Everything about Legio V Macedonica totally explained
Legio V Macedonica ("Macedonian") was a
Roman legion. It was probably originally levied by
consul Gaius Vibius Pansa Caetronianus and
Octavian in
43 BC, and it existed in
Moesia at least until
5th century. Its symbol was the bull, but the eagle was used as well. The
cognomen Macedonica comes from the fact that the legion was stationed in
Macedonia for a period of its life.
History
First century BC: Creation and deployment in Macedonia
The Legio V was one of the original twenty-eight legions raised by Octavian. There are two fifth legions recorded: the V
Gallica and the V
Urbana. It is possible that these both were early names for the V
Macedonica. The legion probably participated in the
Battle of Actium (
31 BC). It later moved to Macedonia, where it stayed from
30 BC to AD
6, gaining its
cognomen, before moving to
Oescus (
Moesia).
First century: The Great Jewish Revolt
In
62, some
vexillationes of the Fifth fought under
Lucius Caesennius Paetus in
Armenia against the
Parthian Empire. After the defeat of the
Battle of Rhandeia, the whole V
Macedonica, together with
III Gallica,
VI Ferrata, and
X Fretensis under the command of
Gnaeus Domitius Corbulo, was sent to the east to fight in the victorious war against the Parthians.
The Fifth was probably still in the East when the
Great Jewish Revolt in
Iudaea Province began in
66.
Nero gave the V
Macedonica, the X
Fretensis and the
XV Apollinaris to
Titus Flavius Vespasianus to counter the revolt. In
67, in
Galilee, the city of
Sepphoris surrendered peacefully to the Roman army, and later the V
Macedonica conquered
Mount Gerizim, the chief sanctuary of the
Samaritans. In the
Year of the Four Emperors,
68, the legion stayed inactive in
Emmaus, where several tombstones of soldiers of the V
Macedonica remain. After the proclamation of Vespasian as Emperor and the end of the war under his son
Titus, the V
Macedonica left Iudaea and returned to Oescus (
71). In
96, the later emperor
Hadrian served the legion as
tribunus militum.
Second century: In Dacia, protecting Danube frontier
In
101, the legion moved to
Dacia, to fight in
Trajan's campaign against the local populations. After the war ended in
106, the legion remained in
Troesmis (modern Iglita), near the delta of the
Danube since
107.
When Emperor
Lucius Verus started his campaign against the Parthians (
161–
166), the legion moved to the east, but was later returned in Dacia Porolissensis, with a basecamp in
Potaissa.
The northern frontier was a hot border of the Empire; when emperor
Marcus Aurelius had to fight against the
Marcomanni, the
Sarmatians, and the
Quadi, the V
Macedonica was involved in these fights.
At the beginning of the reign of
Commodus, the V
Macedonica and the
XIII Gemina defeated once again the Sarmatians, under the later
usurpers Pescennius Niger and
Clodius Albinus. The Fifth later supported
Septimius Severus, in his fight for the purple.
In
185 or
187, the legion was awarded of the title
Pia Constans ("Faithful and reliable") or
Pia Fidelis ("Faithful and loyal"), after defeating a mercenary army in Dacia.
Later centuries: Honors and evolution
While staying in Potaissa for most of the
3rd century, V
Macedonica fought several times, earning honors.
Valerian gave the Fifth the name
III Pia III Fidelis; his son,
Gallienus gave the legion the title
VII Pia VII Fidelis, with the 4th, 5th and 6th titles awarded probably when the legion was used as a mobile cavalry unit against usurpers
Ingenuus and
Regalianus (
260, Moesia). A vexillatio fought against
Victorinus (Gaul,
269–
271).
The legion returned to Oescus in
274, after
Aurelian had retired from Dacia. It guarded the province in later centuries, becoming a
comitatensis unit under the
Magister Militum per Orientis. It probably became part of the
Byzantine army.
The cavalry unit created by Gallienus was definitively detached by
Diocletian, and become part of his
comitatus. This unit was sent to
Mesopotamia, where it successfully fought against the
Sassanid Empire in
296, and then to
Memphis, where it had to stay until its entering in the Byzantine army.
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