The Eagle's Prey
Page 43
Macro shrugged his heavy shoulders. ‘Frankly, lad, I fear we just might.’
The Fight for the Third Ford
The Marsh
The Organisation of a Roman Legion
Centurions Macro and Cato are the main protagonists of The Eagle’s Prey. In order to clarify the rank structure for readers unfamiliar with the Roman legions I have set out a basic guide to the ranks you will encounter in this novel. The Second Legion, the ‘home’ of Macro and Cato, comprised some five and a half thousand men. The basic unit was the century of eighty men led by a centurion with an optio acting as second in command. The century was divided into eightman sections which shared a room together in barracks and a tent when on campaign. Six centuries made up a cohort, and ten cohorts made up a legion, with the first cohort being double-size. Each legion was accompanied by a mounted contingent of one hundred and twenty men, divided into four squadrons, who served as scouts and messengers. In descending order the main ranks of the legion were as follows:
The legate was a man from an aristocratic background. Typically in his mid-thirties, the legate would command the legion for up to five years and hope to make something of a reputation for himself in order to enhance his subsequent political career.
The camp prefect would be a grizzled veteran who would previously have been the chief centurion of the legion and was at the summit of a professional soldier’s career. He would have vast experience and integrity, and to him would fall the command of the legion in the legate’s absence.
Six tribunes served as staff officers. These would be men in their early twenties serving in the army for the first time to gain administrative experience before taking up junior posts in civil administration. The senior tribune was different. He came from a senatorial family and was destined for high political office and eventual command of a legion.
Sixty centurions provided the disciplinary and training backbone of the legion. They were hand-picked for their command qualities and a willingness to fight to the death. Accordingly their casualty rate far exceeded other ranks. The centurions were ranked by seniority based upon the date of their promotion. The most senior centurion commanded the First Century of the First Cohort and was a highly decorated and respected soldier.
The four decurions of the legion commanded the cavalry squadrons and hoped for promotion to the command of auxiliary cavalry units.
Each centurion was assisted by an optio who would act as an orderly, with minor command duties. Optios would be waiting for a vacancy in the centurionate.
The legionaries were men who had signed on for twenty-five years. In theory, a volunteer had to be a Roman citizen to qualify for enlistment, but recruits were increasingly drawn from provincial populations and given Roman citizenship on joining the legions.
Lower in status than the legionaries were the men of the auxiliary cohorts. They were recruited from the provinces and provided the Roman Empire with its cavalry, light infantry and other specialist arms. Roman citizenship was awarded on completion of twenty-five years of service, or as a reward for outstanding achievement in battle.
THE ROMAN ARMY CHAIN OF COMMAND IN BRITAIN IN 44 AD
Each Century includes an Optio (second in command), a Standard Bearer and eighty Legionaries divided into ten sections of eight men
Also by Simon Scarrow
Under the Eagle
The Eagle’s Conquest
When the Eagle Hunts
The Eagle and the Wolves
Author’s Note
Although Caratacus and his warriors were driven from the battlefield by the legions in the year following the invasion, the indomitable British commander continued a spirited resistance against Roman rule. After his defeats in the south-east of the island Caratacus fled to the tribes that inhabited modern-day Wales. These wild and warlike mountain tribes shared his desire for independence, and were encouraged in their will to resist by the druid cult based in their refuge on the island of Anglesey. Their determination to fight on, coupled with the mountainous terrain, made life very difficult for governors of the new Roman province of Britannia for many more years. Caratacus shared his new-found experience of the most effective kind of warfare to wage against Rome with the mountain tribesmen, and fast-moving raiding columns posed a constant danger to the widely dispersed Roman soldiers and their tenuous lines of supply.
Rome had a long tradition of never admitting defeat, or permitting pockets of resistance to continue in lands it had laid claim to. Eventually Caratacus was driven out of Wales and fled to the north of Britain, in a bid to whip up support amongst the powerful Brigantian confederation. A considerable number of Brigantian nobles were sympathetic to his cause, but their ruler, Queen Cartimandua, was afraid of provoking the wrath of Rome. How that turned out is another story. A story that may well require the return to Britain of two very experienced and talented legionary officers.
Cato and Macro are on their way to Rome. We know from the tombstones of centurions that such men served in a variety of units across the length and breadth of the Empire. Our heroes can expect to travel to new lands and encounter a wide range of enemies in the future. But before Cato and Macro secure appointments in a new legion they must first overcome the rumours and suspicions surrounding their recent actions during the war against Caratacus. They must prove themselves worthy of being reappointed to the ranks of Emperor Claudius’ legions. Ahead of them lies a perilous undercover mission to secure a sacred artefact that will determine the destiny of the Empire.
SIMON SCARROW reaches at City College in Norwich, England. He has in the past run a Roman History program, taking parties of students to a number of ruins and museums across Britain. He lives in Norfolk, England, and this is his fifth novel featuring Marco and Cato. For more information on Simon Scarrow and his novels, visit him at www.scarrow.fsnet.co.uk.
THE EAGLE’S PREY. Copyright © 2004 by Simon Scarrow. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews. For information, address St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010.
THOMAS DUNNE BOOKS.
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eISBN 9781429968188
First eBook Edition : May 2011
ISBN 0-312-32451-0
EAN 978-0-312-32451-3
First published in Great Britain by Headline Book Publishing
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First Edition: November 2005