Military diploma
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A Roman military diploma is a document written on 2 c. 10 × 15 cm bronze tablets, wired and sealed together through two central holes, so that the two inner sides cannot be seen without breaking the seals. For examples see [1].
It was a notarized copy of the original bronze constitution issued by the emperor in Rome, granting Roman citizenship to foreign veterans who had served for 25 years or more in the Roman auxiliary forces or Praetorian Fleets. Legionaries in contrast had to be Roman citizens as pre-requisite to joining military service. In addition to the veteran, his children also received citizenship, but not his wife. His marriage with her was however legalized under Roman law by granting him the "conubium" with one such foreign wife, either the one he lived with when receiving the diploma, or a later one (but only once). From c. 50 - 140 this included children born during the military service. As soldiers were however not formally allowed to have a female companion, after c. 140 only children born after his military service were eligible. One diploma is known where a soldier's parents and brothers/sisters were granted Roman citizenship, but this seems to have been the exception.
Diplomas are one of our major sources of Roman military history and career path of the Roman nobility.
The full text of a diploma is listed on the outer side of the so called tabula 1; the outer side of tabula 2 shows the names of seven notaries and their seals covered and protected by metal strips. The same text as tabula 1 was repeated over the two inner sides. The idea was that if the outer text had possibly been manipulated, a provincial official far from the original in Rome could break the seals, and compare the outer text with the presumably untouched inner text, actually considered the primary copy.
About 1000 diploma are known today through fragments or complete tabulas. The original number issued must have been in 100,000s, so it seems that most got melted down or lost over time.
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[edit] References
[edit] Primary sources
- Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum (CIL) Band XVI and Supplement
[edit] Secondary sources
- Roman Military Diplomas (RMD, Margaret Roxan, Paul Holder) Vol I-V
- Werner Eck, Hartmut Wolff (Hrsg.): Heer und Integrationspolitik. Die römischen Militärdiplome als historische Quelle. Böhlau, Köln [u.a.] 1986. (Passauer historische Forschungen, 2) ISBN 3-412-06686-9
- "Die Rolle des Militärs für den sozialen Aufstieg in der römischen Kaiserzeit" (Barbara Pferdehirt)Mainz, RGZM (2002) 2) ISBN 3-88467-069-7
- "Römische Militärdiplome und Entlassungsurkunden in der Sammlung des Römisch-Germanischen Zentralmuseums" (Barbara Pferdehirt) Mainz, RGZM (2004) 2) ISBN 3-88467-086-7
