1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910817887403321

Autore

Whately Conor

Titolo

Procopius on soldiers and military institutions in the sixth-century Roman Empire / / Conor Whately

Pubbl/distr/stampa

Leiden, Netherland ; ; Boston, Massachusetts : , : Brill, , [2021]

©2021

ISBN

90-04-46161-2

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (311 pages)

Collana

History of Warfare

Disciplina

355.00949509021

Soggetti

Byzantine Empire History, Military 527-1081

Byzantine Empire History, Military

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Nota di contenuto

Intro -- Contents -- Preface -- Tables and Maps -- Introduction Writing about War in the Sixth Century -- 1 Procopius and War in the Sixth Century -- 2 From Generals to Soldiers -- 3 The Classicizing Straitjacket -- 4 Methodology -- 5 Book Organization -- Chapter 1 Generals and Soldiers -- 1 Introduction -- 2 Generals vs. Soldiers -- 2.1 Soldiers: Numbers -- 2.2 Generals vs. Soldiers: Names -- 3 Conclusion -- 4 Tables -- Chapter 2 Tracking Sixth-Century Soldiers -- 1 Introduction -- 2 Procopius' Authority -- 2.1 Procopius' Credentials -- 2.2 Procopius' Use of Autopsy -- 3 Procopius' Sources -- 3.1 Oral Sources -- 3.2 Documentary Evidence -- 4 Case Study: Looking for Documents at Dara -- 5 Conclusion -- Chapter 3 Catalogues and Legions -- 1 Introduction -- 2 Terminology -- 2.1 The End of the Legion -- 2.2 Arithmos -- 3 Procopius' Regiments -- 3.1 Katalogos in Procopius -- 3.2 Katalogos in Antiquity -- 3.3 Field Armies -- 3.4 Count Marcellinus, Jordanes, John Malalas, and Agathias -- 3.5 John Lydus and the Anastasius Edicts -- 4 Why Catalogues? The Wars of Generals -- 5 Conclusion -- Chapter 4 Soldiers in the Field -- 1 Introduction -- 2 Comitatenses -- 2.1 Katalogoi and stratiwtai -- 3 Foederati, symmachoi, and bucellarii -- 4 Horse Archers -- 4.1 Infantry vs. Cavalry -- 4.2 Hippotoxotai -- 4.3 Horse Archers: The Procopian Ideal and the Reality -- 5 Conclusion -- Chapter 5 Limitanei in the Age of Justinian -- 1 Introduction -- 2 Procopius on the End of the limitanei



in the Secret History -- 2.1 Rome's Frontier Soldiers -- 2.2 Procopius -- 2.3 Limitanei in the Wars and Buildings -- 2.4 Ambiguous Garrisons in the Buildings -- 2.5 Limitanei in the Wars -- 3 Rome's Frontier Soldiers across the Empire in the Sixth Century -- 4 Case Study: The limitanei in the Southeast -- 4.1 Frontier Soldiers in Action: Checking Barbarians -- 5 Conclusion.

Chapter 6 Recruitment -- 1 Introduction -- 2 Procopius on Recruitment -- 2.1 The Mechanics of Recruitment -- 2.2 Volunteers and Conscripts -- 2.3 Character Traits -- 2.4 Origins of Recruits -- 2.5 Recruitment Gaps -- 3 Demographics -- 3.1 Recruitment and the Plague -- 3.2 Recruitment and Corruption -- 4 Conclusion -- Conclusion -- Appendix Soldiers in Procopius' Wars, Buildings, and Secret History -- Bibliography -- Index Locorum -- General Index.

Sommario/riassunto

"In Procopius on Soldiers and Military Institutions in the Sixth-Century Roman Empire, Conor Whately examines Procopius' coverage of rank-andfile soldiers in his three works, the Wars, Buildings, and Secret History. By evaluating his accounts alongside other comparative evidence, such as the edicts of Anastasius, legislation from the Codex Justinianus, and various papyri, Whately reveals the limitations to Procopius' work, especially when it comes to frontier soldiers. However, this study also shows the impact of Procopius' experiences with institutional matters such as unit structures on his writing, and the particular value he brings to our understanding of recruitment in the sixth century ce"--