""Aethiops quidam e Numero Militari" - Black Africans in" Topic

… the Roman Army

"The question of whether black Africans served in the Roman army comes up with surprising frequency on social media. It's a contentious topic, related to various contemporary debates about ethnicity, multiculturalism, and the representation of history. Often these discussions generate considerably more heat than light, but as I was recently asked about an African centurion who appeared in my first novel, War at the Edge of the World, I though I might share a few thoughts about one of the few scraps of evidence we possess for the ethnicity of Roman soldiers.

In AD208, towards the end of his life, the elderly and gout-afflicted emperor Septimius Severus came to Britain for a last campaign against the rebellious peoples north of Hadrian's Wall. Two years later, with no clear victory in sight, he died at York; but in the months before his death he apparently experienced several grim omens. The Historia Augusta, a much later account of various imperial lives, preserves an unusual anecdote from the emperor's stay in the north:…"

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Amicalement
Armand

Interesting article. In the past I always thought of Romans as looking like Caucasian Western Europeans or at least like modern Southern Italians.

Since I'm painting Romans at the moment, I may paint some as black or tanned.

Happy for that my friend! (smile)

Amicalement
Armand

Very interesting. Thanks.

A votre service mon cher ami! (smile)

Sadly maybe the last I post here and in TMP…

Amicalement
Armand

Given the nature of ancient populations in the Mediterranean Basin most likely the vast majority of members of the Roman military would have been what you see living in the region today. Given what we are learning about Roman contact with the regions outside of the Mediterranean it is highly likely that black Africans did serve in the military. However the numbers could not have been large . The exception is the large numbers of Northern Europeans who were recruited from mid to late empire. This is interesting but not important just like if black Africans did serve in the Roman.army. The Romans were equal opportunity recruiters.

We actually have very little ethnographic data about ancient populations and whether they were the same as populations today. There are some examples of ancient portraiture that seem to indicate darker and lighter skinned Romans. I try to make my Roman auxiliary troops pretty diverse. My Greeks less so.

I generally use a pale skin tone for Roman units long-stationed from NW Spain, through Gaul and Britannia, up the Rhine, and down the Danube. I use a duskier "olive" tone for units in Syria, right round the Med' to Mauritania, and for marines and sailors of the two main fleets. For the units in Cappadocia, a mix; roughly half and half. So far at least, I have not painted an Aethiopian in any auxiliary unit. And no plan for one in a legionary unit.

Right now I am trying to decide if the figures I plan to convert to be Garamentes raiders will be "olive-toned" or a shade darker… but not Aethiopian (Nubian)? For Berbers, Numidians, and "Mauri" I am doing "olive," with a few figures a shade or two darker. When I finally do some raiders from Nubia, like Nobades, those I will do as Aethiopians. There seems to be better evidence for them?

I am impressed by the two anecdotes of Aethiopians associated with bad omens. Enough so as to think that the Romans would not generally seek them out for their own soldiers… Maybe they might employ some as "federates?" But I don't see evidence of recruitment for regular units?

Hope to see the pics of those so interesting units soon!… (smile)

Amicalement
Armand