Laeti
Encyclopedia
Laeti, the plural form of laetus, was a term used in the late Roman Empire
to denote communities of barbari ("barbarians", literally "babblers" - of outlandish tongues - i.e. foreigners, people from outside the Empire) permitted to, and granted land to, settle on imperial territory on condition that they provide recruits for the Roman military. The term laetus is of uncertain origin, but most likely derives from a Germanic
word meaning "serf" or "half-free colonist". Other authorities suggest the term was of Latin, Celtic or even Iranian origin.
in the early 1st century. In the West, these tribes were primarily Germans
, living beyond the Rhine, or Sarmatians
, Iranic
mounted nomads from the Eurasian steppe
, who had occupied the Hungarian Plain facing the Roman province of Pannonia
(W. Hungary) across the Danube
. There is no mention in the sources of laeti in the Eastern section of the Empire.
Although the literary sources mention laeti only from the 4th century onwards, it is possible they existed from as early as the 2nd century: the 3rd century historian Dio Cassius
reports that emperor Marcus Aurelius (ruled 161–180) granted land in the border regions of Germania
, Pannonia
, Moesia
and Dacia
, and even in Italy itself, to groups of Marcomanni
, Quadi
and Iazyges
tribespeople captured during the Marcomannic Wars
(although Marcus Aurelius later expelled those settled in the peninsula after one group mutinied and briefly seized Ravenna
, the base of the Adriatic fleet
). These settlers may have been the original laeti. Indeed, there is evidence that the practice of settling communities of barbari inside the Empire stretches as far back as the founder-emperor Augustus
himself (ruled 42 BC – 14 AD): during his time, a number of subgroups of German tribes from the eastern bank of the Rhine were transferred, at their own request, to the Roman-controlled western bank, e.g. the Cugerni
, a subgroup of the Sugambri tribe, and the Ubii
. In 69, the emperor Otho
is reported to have settled communities of Mauri from North Africa in the province of Hispania Baetica
(modern Andalusia, Spain). Given the attestation of several auxiliary regiments with the names of these tribes in the 1st and 2nd centuries, it is likely that their admission to the empire was conditional on some kind of military obligations (Tacitus states that the Ubii were given the task of guarding the West bank of the Rhine) i.e. that they were laeti in all but name.
Reproductively self-sufficient groups of laeti (i.e. including women and children) would be granted land (terrae laeticae) to settle in the empire by the imperial government.. They appear to form distinct military cantons, which probably were outside the normal provincial administration
, since the settlements were under the control of a Roman praefectus laetorum (or praefectus gentilium), who would be responsible for either individual communities, e.g. the praefectus gentilium Sarmatarum Novariae ("prefect of the Sarmatian community at Novara
", N. Italy); or all communities of a particular tribe in a particular region, e.g. the praefectus gentilium Sarmatarum Calabriae at Apuliae ("prefect of Sarmatians in Calabria
and Apulia
", regions in southern Italy). The praefectus was clearly a military officer, as he in turn reported to the magister peditum praesentalis
(commander of the imperial escort army) in Italy. This officer was, in the late 4th/early 5th centuries, the effective supreme commander of the Western Roman army.
In return for their privileges of admission to the empire and land grants, the laeti settlers were under an obligation to supply recruits to the Roman army
, presumably in greater proportions than ordinary communities were liable to under the regular conscription
of the late empire. The treaty granting a laeti community land might specify a once-and-for-all contribution of recruits. Or a fixed number of recruits required each year. Most likely, this would have been a specified proportion of all laeti males reaching military age (16 years). The proportion required is unknown, and may have varied. A possible parallel is the treaty with Rome of the Batavi
tribe of Germania Inferior
in the 1st century. It has been calculated that in the Julio-Claudian era, as many as half all Batavi males reaching military age were enlisted in the Roman auxilia.
Also like the Batavi, who were granted the privilege in return for their disproportionate contributions to the military, it is likely that laeti settlers enjoyed exemption from tributum (direct taxation on land and heads). A decree of 409 providing for the settlement of some Scirii
tribespeople stipulates that they must pay taxes and be exempt from military service for 20 years. But this settlement was specifically aimed at increasing agricultural production, and the decree specifically provides that the settlers be known by the title coloni ("peasants") and no other. The decree probably implies that the requirement to pay taxes and exemption from military service were exceptional.
There is considerable dispute about whether laeti settlements formed their own separate units or were simply part of the general pool of army recruits. The traditional view is that the praefecti laetorum or gentilium mentioned in the Notitia each were in command of a regiment composed of the laeti ascribed to them, on the basis that they reported to the magister militum praesentalis. But Elton and Goldsworthy argue that laeti were normally drafted into existing military units, and only rarely formed their own. The main support for this view is a decree of 400 AD in the Codex Theodosianus
which authorises a magister militum praesentalis to enlist Alamanni and Sarmatian laeti, together with other groups such as the sons of veterans. This probably implies that laeti were seen as part of the general pool of recruits. In this case the praefecti laetorum/gentilium would have had administrative duties only, especially ensuring the full military levy each year.
Some regiments of laeti certainly existed. The praesentales armies in both East and West contained scholae
(elite cavalry units) of gentiles, most likely formed of laeti. There is also a mention of a regular regiment called Laeti in the clash between emperors Constantius II
and Julian
in 361; and a regiment called Felices Laetorum in 6th century Italy. The units ala I Sarmatarum and numerus Hnaufridi attested in 3rd century Britain may have been formed of laeti.
, a document drawn up at the turn of the 4th/5th centuries. The document is a list of official posts in the Roman Empire, both civil and military. It must be treated with caution, as many sections are missing or contain gaps, so the Notitia does not account for all posts and commands in existence at the time of compilation. Furthermore, the lists for the two halves of the Empire are separated by as much as 30 years, corresponding to ca. 395 for the Eastern section and ca. 425 for the West, and may include deployments from as early as 379. Therefore not all posts mentioned were in existence at the same time, and not all posts that were in existence are shown.
The surviving Notitia only mentions laeti settlements in Italy and Gaul
- and even the two lists of laeti prefects extant are incomplete. But the Notitia suggests that laeti settlements may have existed in the Danubian provinces also. Furthermore, the lists clearly contain errors. The list of praefecti laetorum in Gaul contains prefects for the Lingones
, Nervii
and Batavi: but these tribes had been inside the empire since its inception under Augustus
. By the time the Notitia was compiled, they had provided recruits for the Roman auxiliary regiments for four centuries, and had been Roman citizens for nearly 200 years. They could not, therefore, have been classified as laeti. Most likely the text is corrupt. Medieval copyists of the Notitia probably confused the name of a geographical region (e.g. Nerviorum - the territory of the Nervii) with the name of a laeti people. However, it has been suggested that these names could relate to displaced persons from those areas.
n provinces). These Marcomanni
were probably laeti also and may be the descendants of tribespeople settled in the area in the 2nd century by Marcus Aurelius.Alternatively (or additionally) they may have been descended from Germans settled in Pannonia following Gallienus
's treaty with King Attalus of the Marcomanni in @ 258/9 AD.
The Notitia thus contains 34 entries concerning laeti. But some entries relate to several settlements, not just one, e.g. the Sarmatian settlements in Apulia and Calabria. Furthermore, more than two pages of entries appear to be missing. The number of settlements may thus have been in the hundreds, in the western half of the empire alone.
's magnum opus, the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. According to this view, a critical factor in the disintegration of the western Roman empire in the 5th century was the Romans' ever-increasing reliance on barbarian recruits to man (and lead) their armies, while they themselves became soft and averse to military service. The barbarian recruits had no fundamental loyalty to Rome and repeatedly betrayed Rome's interests. This view does not distinguish between laeti, foederati
and mercenaries.
According to Goldsworthy, there is no evidence that barbarian officers or men were any less reliable than their Roman counterparts. Instead, the evidence points to the conclusion that laeti were a crucial source of first-rate recruits to late Roman army.
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
to denote communities of barbari ("barbarians", literally "babblers" - of outlandish tongues - i.e. foreigners, people from outside the Empire) permitted to, and granted land to, settle on imperial territory on condition that they provide recruits for the Roman military. The term laetus is of uncertain origin, but most likely derives from a Germanic
Germanic languages
The Germanic languages constitute a sub-branch of the Indo-European language family. The common ancestor of all of the languages in this branch is called Proto-Germanic , which was spoken in approximately the mid-1st millennium BC in Iron Age northern Europe...
word meaning "serf" or "half-free colonist". Other authorities suggest the term was of Latin, Celtic or even Iranian origin.
Origin
Laeti were groups of migrants drawn from the tribes that lived beyond the Empire's borders. These had been in constant contact and intermittent warfare with the Empire since its northern borders were stabilized in the reign of AugustusAugustus
Augustus ;23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14) is considered the first emperor of the Roman Empire, which he ruled alone from 27 BC until his death in 14 AD.The dates of his rule are contemporary dates; Augustus lived under two calendars, the Roman Republican until 45 BC, and the Julian...
in the early 1st century. In the West, these tribes were primarily Germans
Germanic peoples
The Germanic peoples are an Indo-European ethno-linguistic group of Northern European origin, identified by their use of the Indo-European Germanic languages which diversified out of Proto-Germanic during the Pre-Roman Iron Age.Originating about 1800 BCE from the Corded Ware Culture on the North...
, living beyond the Rhine, or Sarmatians
Sarmatians
The Iron Age Sarmatians were an Iranian people in Classical Antiquity, flourishing from about the 5th century BC to the 4th century AD....
, Iranic
Iranian peoples
The Iranian peoples are an Indo-European ethnic-linguistic group, consisting of the speakers of Iranian languages, a major branch of the Indo-European language family, as such forming a branch of Indo-European-speaking peoples...
mounted nomads from the Eurasian steppe
Steppe
In physical geography, steppe is an ecoregion, in the montane grasslands and shrublands and temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biomes, characterized by grassland plains without trees apart from those near rivers and lakes...
, who had occupied the Hungarian Plain facing the Roman province of Pannonia
Pannonia
Pannonia was an ancient province of the Roman Empire bounded north and east by the Danube, coterminous westward with Noricum and upper Italy, and southward with Dalmatia and upper Moesia....
(W. Hungary) across the Danube
Danube
The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....
. There is no mention in the sources of laeti in the Eastern section of the Empire.
Although the literary sources mention laeti only from the 4th century onwards, it is possible they existed from as early as the 2nd century: the 3rd century historian Dio Cassius
Dio Cassius
Lucius Cassius Dio Cocceianus , known in English as Cassius Dio, Dio Cassius, or Dio was a Roman consul and a noted historian writing in Greek...
reports that emperor Marcus Aurelius (ruled 161–180) granted land in the border regions of Germania
Germania
Germania was the Greek and Roman geographical term for the geographical regions inhabited by mainly by peoples considered to be Germani. It was most often used to refer especially to the east of the Rhine and north of the Danube...
, Pannonia
Pannonia
Pannonia was an ancient province of the Roman Empire bounded north and east by the Danube, coterminous westward with Noricum and upper Italy, and southward with Dalmatia and upper Moesia....
, Moesia
Moesia
Moesia was an ancient region and later Roman province situated in the Balkans, along the south bank of the Danube River. It included territories of modern-day Southern Serbia , Northern Republic of Macedonia, Northern Bulgaria, Romanian Dobrudja, Southern Moldova, and Budjak .-History:In ancient...
and Dacia
Dacia
In ancient geography, especially in Roman sources, Dacia was the land inhabited by the Dacians or Getae as they were known by the Greeks—the branch of the Thracians north of the Haemus range...
, and even in Italy itself, to groups of Marcomanni
Marcomanni
The Marcomanni were a Germanic tribe, probably related to the Buri, Suebi or Suevi.-Origin:Scholars believe their name derives possibly from Proto-Germanic forms of "march" and "men"....
, Quadi
Quadi
The Quadi were a smaller Germanic tribe, about which little is definitively known. We only know the Germanic tribe the Romans called the 'Quadi' through reports of the Romans themselves...
and Iazyges
Iazyges
The Iazyges were an ancient nomadic tribe. Known also as Jaxamatae, Ixibatai, Iazygite, Jászok, Ászi, they were a branch of the Sarmatian people who, c. 200 BC, swept westward from central Asia onto the steppes of what is now Ukraine...
tribespeople captured during the Marcomannic Wars
Marcomannic Wars
The Marcomannic Wars were a series of wars lasting over a dozen years from about AD 166 until 180. These wars pitted the Roman Empire against the Marcomanni, Quadi and other Germanic peoples, along both sides of the upper and middle Danube...
(although Marcus Aurelius later expelled those settled in the peninsula after one group mutinied and briefly seized Ravenna
Ravenna
Ravenna is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy and the second largest comune in Italy by land area, although, at , it is little more than half the size of the largest comune, Rome...
, the base of the Adriatic fleet
Classis Ravennatis
The classis Ravennas , later awarded the honorifics praetoria and Pia Vindex, was the second most senior fleet of the imperial Roman Navy after the classis Misenensis.- History :...
). These settlers may have been the original laeti. Indeed, there is evidence that the practice of settling communities of barbari inside the Empire stretches as far back as the founder-emperor Augustus
Augustus
Augustus ;23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14) is considered the first emperor of the Roman Empire, which he ruled alone from 27 BC until his death in 14 AD.The dates of his rule are contemporary dates; Augustus lived under two calendars, the Roman Republican until 45 BC, and the Julian...
himself (ruled 42 BC – 14 AD): during his time, a number of subgroups of German tribes from the eastern bank of the Rhine were transferred, at their own request, to the Roman-controlled western bank, e.g. the Cugerni
Cugerni
The Cugerni was a tribal grouping with a particular territory within the Roman province of Germania Inferior, which later became Germania Secunda. More precisely they lived near modern Xanten, and the old Castra Vetera, on the Rhine...
, a subgroup of the Sugambri tribe, and the Ubii
Ubii
thumb|right|350px|The Ubii around AD 30The Ubii were a Germanic tribe first encountered dwelling on the right bank of the Rhine in the time of Julius Caesar, who formed an alliance with them in 55 BC in order to launch attacks across the river...
. In 69, the emperor Otho
Otho
Otho , was Roman Emperor for three months, from 15 January to 16 April 69. He was the second emperor of the Year of the four emperors.- Birth and lineage :...
is reported to have settled communities of Mauri from North Africa in the province of Hispania Baetica
Hispania Baetica
Hispania Baetica was one of three Imperial Roman provinces in Hispania, . Hispania Baetica was bordered to the west by Lusitania, and to the northeast by Hispania Tarraconensis. Baetica was part of Al-Andalus under the Moors in the 8th century and approximately corresponds to modern Andalucia...
(modern Andalusia, Spain). Given the attestation of several auxiliary regiments with the names of these tribes in the 1st and 2nd centuries, it is likely that their admission to the empire was conditional on some kind of military obligations (Tacitus states that the Ubii were given the task of guarding the West bank of the Rhine) i.e. that they were laeti in all but name.
Organisation
The precise constitutions which regulated laeti settlements are obscure. It is possible that their constitutions were standard, or alternatively that the terms varied with each individual settlement. There is also doubt about whether the terms governing laeti were distinct from those applying to gentiles or dediticii (surrendering barbarians) or tributarii (peoples obliged to pay tribute). It is possible that these names were used interchangeably. On the other hand, they may refer to juridically distinct types of community, with distinct sets of obligations and privileges for each type. Most likely, the terms laeti and gentiles were interchangeable, as they are listed in the same section of the Notitia, and referred to voluntary settlements. Indeed the term laetus may derive from the Latin word laetus meaning "delighted" and may have originally been used to distinguish voluntary settlements of barbarians from dediticii, which were forced settlements of prisoners of war (which may have been on less favourable terms than laeti); and tributarii were probably not settlements within the empire at all, but tribes beyond the borders that had a client relationship with Rome.Reproductively self-sufficient groups of laeti (i.e. including women and children) would be granted land (terrae laeticae) to settle in the empire by the imperial government.. They appear to form distinct military cantons, which probably were outside the normal provincial administration
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 Italy...
, since the settlements were under the control of a Roman praefectus laetorum (or praefectus gentilium), who would be responsible for either individual communities, e.g. the praefectus gentilium Sarmatarum Novariae ("prefect of the Sarmatian community at Novara
Novara
Novara is the capital city of the province of Novara in the Piedmont region in northwest Italy, to the west of Milan. With c. 105,000 inhabitants, it is the second most populous city in Piedmont after Turin. It is an important crossroads for commercial traffic along the routes from Milan to Turin...
", N. Italy); or all communities of a particular tribe in a particular region, e.g. the praefectus gentilium Sarmatarum Calabriae at Apuliae ("prefect of Sarmatians in Calabria
Calabria
Calabria , in antiquity known as Bruttium, is a region in southern Italy, south of Naples, located at the "toe" of the Italian Peninsula. The capital city of Calabria is Catanzaro....
and Apulia
Apulia
Apulia is a region in Southern Italy bordering the Adriatic Sea in the east, the Ionian Sea to the southeast, and the Strait of Òtranto and Gulf of Taranto in the south. Its most southern portion, known as Salento peninsula, forms a high heel on the "boot" of Italy. The region comprises , and...
", regions in southern Italy). The praefectus was clearly a military officer, as he in turn reported to the magister peditum praesentalis
Magister militum
Magister militum was a top-level military command used in the later Roman Empire, dating from the reign of Constantine. Used alone, the term referred to the senior military officer of the Empire...
(commander of the imperial escort army) in Italy. This officer was, in the late 4th/early 5th centuries, the effective supreme commander of the Western Roman army.
In return for their privileges of admission to the empire and land grants, the laeti settlers were under an obligation to supply recruits to the Roman army
Roman army
The Roman army is the generic term for the terrestrial armed forces deployed by the kingdom of Rome , the Roman Republic , the Roman Empire and its successor, the Byzantine empire...
, presumably in greater proportions than ordinary communities were liable to under the regular conscription
Conscription
Conscription is the compulsory enlistment of people in some sort of national service, most often military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and continues in some countries to the present day under various names...
of the late empire. The treaty granting a laeti community land might specify a once-and-for-all contribution of recruits. Or a fixed number of recruits required each year. Most likely, this would have been a specified proportion of all laeti males reaching military age (16 years). The proportion required is unknown, and may have varied. A possible parallel is the treaty with Rome of the Batavi
Batavians
The Batavi were an ancient Germanic tribe, originally part of the Chatti, reported by Tacitus to have lived around the Rhine delta, in the area that is currently the Netherlands, "an uninhabited district on the extremity of the coast of Gaul, and also of a neighbouring island, surrounded by the...
tribe of Germania Inferior
Germania Inferior
Germania Inferior was a Roman province located on the left bank of the Rhine, in today's Luxembourg, southern Netherlands, parts of Belgium, and North Rhine-Westphalia left of the Rhine....
in the 1st century. It has been calculated that in the Julio-Claudian era, as many as half all Batavi males reaching military age were enlisted in the Roman auxilia.
Also like the Batavi, who were granted the privilege in return for their disproportionate contributions to the military, it is likely that laeti settlers enjoyed exemption from tributum (direct taxation on land and heads). A decree of 409 providing for the settlement of some Scirii
Scirii
The Scirii were an East Germanic tribe of Eastern Europe, attested in historical works between the 2nd century BC and 5th century AD.The etymology of their name is unclear...
tribespeople stipulates that they must pay taxes and be exempt from military service for 20 years. But this settlement was specifically aimed at increasing agricultural production, and the decree specifically provides that the settlers be known by the title coloni ("peasants") and no other. The decree probably implies that the requirement to pay taxes and exemption from military service were exceptional.
There is considerable dispute about whether laeti settlements formed their own separate units or were simply part of the general pool of army recruits. The traditional view is that the praefecti laetorum or gentilium mentioned in the Notitia each were in command of a regiment composed of the laeti ascribed to them, on the basis that they reported to the magister militum praesentalis. But Elton and Goldsworthy argue that laeti were normally drafted into existing military units, and only rarely formed their own. The main support for this view is a decree of 400 AD in the Codex Theodosianus
Codex Theodosianus
The Codex Theodosianus was a compilation of the laws of the Roman Empire under the Christian emperors since 312. A commission was established by Theodosius II in 429 and the compilation was published in the eastern half of the Roman Empire in 438...
which authorises a magister militum praesentalis to enlist Alamanni and Sarmatian laeti, together with other groups such as the sons of veterans. This probably implies that laeti were seen as part of the general pool of recruits. In this case the praefecti laetorum/gentilium would have had administrative duties only, especially ensuring the full military levy each year.
Some regiments of laeti certainly existed. The praesentales armies in both East and West contained scholae
Scholae
Scholae is a Latin word, literally meaning "schools" that was used in the late Roman Empire to signify a unit of Imperial Guards. The unit survived in the Byzantine Empire until the 12th century...
(elite cavalry units) of gentiles, most likely formed of laeti. There is also a mention of a regular regiment called Laeti in the clash between emperors Constantius II
Constantius II
Constantius II , was Roman Emperor from 337 to 361. The second son of Constantine I and Fausta, he ascended to the throne with his brothers Constantine II and Constans upon their father's death....
and Julian
Julian
Julian is a common male given name in Britain, United States, Ireland, Germany, Poland, the Netherlands, France , Spain, Latin America and elsewhere....
in 361; and a regiment called Felices Laetorum in 6th century Italy. The units ala I Sarmatarum and numerus Hnaufridi attested in 3rd century Britain may have been formed of laeti.
Notitia Dignitatum
Much of our information on laeti is contained in the Notitia DignitatumNotitia Dignitatum
The Notitia Dignitatum is a unique document of the Roman imperial chanceries. One of the very few surviving documents of Roman government, it details the administrative organisation of the eastern and western empires, listing several thousand offices from the imperial court down to the provincial...
, a document drawn up at the turn of the 4th/5th centuries. The document is a list of official posts in the Roman Empire, both civil and military. It must be treated with caution, as many sections are missing or contain gaps, so the Notitia does not account for all posts and commands in existence at the time of compilation. Furthermore, the lists for the two halves of the Empire are separated by as much as 30 years, corresponding to ca. 395 for the Eastern section and ca. 425 for the West, and may include deployments from as early as 379. Therefore not all posts mentioned were in existence at the same time, and not all posts that were in existence are shown.
The surviving Notitia only mentions laeti settlements in Italy and Gaul
Gaul
Gaul was a region of Western Europe during the Iron Age and Roman era, encompassing present day France, Luxembourg and Belgium, most of Switzerland, the western part of Northern Italy, as well as the parts of the Netherlands and Germany on the left bank of the Rhine. The Gauls were the speakers of...
- and even the two lists of laeti prefects extant are incomplete. But the Notitia suggests that laeti settlements may have existed in the Danubian provinces also. Furthermore, the lists clearly contain errors. The list of praefecti laetorum in Gaul contains prefects for the Lingones
Lingones
Lingones were a Celtic tribe that originally lived in Gaul in the area of the headwaters of the Seine and Marne rivers. Some of the Lingones migrated across the Alps and settled near the mouth of the Po River in Cisalpine Gaul of northern Italy around 400 BCE. These Lingones were part of a wave of...
, Nervii
Nervii
The Nervii were an ancient Germanic tribe, and one of the most powerful Belgic tribes; living in the northeastern hinterlands of Gaul, they were known to trek long distances to engage in various wars and functions...
and Batavi: but these tribes had been inside the empire since its inception under Augustus
Augustus
Augustus ;23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14) is considered the first emperor of the Roman Empire, which he ruled alone from 27 BC until his death in 14 AD.The dates of his rule are contemporary dates; Augustus lived under two calendars, the Roman Republican until 45 BC, and the Julian...
. By the time the Notitia was compiled, they had provided recruits for the Roman auxiliary regiments for four centuries, and had been Roman citizens for nearly 200 years. They could not, therefore, have been classified as laeti. Most likely the text is corrupt. Medieval copyists of the Notitia probably confused the name of a geographical region (e.g. Nerviorum - the territory of the Nervii) with the name of a laeti people. However, it has been suggested that these names could relate to displaced persons from those areas.
List of known laeti settlements
Title XLII of the Western part contains two lists of laeti prefects, one for the praefecti laetorum in Gaul, and one for the praefecti gentilium Sarmatarum (prefects of Sarmatian gentiles) in Italy and Gaul, all under the command of the magister peditum praesentalis- the commander of the imperial escort army in Italy (despite his title, which means "master of infantry", this officer commanded cavalry as well as infantry units).praefecti laetorum in Gaul
Removing the names of the "fake laeti" mentioned above, and replacing them with "unidentified tribe", the following list results:- Batavi and Suevi at BaiocasBayeuxBayeux is a commune in the Calvados department in Normandy in northwestern France.Bayeux is the home of the Bayeux Tapestry, which depicts the events leading up to the Norman conquest of England.-Administration:Bayeux is a sub-prefecture of Calvados...
and ConstantiaCoutancesCoutances is a commune in the Manche department in Normandy in north-western France.-History:Capital of the Unelli, a Gaulish tribe, the town took the name of Constantia in 298 during the reign of Roman emperor Constantius Chlorus...
, Lugdunensis II - Suevi: CeromannosLe MansLe Mans is a city in France, located on the Sarthe River. Traditionally the capital of the province of Maine, it is now the capital of the Sarthe department and the seat of the Roman Catholic diocese of Le Mans. Le Mans is a part of the Pays de la Loire region.Its inhabitants are called Manceaux...
and another, unknown location in Lugdunensis III - FranksFranksThe Franks were a confederation of Germanic tribes first attested in the third century AD as living north and east of the Lower Rhine River. From the third to fifth centuries some Franks raided Roman territory while other Franks joined the Roman troops in Gaul. Only the Salian Franks formed a...
: RedonasRennesRennes is a city in the east of Brittany in northwestern France. Rennes is the capital of the region of Brittany, as well as the Ille-et-Vilaine department.-History:...
, Lugdunensis III - Teutoniciani: CarnuntaChartresChartres is a commune and capital of the Eure-et-Loir department in northern France. It is located southwest of Paris.-Geography:Chartres is built on the left bank of the Eure River, on a hill crowned by its famous cathedral, the spires of which are a landmark in the surrounding country...
, Lugdunensis IV - Suevi: Arumbernos (AuvergneAuvergne (province)Auvergne was a historic province in south central France. It was originally the feudal domain of the Counts of Auvergne. It is now the geographical and cultural area that corresponds to the former province....
), AquitanicaAquitaniThe Aquitani were a people living in what is now Aquitaine, France, in the region between the Pyrenees, the Atlantic ocean and the Garonne...
I - Taifali: PoitiersPoitiersPoitiers is a city on the Clain river in west central France. It is a commune and the capital of the Vienne department and of the Poitou-Charentes region. The centre is picturesque and its streets are interesting for predominant remains of historical architecture, especially from the Romanesque...
, Aquitanica - (unidentified tribe): dispersed over Belgica I
- Acti: Epuso, Belgica I
- (unidentified tribe): Fanomantis, Belgica II
- (unidentified tribe): NemetacumArrasArras is the capital of the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France. The historic centre of the Artois region, its local speech is characterized as a Picard dialect...
, Belgica II - (unidentified tribe) Contraginnenses: Noviomagus, Belgica II
- unspecified gentiles: RemoReimsReims , a city in the Champagne-Ardenne region of France, lies east-northeast of Paris. Founded by the Gauls, it became a major city during the period of the Roman Empire....
and SilvamectumSenlis, OiseSenlis is a French commune located in the Oise department near Paris. It has a long and rich heritage, having traversed centuries of history. This medieval town has welcomed some of the most renowned figures in French history, including Hugh Capet, Louis IX, the Marshall of France, Anne of Kiev and...
, Belgica II - Lagenses: near the TungriTungriThe Tungri were a tribe, or group of tribes, who lived in the Belgic part Gaul, during the times of the Roman empire. They were described by Tacitus as being the same people who were first called "Germani" , meaning that all other tribes who were later referred to this way, including those in...
, Germania II
- (substantial section missing)
praefecti gentilium Sarmatarum in Italy
- Apulia et Calabria (the region today known as Puglia, the "heel" of the Italian "boot")
- Brutii et LucaniaLucaniaLucania was an ancient district of southern Italy, extending from the Tyrrhenian Sea to the Gulf of Taranto. To the north it adjoined Campania, Samnium and Apulia, and to the south it was separated by a narrow isthmus from the district of Bruttium...
(the regions today known as CalabriaCalabriaCalabria , in antiquity known as Bruttium, is a region in southern Italy, south of Naples, located at the "toe" of the Italian Peninsula. The capital city of Calabria is Catanzaro....
, BasilicataBasilicataBasilicata , also known as Lucania, is a region in the south of Italy, bordering on Campania to the west, Apulia to the north and east, and Calabria to the south, having one short southwestern coastline on the Tyrrhenian Sea between Campania in the northwest and Calabria in the southwest, and a...
and CilentoCilentoCilento is an Italian geographical region of Campania in the central and southern part of the Province of Salerno and an important tourist area of southern Italy.-Geography:...
, southern Italy) - Forum Fulviense
- Opittergum (OderzoOderzoOderzo is a town and comune in the province of Treviso, Veneto, northern Italy.It lies in the heart of the Venetian plain, about 66 km to the northeast of Venice...
, Friuli, NE Italy) - Patavium (Padova, Veneto, NE Italy)
- (placename missing)
- Cremona (CremonaCremonaCremona is a city and comune in northern Italy, situated in Lombardy, on the left bank of the Po River in the middle of the Pianura Padana . It is the capital of the province of Cremona and the seat of the local City and Province governments...
, Lombardia, N Italy) - TauriniTauriniThe Taurini were an ancient Celto-Ligurian Alpine people, who occupied the upper valley of the river Po, in the centre of modern Piedmont.In 218 BC, they were attacked by Hannibal since his allies were the Insubres. The Taurini and the Insubres had a long-standing feud. Their chief town was...
(Torino, Piemonte, NW Italy) - Aquae sive Tertona (TortonaTortonaTortona is a comune of Piemonte, in the Province of Alessandria, Italy. Tortona is sited on the right bank of the Scrivia between the plain of Marengo and the foothills of the Ligurian Apennines.-History:...
, Piemonte, NW Italy) - Novaria (NovaraNovaraNovara is the capital city of the province of Novara in the Piedmont region in northwest Italy, to the west of Milan. With c. 105,000 inhabitants, it is the second most populous city in Piedmont after Turin. It is an important crossroads for commercial traffic along the routes from Milan to Turin...
, Piemonte, NW Italy) - Vercellae (VercelliVercelliVercelli is a city and comune of about 47,000 inhabitants in the Province of Vercelli, Piedmont, northern Italy. One of the oldest urban sites in northern Italy, it was founded, according to most historians, around the year 600 BC.The city is situated on the river Sesia in the plain of the river...
, Piemonte, NW Italy) - Regio Samnites (Sannio, Campania, southern Italy)
- Bononia in Aemilia (BolognaBolognaBologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna, in the Po Valley of Northern Italy. The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is a lively and cosmopolitan Italian college city, with spectacular history,...
, Emilia-Romagna, N central Italy) - Quadratae et Eporizium (GoriziaGoriziaGorizia is a town and comune in northeastern Italy, in the autonomous region of Friuli Venezia Giulia. It is located at the foot of the Julian Alps, bordering Slovenia. It is the capital of the Province of Gorizia, and it is a local center of tourism, industry, and commerce. Since 1947, a twin...
?, Friuli, NE Italy) - (in Liguria) Pollentia (PollenzoPollentiathumb|250px|Church of San Vittore at Pollenzo.Pollentia was an ancient city the left bank of the Tanaro, known today as Pollenzo, a frazione of Bra in the Province of Cuneo, Piedmont, northern Italy....
, Piemonte, NW Italy)
praefecti gentilium Sarmatarum in Gaul
- Pictavi (PoitiersPoitiersPoitiers is a city on the Clain river in west central France. It is a commune and the capital of the Vienne department and of the Poitou-Charentes region. The centre is picturesque and its streets are interesting for predominant remains of historical architecture, especially from the Romanesque...
west central France): N.B. Taifali also mentioned here - a Chora Parisios usque (ParisParisParis is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
region) - inter Remos et Ambianos Belgica II (Champagne region)
- per tractum Rodunensem et Alaunorum (RennesRennesRennes is a city in the east of Brittany in northwestern France. Rennes is the capital of the region of Brittany, as well as the Ille-et-Vilaine department.-History:...
area? NW France) : N.B. Alauni (AlansAlansThe Alans, or the Alani, occasionally termed Alauni or Halani, were a group of Sarmatian tribes, nomadic pastoralists of the 1st millennium AD who spoke an Eastern Iranian language which derived from Scytho-Sarmatian and which in turn evolved into modern Ossetian.-Name:The various forms of Alan —...
) were probably also present here - LingonesLingonesLingones were a Celtic tribe that originally lived in Gaul in the area of the headwaters of the Seine and Marne rivers. Some of the Lingones migrated across the Alps and settled near the mouth of the Po River in Cisalpine Gaul of northern Italy around 400 BCE. These Lingones were part of a wave of...
(LangresLangresLangres is a commune in north-eastern France. It is a subprefecture of the Haute-Marne département in the Champagne-Ardenne region.-History:As the capital of the Romanized Gallic tribe the Lingones, it was called Andematunnum, then Lingones, and now Langres.The town is built on a limestone...
, NE France) - Au... (name unintelligible)
- (entire folio - two pages - missing)
Marcomanni
The Notitia also mentions a tribunus gentis Marcomannorum under the command of the dux Pannoniae et Norici and a tribunus gentis per Raetias deputatae (tribune of natives in the RaetiaRaetia
Raetia was a province of the Roman Empire, named after the Rhaetian people. It was bounded on the west by the country of the Helvetii, on the east by Noricum, on the north by Vindelicia, on the west by Cisalpine Gaul and on south by Venetia et Histria...
n provinces). These Marcomanni
Marcomanni
The Marcomanni were a Germanic tribe, probably related to the Buri, Suebi or Suevi.-Origin:Scholars believe their name derives possibly from Proto-Germanic forms of "march" and "men"....
were probably laeti also and may be the descendants of tribespeople settled in the area in the 2nd century by Marcus Aurelius.Alternatively (or additionally) they may have been descended from Germans settled in Pannonia following Gallienus
Gallienus
Gallienus was Roman Emperor with his father Valerian from 253 to 260, and alone from 260 to 268. He took control of the Empire at a time when it was undergoing great crisis...
's treaty with King Attalus of the Marcomanni in @ 258/9 AD.
The Notitia thus contains 34 entries concerning laeti. But some entries relate to several settlements, not just one, e.g. the Sarmatian settlements in Apulia and Calabria. Furthermore, more than two pages of entries appear to be missing. The number of settlements may thus have been in the hundreds, in the western half of the empire alone.
Impact
The Notitia lists of laeti settlements, incomplete as they are, show their considerable proliferation over the fourth century. This, together with the large numbers of military units with barbarian names, gave rise to the "barbarisation" theory of the fall of the Roman empire. This view ultimately originates from Edward GibbonEdward Gibbon
Edward Gibbon was an English historian and Member of Parliament...
's magnum opus, the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. According to this view, a critical factor in the disintegration of the western Roman empire in the 5th century was the Romans' ever-increasing reliance on barbarian recruits to man (and lead) their armies, while they themselves became soft and averse to military service. The barbarian recruits had no fundamental loyalty to Rome and repeatedly betrayed Rome's interests. This view does not distinguish between laeti, foederati
Foederati
Foederatus is a Latin term whose definition and usage drifted in the time between the early Roman Republic and the end of the Western Roman Empire...
and mercenaries.
According to Goldsworthy, there is no evidence that barbarian officers or men were any less reliable than their Roman counterparts. Instead, the evidence points to the conclusion that laeti were a crucial source of first-rate recruits to late Roman army.
Ancient
- Notitia Dignitatum (late 4th c.)
- Dio CassiusDio CassiusLucius Cassius Dio Cocceianus , known in English as Cassius Dio, Dio Cassius, or Dio was a Roman consul and a noted historian writing in Greek...
Roman History (mid 3rd c.) - TacitusTacitusPublius Cornelius Tacitus was a senator and a historian of the Roman Empire. The surviving portions of his two major works—the Annals and the Histories—examine the reigns of the Roman Emperors Tiberius, Claudius, Nero and those who reigned in the Year of the Four Emperors...
Germania (late 1st c.) - TacitusTacitusPublius Cornelius Tacitus was a senator and a historian of the Roman Empire. The surviving portions of his two major works—the Annals and the Histories—examine the reigns of the Roman Emperors Tiberius, Claudius, Nero and those who reigned in the Year of the Four Emperors...
Historiae (late 1st c.)
Modern
- Birley, Anthony (2002), Band of Brothers: Garrison Life at Vindolanda
- Elton, Hugh (1996), Roman Warfare 350-425
- Goldsworthy, Adrian (2000), Roman Warfare
- Goldsworthy Adrian, (2005), The Complete Roman Army
- Jones, A. H. M. (1964), Later Roman Empire
- Mattingly, David (2006), An imperial possession: Britain in the Roman empire
- Neue Pauly-WissowaPauly-WissowaThe Realencyclopädie der Classischen Altertumswissenschaft, commonly called the Pauly–Wissowa or simply RE, is a German encyclopedia of classical scholarship. With its supplements it comprises over eighty volumes....
- Walde, A. and Hofmann, J.B. (1965), Lateinisches etymologisches Wörterbuch.