Tagma (military)
Encyclopedia
The tagma is a term for a military unit of battalion
or regiment
size. The best-known and most technical use of the term however refers to the elite
regiments formed by Byzantine emperor Constantine V
and comprising the central army of the Byzantine Empire
in the 8th–11th centuries.
. In this sense, the term continues in use in the modern Greek military
(cf. Greek military ranks
).
. Most of them traced their origins to the Imperial guard units of the later Roman Empire
. By the 7th century, these had declined to little more than parade troops, meaning that the emperors were hard put to face the frequent revolts of the new and powerful thematic formations, especially the Opsician Theme, the Asian
theme closest to the capital. Within the first sixty years since its creation, it was involved in five revolts, culminating in the rebellion and usurpation of the throne by its commander, the Count Artabasdos
, in 741–743.
After putting down the revolt, Emperor Constantine V
(r. 741–775) reformed the old guard units of Constantinople into the new tagmata regiments, which were meant to provide the emperor with a core of professional and loyal troops, both as a defense against provincial revolts, and also, at the time, as a formation devoted to Constantine's iconoclastic policies. The tagmata were exclusively heavy cavalry
units, more mobile than the theme troops, and maintained on a permanent basis. During the defensive phase of the Empire in the 8th and 9th centuries, their role was that of a central reserve, garrisoned in and around the capital, in regions such as Thrace
and Bithynia
. They formed the core of the imperial army on campaign, augmented by the provincial levies of thematic troops, who were more concerned with local defense.
In addition, like their Late Roman counterparts
, they served as a recruiting and promotion ground for young officers. A career in a tagma could lead to a major commands in the provincial thematic armies or a high court appointment
, as promising young men had the opportunity to catch the Emperor's attention. Officers in the tagmata came primarily either from the relatively well-off urban aristocracy and officialdom, or the landed aristocracy of the Anatolian themes, which increasingly came to control the higher military offices of the state. Nevertheless, the tagmata, as indeed military and state service in general, offered a degree of upwards social mobility
for the lower strata of society.
In their heyday in the 9th and early 10th centuries, there were four tagmata proper ("τὰ δʹ τάγματα"):
Other units closely related to the tagmata, and often included among them, were:
In addition, there was also the Hetaireia
(Gr. , "Companions
"), which comprised the mercenary corps in Imperial service, subdivided in Greater, Middle and Lesser, each commanded by a respective Hetaireiarchēs.
to reach an average size of 4,000 for each tagma (including the Optimatoi and the Noumeroi, for which it is explicitly stated that they numbered 4,000 each).
The tagmatic units were all organized along similar lines. They were commanded by a domestikos
, except for the Vigla, which was commanded by a droungarios. He was assisted by one or two officers called topotērētēs (Gr. τοποτηρητής, lit. "placeholder", "lieutenant"), each of whom commanded one half of the unit. Unlike the thematic units, there were no permanent intermediate command levels (tourmarchai, chiliarch
oi or pentakosiarchai) until Leo VI introduced the droungarios
ca. after 902. The largest subdivision of the tagmata was the bandon
, commanded by a komēs ("count"), called skribōn in the Exkoubitores and tribounos ("tribune
") in the Noumeroi and Walls units. The banda in turn were divided in companies, headed by a kentarchos ("centurion"), or drakonarios ("draconarius") for the Exkoubitores, and vikarios ("vicar") for the Noumeroi and Walls units. The domestikos tōn Scholōn
, the head of the Scholai regiment, became gradually more and more important, eventually coming to be the most senior officer of the entire army by the end of the 10th century.
The following table illustrates the structure of the Scholai in the 9th century, according to Treadgold:
In addition, there were a chartoularios
(χαρτουλάριος, "secretary") and a prōtomandatōr (πρωτομανδάτωρ, "head messenger"), as well as 40 standard bearers (βανδοφόροι, bandophoroi), of varying ranks and titles in each tagma, and 40 mandator
es ("messengers"), for a total unit size of 4,125. On campaign, every tagmatic cavalryman was accompanied by a servant.
The next table gives the evolution of the theoretical establishment size of the entire imperial tagmatic force, again as calculated by Warren Treadgold:
(r. 820–829) raised the short-lived Tessarakontarioi, a special marine unit (named after their high pay of 40 nomisma
ta), and John I Tzimiskes
(r. 969–976) created a heavy cataphract
corps called the Athanatoi ' onMouseout='HidePop("84406")' href="/topics/Immortals_(Byzantine)">Immortals
") after the old Persian unit
, which were revived in the late 11th century by Michael VII Doukas (r. 1071–1078). Other similar units were the Stratēlatai, likewise formed by John Tzimiskes, the short-lived Satrapai of the 970s, the Megathymoi of the 1040s or the Archontopoulai and Vestiaritai
of Alexios I. Many of the new tagmata were composed of foreigners, such as the Maniakalatai, formed by George Maniakes from Franks in Italy, or the most famous of all tagmatic units, the 6,000-strong mercenary Varangian Guard
, established ca. 988 by Emperor Basil II
(r. 976–1025).
The reign of Basil II also saw the beginnings of a profound transformation of the Byzantine military system. In the mid-10th century, the decline in the numbers of the thematic forces and the exigencies of the new offensive strategy on the eastern border gave rise to an increasing number of provincial tagmata, permanent professional forces modelled after the imperial tagmata. The great conquests in the East in the 960s were secured by the creation of an array of smaller themata, in which detachments of these professional forces were based, eventually to be grouped under regional commanders with the title of doux
or katepanō
. This strategy was effective against small-scale local threats, but the concurrent neglect of the thematic forces reduced the state's ability to respond effectively to a major invasion that succeeded in penetrating the frontier buffer zone. The decline of the part-time thematic armies and the increasing reliance on a large array of permanent units, both indigenous and mercenary, was based not only on the greater military effectiveness of the latter in the more offensive Byzantine strategy of the era, but also on their greater reliability as opposed to the thematic troops with their local ties. The tagmata recruited from the larger themata were probably 1,000 men strong, while those from the smaller themata may have numbered ca. 500 men. Foreign, chiefly Frankish
mercenary units, also seem to have numbered 400–500 men.
Consequently, in the 11th century, the distinction between "imperial" and provincial forces largely vanished, and the term tagma was applied to any permanent formed regiment, and regional origins and identities are prominently displayed in the units' titles. After ca. 1050, like the thematic armies, the original tagmata slowly declined, and were decimated in the military disasters of the latter third of the 11th century. Except for the Varangians, the Vestiaritai, the Hetaireia
and the Vardariōtai
, the older guard units disappear altogether by ca. 1100 and are absent from the 12th-century Komnenian army
. In the Komnenian army
, the term tagma reverted to a non-specific meaning of "military unit".
Battalion
A battalion is a military unit of around 300–1,200 soldiers usually consisting of between two and seven companies and typically commanded by either a Lieutenant Colonel or a Colonel...
or regiment
Regiment
A regiment is a major tactical military unit, composed of variable numbers of batteries, squadrons or battalions, commanded by a colonel or lieutenant colonel...
size. The best-known and most technical use of the term however refers to the elite
Elite
Elite refers to an exceptional or privileged group that wields considerable power within its sphere of influence...
regiments formed by Byzantine emperor Constantine V
Constantine V
Constantine V was Byzantine emperor from 741 to 775; ); .-Early life:...
and comprising the central army of the Byzantine Empire
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
in the 8th–11th centuries.
History and role
In its original sense, the term "tagma" (from the Greek τάσσειν, "to set in order") is attested from the 4th century and was used to refer to an infantry battalion of 200–400 men (also termed bandum or numerus in Latin, arithmos in Greek) in the contemporary East Roman armyEast Roman army
The East Roman army refers to the army of the Eastern section of the Roman Empire, from the empire's definitive split in 395 AD to the army's reorganization by themes after the permanent loss of Syria, Palestine and Egypt to the Arabs in the 7th century...
. In this sense, the term continues in use in the modern Greek military
Military of Greece
The armed forces of Greece consist of:* The Hellenic National Defense General Staff* The Hellenic Army* The Hellenic Navy* The Hellenic Air ForceThe civilian authority for the Greek military is the Ministry of National Defense....
(cf. Greek military ranks
Greek military ranks
Modern Greek military ranks are based on Ancient Greek & Byzantine terminology, even though the ranks correspond to those of other Western armies...
).
Imperial guards, 8th–10th centuries
In later Byzantine usage, the term came to refer exclusively to the professional, standing troops, garrisoned in and around the capital of ConstantinopleConstantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
. Most of them traced their origins to the Imperial guard units of the later Roman Empire
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....
. By the 7th century, these had declined to little more than parade troops, meaning that the emperors were hard put to face the frequent revolts of the new and powerful thematic formations, especially the Opsician Theme, the Asian
Asia Minor
Asia Minor is a geographical location at the westernmost protrusion of Asia, also called Anatolia, and corresponds to the western two thirds of the Asian part of Turkey...
theme closest to the capital. Within the first sixty years since its creation, it was involved in five revolts, culminating in the rebellion and usurpation of the throne by its commander, the Count Artabasdos
Artabasdos
Artavasdos, Latinized as Artabasdos or Artabasdus , was Byzantine Emperor of Armenian descent from June 741 or 742 until November 743...
, in 741–743.
After putting down the revolt, Emperor Constantine V
Constantine V
Constantine V was Byzantine emperor from 741 to 775; ); .-Early life:...
(r. 741–775) reformed the old guard units of Constantinople into the new tagmata regiments, which were meant to provide the emperor with a core of professional and loyal troops, both as a defense against provincial revolts, and also, at the time, as a formation devoted to Constantine's iconoclastic policies. The tagmata were exclusively heavy cavalry
Heavy cavalry
Heavy cavalry is a class of cavalry whose primary role was to engage in direct combat with enemy forces . Although their equipment differed greatly depending on the region and historical period, they were generally mounted on large powerful horses, and were often equipped with some form of scale,...
units, more mobile than the theme troops, and maintained on a permanent basis. During the defensive phase of the Empire in the 8th and 9th centuries, their role was that of a central reserve, garrisoned in and around the capital, in regions such as Thrace
Thrace
Thrace is a historical and geographic area in southeast Europe. As a geographical concept, Thrace designates a region bounded by the Balkan Mountains on the north, Rhodope Mountains and the Aegean Sea on the south, and by the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara on the east...
and Bithynia
Bithynia
Bithynia was an ancient region, kingdom and Roman province in the northwest of Asia Minor, adjoining the Propontis, the Thracian Bosporus and the Euxine .-Description:...
. They formed the core of the imperial army on campaign, augmented by the provincial levies of thematic troops, who were more concerned with local defense.
In addition, like their Late Roman counterparts
Late Roman army
The Late Roman army is the term used to denote the military forces of the Roman Empire from the accession of Emperor Diocletian in 284 until the Empire's definitive division into Eastern and Western halves in 395. A few decades afterwards, the Western army disintegrated as the Western empire...
, they served as a recruiting and promotion ground for young officers. A career in a tagma could lead to a major commands in the provincial thematic armies or a high court appointment
Byzantine aristocracy and bureaucracy
The Byzantine Empire had a complex system of aristocracy and bureaucracy, which was inherited from the Roman Empire. At the apex of the pyramid stood the Emperor, sole ruler and divinely ordained, but beneath him a multitude of officials and court functionaries operated the administrative...
, as promising young men had the opportunity to catch the Emperor's attention. Officers in the tagmata came primarily either from the relatively well-off urban aristocracy and officialdom, or the landed aristocracy of the Anatolian themes, which increasingly came to control the higher military offices of the state. Nevertheless, the tagmata, as indeed military and state service in general, offered a degree of upwards social mobility
Social mobility
Social mobility refers to the movement of people in a population from one social class or economic level to another. It typically refers to vertical mobility -- movement of individuals or groups up from one socio-economic level to another, often by changing jobs or marrying; but can also refer to...
for the lower strata of society.
In their heyday in the 9th and early 10th centuries, there were four tagmata proper ("τὰ δʹ τάγματα"):
- the ScholaiScholae PalatinaeThe Scholae Palatinae , were an elite military guard unit, usually ascribed to the Roman Emperor Constantine the Great as a replacement for the equites singulares Augusti, the cavalry arm of the Praetorian Guard...
(Gr. Σχολαί, "the Schools"), were the most senior unit, the direct successor of the imperial guards established by Constantine the Great (r. 306–337). The term scholarioi (σχολάριοι), although in its stricter sense referring solely to the men of the Scholai, was also used as a general reference for all common soldiers of the tagmata. - the ExkoubitoiExcubitorsThe Excubitors were founded in circa 460 AD as the imperial guards of the early Byzantine emperors. Their commanders soon acquired great influence and provided a series of emperors in the 6th century...
or Exkoubitores (Lat. Excubiti, Gr. , "the Sentinels"), established by Leo ILeo I (emperor)Leo I was Byzantine Emperor from 457 to 474. A native of Dacia Aureliana near historic Thrace, he was known as Leo the Thracian ....
. - the Arithmos (Gr. , "Number") or ViglaVigla (tagma)The Vigla , also known as the Arithmos and in English as the Watch, was one of the elite tagmata of the Byzantine army. It was established in the latter half of the 8th century, and survived until the late 11th century...
(Gr. Βίγλα, from the Latin word for "Watch"), promoted from thematic troops by the Empress Eirene in the 780s, but of far older ancestry, as the archaic names of its ranks indicate. The regiment performed special duties on campaign, including guarding the imperial camp, relaying the Emperor's orders, and guarding prisoners of war. - the HikanatoiHikanatoiThe Hikanatoi , sometimes Latinized as Hicanati, were one of the Byzantine tagmata, the elite guard units based near the imperial capital of Constantinople...
(Gr. , "the Able Ones"), established by Emperor Nikephoros INikephoros INikephoros I or Nicephorus I, Logothetes or Genikos was Byzantine emperor from 802 to 811, when he was killed in the Battle of Pliska....
(r. 802–811) in 810.
Other units closely related to the tagmata, and often included among them, were:
- the Noumeroi (Gr. Νούμεροι, from the Latin numerusNumerusNumerus may refer to one of the following*Grammatical number*A military unit of 200–400 men, in the Roman EmpireSee also:*Roman numerals...
, "number") were a garrison unit for Constantinople, which probably included the Teichistai (Gr. Τειχισταί) or tōn Teicheōn regiment (Gr. , "of the Walls"), manning the Walls of ConstantinopleWalls of ConstantinopleThe Walls of Constantinople are a series of defensive stone walls that have surrounded and protected the city of Constantinople since its founding as the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire by Constantine the Great...
. The unit's origins may lie as far back as the 4th–5th centuries. - the OptimatoiOptimatoiThe Optimatoi were initially formed as an elite Byzantine military unit. In the mid-8th century, however, they were downgraded to a supply and logistics corps and assigned a province in north-western Asia Minor, which was named after them...
(Gr. , from Latin optimates, "the best"), although formerly an elite fighting unit, had by the 8th century been reduced to a support unit, responsible for the mules of the army's baggage train (the τοῦλδον, touldon). Unlike the tagmata, it was garrisoned outside Constantinople and closely associated with its garrison area: the thema Optimatōn, which lay across Constantinople and comprised northern BithyniaBithyniaBithynia was an ancient region, kingdom and Roman province in the northwest of Asia Minor, adjoining the Propontis, the Thracian Bosporus and the Euxine .-Description:...
. The commanding domestikosDomestikosDomestikos , in English sometimes [the] Domestic, was a civil, ecclesiastic and military office in the late Roman Empire and the Byzantine Empire.-Military usage:...
of the Optimatoi was also the governor of the thema. - the men of the central Imperial FleetByzantine navyThe Byzantine navy was the naval force of the East Roman or Byzantine Empire. Like the empire it served, it was a direct continuation from its imperial Roman predecessor, but played a far greater role in the defense and survival of the state then its earlier iterations...
(βασιλικόν πλώιμον, basilikon plōimon), are also counted among the tagmata in some sources.
In addition, there was also the Hetaireia
Hetaireia
The Hetaireia or Hetaeria was a term used to describe a corps of bodyguards of the Byzantine Empire. Its name means "the Company", echoing the ancient Macedonian Companion cavalry. The imperial Hetaireia, composed chiefly of foreigners, formed part of the Byzantine imperial guard alongside the...
(Gr. , "Companions
Companion cavalry
The Companions were the elite cavalry of the Macedonian army from the time of king Philip II of Macedon and reached the most prestige under Alexander the Great, and have been regarded as the best cavalry in the ancient world and the first shock cavalry...
"), which comprised the mercenary corps in Imperial service, subdivided in Greater, Middle and Lesser, each commanded by a respective Hetaireiarchēs.
Organization
There is much debate as to the exact size and composition of the imperial tagmata, owing to the inaccuracy and ambiguity of the few contemporary sources (military manuals, lists of offices and Arab accounts, primarily from the 9th century) that deal with them. Our primary sources, the accounts of Arab geographers Ibn Khurdādhbah and Qudāmah are somewhat ambiguous, but they give the overall tagmata strength at 24,000. This figure has been seen by many scholars, such as John Bagnell Bury and John Haldon, as too high, and revised estimates put the strength of each tagma at 1,000–1,500 men. Others, like Warren Treadgold and (in part) Friedhelm Winkelmann, accept these numbers, and correlate them with the lists of officers in the KlētorologionKletorologion
The Klētorologion of Philotheos , is the longest and most important of the Byzantine lists of offices and court precedence . It was published in September of 899 during the reign of Emperor Leo VI the Wise by the otherwise unknown prōtospatharios and atriklinēs Philotheos...
to reach an average size of 4,000 for each tagma (including the Optimatoi and the Noumeroi, for which it is explicitly stated that they numbered 4,000 each).
The tagmatic units were all organized along similar lines. They were commanded by a domestikos
Domestikos
Domestikos , in English sometimes [the] Domestic, was a civil, ecclesiastic and military office in the late Roman Empire and the Byzantine Empire.-Military usage:...
, except for the Vigla, which was commanded by a droungarios. He was assisted by one or two officers called topotērētēs (Gr. τοποτηρητής, lit. "placeholder", "lieutenant"), each of whom commanded one half of the unit. Unlike the thematic units, there were no permanent intermediate command levels (tourmarchai, chiliarch
Chiliarch
Chiliarch , in the Greek army of the Hellenistic period, was a commander of a 1,000 men unit, roughly equivalent to a modern battalion. The office was an adaptation by Alexander the Great of the Persian Achaemenid empire's hazarapatish. A chiliarch held duties both martial and civil...
oi or pentakosiarchai) until Leo VI introduced the droungarios
Drungarios
A droungarios, also spelled drungarios or, in its English form, drungary, was a military rank of the late Roman and Byzantine Empires, signifying the commander of a droungos.-Late Roman and Byzantine army:...
ca. after 902. The largest subdivision of the tagmata was the bandon
Bandon (Byzantine Empire)
The bandon was the basic military and territorial administrative unit of the middle Byzantine Empire. Its name derived from Latin bandum, "ensign, banner", which in turn had a Germanic origin. The term was used already in the 6th century as a term for a battle standard, and soon came to be applied...
, commanded by a komēs ("count"), called skribōn in the Exkoubitores and tribounos ("tribune
Tribune
Tribune was a title shared by elected officials in the Roman Republic. Tribunes had the power to convene the Plebeian Council and to act as its president, which also gave them the right to propose legislation before it. They were sacrosanct, in the sense that any assault on their person was...
") in the Noumeroi and Walls units. The banda in turn were divided in companies, headed by a kentarchos ("centurion"), or drakonarios ("draconarius") for the Exkoubitores, and vikarios ("vicar") for the Noumeroi and Walls units. The domestikos tōn Scholōn
Domestic of the Schools
The Domestic of the Schools was a senior Byzantine military office, extant from the 8th century until at least the early 14th century. Originally simply the commander of the Scholai, the senior of the elite tagmata regiments, the Domestic quickly rose in prominence: by the mid-9th century, its...
, the head of the Scholai regiment, became gradually more and more important, eventually coming to be the most senior officer of the entire army by the end of the 10th century.
The following table illustrates the structure of the Scholai in the 9th century, according to Treadgold:
| Officer (No.) | Unit | Subordinates | Subdivisions |
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestikos (1) | Tagma | 4,000 | 20 banda |
| Topotērētēs (1/2) | 2,000 | 10 banda | |
| Komēs (20) | bandon | 200 | 5 kentarchiai |
| Kentarchos (40) | kentarchia | 40 |
In addition, there were a chartoularios
Chartoularios
The chartoularios or chartularius , Anglicized as chartulary, was a late Roman and Byzantine administrative official, entrusted with administrative and fiscal duties, either as a subaltern official of a department or province or at the head of various independent bureaus.-History:The title derives...
(χαρτουλάριος, "secretary") and a prōtomandatōr (πρωτομανδάτωρ, "head messenger"), as well as 40 standard bearers (βανδοφόροι, bandophoroi), of varying ranks and titles in each tagma, and 40 mandator
Mandator
The mandatōr , deriving from the Latin word for "messenger", was a subaltern official in the middle Byzantine Empire.The mandatores were a corps of messengers for special duties attached to the bureau of all senior civil and military officials, such as the thematic stratēgoi, the commanders of the...
es ("messengers"), for a total unit size of 4,125. On campaign, every tagmatic cavalryman was accompanied by a servant.
The next table gives the evolution of the theoretical establishment size of the entire imperial tagmatic force, again as calculated by Warren Treadgold:
| Year | 745 | 810 | 842 | 959 | 970 | 976 | 1025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total size | 18,000 | 22,000 | 24,000 | 28,000 | 32,000 | 36,000 | 42,000 |
Professional regiments, 10th–11th centuries
As the Byzantine Empire embarked on its campaigns of reconquest in the 10th century, the tagmata became more active, and were posted often in garrison duties in the provinces or in newly conquered territories. In addition to the older units, a number of new and specialized units were formed to meet the demands of this more aggressive style of warfare. Michael IIMichael II
Michael II , surnamed the Amorian or the Stammerer , reigned as Byzantine emperor from December 820 to his death on 2 October 829, and the first ruler of the Phrygian or Amorian dynasty....
(r. 820–829) raised the short-lived Tessarakontarioi, a special marine unit (named after their high pay of 40 nomisma
Nomisma
Nomisma was the ancient Greek word for "money" and is derived from nomos "anything assigned, a usage, custom, law, ordinance"....
ta), and John I Tzimiskes
John I Tzimiskes
John I Tzimiskes or Tzimisces, was Byzantine Emperor from December 11, 969 to January 10, 976. A brilliant and intuitive general, John's short reign saw the expansion of the empire's borders and the strengthening of Byzantium itself.- Background :...
(r. 969–976) created a heavy cataphract
Cataphract
A cataphract was a form of armored heavy cavalry utilised in ancient warfare by a number of peoples in Western Eurasia and the Eurasian Steppe....
corps called the Athanatoi ' onMouseout='HidePop("84406")' href="/topics/Immortals_(Byzantine)">Immortals
Immortals (Byzantine)
The Immortals were one of the elite tagmata military units of the Byzantine Empire, first raised during the late 10th century. The name derives from a- + thanatos .-History:...
") after the old Persian unit
Persian Immortals
The "Immortals" was the name given by Herodotus to an elite force of soldiers who fought for the Achaemenid Empire. This force performed the dual roles of both Imperial Guard and standing army during the Persian Empire's expansion and during the Greco-Persian Wars...
, which were revived in the late 11th century by Michael VII Doukas (r. 1071–1078). Other similar units were the Stratēlatai, likewise formed by John Tzimiskes, the short-lived Satrapai of the 970s, the Megathymoi of the 1040s or the Archontopoulai and Vestiaritai
Vestiaritai
The Vestiaritai were a corps of imperial bodyguards and fiscal officials in the Byzantine Empire, attested from the 11th to the 15th centuries.-History and functions:...
of Alexios I. Many of the new tagmata were composed of foreigners, such as the Maniakalatai, formed by George Maniakes from Franks in Italy, or the most famous of all tagmatic units, the 6,000-strong mercenary Varangian Guard
Varangian Guard
The Varangian Guard was an elite unit of the Byzantine Army in 10th to the 14th centuries, whose members served as personal bodyguards of the Byzantine Emperors....
, established ca. 988 by Emperor Basil II
Basil II
Basil II , known in his time as Basil the Porphyrogenitus and Basil the Young to distinguish him from his ancestor Basil I the Macedonian, was a Byzantine emperor from the Macedonian dynasty who reigned from 10 January 976 to 15 December 1025.The first part of his long reign was dominated...
(r. 976–1025).
The reign of Basil II also saw the beginnings of a profound transformation of the Byzantine military system. In the mid-10th century, the decline in the numbers of the thematic forces and the exigencies of the new offensive strategy on the eastern border gave rise to an increasing number of provincial tagmata, permanent professional forces modelled after the imperial tagmata. The great conquests in the East in the 960s were secured by the creation of an array of smaller themata, in which detachments of these professional forces were based, eventually to be grouped under regional commanders with the title of doux
Dux
Dux is Latin for leader and later for Duke and its variant forms ....
or katepanō
Katepano
The katepánō was a senior Byzantine military rank and office. The word was Latinized as capetanus/catepan, and its meaning seems to have merged with that of the Italian "capitaneus"...
. This strategy was effective against small-scale local threats, but the concurrent neglect of the thematic forces reduced the state's ability to respond effectively to a major invasion that succeeded in penetrating the frontier buffer zone. The decline of the part-time thematic armies and the increasing reliance on a large array of permanent units, both indigenous and mercenary, was based not only on the greater military effectiveness of the latter in the more offensive Byzantine strategy of the era, but also on their greater reliability as opposed to the thematic troops with their local ties. The tagmata recruited from the larger themata were probably 1,000 men strong, while those from the smaller themata may have numbered ca. 500 men. Foreign, chiefly Frankish
Franks
The 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...
mercenary units, also seem to have numbered 400–500 men.
Consequently, in the 11th century, the distinction between "imperial" and provincial forces largely vanished, and the term tagma was applied to any permanent formed regiment, and regional origins and identities are prominently displayed in the units' titles. After ca. 1050, like the thematic armies, the original tagmata slowly declined, and were decimated in the military disasters of the latter third of the 11th century. Except for the Varangians, the Vestiaritai, the Hetaireia
Hetaireia
The Hetaireia or Hetaeria was a term used to describe a corps of bodyguards of the Byzantine Empire. Its name means "the Company", echoing the ancient Macedonian Companion cavalry. The imperial Hetaireia, composed chiefly of foreigners, formed part of the Byzantine imperial guard alongside the...
and the Vardariōtai
Vardariotai
The Vardariotai , sometimes Anglicized as Vardariots, were an ethnic and territorial group in the later Byzantine Empire, which provided a palace guard regiment during the 12th and 13th centuries.-History:...
, the older guard units disappear altogether by ca. 1100 and are absent from the 12th-century Komnenian army
Komnenian army
The Komnenian Byzantine army or Komnenian army was the force established by Byzantine emperor Alexios I Komnenos during the late 11th/early 12th century, and perfected by his successors John II Komnenos and Manuel I Komnenos during the 12th century. Alexios constructed a new army from the ground...
. In the Komnenian army
Komnenian army
The Komnenian Byzantine army or Komnenian army was the force established by Byzantine emperor Alexios I Komnenos during the late 11th/early 12th century, and perfected by his successors John II Komnenos and Manuel I Komnenos during the 12th century. Alexios constructed a new army from the ground...
, the term tagma reverted to a non-specific meaning of "military unit".
Sources
- McCotter, Stephen: Byzantine army, edited by Richard Holmes, published in The Oxford Companion to Military History. (Oxford University Press, 2001)
- Treadgold, Warren T.: Notes on the Numbers and Organisation of the Ninth-Century Byzantine Army, published in Greek, Roman and Byzantine Studies 21 (Oxford, 1980)
- Treadgold, Warren T.: The Struggle for Survival, edited by Cyril Mango, published in The Oxford History of Byzantium. (Oxford University Press, 2002)