The Roman military diploma as a historical document

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Library and Book Affairs at Ukrainian Academy of Printing

THE ROMAN MILITARY DIPLOMA AS A HISTORICAL DOCUMENT

Mykola OLIYNYK

PhD (History), Associate Professor

of the Departament of Information

Lviv

Abstract

roman military diploma historical

The purpose of the article is to analyze and characterize the Roman military diploma as a historical document. The research methodology consists in the use of general scientific methods and principles: a comparative and historiographical analysis, systematization of scientific literature, research works and documents; the principle of historicism, systematicity, scientificity and objectivity. The scientific novelty: on the basis of a wide range of the researches for the first time in the Ukrainian historiography the significance of the Roman military diploma as a historical document has been characterized; the prospects of the study of diplomata militum as the sources for the study of the Roman influences on the territory of ancient Ukraine have been elucidated. The Conclusions. During many years the researches in the field of epigraphics, including the study of military diplomas, became an important component in the reconstruction of the personnel of the Roman auxiliary units - auxilia, the names of these units, and helped reproduce some other aspects of functioning related not only to the military history. This refers to the administrative apparatus of the Empire, in particular, in addition to the then ruling emperor, in the diplomas the names of consuls, the governor of the province and the commanders of these military units are recorded; you can also trace the stages of their career - cursus honorum. Analyzing these documents, we can determine the status and place of retired servicemen in their residence places after the honorary resignation (honesta missio), to trace the stages and nature of the Romanization of the provinces owing to the quantity of diplomas found and the information about the retiree's family. It has been also noted that the Roman military diplomas from the territory of Ukraine can be an important source for studying some aspects of the history of ancient Ukraine. Nowadays, many issues related to the Roman military diplomas remain not analyzed. For instance, the place ofpublishing of the imperial constitutions (tabula aenae (aerae)), from which the diplomas were copied, has not yet been identified. The place the diplomas were stored has not been identified either. It is unknown why bronze documents were stopped issuing in the Illd century and what are the reasons for their appearance on the territory of the Ukrainian lands. Despite all these gaps, many aspects of this issue have already been studied and this gives us the opportunity to look in a new way at the functioning of such a complex part of the Roman state mechanism as the Roman army.

Key words: Roman military diploma, document, auxiliary troops, emperor, veterans.

Анотація

РИМСЬКИЙ ВІЙСЬКОВИЙ ДИПЛОМ ЯК ІСТОРИЧНИЙ ДОКУМЕНТ

Микола ОЛІЙНИК кандидат історичних наук, доцент кафедри інформаційної, бібліотечної та книжкової справи Української академії друкарства, м. Львів, Україна,

Мета дослідження полягає в аналізі та характеристиці римського військового диплома як історичного документа. Методологія дослідження полягає у використанні загальнонаукових методів та принципів: порівняльного та історіографічного аналізу, систематизації наукової літератури, розвідок та документів; принципу історизму, системності, науковості та об'єктивності. Одним із найважливіших у дослідженні методів, яким ми послуговувалися, став метод міждисциплінарного підходу, адже вивчення і аналіз історичного документа неможливий без звернення до таких наукових дисциплін, як військова історія, соціальна історія, археологія, історичне документознавство та епіграфіка. Наукова новизна: на основі широкого кола досліджень уперше в українській історіографії охарактеризовано значення римського військового диплома як історичного документа; виділено перспективи дослідження diplomata militum як джерел до вивчення римських впливів на території давньої України. Висновки. Багаторічні дослідження вчених у галузі епіграфіки, зокрема вивчення військових дипломів стали важливою складовою для реконструкції особового складу римських допоміжних з'єднань - auxilia, назв цих підрозділів, а також сприяли відтворенню деяких інших аспектів функціонування, пов'язаних не тільки з військовою історією. Тут мається на увазі адміністративний апарат Імперії, зокрема, окрім правлячого на той час імператора, у дипломах зафіксовані імена консулів, намісника провінції та командувачів цих військових одиниць; також можна прослідкувати щаблі їхньої кар'єри - cursus honorum. Тож ці документи, які були насправді завіреними копіями імператорських наказів (epistula missoria), а отже правовими документами, є цінним джерелом не тільки для військових істориків. Вони дозволяють нам вивчати різноманітні аспекти соціальної історії - систему комплектування допоміжних підрозділів, з яких підвладних племен і народів набиралися воїни у auxilia, преторіанську гвардію, equites singulares, флот та міські когорти. Досліджуючи ці документи, ми можемо визначити статус і місце відставних військових у місцях їхнього проживання після почесної відставки (honesta missio), прослідкувати етапи та характер романізації провінцій завдяки кількості знайдених дипломів та зазначеної там інформації про сім'ю відставника. Також зазначено, що римські військові дипломи з території України можуть стати важливим джерелом для вивчення деяких аспектів історії давньої України. На сьогодні дуже багато питань, пов'язаних з римськими військовими дипломами, залишаються відкритими. Наприклад, дотепер не ідентифіковане місце публікації імператорських конституцій tabula aenae (aer- ae), з яких копіювалися дипломи та де вони зберігалися. Достеменно невідомо, чому припинили видавати бронзові документи в ІІІ ст. та які причини їх появи на території українських земель. Незважаючи на усі перелічені лакуни, багато аспектів згаданої проблематики вже вивчено, і це дає нам можливість по-новому подивитись на функціонування такої складної частини римського державного механізму, як римське військо.

Ключові слова: римський військовий диплом, документ, допоміжні війська, імператор, ветерани.

The Problem Statement

A scientific research of the Roman military diplomas began only in the XXth century and this is a fairly new direction in Latin epigraphy. The value of these documents consists in the fact that they are made of metal and there is the date marked on them. This gives historians many advantages in the study of the Roman military diplomas, because other epigraphic documents were dated infrequently. Nowadays in Ukraine collecting, discovery and analysis of these poorly-studied documents are dictated by new trends in a modern historical science. After all, at present the focus is not on prominent historical figures or events, but on individual people, not always famous, their destinies and feelings. They are the main object of the study now. In this research, these are retired soldiers, whose part of life was recorded on bronze tablets. We put a special emphasis on the significance of the Roman military documents to the Ukrainian history. More of them were found in Ukraine than in the territory of some border Roman provinces, which were native for the majority of veterans. The classification and systematization of diplomata militum is important not only for the study of the history of ancient Rome, the history of the Roman army, but also for a regional history.

The Analysis of Recent Researches and Publications

Thanks to the works of V. Bezdrabko, the Ukrainian scientist, a specialist in document science, we could reveal the concept of “a historical document” and the history of its formation, outline its place among a large number of types of sources (Bezdrabko, 2017a). The researcher emphasizes that the intensive development of archeology in the XIXth century renewed antiquity studies and gave impact to the birth of a new science - epigraphy. Thousands of found Latin inscriptions, including diplomata militum, included into a scientific circulation, made it possible to study them on an original, clearly documented basis (Bezdrabko, 2011, p. 157). V. Bezdrabko also indicates that the documents are an important source of information about a person, place or event, an important component of a historical methodology. The researcher singles out a special role of external interdisciplinary borrowings (Bezdrabko, 2017b, p. 6).

The issues considered by us began to be studied in detail and comprehensively only in the second half of the XXth century, although the inscriptions from the first diplomas found were collected in Volume 3 “Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum” in 1873 (Nadvirniak, Pohorilets, Nadvirniak, 2016, p. 171). The published volumes with the copied inscriptions from military diplomas (RMD) appeared owing to the meticulous work of M. Roxan during 1978 - 2003 (Roxan, 1978; Roxan, 2009; Roxan, 2009a; Roxan, & Holder, 2003). This researcher travelled a lot in Europe, contacting local historians, who provided her with the information she needed to publish works on new found diplomas (Breeze, 2003). At the present stage the most fruitful in this direction are P. Holder - a co-author with M. Roxan of the 4th part of the Roman Military Diplomas (Holder, 2006), as well as as well as German scientists A. Pangerl and W. Eck. The first one is the founder of an English-language site “http://www.romancoins. info”, one of the sections of which - “Roman Military Diploma On-Line” concerns the subject of Roman military diplomas (Pangerl). W. Eck is an epigraphist and nowadays he is the most authoritative researcher of Roman diplomas. His scientific achievements are impressive - more than 800 works on epigraphy, much part of which is devoted to Roman military diplomas (Eck, 2004; Ek, 2008). The significance of diplomas for the study of Praetorian units and auxiliary detachments was outlined by G. L. Cheesman (Cheesman, 2012, pp. 27-29), І. Luc (Luc, 2004, pp. 144-145), N. Fields (Fields, 2006, pp. 53-54). A. Ivantchik and O. Pogorilets study the military diplomas found in the Ukrainian lands (Ivantchik, & Krapivina, 2005; Ivantchik, Pogorilets, Savvov, 2008). They publish the articles with the information about diplomas in professional journals. They consult with the British and German colleagues. This year O. Pogorilets plans to publish a monograph on military diplomas found on the territory of Ukraine. This need arose due to a large number of diplomas found mainly by “black archaeologists”. Thus, over the last decade, more than ten such finds were discovered only in one Khmelnytsky region (Oliynyk, 2019). The first one, a pioneering one in this direction is the publication devoted to the description and systematization of the available information base of the diploma finds on the territory of Ukraine and Moldova (Nadvirniak, Pohorilets, Nadvirniak, 2016). O. Nadvirniak is the coordinator of the project “Terra Amadociae”, in which Europe's leading epigraphists study the influences of the Roman Empire on the course of historical processes during the first centuries of the new era in the territories north of the Danube and Taurida (Pohorilets, & Nadvirniak, 2018, p. 144).

The Purpose of publication - the author of the article wants to characterize the Roman military diploma as a historical document and to illustrate the role it played in the process of Romanization in the Roman Empire.

The Statement of the Basic Material

One of the features of a modern historical science is its plunging into an interdisciplinary space from the framework of one academic science, as the research issue cannot be limited and implemented in the framework of one discipline (Bezdrabko, 2017a, p. 13). This type of a historical document, the Roman military diploma, is of no exception. Thus, its study, for example, requires the so-called “flow” from source studies to such special historical disciplines as epigraphy, chronology and textology, or the “flow” from historical document studies or from archeology to military or social history. What is understood under the very concept “a historical document”? First of all, it is the source that evaluates and ascertains a historical fact, contains some information about a person, describes an event, reveals its essence and raises the question about the document's authorship. It can also serve as a primary source. Let's try to understand whether the words militaria diplomata correspond to these definitions?

A Latin word diploma originates from Greek word drnXwpa, which denotes “double folded”, i.e, actually - “a manuscript on a folded scroll”. This term began to be used in Rome to describe an official, sealed letter written by a magistrate or a private person with a legal authority. According to a decree issued by the Senate, about which Suetonius mentioned, diplomas were given a legal force only when they were three times laced and then sealed (Suet. Nero. 17). Among the components that made it official there were the following ones: the name of the official, who issued it, such as the Emperor, the date and the names of witnesses - citizens of Rome necessarily (Lenderling, 2019). The presence of seals confirmed that the diploma was a true, certified copy - epistula missoria (in Latin “a letter to sender”) of an original legal document (Lex data) (Le Boek, 2001, p. 339). Thus, diplomas were legal documents from the very beginning and the best proof of this fact is their registration in the form of a double document. It is also worth remembering that these were certified copies of the imperial constitutions granted by the ruler of privilege through a specific documentation, but the very definition of “the Roman military diploma” (diplomata militaria) is a modern interpretation of this document (Ek, 2004, p. 31, 54; Watson, 2014, p. 145).

Despite a large number of diplomas preserved till nowadays, these documents show only a tiny part of those that existed before. For instance, in 1873 T. Mommsen knew about 57 military diplomas (Ivantchik, & Krapivina, 2005, p. 197; Kozlenko, 2013; Nadvirniak, Pohorilets, Nadvirniak, 2016, p. 171). In 1914, the British historian G. L. Cheesman in his work mentions 70-80 diplomas known at that time (Cheesman, 2012, p. 27). In 1955, 189 copies of diplomas were contained in Volume XVI “Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum”. In 2003, about 650 copies of bronze documents were published in consolidated editions. In 2004 W. Eck had already about 700-800 copies, of which about 730 were published (Eck, 2008 p. 1123; Ek, 2004, pp. 29, 31). Nowadays according to the electronic resource “The Roman Military Diploma On-Line”, the number of finds already exceeds 1 200, although most of them are in a fragmentary form (Pangerl). According to the estimates, in the Ist-IIId centuries between 250 000 and 300 000 diplomas were issued, and possibly more. But even this approximate figure suggests that these documents should not be considered as a special gift, as some researchers try to prove persistently. After all, a special gift, if it is presented to such a large number of people, inevitably loses its exclusivity. According to W. Eck, the diplomas were the daily norm to the Roman army and the granting of the Roman citizenship to the soldiers of the auxiliary troops was a routine occupation of the Roman military administration and the Emperor (Ek, 2004, pp. 31, 34-35).

We should also pay attention to an uneven finding of the military diplomas in the Roman Empire. Most of the findings of these documents were found in the territory of the former border provinces - Moesia Inferior, Moesia Superior, Dacia, Pannonia Inferior, Pannonia Superior, Raetia, Mauretania Tingitana and Britannia (Ek, 2004, p. 55; Nadvirniak, Pohorilets, Nadvirniak, 2016, p. 171; Pangerl). That is, the Thracian-Lower Moesian territory was the most fruitful concerning the findings of the military diplomas. This fact suggests the following: a significant proportion of those veterans, who came from the Danube provinces and served far from their place of birth, returned home (Ek, 2004, p. 55; Scheuble, 2009, p. 293; Pangerl). This fact is confirmed by the analysis of the owners' names, written on these documents, in which the Thracian cognomens dominated (Nadvirniak, Pohorilets, Nadvirniak, 2016, p. 175; Pogorilets, & Savvov, 2007, p. 5).

Interesting is the problem of the diplomas findings in the territory of the European Barbaricum, in particular, outside the Roman Empire, where the diplomas are found only in the territory of Ukraine and Moldova. One of the phenomena of these findings consists in the fact that till nowadays the legionary diplomas in such numbers were not found outside the Roman Limes in Europe. Until recently, only two cases of the Roman military diplomas findings were recorded, namely in the Northern Black Sea region, where the Roman military units were stationed (Nadvirniak, Pohorilets, Nadvirniak, 2016, p. 174). We have already noted that Rome was interested in locating its garrisons on a barbaric territory. Rome was especially interested in the waterways of the Dniester, the Buh and the Dnieper rivers. This interest included not only the military political component, but also trade and economic one (Oliynyk, 2018, p. 58). But the main task of these military contingents was to protect the territory of the allied cities -Tire, Olbia and Chersonese. During the last decade, due to the widespread use of metal detectors, the findings history of these documents continues outside the ancient centers of the Northern Black Sea, which are traditionally associated with the Roman military presence. About 23 fragments of the diplomas of different preservation state were found. Most of them are found in the water corridor of the Middle Dniester, the Southern Buh basins and their tributaries. Taking into account the number of findings and their locations, the Ukrainian scientists reject the assertion of an accidental location of the diplomas in South-Eastern Europe, in particular, as military trophies or a crowbar of non- ferrous metals. Nowadays it is clear that all these facts raise more questions than give clear and convincing answers and require a further research involving new sources into scientific circulation - both written and material. The basis is formed for rethinking the existing source base, it provides grounds for making certain adjustments to the essence of understanding the political, economic, ethno-cultural contacts of the Roman Empire and the Eastern European Barbaricum (Nadvirniak, Pohorilets, Nadvirniak, 2016, pp. 174-175).

Diploma was not only a demonstration of the victory of the owner, who spent much of his life on campaigns and on the battlefield, but diploma also showed a special connection between the Emperor and an ordinary soldier, because the document originated from the Emperor personally, who provided beneficium and diploma was delivered from Rome. At that time the veteran could confirm his higher status, his position owing to the Decree of the ruler. The veteran could demonstrate his affiliation with the community of Rome. In fact, this was the integration policy of the Roman state, which found its concrete embodiment in these documents (Ek, 2004, p. 55).

The Roman military diploma is represented by two rectangular bronze plates, the size of which could vary from 10 to 12 centimeters in width and from 16 to 21 centimeters in length, depending on the period. It consisted of two bronze plates attached to each other and connected by metal rings, sealed and with the same inscription carved twice (Konnoli, 2000, p. 223). To make one diploma from 550 to 1800 g of bronze had to be used. If for the entire period of diplomas existence their number reached 300 000 pieces, it required about 150 tons of bronze. This bronze was better in quality than that one used for coins engraving, and its value reached 40 000 sesterces per ton (Eck, 2008, pp. 1124-1125, 1128). The diplomas, which date back to the early period, were thicker and heavier, and the inscriptions carved - more thorough and clear. Under the rule of Antoninus Pius, the quality of diplomas began to get worse (Ivantchik, & Krapivina, 2005, p. 199). The diplomas issued later were sometimes made of previously-used bronze plates, and the original text could be viewed through a reinscription (Pangerl). The plates were connected with each other with a wire or lace through a pair of symmetrical holes in the centre (Konnoli, 2000, p. 223). The joint was sealed with seven seals, protected by a metal cover composed of three plaques; the diploma was inserted into a wooden frame (Kozlenko, 2013; Pangerl; Petrechko, 2009, p. 72). The inscription, engraved on the surface of both tablets, was a certified copy of the imperial decree on a honorary resignation (constitution (See further - М. О.). The inscriptions on both surfaces of tabella I coincided, but the direction of the text on the inside was perpendicular to its direction on the outside. The text inside the diploma was, of course, inaccessible for reading. Such double carving of the text of the imperial decree on the diploma was necessary to exclude the possibility of forgery. As the text inside of the diploma was inaccessible for reading and it was not necessary to open the diplomas too often, its quality began to get worse. Beginning with the epoch of the Emperor Trajan, the text on the outside of the plates was of a high- quality, the inscriptions on the inside of the diploma became more inconvenient to read, and their content was increasingly reduced. The text on the inside was carved in a sloppy cursive - italics, and in some cases it was difficult to be read (Pogorilets, & Savvov, 2007, p. 2). This process of a poor quality of text writing abruptly stopped in 153 approximately, after which all diplomas again began to be writte with the full text and all necessary care (Ivantchik, Pogorilets, Savvov, 2008, p. 47; Kozlenko, 2013). The remains of coloured paints were found on some diplomas, which means that they were decorated (Eck, 2008, p. 1129).

On the second plate (tabella II) the names of seven witnesses were engraved on the outside. As for the witnesses, until the years of 73-74 they were comrades of the person, who received benefits. Then, starting from this time, - the administration employees, who were involved in this procedure in an arbitrary manner, and after the years of 133-138 - by seniority (Le Boek, 2001, 340). W. Eck's point of view is opposite, who emphasizes that the witnesses of seals imposition were individuals, not libertini, but those individuals, who were born free. W. Eck supports the idea of his compatriot, R. Haensch, the epigraphist, who researched the practice of using seals in documents of the Roman Empire administration. R. Haensch proves that the witnesses were employees of a concession notary's office with a rigid hierarchy, founded on the degree of antiquity, i.e., the period of when employees were witnesses (Haensch, 1996, pp. 463-474). It was from the end of the Emperor Hadrian's reign that there was a strict sequence and regulated order in the selection of witnesses, and the practice of sealing was entrusted not to the imperial officium, but to private lawyers, who worked for a fee. This practice was common for earlier times, because comparing the inscriptions of diplomas there can be traced the formation of witnesses circle from the middle period of Vespasian's reign till the end of Hadrian's reign (Ek, 2004, p. 43). It is unknown for sure: Who paid for issuing of diplomas - the state or the recipients? Judging by W. Eck's argumentation, political and social probability speaks in favour of the fact that the payment for diplomas was made directly from the imperial treasury not from the pockets of soldiers. Aerarium militare, praefecti are also excluded, who were responsible only for soldiers' salaries. But it is impossible to determine which branch of the fiscal department was responsible for these expenses (Ek, 2004, p. 44).

During all the period of time, the inscriptions on the diplomas included the same elements: 1) the name and title of the emperor; 2) a list of troops stationed in the province; 3) the name of the legate, who fulfilled the command; 4) the privileges granted upon receipt of resignation; 5) the date of preparation of the diploma on which the text of the constitution was engraved; 8) the name of the recipient of the diploma with an indication of his military unit and a reference to the correspondent column of the constitution text; 9) the place where the original document was posted; 10) the list of seven witnesses, who certified the authenticity of the diploma (Le Boek, 2001, p. 338; Kozlenko, 2013). Below there is an example of a reproduced text of a diploma found in Olbia in August 2004 (in brackets below - the reconstruction of a lost text): [the Emperor Caesar, the son of the divine Hadrian, the grandson of the divine Traianus Parthicus, the great grandson of the divine Nerve, T(itus) Aelius Hadrianus Antoninus Aug(ustus) Pius, a high oracle, endowed with the power of the people's tribune for 19 times, the Emperor elected twice, a consul at service for four times, the father of the Motherland, to horsemen and infantry, who served in the five alae, whose names are: I Gall(orum) etPann(oniorum), I Gall(orum) Atector(igiana), IIHispan(orum) Arvac(orum), I Vespasia(na) Dar(danorum), I Fl(avia) Gaetul(orum) and in 11 cohorts, (whose names are) I Brac(araugustanorum), II Fl(avia) Britton(um), I F]/l(avia) /N/u/m/i/d(arum), Cl(audia) Sugambr(orum) vet(erana), I Lusit(anorum) Cyr(enaica)], II Chalc(idenorum) [sag(ittariorum), I Cilic(um) sag(ittariorum), I Thrac(um) Syr(iaca), I G]erm(anorum), Br/a[c(ar)aug(ustanorum), I Cisipadens(ium), and are located in] Moe]/sia infer(ior) under the command of V[itrasius Pollionus, the legate, who served twenty-five years, as well as sailors, who served] for twenty-six years or more, dismissed in honorary [resignation], whose names are listed below, the Roman [citizenship] to those, who did not [have] it, and the right to marry women [they ha]d, when they were given the citizenship; [if any were unmarried, then with those], they married later, not more [than one man marries one woman]. 6 days before February, [in the consulate [M(arco) Civica Barbar]o and] M(arco) Metilio /R/e/g/u/l/o. [For someone, who served in [Cohort(is) I Cisip]/ade<n>s(ium) under the command of someone. Copied and checked from a bronze plate, which is attached to the wall behind the temple of the divine Augustus near Minerva in Rome]. The finding of each diploma gives us new information on various aspects of life in the Roman Empire. This diploma was not an exception that allowed us to clarify the names of the legates Moesia Inferior, to reconstruct the list of auxiliary units stationed in this province and finally prove the existence of a permanent Roman garrison in Olbia during the reign of Antoninus Pius (the very diploma is dated: the year of 157 - М. О.) (Ivantchik, & Krapivina, 2005, pp. 199-200, 204-205; Nadvirniak, Pohorilets, Nadvirniak, 2016, pp. 171-172, 177).

The legal process of issuing the diploma was as follows: 1. The commander of the auxiliary unit lists all the soldiers of his alae or cohort, ready to retire or worthy of citizenship. 2. He sends a list with the names of the soldiers of the legate of the province, in which the soldiers and their units were listed in the diploma. 3. The administration of the legate of the province combines all such requests for that province. 4. The proxies of the legate send this list from the province to Rome. 5. The Imperial Administration in Rome drafts a constitution for this province to grant citizenship to all the veterans mentioned in the list. 6. The emperor personally approves and grants privileges. 7. A large bronze plate (constitutio) with a list of all the names of veterans engraved on it was placed publicly in Rome (Romae in muro post templum divi Augusti adMinervam). 8. Individual copies of the constitutions, the diplomas themselves, were made in Rome for each veteran with his name. 9. The copies were checked, confirmed, fastened with wire and sealed by seven witnesses. 10. The certified diplomas were sent back to the province to the legate (governor). 11. The diplomas from the administrative center of the province were sent to the commander of the unit, who handed it to its owner or issued by the legate himself (Pangerl).

From a legal point of view, the inscription on the inside of the diploma was the original document, the authenticity of which was verified by seven witnesses. But the external, open text of diploma had a practical value. The closed nature of the inscriptions protected them from a possible destruction or forgery, as Suetonius wrote about it (Suet. Nero. 17). In that case, if there were doubts about the identity of the holder of the diploma, or the content of the privileges granted by the document, the diploma could be disclosed, and the content of both sides of the plate compared with each other. A similar procedure was used to verify the authenticity of other documents (Kozlenko, 2013).

Most of the text of diploma was a form that was repeated in each diploma - as in many modern official documents. In each individual diploma, after the stereotypical diploma text, only the instructions to the military unit of the recipient changed, i.e., the name of the cohort or alae, the name of the commander of the unit and the name of the person, who should have received the diploma; the names of the retiree's wife and children, if any, were added (Ek, 2004, p. 37). It is possible that those, who were engaged in the production of diplomas, and those were individuals, prepared in advance tabulae with only the formulaic text to facilitate further work, because there are diplomas, in which one can distinguish between different handwriting scribes for permanent and non-permanent sections (Eck, 2008, p. 1129). This testified to the rationalization of work and could affect the nature of the diploma itself as a legal document, and the legal document required a guaranteed accurate text. Therefore, no abbreviations were found in the first diplomas. This was due to the fact that they were not found in the published constitutions. But from the end of Trajan's reign, more and more abbreviations appeared on diplomas, first on the inside, while on the outside they occurred later. This is due to the fact that in practice, in the life of a veteran, the inner side did not play a significant role, as the outer side a full text was read (Ek, 2004, p. 38-39).

It is obvious that every soldier, who served in the auxiliary units of the Roman army, as well as in the city cohorts, the Praetorian Guard, the cavalry guard of the Emperor's bodyguards (equites singularesAugusti) and the navy received a diploma and got an honorary resignation (Ivantchik, & Krapivina, 2005, pp. 197-198). We emphasize that the diplomas did not serve as evidence of an honorary resignation (honesta missio), as some historians mistakenly write about it (Kozlenko, 2013). Honorary resignation was represented by another document, a kind of certificate or attestation, which would confirm the resignation and it was called tabula honestae missionis (CIL. XVI. 1; ILS. 9060; AE. 1980. № 647) (Pangerl). Diplomas testified and confirmed the years of service in the army and the rights and privileges granted - conubium et civitas Romana and could be issued to those, who needed them only after the above-mentioned document (Fields, 2006, p. 53). Honesta missio came after 25 years of service for soldiers of auxiliary troops and 26 for sailors (from the Illd century increased to 28 - M. O.) and veteran non-citizens received two important privileges: the Roman citizenship, which they usually, until the year of 212 did not have, and conubium, i.e., the right to a legal marriage (Birley, 1986, pp. 256-257; Le Boek, 2001, p. 116; Petreczko, 2009, p. 75). This also concerned the marriage with women without the Roman citizenship. Granting this right to marriage was a significant privilege, as marriage between citizens and non-citizens was not recognized as legal. And in general, the Roman soldiers were not allowed to marry during the entire period of service (See below - M. O.).

Dion Cassius wrote that Claudius granted conubium to the soldiers (“... gave the privileges of married people” - M. O.) (Dio Cass. 60.24.3). It is from the time of the reign of this Emperor that the first diplomas found are known to us, and in the year of 52 the first document known to us was dated (Keppie, 2018, p. 447; Scheuble, 2009, p. 292). M. Shchetinin, referring to indirect evidences, states about the existence of diplomas already duing the reign of Augustus. He refers to the passage of Suetonius, in which the latter, describing the reign of Caligula, mentions the diplomas of the time of Julius Caesar and Augustus. Here is a translation of the quotation: “He rejected granting the Roman citizenship to all, whose ancestors acquired it for themselves and their descendants, except for their sons - only to the first generation did he refer the name “descendants”; and when the diplomas of divine Julius and Augustus were brought to him, he rejected them as obsolete and invalid” (Suet. Cal. 38.1) (Petrechko, 2009, p. 72; Shchetinin, 2003, p. 298). Explaining the ambiguity in Suetonius' interpretation of the acquired Roman citizenship, M. Shchetinin suggests that under certain circumstances such documentation, which testified to the past acquisition of the citizenship, was revised and partially excluded or wiped out (Shchetinin, 2003, p. 300). This could explain the lack of military diplomas before the Emperor Claudius's reign. The researcher provides other evidence to support his theory, using epigraphic material - the fragments of preserved inscriptions, which concerned veterans and an excerpt from the Decree of 46 from Trent (ILS. 206) (Shchetinin, 2003, pp. 299-301). Yet a number of authoritative European scholars doubt the possibility of awarding diplomas before the Principality of Claudius (Scheuble, 2009, p. 292). Let's consider in turn the features of granting privileges to different types of troops, who were awarded with diplomas.

The practice of granting the citizenship to sailors dates back to the time of Claudius. It is probable that the government hesitated until the years of 140 - 145, but in the end it was decided to take half measures - only those, who joined the army and their children were among those, who could hope for the right to be granted the citizenship. It is worth noting that the legionnaires did not receive such documents, except for those, who passed through the Legio I Adiutrix and Legio II Adiutrix, recruited first in the fleet. Because of these differences, the researchers made different assumptions. Y. Le Bohec thinks that diplomas for the Praetorians and auxiliary units were introduced under special circumstances - the war of 68 - 69 for the first ones and the difficulties of a military recruitment for the latter. Other researchers suggested that the rewards for a military service varied according to the hierarchy of military units: the auxiliary troops and sailors received only a diploma, the legionnaires had the right to receive some money and land (praemia), and the Praetorians received a diploma and praemia. Be that as it might, granting these benefits was not systematized (Le Boek, 2001, pp. 339-340).

As for the Praetorians, they did not need the Roman citizenship, as the Praetorian cohorts always recruited among the Roman citizens (Ivantchik, Pogorilets, Savvov, 2008, p. 45).

However, another privilege was important for the Praetorians - the above-mentioned conubium, and the military diplomas, which are collected in CIL.XVI, and date back to the period from 73 to 134 years. (CIL. XVI. 18; CIL. XVI. 21; CIL. XVI. 81) (Luc, 2004, p. 145). Another reason for issuing these documents to the Praetorians was Vitehius' practice of recruiting volunteers from the ranks of the Peregrines, not citizens (Luc, 2004, p. 144). After the defeat, a significant number of these soldiers remained in the service, but in some period of time the process of their release began, which dates back to the beginning of the 70-ies of the Ist century (Tac. Hist. 4.46). Like the rest of the Roman soldiers, they had no right to marry; they did not receive this right even in the year of 197 when Septimius Severus granted this right to legionnaires and soldiers of auxiliary units (Herod. 3.8.4; Dig. 23.2.35, 48.5.12, 49.17.26) (Ivantchik, Pogorilets, Savvov, 2008, p. 46).

It is clear that during the service soldiers had female cohabitants (coniunx), and during the first two centuries of the Empire in the inscriptions these “soldiers' wives” appeared under the name “ucsor” (Le Boek, 2001, p. 337). Beginning in 197, soldiers could live with them outside the territory of the camp. After retirement, the marriage of veterans to women was recognized as legal, and their children received the Roman citizenship. In addition to the fact that the retired soldiers themselves, their wives and children acquired the Roman citizenship, even the parents of the women with whom the the retired soldiers would marry, could become the Roman citizens. After retirement, the soldiers could settle near the place of service of the military camp or the place of the military boat base, where their wives could live (Suet. Nero. 9; Tac. Ann. 14.27, 31.4-5; ILS. 2460, ILS. 2574) (Cowan, 2004; Le Boek, 2001, p. 145; Petrechko, 2009, p. 75). One such retiree was an unidentified veteran-sailor (classarius) of the classis Misenensis (Classss Praetoria Misenensis Pia Vindex), whose diploma was found in Khmelnytsky region in 2016 and which dates back to the year of 142 (Nadvirniak, Pohorilets, Nadvirniak, 2016, pp. 174, 183). To confirm the rights of veteran's children, extracts were made from the original document stating that they were born during their father's military service (in militia), their names were engraved on a bronze plaque (in aere) and they acquired the same Roman citizenship as and their father (AE. 1910..№75) (Ek, 2004, p. 50; Petrechko, 2009, p. 73). Innovations occurred at the end of 140, when the data on children were no longer taken into account; only in the case of the soldiers of the provincial navy everything remained unchanged. But the findings of 2001 allow us to look anew at the difference between these privileges. They were still received by the children of retirees, but only if they were born before their parents joined the army. There was another condition - if it was officially announced to the governor. But all the others, who were notified during the service, beginning in the year of 140, were excluded, even the children of units' officers. This action of Antoninus Pius was explained by the prohibition of marriage during the service, and the possible consequence of cohabitation with women - children, were already considered to be born illegaly (Le Boek, 2001, pp. 116, 337). That is, granting privileges to such children would be contrary to the fundamental principles of a military law at that time. Moreover, we must not forget about the rule of observing discipline, because despite a human nature or moral principles, the relationship of soldiers with women could shake the foundations of such a sacred deity for the army as disciplina militaris (ILS. 3810) (Ek, 2004, pp. 50-51; Le Boek, 2001, pp. 172, 339; Scheuble, 2009, p. 293). As the legal status of the Praetorians, auxiliary soldiers, and navy sailors was different, as were the privileges they received after retirement, the form of the two types of diplomas could be different. But it is worth remembering that all diplomas were made according to the same scheme - with the sectors of the standard legal text and the sectors of the individual text, and it was the individual text that could differ (see below - М. О.) (Ivantchik, Pogorilets, Savvov, 2008, p. 46; Pangerl).

The diploma itself was a copy of the imperial decree (constitutio), concluded on behalf of the ruler, i.e., a document, which he certified and approved. It not only listed the sections concerning the document and indicated their commander, but also there were mentioned all the veterans, who resigned, by name (Ivantchik, Pogorilets, Savvov, 2008, p. 46). The Constitutions are known to us thanks to their shortened copies - diplomas, as none of the large bronze plates, on which the text of the constitution was carved, survived till modern period. Nowadays, more than 400 existing constitutions are known, of which diplomas were issued (Pangerl). The Imperial constitutions were issued annually, and sometimes one constitution was addressed to the troops of several provinces, and sometimes several constitutions were issued during one year, addressed to the troops of the same province. The dates of publication of individual constitutions vary considerably in time, although the Praetorian diplomas of the IIId century are always dated - January the 7th (Ek, 2004, p. 30). Constitutio and diploma were inextricably connected, and owing to the latter that we know that large bronze stelae covered the foundations of some Capitolium's monuments (Eck, 2008, pp. 1130-1131). The published text of the constitution - tabula aenae (or aerae) until the years of 89 - 90 was exhibited exclusively at the Capitolium, and later - it was hung on the wall near the statue of Minerva behind the temple of the Divine Augustus. Here they had to be exhibited publicly for some time, and then, as the space for demonstration was filled, they were removed and placed in the archive - officium (Ek, 2004, p. 36; Eck, 2008, pp. 1123, 1130). The text of the constitution contained a list of names of those veterans, who resigned. What was the minimum number of diplomas, which referred to one constitution? W. Eck, an authoritative researcher of the military diplomas, determined their approximate number on the example of one such document from the time of Galba. Thus, on December 22, 68 in Rome on ara gentis Iulia constitutio was published, carved on three tabulae aenae; these tables, according to W. Eck, could be more in number. It is also known that on ara gentis Iulia there were at least three tabulae of the constitution of Vespasian of April 5, 71. Since such bronze tables consisted of at most 6 columns (paginae) with 46 or 50 lines, each of which had a name, we get the names of 829, but most likely 900 veterans (Ek, 2004, p. 30), which were included into the text of the constitution. Thus, the inscription on the diplomas literally reproduced the text of the correspondent constitution, and the differences between the individual documents were insignificant and concerned only the adopted rules of shortening (Kozlenko, 2013). We should note that constitutions issuing took place continuously, though inconsistent with a strict time rhythm and not on certain days during the year. Sometimes several constitutions were issued for the troops of the same province on the same day as, for example, for Syria in 88, and at the same time for different provinces, as for Britannia and Lycia-Pamphylia in the year of 178 (Ek, 2004, pp. 32-33). However, there is an interval of about 10 years, when diplomas were not issued or almost not issued - this is the period from the year of 168 to 177 (Ek, 2004, pp. 33-34). Scientists identified these causes, and there were several: almost continuous wars with the Germans, epidemics, labour shortages, as well as soldiers shortages, tax arrears and a high military mortality. These facts are confirmed in the sources (SHA. Marc. 21.6). Dismissals were postponed, and granting privileges through a diploma was not always necessary. For instance, in the year of 106 Trajan awarded the soldiers civitas Romana on the battlefield, and the publication of the constitution in Rome and documenting this event with a diploma took place only in the year of 110 (CIL. XVI. 160) (Ek, 2004, pp. 35, 50, 53). A similar procedure could have taken place during the crisis of the 70-ies of the IId century. According to another definition, the lack of bronze as a metal for coinage also affected the lack of diplomas during this period, as they were issued at the expense of the imperial treasury. It is possible that the documents of that time were published on other material, first of all, on tabulae ceratae (Ek, 2004, pp. 52-53).

In addition to legal and practical functions, diplomas also played an important ideological role. Since the diploma was issued on behalf of the Emperor, on whose name and full title the text began, and it was assigned to a specific person, on whose name the text ended, it served as a material confirmation of the personal connection between the Emperor and each soldier of his army. After all, the acquisition of citizenship remained the exclusive privilege of the supreme ruler. The illusion was created that each veteran was personally known to the Emperor. Each diploma “speaks” directly and unambiguously to whom the veterans owed privileges - to the Emperor. This fact, of course, made the military diploma not only a legal document but also a subject of prestige (Ek, 2004, pp. 44, 49, 55; Ivantchik & Krapivina, 2005, p. 198; Ivantchik, Pogorilets, Savvov, 2008, p. 47). Military diplomas were one of the main factors in Romanization, because veterans, who served 25 or more years in the army, were a kind of mouthpieces and promoters of the Roman culture in the most remote ares of the Empire. As O. Petrechko noted aptly: veterans formed a special social group, which was an important tool of Romanization in the provinces, differed from the rest of the population by significant privileges, mostly a better financial status and the Roman citizenship” (Petrechko, 2009, p. 81). Veterans were a fairly large social group in the Roman society at that time, relatively wealthy and legally privileged, and played a major role in their places of residence, especially in the suburban provinces far from Rome. Being native speakers of Latin, enjoying the right of immunity (ILS. 9059) and having a high authority among the local administration due to a long military service, they became translators, heads of rural communities, and in the cities - decurions (D. 49.18.3). Being the part of the local elites, the retirees influenced the judiciary and financial affairs, were responsible for building matters, law and order, as well as the supply of necessary food to the settlements (Luc, 2004, p. 146). By joining the board, veterans contributed to the municipalization of poorly urbanized regions (Le Boek, 2001, pp. 346, 351, 357). For instance, in Numidia, in Lambezis, they had a special place in the political system of this province, because there functioned a “veteran curia” (CIL. VIII. 18214, 18234) (Le Boek, 2001, p. 357). In Northern Britain until the middle of the IIId century some vici, where many veterans lived, had their own economic organization, and in York (Eboracum) canaba at the military camp acquired the status of a colony at the military camp (Watson, 2014, pp. 151-152). Their children in the future joined the ranks of the legions, “inheriting” the military profession, as it happened, for instance, to the holder of one of the diplomas found in Ukraine, the Praetorian Dribal, veteran's son of legio XI Klaudia (Ivantchik, Pogorilets, Savvov, 2008, p. 51; Nadvirniak, Pohorilets, Nadvirniak, 2016, pp. 172, 177; Le Boek, 2001, p. 343; Petreczko, 2009, p. 75). From the beginning of the IIId century, thanks to the edict of Caracalla (Constitutio Antoniniana), when the Roman citizenship was granted to all the free population of the Empire, we can state about the emergence of a kind of a military caste, when men devoted themselves to a military service from generation to generation (Watson, 2014, 146). Beginning with the year of 210, the practice of issuing diplomas to auxiliaries disappeared, and the Praetorians acquired them before the middle of the IIId century. During the reign of Diocletian, the issuance of these documents resumed, and after 311 completely stopped (Kozlenko, 2013).

The Conclusions

Thus, owing to the privileges outlined in the military diplomas, this group of people played a huge role in Romanization and contributed to the spread of foreign cults in the provinces and the Roman citizenship, replenished the administrative apparatus in the area of the Roman Empire. In a broader context, the military diplomas and their holders contributed to the spread of the Roman culture far beyond the Empire, for example, in some Ukrainian lands bordering on the Roman provinces. The Roman military diplomas allow us to outline the political, military, economic and cultural history more broadly - not only of the Roman Empire, but also of neighbouring lands, primarily the European Barbaricum, which included the Ukrainian lands. Studying the places of these documents findings, we can trace the main directions of a political expansion and military colonization of the Roman Empire, their intensity, to detail the processes of Romanization of the population of the conquered and annexed territories. We can gain a deeper understanding of the level of relations and interactions between Rome and its neighbours (Nadvirniak, Pohorilets, Nadvirniak, 2016, p. 170). They are also unique sources for the study of the Roman military law and the history of Roman office work, the main epigraphic sources in the study of the Roman army history of the Principate period.

The conclusion can be drawn that the Roman military diplomas were an important historical document for studying various aspects of the Roman society (political, social, legal and domestic) and the main one of the components of Rome's military power - auxiliary units and veterans, who came from their ranks, and it means that the Roman military diplomas unconditionally meet the definition of “a historical document”.