The Praetorian Guard of the Roman Empire,Officially created by the Emperor Augustus in the early yea

The Praetorian Guard of the Roman Empire,Officially created by the Emperor Augustus in the early years of the Roman Empire, the Praetorian Guard were an elite unit of soldiers who served as the personal troops and bodyguard to the Emperor. Originally composed of upper class men from Italy, over time the Praetorians were recruited from among the best soldiers of the legions. Service among the Praetorians was one of the most highly desired military positions in the Empire, not only because the Praetorians were the best of the best, but the Praetorians would quickly gain wealth, prestige, and political power due to their daily contact with the Emperor.Originally, the Praetorian cohorts under Augustus numbered around 6,000 men, over time the force would grow until around the 3rd century it was composed of around 15,000 - 20,000 men. Thus, the Praetorians were not only a bodyguard unit, but a personal army directly controlled by the Emperor. Under Roman law it was forbidden for legions to be garrisoned near Rome, the only military forces permitted being the urban cohorts (who were more like city police and firefighters) and the Praetorians.  Thus the Praetorians were vital to the Emperor’s rule because they were the only troops he directly commanded, and it was not uncommon for Roman governors and military commanders to revolt and attempt to overthrow the Emperor. When being used as combat troops the Praetorians were equipped the same as the Roman legions, with a gladius (sword), three pila (javelins), a scutum (a square shield), a helmet, and armor, either the lorica hamata (chain mail), or the lorica segmentata (segmented plate armor). In ceremonial roles they would often wear highly ornate sets of armor adorned with feather plumes and other decorations. When performing regular everyday guard duty it was not uncommon for the Praetorians to wear civilian clothing, much like the US Secret Service does today.Since the Praetorian Guard were instrumental in the safety of the Emperor, and were a large well armed force that answered only to the Emperor, the Praetorians soon found that they had more power over the Emperor than the Emperor had over them. In 41 AD the Praetorians assassinated the tyrannical Emperor Caligula, then installed Caligula’s uncle Claudius to the throne. It was then that the Praetorians learned that in their position as bodyguards to the Emperor, they had the power of life and death over the Emperor and even had the power to influence politics as they saw fit. A Pandora’s box had been opened, and it often became the case that the Praetorian Guards, the elite bodyguards of then Emperor, could be a much bigger threat to the safety and well being of the Emperor than any foreign or domestic enemies. Throughout Roman history, the Praetorian Guard were responsible for the assassinations of ten emperors.Added to this newly found political power was a common corrupting influence; greed. In ancient Roman tradition a newly crowned emperor began his reign with a donative, a bonus added to the salary of his soldiers, guards, and servants. A donative was also often granted to celebrate holidays and special occasions, kind of like a Christmas bonus today. By the middle of the 1st century, after the Praetorians had discovered their new found power of regicide, the Praetorians began using the donative as a way to extort the Emperor for money. In order to secure the loyalty of the Praetorian Guard, Emperors had to promise larger and larger donatives, as well as pay raises and other special perks.  Those who failed to cough up the dough or went back on their promises could be murdered by the Praetorians, then replaced with a new emperor of the Praetorians choosing, someone more inclined to play along. The most extreme example of this occurred with murder of the Emperor Pertinax. Pertinax had been chosen as Emperor after the Praetorians had orchestrated the assassination of Emperor Joaquin Phoenix… I mean Commodus. In his place, they installed Pertinax as the new emperor after he promised them a particularly large donative. When he later reneged on his promises, they murdered him, his glorious reign lasting 86 days. Then with incredible chutzpah they auctioned off the empire to the highest bidder, declaring him emperor (Didius Julius) only after he payed the donative in cash upfront, then forcing the Roman senate to confirm him as emperor at sword point.As history progressed Roman Emperors found themselves having to pay larger and larger donatives in order to secure the loyalty of the Praetorian Guard, so much so that donatives became several times larger than the lifetime salary of a Roman soldier. During the crises of the Third Century, there was period known as the “barracks emperors” where Rome was thrown into chaos and civil war as military commanders and warlords fought among each other for control of the Empire. During this time, the average emperor’s reign was around 1-2 years.  With each new emperor larger and larger donatives were demanded, and with a large number of emperor’s coming and going, the Praetorians found themselves incredibly wealthy men. While history depicts the Praetorian Guard as elite soldiers of the Roman Empire, in truth due to greed and corruption, the Praetorians had devolved into a bunch of spoiled brats with sharp objects, leeches who sucked the life blood from Rome while the condition of the average Roman deteriorated to the point of poverty and misery. No longer were they elite soldiers, the Praetorians had long ago ceased doing things that elite soldiers do such as training, drilling, exercise, and fighting. Rather, most Praetorians were content to spend their time drinking, whoring, and enjoying the fruits of their newly begotten wealth.  Rather than being a symbol of Roman glory, the Praetorians had become just another interest group that had to be satisfied in order to maintain an increasingly weaker and corrupted state. It’s amazing that Rome lasted for as long as it did.The end of the Praetorian Guard came with the rise of the Emperor Constantine the Great. The Praetorians had sided against Constantine’s rise to power. As a result, Constantine certainly couldn’t trust the Praetorians to keep him safe, especially with their long history of emperor murdering. Rather than attempting to reform the Guard, Constantine chose to disband the Praetorians entirely, entrusting his safety with a unit of German cavalry who were personally loyal to him and who had no political stake in the Empire. The Praetorians would never be reformed, and the tradition of using foreigners for bodyguards would continued well after the fall of Rome with the Eastern Roman/Byzantine Empire.Publius Helvius PertinaxInstalled as Emperor by the Praetorian Guard — January 1st, 193 ADAssassinated by the Praetorian Guard — March 28th, 193 AD. -- source link
Tumblr Blog : peashooter85.tumblr.com

More pics about