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

9 The army in the later empire
The political and military dislocation, and the economic and social upheaval
in the fifty years after the murder of Severus Alexander in AD 235 had
such an effect on the propertied élite that subsequent writers looked back
with nostalgia to the thirteen years of that feeble emperor’s inept rule as a
kind of golden age. Significantly, one of the fictitious claims in the literary
account of Alexander was that he was a strict military disciplinarian. In
the face of foreign invasion and internal secession, men recognized the
need for an emperor who could command the respect of an army and lead
effectively in person. Not only had the balance between the civil and military
leader shifted irrevocably towards the military side, but leadership and
inspiration were also needed wherever incursions had to be repelled. All
these factors contributed to the large number of usurpations which were a
feature of this period. However, contemporary writers, doubtless much
influenced by the views of their own class which had most to lose from the
disruption, perhaps exaggerated the effects, which may have appeared
only gradually; moreover the knowledge of writers was probably localized,
and the situation may not have been uniformly disastrous. Indeed there is
some reason to emphasize the resilience of the empire’s economic and
social structures in these years (see Whittaker 1976).
Above all, the army remained an essential bulwark of Roman
civilization and a vital factor in future recovery; the basic organization
of legions and auxilia stationed in the provinces remained intact;
territorial loss was confined to Mesopotamia, Dacia, and the Agri
Decumates between the Rhine and Danube; despite repeated civil wars
the army was still able to win battles against outside foes. And
presumably the process of recruiting, feeding, equipping, and paying
the troops must have continued, although we know little of it. In certain
respects the army became stronger, as several emperors, notably
Gallienus (AD 253–68) and Aurelian (AD 270–5), attempted to adapt