Villa Hadriana, Tibur, Near Rome, early march 127 CE
Through the snowy alpine pass or through the coastal roads, despite the dangers of the road, the courriers of the imperial postal services had done their duty. Now it was time for their Emperor to do his. Yet Hadrian was worn out, a sick old man used by decades of politics and, more recently, family strife. While he still clothed himself in purple, he was but a shadow of his former self, his handkerchief bloodier every time he lowered it, and some wondered privately if his brain did not leave him piece by piece with every cough…
Yet while he did indeed sometimes show signs of weakness, this was not one of those days. The imperial council was gathered in a small, warm room deep in the Villa Hadriana. The heads of the main administrations, the best generals present in Rome and the imperial heir were all present, sitting on both sides of a large table dominated by their leader. Behind those men, alongside the walls of the room, some aids and slaves stood ready to do their masters’ bidding.
“So, you do confirm the reports of barbarian attacks on the Agri Decumani and in the formerly Iazyges lands ?” asked Hadrian, his voice trailing into a feeble cough while he looked at his secretary Ab Epistulis Latinis.
Suetonius quietly acquiesced : “Yes princeps, at least two armies of some 30 000 barbarians are reported to attack on both of those borders, a simultaneity that seems to point toward an alliance between the tribes. Even our former allies the Hermunduri seems to have raised swords against us, alongside with the Chatti, while the Quadi seem to raid our land with the survivors of the Iazyges on whom they preyed not so long long ago.”
Voltinius intervened : “I do not like the fact that two tribes standing on the opposite sides of the Marcomanni territory dare to declare war upon Rome while we hear nothing of this tribe… I do suspect that any move to reinforce our borders with forces opposing the Marcomanni would lead to their crossing of the Danuvius. I’m also rather uncomfortable with the idea of moving troops from the Rhine as the barbarians living on the other side of the river may also take advantage, whether or not any previous agreement was found between their chieftains. Yet we have to move forces to fight against the threats of the two armies already in the field.”
Most of the officials gave signs of acquiescence to the heir’s words, but it was the Ab Epistulis that actually voiced the general opinion : “The honorable Caius Aelius Caesar Voltinius is correct with his appraisal of the situation, we are probably facing a threat such as Rome had not faced since the time of Marius and Sulla, when the germanic tribes destroyed the armies of the Republic at the shameful battle of Arausio.”
Another of Hadrian’s general spoke then : “We must move rhenan legions and auxiliary units toward the south-east, and have some british forces take their place and lead offensive actions in the German territory to keep the barbarians on the wrong foot. The recent victories of our Caesar have left the britonculi weak, so that we don’t have to fear any kind of rebellion for at least three or four years. We can also move troops from Spain, the VII Gemina, along with the Ala Secunda Flavia Hispanorum, the two mounted cohortes Prima Celtiberorum and Secunda Gallica Civium Romanorum and the two Nova Tironium infantry cohorts to reinforce Germania Superior. Once the situation there has been contained they can move eastward and crush an eventual Marcomanni attack. As for the Quadi and Iazyges, the garrisons of Dacia can support the forces already in Pannonia Inferior, which are already some of our strongest garrisons.”
Many agreed to the plan. Pannonia Inferior was the name given to all of the lands captured between the Danube and Dacia, the former province of the same name having been incorporated into Pannonia Superior following the victory of some eight years before. As it was rather exposed to raids from the north, it had been decided to provide the region with a strong defensive force despite the fact they had much less border to defend. Hadrian thought of the area as a second Agri Decumanes, a vulnerable but strategical place where defense in depth was to be attempted so that the lands behind the Danuvius may stay safe from the barbarians.
The Emperor rose a hand and all stopped speaking : “Very well, send the spanish legion, the ala and the mounted cohors to Germania, but leave the infantry cohors behind. The gold mine must not be left unattended. Raise one new ala in the region, and temporarily move two cohors from Mauritania to Hispania, for the duration of the conflict. My son will lead the hispanic relief force, as a guarantee that the men will be returned to their original bases once the crisis is over. They have not moved in a long time, many are natives of the place and I do not thrust them not to rebel without such a guarantee.”
Hadrian coughed once more before continuing : “You are our best general, Caius, so I’m confident the task I’m giving to you will be accomplished. But remember that those hispanic units haven’t seen any fighting in a long time, possibly since the year of the four emperors, some sixty years ago… They spend most of their time in small garrisons spread all over the province, dealing with civilian matters or keeping watch over the gold mines. Long past is the time when the divine Augustus himself needed to campaign there to restore peace and the rule of the laws of Rome. It means you will need to retrain them to make them a proper military force if you want to achieve victory, as I personally saw, when I visited the land a few years ago, that they were far from combat ready. But I’m afraid you will not have much time to do so.”
