The Roman Army, 31 BC–AD 337: A Sourcebook

The army, the local community, the law 141
Military bases though sometimes set up in sparsely inhabited and
under-exploited areas, were often established in locations of strategic
importance for communications, and hence also for trade. Everywhere
the soldiers brought protection, building activity, technical assistance,
and new facilities, which although in the first instance for their own
enjoyment, demonstrated a fresh dimension of organized life in an urban
environment. Most importantly, soldiers attracted people. The
possibility of profit and advancement brought those, both Roman
citizens and non-citizens, who provided indispensible services for the
troops—traders, craftsmen, innkeepers, and women. Temporary
settlements (canabae) of a primitive nature grew up in the vicinty of
the military camps. As the legions began to acquire semi-permanent or
permanent bases, so the canabae developed into more sophisticated
and permanent structures, which in lay-out were often influenced by
the camp itself. Their population included local women who, having
formed liaisons with soldiers, often bore their children. Moreover, the
settlement of discharged soldiers in colonies seems to have been
discontinued after Hadrian. There may have been a preference among
veterans to settle close to where they had served among their comrades
and families. The result will have been a further influx of Roman citizens
into the canabae and an enhancement of their status. Smaller settlements
(vici) also grew up round forts and outposts manned by auxiliary
soldiers.
The local military commander could influence how the canabae
developed, since it was his responsibility to determine whether the
civilian settlement should be in close proximity to the camp or some
distance away. At Lambaesis, for example, it was situated about one
mile from the camp, the two being linked by a wide paved road. By
contrast at Rapidum in Mauretania the canabae abutted upon the camp.
In any case the canabae would normally be on the officially designated
territory of the legion, and consequently a legionary legate was
responsible for jurisdiction over them. In this he would require some
assistance and it is understandable that, rather than divert his military
tribunes or centurions from their military duties, he turned to the Roman
citizens in the canabae, particularly perhaps veteran soldiers, to take
on the role of de facto magistrates. Naturally these men, in order to
add to their prestige and authority, assimilated some of the terminology
used in self-governing communities; in various settlements people appear
styled as ‘magistrate’, ‘aedile’, and decurio. The way in which these
officials describe themselves on inscriptions cannot, however, provide
an accurate picture of the administration of the canabae, since they did
not necessarily understand their exact legal status. It was an essentially