Organization of the Roman ArmyAustin Lucas

Organization of Senior Officers

First Cohort: 5 Centuries = c. 800 Men

Second to Tenth Cohorts: 9 cohorts, 6

centuries each, total of about 4320 men

Primi Ordies First rank officer

that were in charge of the first cohort

Five existed within the first cohort

Optio Deputy who would

take control of the century if the Centurion was killed

Second in comand

Signifer Standard-bearer Held the symbols

for battle Pole with

medallions on it that represented the cohort

Tesserarius Organized the

guards Distributed the

passwords for the gates

Accompanied by one or two clerks

Centurion Backbone of the

legion About 60 per

legion Carried a vitus or

a sword as their main weapon in battle

Perfectus Castrorum Commander of the

camp Oversaw the

proceedings of the legion

Highest ranked officer

Legatus Member of the

senate in Rome Usually in his mid

30s Assisted by six

tribunes

Tribunus Laticlavius Of noble birth Served his military

apprenticeships before starting a military career

May spend three or four years in command of a legion

Tribuni Angusticalavii Tribunes with the

narrow stripe Members of a

slightly lower class Lower classes

called an equites Wanted to get a

post in imperial administration