresponding to the three "points" of Sicily: Val di Mazara in
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