sabato 10 dicembre 2016

Roman unit: Ioviani seniores

The Ioviani seniores were a legiones palatina under the Italian Magister Peditum command.

Their symbol was a red eagle on a blue background. Shield pattern that was similar to their twin unit: the Herculani seniores.

Below a detail of the shield as reported into the Notitia Oxford version:


Here the free links to Notitia Dignitatum resources:

Ioviani were a very important Roman unit



The eagle was a symbol of Jupiter (Iovius) but this unit was not dedicated to the god. Ioviani were a Tetrarchic creation of the last 3rd century part and they were enlisted by Emperor Diocletian. The original name of Diocletian was Diocle that means "the son of Jupiter".

Below some details of the command group



Many evidences for the Ioviani are reported in different places: Colonia Iulia Concordia (north east Italy), Arles (France) and Milan (Italy). The Ioviani seniores were involved in different struggles in particular during civil wars of the 3rd-4th century.

Below some pictures of the Ioviani against their twin unit: the Herculiani



If someone is interested to the Roman army of the late Empire  it is possible to find more details in these books:
- A companion to the Roman Army - Paul ErdKamp - Blackwell Publishing - The grand strategy of the Roman Empire: from the first century AD to the third - Edward Luttwak- L'esercito romano vol III - Giuseppe Cascarino e Carlo Sansilvestri - Ed Il cerchio- L'esercito romano vol IV - Giuseppe Cascarino e Carlo Sansilvestri - Ed Il cerchio- L'esercito romano: da Augusto alla fine del terzo secolo - Yann Le Bohec - Ed Carocci- 9 agosto 378. Il giorno dei barbari - Alessandro Barbero - Ed Laterza- Le Storie - Ammiano Marcellino - Ed Utet- L'arte della guerra - Flavio Vegezio - Ed Bur


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