This may help. Cheers, FPR
Book: Empress Zenobia – Palmyra's Rebel Queen
Author: Pat Southern
Publisher: continuumbooks.com
Publishing Date: 2008
Relevant section – Palmyran Militia (pp 24-27)
Throughout the Roman period, the Palmyrenes possessed an important privilege that was denied to many other cities of the Empire, in that they were allowed to recruit and organize their own army. It was not completely unknown in the east for communities to raise their own militia with Roman approval,23 but these other military forces were perhaps not as extensive nor as long-lived as the Palmyrene army. The Palmyrenes were famed for their skill as archers, using horses and camels to enable them to traverse the desert rapidly, but they also employed infantry soldiers armed with swords and lances, and protected by small round shields, as depicted on relief sculptures.24
Recognizing and exploiting the skill and expertise of the Palmyrenes in policing and patrolling large and sparsely populated areas, the Romans recruited them for the auxiliary forces of the Roman army. Vespasian reputedly commanded eight thousand Palmyrene archers in his army in Judaea, though it is not known how they were organized.25 Palmyrene units were recruited by Trajan, who raised at least one Palmyrene camel unit, ala I Ulpia dromedariorum Palmyrenorum, referred to above. Palmyrene units in the Roman army are attested at least from Hadrian's reign in north Africa where the desert conditions would be familiar to them, and in the province of Dacia, where they patrolled large areas which were not under organized military threat but where mobile tribesmen could harass the population and impede transport. In the second half of the second century Palmyrene archers were stationed in Parthian territory, on the right bank of the Euphrates at Dura Europos, after it was taken by the Romans in 164 under Lucius Verus. These troops were formed into a regular Roman unit, cohors XX Palmyrenorum, by the third century.26 In all these cases, in Africa, Dacia, and Palmyra itself, the Palmyrene units seem to have recruited many of their replacements from their homelands, rather than from the native population as was the normal practice for many other auxiliary units. Men from other ethnic backgrounds were not totally excluded from Palmyrene units, but recruitment from the homelands continued, attested by the fact that over an extended period the soldiers of Palmyrene units put up inscriptions in their own language and script, accompanied sometimes by translations into Latin.
The organization of the Palmyrene army is imperfectly understood, but it is known that commanders used the Greek title strategos, attested on inscriptions from Dura Europos where two different commanders are named strategos of the archers.27 Permanent garrison posts were established, such as those at ‘Ana (or Anatha) and at Bijan28 on two of the islands in the Euphrates. The epigraphic evidence shows that Palmyrene cavalry units were present at ‘Ana, at Hirta, and Gamla.29 These places are attested by their ancient names on inscriptions, but the modern locations are not always known. Certain other sites, such as Birtha, or Birth-Asporakan, later renamed Zenobia (modern Halebiye), and the caravan station at Hit on the Euphrates, may have held troops, and some of the sites discovered by archaeological research, such as the rectangular buildings at Umm as-Salabikh, 120km south-east of Palmyra, and Quasr as-Swab, a further 80km away, may have been military posts30 situated at intervals along the routes used by the caravans.
These Palmyrene military posts may have been established purely in the interests of trade, since they were positioned on the caravan routes,31 but it is unlikely the Palmyrene troops were limited to what amounted to convoy duty. Although Roman troops were permanently stationed to the west of Palmyra and also in the region of the city and the oasis, in the desert to the east there was a marked absence of Roman military installations32 implying that the territory between Palmyra and the Euphrates was controlled by the Palmyrene troops, who checked the raids of the nomads, and helped to protect the frontier between the Roman and Parthian Empires. Full-scale warfare against the Parthians, and their third-century successors the Persians, was a Roman preserve, but for the protection and policing of the frontier, and for keeping the nomads under control, it would have been wasteful to use Roman troops when there were competent soldiers available who could do the job at least as well as the Romans, or perhaps even rather better. There is no evidence as to the recruitment or organization of the Palmyrene units, but it is possible that the city selected, equipped and paid their own troops and the strategoi trained and disciplined them. The degree of autonomy enjoyed by the Palmyrene commanders is not known. They may have operated within broad terms of reference outlined by the Roman governor, while making their own decisions on local matters.
In addition to the regular Palmyrene military units patrolling the desert and protecting the trade routes, it is suggested that privately organized guards were hired or appointed to accompany the caravans of the merchants and traders.33 When danger threatened the caravans it seems that it was not always the regular Palmyrene troops who came to the rescue. Many of the honorary inscriptions and statues at Palmyra were set up to render thanks to individuals who had protected the caravans and brought them out of danger, presumably from attacks by the nomads or robbers. An example is So'adu, who was honoured on several different occasions for his assistance to the caravans. At least twice he may have engaged in military actions to avert danger: once in ad 132, when he was honoured for saving the merchants in circumstances which are not specifi ed, and on another occasion in ad 144 he was thanked for rescuing a caravan when it was attacked by robbers. On both these occasions So'adu was awarded four statues in each of the four temples at Palmyra. The inscription from ad 132 also honours him for helping his fellow citizens at the Parthian trading centre of Vologesias, so it is assumed that So'adu was a resident of the Palmyrene colony that grew up there. Since there is no evidence that he was a commander of a unit of the Palmyrene army, his actions in saving at least two caravans may have been performed as part of his duties in an offi cial post concerned with trade, perhaps with access to a body of caravan guards appointed for the purpose, though this is to go beyond the evidence.34
Footnotes
24 Ball (2000: 78; 462 n.181).
25 HA (Thirty Pretenders 30.27).
26 Zonaras (12.27) in Dodgeon and Lieu (1991: 109 no. 4.11.1); Hartmann (2001:127).
27 HA (Gallienus 13.2; Thirty Pretenders 14.4; 15.2; 17.2; 24.4; 27.1; 30.2); Hartmann (2001: 125).
28 HA (Thirty Pretenders 17.2); the text hints at the plot without elucidating what exactly
was planned.
29 HA (Thirty Pretenders 30.1).
30 HA (Aurelian 22.1).
31 HA (Aurelian 38.1).
32 Hartmann (2001: 125).
33 The suggestion is dismissed by Hartmann (2001: 125). Kienast (1996: 239) suggests that Herannianus is Hairan/ Haeranes, and that Timolaus is actually Vaballathus.
34 Potter (2004: 641 n.1); see also Potter (1990: 387–8); Seyrig (1963).
begins his series on how to paint a 15mm DBA army well, in a reasonable time frame.
