LEGEND
The
anarchy of the third century is when it almost seemed that the days
of the Roman Empire were numbered. The reign of Constantine the Great
inaugurated a new age much fuller sense than the reign of Augustus
,the founder of the Empire. It had displayed the defects of the
irregular and heterogeneous system of government his immense
dominion. His successors had introduced modifications and
improvements here and there,but,events had made it clearer and
clearer that a new system is more government which Augustus had
established to admiral and more uniform and was required if the
Empire was to be held together. To Diocletian who had rescued the
Roman world at the brink of abyss belonged credit of having framed a
new system of administrative machinery. Constantine developed and
completed the work of Diocletian by measures which were more radical
and more far-reaching.
The
foundation of Constantinople as a second Rome inaugurated a permanent
division between the Eastern and Western of the Greek and Latin
halves of the Empire. A division in which events had already of
pointed. And, affected decisively the whole subsequent history of
Europe.
It
still more evidently and notoriously did Constantine mold the future
by accepting christianity as the state religion. In the present work
the history of the Roman Empire is taken up at a point about sixty
years after Constantine's death. A bunch of fundamental changes which
he introduced have been firmly established and their consequences
have emerged into full evidence of just so. The new system of
government has been elaborated in detail and the christian church has
become so strong that no enemies could prevail against it.
Constantinople
created in Rome has become her peer and will soon be fully equipped
for the great role which she is to play in Europe. Hither Asia for
more than a thousand years. She definitely assumes now her historical
position. For after the death of Theodosius the Great who had ruled
alone for a short time over a dominion extending from Scotland to
Mesopotamia, the division of the Empire into two geographical
portions, an eastern and a western, under two Emperors,a division
which has been common during the past century, was finally
established.
Prologue
The military establishment
of the fourth century had differed from that of the principate were
the existence of a mobile field army,the organization of the cavalry
in bodies independent of the infantry and the smaller size of the
legionary units. Diocletian had created and Constantine had developed
a dominion that happened to be threatened while at the same time all
the frontiers were defended by troops permanently stationed in the
frontier provinces. The military forces therefore consisted of two
main classes : the mobile troops or comitatenses, which accompanied
the emperor in his movements and formed a sacred retinue and the
frontier troops or limitanei.
The strength of the old
Roman legion was 6000 men. The legion of this type was retained in
case of the limitanie; to the old cohort, which are stationed in
different quarters, no longer associated with a number of foot-
cohorts and squadrons of horse,as of old, when the legatus of a
legion commanded a body of about 10000 men. The cavalry and the
cohorts are under separate commanders.
The field army consisted
of two classes of troops, the simple comitatenses and the palatini.
The paliatini who took the place of the old praetorian guards,were a
privileged section of the guards, in so far as most of them were
stationed in the neighborhood of Constantinople or in Italy. The
infantry of the field army was composed of small legions of about
1000 men and bodies of light infantry known as auxilia which were now
mainly recruited from Gauls and from franks and other Germans. The
cavalry that is under another command had consisted of squadrons
called vexillationes and are 500 or so men strong.
Chapter 1
The day had continued to
unfold and the legions had continued to be formed from Roman
Citizens.
Every legion had looked of
the battle- ready,every new citizen was prepped in battle gear,every
person was given an alignment and this was just the beginning.
Nicolais,”are you ok” Yes, Dom I am fine. The two were checking
to see if each other were ok. Attention! March... And, every legion
had fallowed there commanders. I wonder where we are going Nicolais?
I have not a clue Dom although I only hope it is not into a death
trap. I suppose you are right Nicolais. I know I am right Dom. I know
I am right. The march had continued through endless fields of old
covered blood from prior battles that have taken place in Galatia.
Constantinople must be where were going Dom. I think your right
Nicolais. I think your right.
The occasional bird
stalked from above the sweaty men in there march. The chills ran up
every legions spine as to whether there is death further ahead or
not. This could be it Dom. This could be the beginning or the end of
us.
Chapter 2
The Emperor had arranged a
contact point with mine and Dom's commander. The Emperor had told our
commander he wants us in the front of the battle field. The first
engagement was made. At Scorda six hundred men were fought and
killed. An hundred men fell from our army. The second engagement
began. Another six hundred men were engaged in battle. A hundred more
men fell from our army. At ninety eight hundred men the battle
continued. The third engagement began. And, six hundred more men were
engaged in battle and were killed. A hundred more men fell from our
army. A camp was made. Two day's and one night was resting and eating
and planning. Reinforcements had arrived the second morning. Our
reinforcements were a hundred and twenty five thousand strong. Dom
had kept his position and the men had kept there spirits. The fourth
engagement was not far away and our defensive had only begun.
Chapter 3
The defensive had
continued. The engagements had kept coming in the same sequence they
began coming at and we continued to battle hard. Each engagement
ended the same with a hundred men falling every time. Ten engagements
had passed and gone and a thousand men had fallen in battle. We were
now approaching Ouipa passed Drilo F. At Ouipa we engaged more and
more armies. Each army was the same as the last and about six or
seven hundred strong. We had ten more of these engagements and lost
another thousand men until we had a break and camped once more.
Another three days was resting, more planning and gathering
reinforcements. All who would join the Emperor were recruited and
saved. Christianity is to live on.
Chapter 4
The battles had continued
on and on. Thousands of men had now fallen and more than a hundred
engagements were already made,but,there were still hundreds and if
not thousands of more to be made.
The men were kept in good
spirits and well fed along in between battles and camp. The horizons
stayed mildly sunny with rain showers appearing hear and there and
was mostly a dry season than the normal years of weather that had
been in the past. The men were tired,but, like I said kept in good
spirits. The year is well into mid range and far from over. The
emperor even made a speech to the men.
The Emperor said
Defend
not me but christianity.
Fight
for not me but the lord and your families and freedom.
Honor
thy god and make no mistakes.
Christianity is going to live on!
Chapter 5
We kept fighting. We
fought harder than ever before. We ended engagements with less men
fallen than done in prior engagements. The battles kept coming. They
were bloody and gruesome and were beyond imagination or imaging. The
days turned to weeks and then into months and the battles kept on
coming,but,the fallen were less than at the start of the engagements.
Many of soldiers had gained ranks. The front line the most and the
archers or infantry a bit less. At the end of Ouipa and on to
Ratioria and moving towards Castra Martis was more battles and more
armies and were being defeated with the Emperors enormous army. The
Emperor stayed at the palace most of the time,but, occasionally met
the men to give his spirit warming speeches. The more we battled the
more we earned as soldiers. We camped at last battle at Castra Martis
after several hundreds of battles and engagements. The battle however
has only began. The Army of the Emperor has to reach Constantinople
before it will all be over.
The End...
To Be Continued
