PartIII。
  ThecampofaRomanlegionpresentedtheappearanceofafortifiedcity。^60Assoonasthespacewasmarkedout,thepioneerscarefullylevelledtheground,andremovedeveryimpedimentthatmightinterruptitsperfectregularity。Itsformwasanexactquadrangle;andwemaycalculate,thatasquareofaboutsevenhundredyardswassufficientfortheencampmentoftwentythousandRomans;thoughasimilarnumberofourowntroopswouldexposetotheenemyafrontofmorethantreblethatextent。Inthemidstofthecamp,thepraetorium,orgeneral'squarters,roseabovetheothers;thecavalry,theinfantry,andtheauxiliariesoccupiedtheirrespectivestations;thestreetswerebroadandperfectlystraight,andavacantspaceoftwohundredfeetwasleftonallsidesbetweenthetentsandtherampart。Therampartitselfwasusuallytwelvefeethigh,armedwithalineofstrongandintricatepalisades,anddefendedbyaditchoftwelvefeetindepthaswellasinbreadth。Thisimportantlaborwasperformedbythehandsofthelegionariesthemselves;towhomtheuseofthespadeandthepickaxewasnolessfamiliarthanthatoftheswordorpilum。Activevalormayoftenbethepresentofnature;butsuchpatientdiligencecanbethefruitonlyofhabitanddiscipline。^61
  [Footnote60:Vegetiusfinisheshissecondbook,andthedescriptionofthelegion,withthefollowingemphaticwords:—
  "Universaquaeixquoquebelligenerenecessariaessecreduntur,secumJegiodebetubiqueportare,utinquovislocofixeritcastra,arma'amfaciatcivitatem。"]
  [Footnote61:FortheRomanCastrametation,seePolybius,l。vi。
  withLipsiusdeMilitiaRomana,Joseph。deBell。Jud。l。iii。c。
  5。Vegetius,i。21—25,iii。9,andMemoiresdeGuichard,tom。
  i。c。1。]
  Wheneverthetrumpetgavethesignalofdeparture,thecampwasalmostinstantlybrokeup,andthetroopsfellintotheirrankswithoutdelayorconfusion。Besidestheirarms,whichthelegendariesscarcelyconsideredasanencumbrance,theywereladenwiththeirkitchenfurniture,theinstrumentsoffortification,andtheprovisionofmanydays。^62Underthisweight,whichwouldoppressthedelicacyofamodernsoldier,theyweretrainedbyaregularsteptoadvance,inaboutsixhours,neartwentymiles。^63Ontheappearanceofanenemy,theythrewasidetheirbaggage,andbyeasyandrapidevolutionsconvertedthecolumnofmarchintoanorderofbattle。^64Theslingersandarchersskirmishedinthefront;theauxiliariesformedthefirstline,andweresecondedorsustainedbythestrengthofthelegions;thecavalrycoveredtheflanks,andthemilitaryengineswereplacedintherear。
  [Footnote62:CiceroinTusculan。ii。37,[15。]—Joseph。deBell。Jud。l。iii。5,Frontinus,iv。1。]
  [Footnote63:Vegetius,i。9。SeeMemoiresdel'AcademiedesInscriptions,tom。xxv。p。187。]
  [Footnote64:SeethoseevolutionsadmirablywellexplainedbyM。
  GuichardNouveauxMemoires,tom。i。p。141—234。]
  Suchweretheartsofwar,bywhichtheRomanemperorsdefendedtheirextensiveconquests,andpreservedamilitaryspirit,atatimewheneveryothervirtuewasoppressedbyluxuryanddespotism。If,intheconsiderationoftheirarmies,wepassfromtheirdisciplinetotheirnumbers,weshallnotfinditeasytodefinethemwithanytolerableaccuracy。Wemaycompute,however,thatthelegion,whichwasitselfabodyofsixthousandeighthundredandthirty—oneRomans,might,withitsattendantauxiliaries,amounttoabouttwelvethousandfivehundredmen。
  ThepeaceestablishmentofHadrianandhissuccessorswascomposedofnolessthanthirtyoftheseformidablebrigades;andmostprobablyformedastandingforceofthreehundredandseventy—fivethousandmen。Insteadofbeingconfinedwithinthewallsoffortifiedcities,whichtheRomansconsideredastherefugeofweaknessorpusillanimity,thelegionswereencampedonthebanksofthegreatrivers,andalongthefrontiersofthebarbarians。Astheirstations,forthemostpart,remainedfixedandpermanent,wemayventuretodescribethedistributionofthetroops。ThreelegionsweresufficientforBritain。TheprincipalstrengthlayupontheRhineandDanube,andconsistedofsixteenlegions,inthefollowingproportions:twointheLower,andthreeintheUpperGermany;oneinRhaetia,oneinNoricum,fourinPannonia,threeinMaesia,andtwoinDacia。ThedefenceoftheEuphrateswasintrustedtoeightlegions,sixofwhomwereplantedinSyria,andtheothertwoinCappadocia。WithregardtoEgypt,Africa,andSpain,astheywerefarremovedfromanyimportantsceneofwar,asinglelegionmaintainedthedomestictranquillityofeachofthosegreatprovinces。EvenItalywasnotleftdestituteofamilitaryforce。Abovetwentythousandchosensoldiers,distinguishedbythetitlesofCityCohortsandPraetorianGuards,watchedoverthesafetyofthemonarchandthecapital。Astheauthorsofalmosteveryrevolutionthatdistractedtheempire,thePraetorianswill,verysoon,andveryloudly,demandourattention;but,intheirarmsandinstitutions,wecannotfindanycircumstancewhichdiscriminatedthemfromthelegions,unlessitwereamoresplendidappearance,andalessrigiddiscipline。^65
  [Footnote65:TacitusAnnal。iv。5hasgivenusastateofthelegionsunderTiberius;andDionCassiusl。lv。p。794underAlexanderSeverus。Ihaveendeavoredtofixonthepropermediumbetweenthesetwoperiods。SeelikewiseLipsiusdeMagnitudineRomana,l。i。c。4,5。]
  Thenavymaintainedbytheemperorsmightseeminadequatetotheirgreatness;butitwasfullysufficientforeveryusefulpurposeofgovernment。TheambitionoftheRomanswasconfinedtotheland;norwasthatwarlikepeopleeveractuatedbytheenterprisingspiritwhichhadpromptedthenavigatorsofTyre,ofCarthage,andevenofMarseilles,toenlargetheboundsoftheworld,andtoexplorethemostremotecoastsoftheocean。TotheRomanstheoceanremainedanobjectofterrorratherthanofcuriosity;^66thewholeextentoftheMediterranean,afterthedestructionofCarthage,andtheextirpationofthepirates,wasincludedwithintheirprovinces。Thepolicyoftheemperorswasdirectedonlytopreservethepeacefuldominionofthatsea,andtoprotectthecommerceoftheirsubjects。Withthesemoderateviews,AugustusstationedtwopermanentfleetsinthemostconvenientportsofItaly,theoneatRavenna,ontheAdriatic,theotheratMisenum,intheBayofNaples。Experienceseemsatlengthtohaveconvincedtheancients,thatassoonastheirgalleysexceededtwo,oratthemostthreeranksofoars,theyweresuitedratherforvainpompthanforrealservice。Augustushimself,inthevictoryofActium,hadseenthesuperiorityofhisownlightfrigatestheywerecalledLiburniansovertheloftybutunwieldycastlesofhisrival。^67OftheseLiburnianshecomposedthetwofleetsofRavennaandMisenum,destinedtocommand,theonetheeastern,theotherthewesterndivisionoftheMediterranean;andtoeachofthesquadronsheattachedabodyofseveralthousandmarines。Besidesthesetwoports,whichmaybeconsideredastheprincipalseatsoftheRomannavy,averyconsiderableforcewasstationedatFrejus,onthecoastofProvence,andtheEuxinewasguardedbyfortyships,andthreethousandsoldiers。ToalltheseweaddthefleetwhichpreservedthecommunicationbetweenGaulandBritain,andagreatnumberofvesselsconstantlymaintainedontheRhineandDanube,toharassthecountry,ortointerceptthepassageofthebarbarians。^68
  IfwereviewthisgeneralstateoftheImperialforces;ofthecavalryaswellasinfantry;ofthelegions,theauxiliaries,theguards,andthenavy;themostliberalcomputationwillnotallowustofixtheentireestablishmentbyseaandbylandatmorethanfourhundredandfiftythousandmen:amilitarypower,which,howeverformidableitmayseem,wasequalledbyamonarchofthelastcentury,whosekingdomwasconfinedwithinasingleprovinceoftheRomanempire。^69
  [Footnote66:TheRomanstriedtodisguise,bythepretenceofreligiousawetheirignoranceandterror。SeeTacit。Germania,c。34。]
  [Footnote67:Plutarch,inMarc。Anton。[c。67。]Andyet,ifwemaycreditOrosius,thesemonstrouscastleswerenomorethantenfeetabovethewater,vi。19。]
  [Footnote68:SeeLipsius,deMagnitud。Rom。l。i。c。5。ThesixteenlastchaptersofVegetiusrelatetonavalaffairs。]
  [Footnote69:Voltaire,SiecledeLouisXIV。c。29。Itmust,however,beremembered,thatFrancestillfeelsthatextraordinaryeffort。]
  Wehaveattemptedtoexplainthespiritwhichmoderated,andthestrengthwhichsupported,thepowerofHadrianandtheAntonines。Weshallnowendeavor,withclearnessandprecision,todescribetheprovincesonceunitedundertheirsway,but,atpresent,dividedintosomanyindependentandhostilestates。
  Spain,thewesternextremityoftheempire,ofEurope,andoftheancientworld,has,ineveryage,invariablypreservedthesamenaturallimits;thePyrenaeanMountains,theMediterranean,andtheAtlanticOcean。Thatgreatpeninsula,atpresentsounequallydividedbetweentwosovereigns,wasdistributedbyAugustusintothreeprovinces,Lusitania,Baetica,andTarraconensis。ThekingdomofPortugalnowfillstheplaceofthewarlikecountryoftheLusitanians;andthelosssustainedbytheformeronthesideoftheEast,iscompensatedbyanaccessionofterritorytowardstheNorth。TheconfinesofGrenadaandAndalusiacorrespondwiththoseofancientBaetica。TheremainderofSpain,Gallicia,andtheAsturias,Biscay,andNavarre,Leon,andthetwoCastiles,Murcia,Valencia,Catalonia,andArragon,allcontributedtoformthethirdandmostconsiderableoftheRomangovernments,which,fromthenameofitscapital,wasstyledtheprovinceofTarragona。^70Ofthenativebarbarians,theCeltiberianswerethemostpowerful,astheCantabriansandAsturiansprovedthemostobstinate。
  Confidentinthestrengthoftheirmountains,theywerethelastwhosubmittedtothearmsofRome,andthefirstwhothrewofftheyokeoftheArabs。
  [Footnote70:SeeStrabo,l。ii。Itisnaturalenoughtosuppose,thatArragonisderivedfromTarraconensis,andseveralmodernswhohavewritteninLatinusethosewordsassynonymous。
  Itis,however,certain,thattheArragon,alittlestreamwhichfallsfromthePyreneesintotheEbro,firstgaveitsnametoacountry,andgraduallytoakingdom。Seed'Anville,GeographieduMoyenAge,p。181。]
  AncientGaul,asitcontainedthewholecountrybetweenthePyrenees,theAlps,theRhine,andtheOcean,wasofgreaterextentthanmodernFrance。Tothedominionsofthatpowerfulmonarchy,withitsrecentacquisitionsofAlsaceandLorraine,wemustaddtheduchyofSavoy,thecantonsofSwitzerland,thefourelectoratesoftheRhine,andtheterritoriesofLiege,Luxemburgh,Hainault,Flanders,andBrabant。WhenAugustusgavelawstotheconquestsofhisfather,heintroducedadivisionofGaul,equallyadaptedtotheprogressofthelegions,tothecourseoftherivers,andtotheprincipalnationaldistinctions,whichhadcomprehendedaboveahundredindependentstates。^71
  Thesea—coastoftheMediterranean,Languedoc,Provence,andDauphine,receivedtheirprovincialappellationfromthecolonyofNarbonne。ThegovernmentofAquitainewasextendedfromthePyreneestotheLoire。ThecountrybetweentheLoireandtheSeinewasstyledtheCelticGaul,andsoonborrowedanewdenominationfromthecelebratedcolonyofLugdunum,orLyons。
  TheBelgiclaybeyondtheSeine,andinmoreancienttimeshadbeenboundedonlybytheRhine;butalittlebeforetheageofCaesar,theGermans,abusingtheirsuperiorityofvalor,hadoccupiedaconsiderableportionoftheBelgicterritory。TheRomanconquerorsveryeagerlyembracedsoflatteringacircumstance,andtheGallicfrontieroftheRhine,fromBasiltoLeyden,receivedthepompousnamesoftheUpperandtheLowerGermany。^72Such,underthereignoftheAntonines,werethesixprovincesofGaul;theNarbonnese,Aquitaine,theCeltic,orLyonnese,theBelgic,andthetwoGermanies。
  [Footnote71:OnehundredandfifteencitiesappearintheNotitiaofGaul;anditiswellknownthatthisappellationwasappliednotonlytothecapitaltown,buttothewholeterritoryofeachstate。ButPlutarchandAppianincreasethenumberoftribestothreeorfourhundred。]
  [Footnote72:D'Anville。Noticedel'AncienneGaule。]
  WehavealreadyhadoccasiontomentiontheconquestofBritain,andtofixtheboundaryoftheRomanProvinceinthisisland。ItcomprehendedallEngland,Wales,andtheLowlandsofScotland,asfarastheFrithsofDumbartonandEdinburgh。
  BeforeBritainlostherfreedom,thecountrywasirregularlydividedbetweenthirtytribesofbarbarians,ofwhomthemostconsiderableweretheBelgaeintheWest,theBrigantesintheNorth,theSiluresinSouthWales,andtheIceniinNorfolkandSuffolk。^73Asfaraswecaneithertraceorcredittheresemblanceofmannersandlanguage,Spain,Gaul,andBritainwerepeopledbythesamehardyraceofsavages。BeforetheyyieldedtotheRomanarms,theyoftendisputedthefield,andoftenrenewedthecontest。Aftertheirsubmission,theyconstitutedthewesterndivisionoftheEuropeanprovinces,whichextendedfromthecolumnsofHerculestothewallofAntoninus,andfromthemouthoftheTagustothesourcesoftheRhineandDanube。
  [Footnote73:Whittaker'sHistoryofManchester,vol。i。c。3。]
  BeforetheRomanconquest,thecountrywhichisnowcalledLombardy,wasnotconsideredasapartofItaly。IthadbeenoccupiedbyapowerfulcolonyofGauls,who,settlingthemselvesalongthebanksofthePo,fromPiedmonttoRomagna,carriedtheirarmsanddiffusedtheirnamefromtheAlpstotheApennine。
  TheLiguriansdweltontherockycoastwhichnowformstherepublicofGenoa。Venicewasyetunborn;buttheterritoriesofthatstate,whichlietotheeastoftheAdige,wereinhabitedbytheVenetians。^74Themiddlepartofthepeninsula,thatnowcomposestheduchyofTuscanyandtheecclesiasticalstate,wastheancientseatoftheEtruscansandUmbrians;totheformerofwhomItalywasindebtedforthefirstrudimentsofcivilizedlife。^75TheTyberrolledatthefootofthesevenhillsofRome,andthecountryoftheSabines,theLatins,andtheVolsci,fromthatrivertothefrontiersofNaples,wasthetheatreofherinfantvictories。Onthatcelebratedgroundthefirstconsulsdeservedtriumphs,theirsuccessorsadornedvillas,andtheirposterityhaveerectedconvents。^76CapuaandCampaniapossessedtheimmediateterritoryofNaples;therestofthekingdomwasinhabitedbymanywarlikenations,theMarsi,theSamnites,theApulians,andtheLucanians;andthesea—coastshadbeencoveredbytheflourishingcoloniesoftheGreeks。Wemayremark,thatwhenAugustusdividedItalyintoelevenregions,thelittleprovinceofIstriawasannexedtothatseatofRomansovereignty。^77
  [Footnote74:TheItalianVeneti,thoughoftenconfoundedwiththeGauls,weremoreprobablyofIllyrianorigin。SeeM。Freret,Memoiresdel'AcademiedesInscriptions,tom。xviii。
  Note:OrLiburnian,accordingtoNiebuhr。Vol。i。p。172。—
  M。]
  [Footnote75:SeeMaffeiVeronaillustrata,l。i。
  Note:AddNiebuhr,vol。i。,andOtfriedMuller,dieEtrusker,whichcontainsmuchthatisknown,andmuchthatisconjectured,aboutthisremarkablepeople。AlsoMicali,StoriadegliantichipopoliItaliani。Florence,1832—M。]
  [Footnote76:Thefirstcontrastwasobservedbytheancients。
  SeeFlorus,i。11。Thesecondmuststrikeeverymoderntraveller。]
  [Footnote77:PlinyHist。Natur。l。iii。followsthedivisionofItalybyAugustus。]
  TheEuropeanprovincesofRomewereprotectedbythecourseoftheRhineandtheDanube。Thelatterofthosemightystreams,whichrisesatthedistanceofonlythirtymilesfromtheformer,flowsabovethirteenhundredmiles,forthemostparttothesouth—east,collectsthetributeofsixtynavigablerivers,andis,atlength,throughsixmouths,receivedintotheEuxine,whichappearsscarcelyequaltosuchanaccessionofwaters。^78
  TheprovincesoftheDanubesoonacquiredthegeneralappellationofIllyricum,ortheIllyrianfrontier,^79andwereesteemedthemostwarlikeoftheempire;buttheydeservetobemoreparticularlyconsideredunderthenamesofRhaetia,Noricum,Pannonia,Dalmatia,Dacia,Maesia,Thrace,Macedonia,andGreece。
  [Footnote78:Tournefort,VoyagesenGreceetAsieMineure,lettrexviii。]
  [Footnote79:ThenameofIllyricumoriginallybelongedtothesea—coastoftheAdriatic,andwasgraduallyextendedbytheRomansfromtheAlpstotheEuxineSea。SeeSeveriniPannonia,l。i。c。3。]
  TheprovinceofRhaetia,whichsoonextinguishedthenameoftheVindelicians,extendedfromthesummitoftheAlpstothebanksoftheDanube;fromitssource,asfarasitsconfluxwiththeInn。ThegreatestpartoftheflatcountryissubjecttotheelectorofBavaria;thecityofAugsburgisprotectedbytheconstitutionoftheGermanempire;theGrisonsaresafeintheirmountains,andthecountryofTirolisrankedamongthenumerousprovincesofthehouseofAustria。
  ThewideextentofterritorywhichisincludedbetweentheInn,theDanube,andtheSave,—Austria,Styria,Carinthia,Carniola,theLowerHungary,andSclavonia,—wasknowntotheancientsunderthenamesofNoricumandPannonia。Intheiroriginalstateofindependence,theirfierceinhabitantswereintimatelyconnected。UndertheRomangovernmenttheywerefrequentlyunited,andtheystillremainthepatrimonyofasinglefamily。TheynowcontaintheresidenceofaGermanprince,whostyleshimselfEmperoroftheRomans,andformthecentre,aswellasstrength,oftheAustrianpower。Itmaynotbeimpropertoobserve,thatifweexceptBohemia,Moravia,thenorthernskirtsofAustria,andapartofHungarybetweentheTeyssandtheDanube,alltheotherdominionsoftheHouseofAustriawerecomprisedwithinthelimitsoftheRomanEmpire。