The Dacians: Rome\'s Greatest Enemy?

[Nathan Ross]

Fuscus assembled the V Alaude and the VII Claudia with perhaps the millarian cohorts of the IIII Flavia and I Adiutrix legions. To this force was added a small collection of auxilia.

It should be said that we have no actual evidence of the composition of the force that Fuscus led into Dacia, except that it apparently included units of the praetorian guard. Neither do we know for sure that an entire legion was lost. Tacitus (Agricola 41.2) mentions 'so many armies lost through the rashness of their commanders', which is vague. Dio (68.9.3) mentions a single standard (not an eagle) recovered by Trajan (although I seem to remember the Column shows an eagle...). Suetonius mentions a legion lost to the Sarmatians c.92, but nothing about one lost to the Dacians earlier.

Placing V Alaudae in Moesia, or in Fuscus's army, might seem convenient but is not necessary. It still remains very possible that were destroyed or disbanded after 69/70 (Ritterling and Brian Jones believe so, among others). IIII Flavia were likely still based in Dalmatia until c.86. Fuscus's force most likely involved elements of the legions of the still-united Moesia: VII Claudia, V Macedonica and I Italica, perhaps with vexillations from elsewhere.


Julianus probably thought it prudent to avoid pursuing the campaign in hostile territory in winter and Domitian may have approved or advocated plans for another attack beginning in the following spring

Perhaps. Alternatively, perhaps both expeditions - Fuscus and Julianus - were intended as punitive campaigns, rather than attempts at conquest. Domitian himself accompanied neither force, which he may well have done if he expected the complete subjegation of Dacia. But we will never know for sure...