Cowan - Roman guardsman, 62 BC-AD 324

For four centuries, from the civil wars of the Late Republic to Constantines bloody reunification of the Empire, elite units of guardsmen were at the heart of every Roman army. Whether as bodyguards or as shock troops in battle, the fighting skills of praetorians, speculatores, custodes and singulares determined the course of Roman history.

The reputation of Roman guardsmen, especially those belonging to the Imperial praetorian cohorts, is bad. There was a suspicion that they were lazy and battle-shy, that their role as guards in the great metropolis of Rome, with all its distractions, enervated them as soldiers and made them greedy and susceptible to corruption and treachery. But if the praetorians were so bad, why did the emperors retain them for so long?

It cannot be denied that the praetorians assassinated or abandoned a considerable number of emperors, but it will be shown that their motivations were complex and bound up with Roman notions of honour and codes of acceptable behaviour.

We will explore the fascinating history of the praetorians, and their fellow guardsmen, from their first appearance in battle at Pistoria in 62 BC , to their heroic last stand by the Milvian Bridge in AD 312, and consider the afterlife of the old guards units up to AD 324. We will follow guardsmen through recruitment and training and examine their varied duties, including sentry duty in Rome, firefighting, and pursuing bandits through the Italian countryside. We will consider the tactical organization of the guards units, and see how they were used in battle.

A much restored relief from the Arch of Claudius ( AD 51), depicting praetorian guardsmen. The heads of the figures in the foreground are restored, and the helmets of all the soldiers are the result of artistic licence, but the decorated muscle cuirass of the officer (a tribune?), the curved oval scuta, and the heavy pila may be taken as accurate depictions of praetorian equipment. The legionary-type eagle standard harks back to the Late Republic when praetorians were selected from the best legionaries. ( A. Rzette)

Guardsmen on the coinage. Top: Caligula addresses the praetorians. The emperor made Cassius Chaerea, a tough praetorian tribune, the butt of offensive jokes, and was killed for it ( AD 41). Middle and bottom: coins issued by Gallienus (r. AD 260268) to celebrate the loyalty of the praetorians and equites singulares. Note the lion, perhaps the emblem of the praetorians in the third century AD . ( RHC Archive)

This book will dispel the popular image of the unworthy Roman guardsman, who will be revealed as ferociously loyal, highly trained and always ready for action.