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Dux (plural: duces) is Latin
Latin

Latin is an Italic language, historically spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Through the Military history of the Roman Empire, Latin spread throughout the Mediterranean and a large part of Europe....
 for leader (from the verb ducere, 'to lead') and for duke
Duke

A duke is a member of the nobility, historically of highest rank below the monarch, and historically controlling a duchy or a dukedom. The title comes from the Latin language Dux Bellorum, which had the sense of "military commander" and was employed by both the Germanic peoples themselves and by the Ancient Rome authors covering them to r...
, and in Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome

Ancient Rome was a civilization that grew out of a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 10th century BC....
 could refer to anyone who commanded troops, such as tribal leaders.
he Roman military, a Dux would be a general in charge of two or more legions. While the title of dux could refer to a Consul
Consul

Consul was the highest elected office of the Roman Republic and an appointive office under the Roman Empire. The title was also used in other city states, and revived in modern states, notably French Republic before the Napoleon I of Franceic counter-revolution....
 or Imperator
Imperator

The Latin word Imperator was a title originally roughly equivalent to commander during the period of the Roman Republic. It later went on to become a part of the titulature of the Roman Emperors as part of their cognomen....
, it usually refers to the Roman Governor
Roman governor

A Roman governor was an official either elected or appointed to be the chief administrator of Roman law throughout one or more of the many Roman province constituting the Roman Empire....
 of the provinces
Roman province

In Ancient Rome, a province was the basic, and until the Tetrarchy , largest territorial and administrative unit of the empire's territorial possessions outside of the Italia ....
. As the governor, the dux was both the highest civil official as well as the commander-in-chief of the legions
Roman legion

The Roman Legion is a term that can apply both as a translation of legio to the entire Roman army and also, more narrowly , to the heavy infantry that was the basic military unit of the Roman army in the period of the late Roman Republic and the Roman Empire....
 garrisoned within the province.

However, during the time of the Dominate
Dominate

The Dominate was the 'despotism' latter phase of government in the ancient Roman Empire from the conclusion of the Crisis of the Third Century of 235?284 until the formal date of the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in AD 476....
, the powers as a dux were split from the role of the governor and were given to a new office called "Dux".






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Dux (plural: duces) is Latin
Latin

Latin is an Italic language, historically spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Through the Military history of the Roman Empire, Latin spread throughout the Mediterranean and a large part of Europe....
 for leader (from the verb ducere, 'to lead') and for duke
Duke

A duke is a member of the nobility, historically of highest rank below the monarch, and historically controlling a duchy or a dukedom. The title comes from the Latin language Dux Bellorum, which had the sense of "military commander" and was employed by both the Germanic peoples themselves and by the Ancient Rome authors covering them to r...
, and in Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome

Ancient Rome was a civilization that grew out of a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 10th century BC....
 could refer to anyone who commanded troops, such as tribal leaders.

Roman empire

In the Roman military, a Dux would be a general in charge of two or more legions. While the title of dux could refer to a Consul
Consul

Consul was the highest elected office of the Roman Republic and an appointive office under the Roman Empire. The title was also used in other city states, and revived in modern states, notably French Republic before the Napoleon I of Franceic counter-revolution....
 or Imperator
Imperator

The Latin word Imperator was a title originally roughly equivalent to commander during the period of the Roman Republic. It later went on to become a part of the titulature of the Roman Emperors as part of their cognomen....
, it usually refers to the Roman Governor
Roman governor

A Roman governor was an official either elected or appointed to be the chief administrator of Roman law throughout one or more of the many Roman province constituting the Roman Empire....
 of the provinces
Roman province

In Ancient Rome, a province was the basic, and until the Tetrarchy , largest territorial and administrative unit of the empire's territorial possessions outside of the Italia ....
. As the governor, the dux was both the highest civil official as well as the commander-in-chief of the legions
Roman legion

The Roman Legion is a term that can apply both as a translation of legio to the entire Roman army and also, more narrowly , to the heavy infantry that was the basic military unit of the Roman army in the period of the late Roman Republic and the Roman Empire....
 garrisoned within the province.

However, during the time of the Dominate
Dominate

The Dominate was the 'despotism' latter phase of government in the ancient Roman Empire from the conclusion of the Crisis of the Third Century of 235?284 until the formal date of the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in AD 476....
, the powers as a dux were split from the role of the governor and were given to a new office called "Dux". The dux was still the highest military office within the province and commanded the legions, but the governor had to authorise the use of the dux's powers. But once authorised, the dux could act independently from the governor and handled all military matters. An example would be the Dux per Gallia Belgica
Gallia Belgica

Gallia Belgica was a Roman province located in what is now the southern part of the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, northeastern France, and western Germany....
 which was the Dux of the province of Gallia Belgica.

Since Diocletian's Tetrarchy
Tetrarchy

Tetrarchy can be applied to any system of government where power is divided between four individuals. The term is usually used to refer to the tetrarchy instituted by Roman Emperor Diocletian in 293 which lasted until c. 313....
 reform, the provinces were organized into dioceses each administered by a Vicarius
Vicarius

Vicarius is a Latin word, meaning substitute or deputy. It is the root and origin of the English word "vicar" and cognate to the Persian word most familiar in the variant vizier....
. As with the Governors, the Vicarius was assisted by a Dux. This Dux was superior to all of other Duces within the dioceses and when the Vicarius called the legions of the dioceses into action, all of the legions were at the Dux's command. An example would be the Dux per Gallia which was the Dux of the Dioceses of Gaul
Gaul

Gaul is the name used for the region of Western Europe comprising part of present day northern Italy, France, Belgium, western Switzerland and the parts of the Netherlands and Germany on the west bank of the River Rhine....
. The office of Dux was, in turn, made subject to the Magister Militum
Magister militum

Magister militum was a top-level military command used in the later Roman Empire, dating from the reign of Constantine I . Used alone, the term referred to the senior military officer of the Empire....
 of his respective Praetorian prefecture
Praetorian prefecture

The praetorian prefectures were the largest administrative divisions of the late Roman Empire, above the mid-level Roman diocese and the low-level provinces....
, and above him to the Emperor
Roman Emperor

The Roman Emperor was the ruler of the Roman Empire during the imperial period . The Romans had no single term for the office: Latin language titles such as imperator , Augustus , Caesar and princeps were all associated with it....
.

In the Byzantine Empire
Byzantine Empire

Byzantine Empire and Eastern Roman Empire are conventional names used to describe the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages, centered on its capital of Constantinople....
, the position of dux survived (d???) as rank equivalent to a provincial general (strategos
Strategos

The term strategos is used in Greek language to mean "general". In the Hellenistic and Byzantine Empires the term was also used to describe a military governor....
). The office of megas doux
Megas Doux

The megas doux was one of the highest positions in the hierarchy of the later Byzantine Empire. It is sometimes also given by the half-Latinizations "Megaduke" or "Megadux"....
 ("Grand Duke"), created in the 1090s, was the commander-inchief of the Byzantine navy
Byzantine navy

The Byzantine navy comprised the navy of the Byzantine Empire. Like the empire it served, it developed directly from its earlier Roman Navy, but in comparison with its precursor played a far greater role in the defense and survival of the state....
 and survived until the final Fall of Constantinople
Fall of Constantinople

The Fall of Constantinople was a siege in which the Ottoman Empire under the command of Sultan Mehmed II attempted to capture the capital of the Byzantine Empire, Constantinople which was defended by the army of Emperor Constantine XI....
 in 1453.

Post-Roman uses

King Arthur
King Arthur

King Arthur is a legendary Britons leader who, according to medieval histories and Romance , led the defence of Britain against the Saxon invaders in the early 6th century....
, in one of his earliest literary appearances, is described as dux bellorum ("dux of battles") among the kings of the Romano-Britons
Romano-British

Romano-British culture is that of the Romanised Britons under the Roman Empire and later the Western Roman Empire, and of those exposed to Roman culture in the years after the Roman departure from Britain....
 in their wars against the Anglo-Saxons
Anglo-Saxons

Anglo-Saxons is the term usually used to describe the invading tribes in the south and east of Great Britain starting from the early 5th century AD, and their creation of the English nation, lasting until the Norman conquest of England of 1066....
.

Dux is also the root of various high feudal noble titles of peerage rank, such as (via the French duc) the English duke
Duke

A duke is a member of the nobility, historically of highest rank below the monarch, and historically controlling a duchy or a dukedom. The title comes from the Latin language Dux Bellorum, which had the sense of "military commander" and was employed by both the Germanic peoples themselves and by the Ancient Rome authors covering them to r...
, the Venetian
Venetian language

Venetian or Venetan is a Romance languages spoken by over two million people, mostly in the Veneto region of Italy. The language is called v?neto in Venetian, veneto in Italian; the variant spoken in Venice is called venexi?n/venesi?n or veneziano, respectively....
 doge
Doge

Doge is a dialectal Italian language word that descends from the Latin dux , meaning "leader", especially in a military context.The title of Doge was used for the elected chief of state in a number of Italy "crowned republics"....
 and Italian duca
Duca

Duca can refer to:*DUCA Financial Services Credit Union Ltd. a credit union serving the greater Toronto Area in Canada* Michael Duca, current Catholic Roman Catholic Diocese of Shreveport...
 and duce
Duce

Duce is an Italian language word meaning leader or the second, derived from Latin word dux of the same meaning, of which Duke is a derivation....
 and the modern Greek ducas (d???a?).

In schools in Scotland
Scotland

conventional_long_name = ScotlandAlba|common_name= Scotland|image_flag = Flag of Scotland.svg|flag_width = 130px...
, Australia
Australia

Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the southern hemisphere comprising the Australia of the world's smallest continent, the major island of Tasmania, and numerous list of islands of Australia in the Indian Ocean and Pacific Oceans....
, New Zealand
New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses , and numerous Islands of New Zealand, most notably Stewart Island/Rakiura and the Chatham Islands....
, South Africa
South Africa

The Republic of South Africa, also known by Official names of South Africa, is a country located at the southern tip of the continent of Africa....
 and Iceland
Iceland

Iceland, officially the Republic of Iceland , is an island country located in the North Atlantic Ocean between mainland Europe and Greenland....
, Dux is a modern title given to the top student in academic and sporting achievement (Dux Litterarum and Dux Ludorum respectively) in each graduating year. In this usage, Dux is similar to the American concept of a valedictorian
Valedictorian

Valedictorian is an academic title typically conferred in North America upon the highest ranked student among those being graduated from an educational institution....
. The runner up may be given the title Proxime Accessit (meaning "he came next") or Semidux.

In Portuguese
Portugal

Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic , is a country on the Iberian Peninsula. Located in southwestern Europe, Portugal is the westernmost country of mainland Europe and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and south and by Spain to the north and east....
 universities the dux is the most senior of students, usually in charge of overseeing the Praxe
Praxe

The Portugal term praxe describes the whole of student traditions in universities or, more often, to the initiation rituals freshman are subjected to in some Portuguese university....
 (initiation
Initiation

Initiation is a rite of passage ceremony marking entrance or acceptance into a group or society. It could also be a formal admission to adulthood in a community or one of its formal components....
 ritual
Ritual

A ritual is a set of repeated actions, often thought to have symbolic value, the performance of which is usually prescribed by a religion or by the traditions of a community by religious or political laws because of the perceived efficacy of those actions....
s for the freshmen
Freshman

A freshman is a first-year student in an educational institution. The term first year can also be used as a noun, to describe the students themselves ....
).

Italian Fascist dictator Benito Mussolini
Benito Mussolini

Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini, Order of the Bath Sovereign Military Order of Malta Order of the Tower and Sword was an Italy politician who led the National Fascist Party and is credited with being one of the key figures in the creation of Fascism....
 used the title of Dux (and Duce
Duce

Duce is an Italian language word meaning leader or the second, derived from Latin word dux of the same meaning, of which Duke is a derivation....
 in Italian) to represent his leadership.

In music theory
Music theory

Music theory is the field of study that deals with how music works. It examines the language and notation of music. It identifies patterns that govern composer techniques....
, specifically in counterpoint
Counterpoint

In music, counterpoint is the relationship between two or more Register that are independent in contour and rhythm, and interdependent in harmony....
, the subject of a fugue
Fugue

In music, a fugue is a type of counterpoint composition or technique of composition for a fixed number of melody, normally referred to as "voices"....
 is sometimes referred to as the dux (and the countersubject by the Latin word for companion, comes).

Sources and references

  • Pauly-Wissowa
    Pauly-Wissowa

    The Realencyclop?die der Classischen Altertumswissenschaft, commonly called the Pauly-Wissowa or simply RE, is a German language encyclopedia of classical antiquity scholarship....