"of Lucius Ceionius Commodus, who had been Hadrian's first choice as Caesar and Emperor-designate. Marcus Aurelius's sixth son (of eight) was Commodus. In March 193, the Imperial dignity was quite literally and quite openly auctioned off by the mutinous Praetorian Guard, with Titus Flavius Sulpicianus (father-in-law of the slain Emperor) and Marcus Didius Julianus bidding for the Guard's support for the purple. Commodus's murder on December 31, 192 was immediately followed the next day by the accession of Pertinax, the ""praefectus urbi"". He was murdered by the Praetorian Guard in late March 193. The consular Didius Julianus was installed by"
"the emperor when he left the palace. Soldiers from the Manchu and Mongol banners could join. The Vanguard consisted of about 1500 men. The Imperial Bodyguard (Manchu: ""hiya""; ) corps was assigned to protect the emperor at all times. Only Manchu bannermen could join, and most members came from the upper three banners. Like the Vanguard, the Imperial Bodyguard consisted of about 1500 men. Imperial Guards (Qing China) The Imperial Guards () of the Qing dynasty were a select detachment of Manchu and Mongol bannermen responsible for guarding the Forbidden City in Beijing, the emperor, and the emperor's family. The"
"containing 800 men each). However, Vespasian (r. 69-79) reduced the number of cohorts back to the original nine (but still 800-strong), later increased to ten by his son, Domitian (r. 81-96). By this time, therefore, the Guard consisted of c. 8,000 men. It was probably Trajan (r. 98-117) who established a separate cavalry arm of the Guard, the ""equites singulares Augusti"" (""personal cavalry of the emperor"", or imperial horseguards). An elite troop recruited from members of the finest auxiliary ""alae"" (originally from Batavi ""alae"" only), the ""singulares"" were tasked with escorting the emperor on campaign. The unit was organised as"
"Celeres __NoToC__ The celeres were the bodyguard of the Kings of Rome. Traditionally established by Romulus, the legendary founder and first King of Rome, the celeres comprised three hundred men, ten chosen by each of the curiae. The celeres were the strongest and bravest warriors among the early Roman nobility, and were the bravest and most loyal soldiers in the army. The name of ""celeres"" was generally believed to have arisen from their ""celeritas"", or swiftness, but Valerius Antias maintained that their first commander was named ""Celer"", perhaps the same Celer mentioned by Ovid as the foreman of the first"
"Imperial Guards (Qing China) The Imperial Guards () of the Qing dynasty were a select detachment of Manchu and Mongol bannermen responsible for guarding the Forbidden City in Beijing, the emperor, and the emperor's family. The Imperial Guards were divided into three groups: the Guard, the Vanguard, and the Imperial Bodyguard. The Guard (Manchu: ""bayara""; ) corps was assigned to protect the imperial palace. Soldiers from the Manchu and Mongol banners could join. The Guard corps was about ten times the size of the Vanguard and Imperial Bodyguard. The Vanguard (Manchu: ""gabsihiyan""; ) corps was assigned to march ahead of"
"in his capacity as tribune that he convened the comitia curiata to abrogate the king's ""imperium"", while Tarquin was away, besieging Ardea. There was no equivalent body under the early Republic; Roman magistrates were accompanied by the lictors, who had also been established by Romulus, while generals chose the troops they trusted most to protect them. Toward the end of the Republic, veteran soldiers were selected to serve in the ""cohors praetoria"", or praetorian cohort, which in imperial times became the Praetorian Guard. Celeres __NoToC__ The celeres were the bodyguard of the Kings of Rome. Traditionally established by Romulus, the"
"frequently counted to the Praetorian Guard. The tasks of the imperial bodyguard consisted of (among others): guarding and protecting the emperor, the delivery of imperial mail and training with the emperor during public shows, in which the emperor could show his riding and combat skills to the population. Speculatores Speculatores and Exploratores were the scouts and reconnaissance element of the Roman army. In both the legions and in the praetorian camp, speculatores were initially scouts but became bodyguards, couriers, law-enforcers, and sometimes executioners. Exploratores were tasked to keep watch on enemy movements in the field. Both occupations could require the"
"a vital force in the power politics of Rome. While Augustus understood the need to have a protector in the maelstrom of Rome, he was careful to uphold the Republican veneer of his regime. Thus, he allowed only nine cohorts to be formed, each originally consisting of 500 men. He then increased them to 1,000 men each, but allowed three units to be kept on duty at any given time in the capital. A small number of detached cavalry units (""turmae"") of 30 men each were also organized. While they patrolled inconspicuously in the palace and major buildings, the others"
"their roles was to accompany the emperor on his foreign campaign journeys (a role which would later be handled by the ""Singulares""/""equites singulares Augusti""). Claudius was in the habit of surrounding himself with ""Speculatores"" when attending dinners. The close security protection detail of Galba, of Otho and the dynastic line of the Flavians appear to have been formed of ""Speculatores"" (who replaced the Imperial German Bodyguard disbanded by Galba). Following the assassination of emperor Domitian, his successor Nerva was placed under the protection of Trajan, to counter possible revenge attempts and mutinies. Trajan was commander of the most important army"
"Guard became notable for its intrigue and interference in Roman politics, to the point of overthrowing emperors and proclaiming their successors. In 312, the Guard was disbanded by Constantine the Great. The designation originated during the Roman Republic, for the guards of Roman generals as early as the rise to prominence of the Scipio family around 275 BC. There was no permanent guard charged with the protection of military general officers; however, certain military officers chose to surround themselves with guards to ensure their security. For example, during the Siege of Numantia, Scipio Aemilianus formed a troop of 500 men"
"mounted, is also unknown, but is described in ancient sources as a cohort, which in this period normally implied a strength of c. 500 men, or less precisely as a ""numerus"", whose size could vary. Under the Emperor Caligula, the Bodyguard may have consisted of 500 to 1,000 men. The Germanic Cohort was valued as loyal and reliable. Emperors like Nero trusted the Germani especially because they were not of Roman origin. The guard was disbanded briefly after the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest, and was finally dissolved by Galba in 68 because of its loyalty to Nero (ruled 54-68),"
"threatened bodily harm to the Bodyguards. They rejoiced that the ""empire"" (""imperii vires"") would remain in the same family. According to Peter Green, ""xenophobia played its part here: the Macedonian rank and file did not relish the prospect of kowtowing to a half-Oriental monarch."" The party for Meleager collected so many adherents that Perdiccas, ""terrified"" (""territus""), called for 600 elite troops, ""the royal guard of young men""; that is, the unit of Persian Epigoni formed by Alexander to protect him from his men, under Ptolemy, and took up a defensive position around the quarters where Alexander's body yet lay. They"
"Numerus Batavorum The numerus Batavorum, also called the cohors Germanorum, Germani corporis custodes, Germani corpore custodes, Imperial German Bodyguard or Germanic bodyguard was a personal, imperial guards unit for the Roman emperors of the Julio-Claudian dynasty (30 BC – AD 68) composed of Germanic soldiers. Although the Praetorians may be considered the Roman Emperor's main bodyguard, the Germanic bodyguards were a unit of more personal guards recruited from distant parts of the Empire, so they had no political or personal connections with Rome or the provinces. From ""De Bello Gallico"", it is known that Julius Caesar also had a Germanic"
"first permanent imperial bodyguards were the Corporis Custodes (also called Germanic or Batavian bodyguards). They were probably involved in the death of Emperor Nero, and therefore from that moment on amortized as bodyguards. His successor, Galba, promoted his own bodyguards, the ""Speculatores"", to imperial bodyguards. This situation continued until emperor Trajan promoted his own bodyguard, the Equites Singulares, to imperial bodyguards. The ""Speculatores"" were recruited from the best riders of the Praetorian cavalry; they became the unit that was entrusted with the protection of the emperor in Rome. Despite being a private, standalone unit with its own barracks, the unit"
"in frontier provinces. The only substantial military force at the immediate disposal of the emperor was the elite Praetorian Guard of c. 10,000 men which was based in Rome. The senior officers of the army were, until the 3rd century, mainly from the Italian aristocracy. This was divided into two orders, the senatorial order (""ordo senatorius""), consisting of the c. 600 sitting members of the Roman Senate and their sons and grandsons, and the more numerous (several thousand-strong) ""equites"" or ""knights"". Hereditary senators and ""equites"" combined military service with civilian posts, a career path known as the ""cursus honorum"", typically"
"Protectores Augusti Nostri ""Protector Augusti Nostri"" (""lit"" 'Protector of Our Augustus') was a title given to individual officers of the Roman Army as a mark of their devotion to and approval by the Emperor himself. The term first appears with this meaning in the joint-reign of Valerian and Gallienus. L. Petronius Taurus Volusianus was the first recorded ""Protector"" appointed by Gallienus. It is indeed the case that the use of the title ""protector"" in the sense of a 'bodyguard of a Great Man' long preceded the appointment of Volusianus. In addition, the title was not only bestowed by Emperors. However,"
"of Tiberius in AD 14, Sejanus was appointed prefect of the Praetorian Guard as the colleague of his father Strabo, and began his rise to prominence. The Praetorian Guard was an elite unit of the Roman army formed by Augustus in 27 BC, with the specific function to serve as a bodyguard to the emperor and members of the imperial family. Much more than a guard however, the Praetorians also managed the day-to-day care of the city, such as general security and civil administration. Furthermore, their presence served as a constant reminder to the people and the Senate of the"
"Imperial Guard (Napoleon I) The Imperial Guard (French: ""Garde Impériale"") was originally a small group of elite soldiers of the French Army under the direct command of Napoleon I, but grew considerably over time. It acted as his bodyguard and tactical reserve, and he was careful of its use in battle. The Guard was divided into the staff, infantry, cavalry, and artillery regiments, as well as battalions of sappers and marines. The guard itself as a whole distinguished between the experienced veterans and less experienced members by being separated into three sections: the Old Guard, Middle Guard and Young Guard."
"normal legion. Only three of those were ever kept on active duty. As the Roman citizens grew more used to the presence of soldiers in the capital however, their numbers were increased from 500 to 1000 soldiers per cohort. Not much is known about the precise activities of the Guard during this period. Their primary function was to safeguard the Emperor and his family, but Augustus seems to have involved the Praetorians as much in tasks of civil administration. Prior to 2 BC the tribunes of the cohorts received their orders directly from Augustus himself. This changed with the appointment"
"and auxiliaries of the army were supplemented under the Emperor Augustus by an elite formation of guards dedicated to the protection of the Emperor. The first such unit was based in Rome and were known as the Praetorian Guard, and a second similar formation were known as the Cohortes urbanae. The legions, which had been a mix of life professionals and civilian campaigners, was altered into a standing army of professionals only. The actual structure of the cohort army remained much the same as in the late Republic, although around the 1st century AD the first cohort of each legion"
"had to stand absolutely still and render honours only to the Emperor and members of the Imperial family. Although not formally part of the Imperial Guard, they were under the orders of the Grand Marshal of the Palace. The Cent-Gardes squadron consisted of a headquarters, 11 officers and 137 privates, totalling 148 men at the time the unit was created, Later they would be increased to 190, including officers, and finally numbered 221 commissioned officers and guardsmen, including a lieutenant colonel, at the time that they were finally disbanded. The soldiers of the squadron were recruited from the cavalry regiments"
"siege through February. In some stories, Marcus Manlius Capitolinus led the way in responding to the alarm, warding off the first Gaul to reach the top of the Capitoline cliff, or alternatively expelling them from the Temple of Jupiter, which they had entered through tunnels. Manlius is described once as a ""custos"", ""guard"" of the citadel, perhaps in command of the ""iuventus"", the young warriors as a collective. Two or three years later, however, Manlius had attempted to capitalize on his reputation for heroism and to establish himself as a king or ""tyrannos"", a much-despised role in Republican Rome. He"
"Gallo-Romans admitted into the king's bodyguard. These Gallo-Romans then took the name of ""convivae regis"", and the ""wergeld"" of 300 ""solidi"" was three times that of a ""homo romanus"". The ""antrustions"", belonging as they did to one body, had strictly defined duties towards one another; thus one ""antrustion"" was forbidden to bear witness against another under penalty of 15 ""solidi"" compensation. The ""antrustions"" seem to have played an important part at the time of Clovis. It was they, apparently, who formed the army which conquered the land, an army composed chiefly of Franks, and of a few Gallo-Romans who had"
"as wary of powerful ""equites"" as they were of senators. Augustus enforced a tacit rule that senators and prominent equestrians must obtain his express permission to enter the province of Egypt, a policy that was continued by his successors. Also, the command of the Praetorian Guard was normally split between two ""equites"", to reduce the potential for a successful ""coup d'état"". At the same time, command of the second military force in Rome, the ""cohortes urbanae"", was entrusted to a senator. Because the senate was limited to 600 members, ""equites"" ""equo publico"", numbering several thousands, greatly outnumbered men of senatorial"
"Vigiles The Vigiles or more properly the ""Vigiles Urbani"" (""watchmen of the City"") or ""Cohortes Vigilum"" (""cohorts of the watchmen"") were the firefighters and police of Ancient Rome. The ""Triumviri Nocturni"" (meaning ""three men of the night"") were the first men, being privately owned slaves, organized into a group that combated the common problems of fire and conflagrations in Rome. The privately operated system became ineffective, so in the interest of keeping himself and Rome safe, Augustus instituted a new public firefighting force called the ""Vigiles"". Augustus modelled the new firefighters after the fire brigade of Alexandria, Egypt. The Vigiles"
"leaving Christians naked [...] and raping wives and girls in front of their husbands and fathers."" The same Cioranu notes that the Sacred Band, though only numbering 7,000 men officially, could count then on support from at least 20,000 Greeks and allies. Vladimirescu was nevertheless able to prevent an alliance between Fochianos and Ypsilantis, reminding the former, who was effectively his hostage, of his pledge to the Divan. Together, they began policing the city to prevent Eterist looting. In the ""mahalale"", the Pandurs formed a citizens' self-defense force which may have grouped thousands of Romanians and Romanies. Fochianos commanded the"
"the Bodyguard may have consisted of 500 to 1,000 men. The German Bodyguard was valued as loyal and reliable. Emperors like Nero trusted the Germani especially because they were not of Roman origin. The Bodyguard was disbanded briefly after the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest, and was finally dissolved by Galba in 68, because of its loyalty to Nero (ruled 54-68), whom he had overthrown. The decision caused deep offence to the Batavi, and contributed to the outbreak of the Revolt of the Batavi in the following year. Their indirect successors were the ""Equites singulares Augusti"" which were, likewise, mainly"
"Royal Guard A Royal Guard describes any group of military bodyguards, soldiers or armed retainers responsible for the protection of a royal person, such as Emperor/Empress, King/Queen, or Prince/Princess. They often are an elite unit of the regular armed forces, or are designated as such, and may maintain special rights or privileges. Royal Guards have historically comprised both purely ceremonial units serving in close proximity to the monarch, as well as regiments from all arms, forming a designated substantial elite and intended for active service as part of the army. An example of the first category would include the ""Tropas"
"groups of the imperial bureaucracy and the military. In particular, the army’s support was split among three main candidates: Maximianus, the former ""domesticus"" (bodyguard) of Aëtius, who was the son of an Egyptian merchant named Domninus who had become rich in Italy; the future emperor Majorian, who commanded the army after the death of Aetius and who had the backing of the Empress Licinia Eudoxia; and Maximus himself, who had the support of the Roman Senate and who secured the throne on 17 March by distributing money to the officials of the imperial palace. After gaining control of the palace,"
"all Rome's legions. Also, the laws that kept citizens safe from magistrates' misuse of imperium did not exist during the monarchical period. Another power of the king was the power to either appoint or nominate all officials to offices. The king would appoint a ""tribunus celerum"" to serve as both the tribune of Ramnes tribe in Rome and as the commander of the king's personal bodyguard, the Celeres. The king was required to appoint the tribune upon entering office and the tribune left office upon the king's death. The tribune was second in rank to the king and also possessed"
"crowd of Perennis' plans. He wasn't believed, and Perennis had him executed. Later, a group of soldiers came to Commodus and relayed the details of the plot, and showed him coins with Perennis' portrait that they had stolen from one of prefect's sons. The emperor had him and his sons executed. Also instrumental in Perennis' downfall was Marcus Aurelius Cleander, who would go on to fulfill a similar role in the next period of Commodus's reign. Tigidius Perennis Sextus Tigidius Perennis (died 185) was a prefect of the Roman imperial bodyguard, known as the Praetorian Guard, during the reigns of"
"as a Roman protectorate and to show the eastern world that Rome held dominion over all land as far as the Euphrates. Due to his advanced age, Augustus was unable to travel to the east himself. There were few the Emperor trusted to settle matters in the east, but he was confident Gaius could. Gaius made a good choice, because his presence represented that of the imperial family – all orders, promises, or threats coming from him were as valid as if they came from the Emperor himself. Nonetheless, he was only eighteen, and therefore too young for the conduct"
"were centralized into a single garrison just outside Rome and the number of cohorts was increased from nine to twelve, one of which now held the daily guard at the palace. The practice of joint leadership between two prefects was abandoned, and Sejanus himself appointed the centurions and tribunes. With these changes in effect, Sejanus now commanded the complete loyalty of a force of around 12,000 soldiers, all of which were at his immediate disposal. The facade of Augustus was no longer maintained, and Tiberius openly displayed the strength of the guard at parades. In his capacity as Praetorian prefect,"