Roman payslip confirms soldier's complaint

[guy]

 

Here's an article from 2019 that I missed. It deals with the probable frustration of a Roman legionary whose entire paycheck was used to buy military essentials (food, clothing and equipment), leaving him no money for his personal use:

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Fragment of a payslip belonging to Gaius Messius, a #Roman auxiliary soldier in the Legio X Fretensis, found at Masada, dating to the time of the siege. It shows that most of his pay went straight back to the Army to pay for his food, clothing, & equipment.

 

 

 

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Gaius Messius son of Gaius

(0022) Text: [hand 1] [Imp(eratore) Ves]pas[ia]n[o Au]g(usto) IIII co(n)[s(ule)] | [r]atio st[ip]enda | C(aius) Messius C(aii) f(ilius) Fab(ia) Beru(tensis) | [accepi st]ipendi(um) x L | ex eos s[olvi] | hordiaria [x XVI] | [hand 2] […u]rnius | sumtuarium x XX[…] | c[a]ligas x V | lorum fasciari(um) x II | tunica linia x VII || accepi stipendi(um) x LX[II] | ex eos solvi | hordiaria x XV | sumtuarium x [XX] | [hand 3] C(aius) Antonius | pallium opertoriu(m) [x …] | [hand 4] Puplius Valerius | tunca alba [x …]

 

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Provenience: Masada, Judaea 72-75 CE

Commentary: Gaius Messius’ pay receipt, found in the camps outside of Masada. Gaius Messius was an auxiliary soldier, though his unit is unknown.  It is interesting to observe how much of his pay went to mandatory expenses: clothing, food, etc. He seems effectively penniless after payday.

 

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  Translation:

The fourth consulate of Imperator Vespasianus Augustus.

Accounts, salary.

Gaius Messius, son of Gaius, of the tribe Fabia, from Beirut.

I received my stipendium of 50 denarii, out of which I have paid barley money 16 denarii. […]rnius: food expenses 20(?) denarii; boots 5 denarii; leather strappings 2 denarii; linen tunic 7 denarii.

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Article's assessment of the situation:

 

Let’s do a quick tally of that pay slip

• 16 denarii for “barley money.”

20 denarii for “food expenses.” 5 denarii for “boots.” 2 denarii for “leather strappings.” 7 denarii for a “linen tunic.”

That comes out to 50 denarii — leaving Gaius flat broke immediately after payday.

 

https://armyofromanpalestine.com/0022

 

https://taskandpurpose.com/mandatory-fun/roman-soldier-payslip-green-weenie-immortal/

 

Summary: Soldiers' frustration and discontent with the military bureaucracy is a universal theme, occurring in all times and places.

 

 

guy also known as gaius

Edited February 19, 2023 by guy

[caldrail]

Our sample size is limited to very few examples so drawing conclusions might be premature. Why is our auxiliary paying for barley? That's animal food, aside from punishments (which would mean he was paying as well as suffering humiliation for sleeping on duty). Presumably he has access to an animal such as a mule and must pay for the supply to feed it (since many animals were not 'issued' but requisitioned as necessary). One could speculate that the costs were deliberate. Is an officer scamming his men? Or is this a means of stamping out corruption (you cannot bribe if you have no cash). Or is this working on a similar premise to the modern Foreign Legion, where restrictions are applied to prevent breaches of discipline? There's a lot of possibilities but little to go on.

Edited February 11, 2021 by caldrail

[The Eagle maker]

Hmmm, Masada, isolated location, nothing for the troops to do when they aren't on duty except gamble, drink and whore (no doubt there were 'camp followers'?)

Easy way to restrict this is to ensure the troops only have what they need to survive, easier to maintain discipline this way and keep them focused on their job.

Like all soldiers, they would have come up with creative ways to make additional income, black market, smuggling, theft etc, controlling the troops finances is merely Commands way to say they are not contributing to a particular issue.

I'm an old soldier.

[caldrail]

Roman soldiers were paid three times a year in a special ceremony that sometimes even interrupted campaigns (including Masada). They also held auctions of booty 'under the spear' after a victory. In fact, booty was a major source of income for the legions and a wise commander allowed his men to profit from their enemies. Soldiers denied booty quickly became rebellious, and looking at the sources, it's apparent they were often stubborn and uncooperative (Even Julius Caesar had to cut short his journey down the Nile with Cleopatra because his guards refused to travel further). 

Then of course the soldiers scammed and gambled, losing their ill gotten gains by one means or another, or spending what they had left on the usual wine, women, and so forth. Little wonder perhaps that when a legion was mobilised, it was commonplace to hold a requisition where troops went through the local population taking whatever they thought would be useful.  One of the Roman satires mentions losing a donkey to legionaries and the consequences of complaining about it. Cicero commiserates with his friend for the loss of his animal.

And let's not forget that bribery was endemic. In the early Principate the legions even posted official bribe rates to avoid unscrupulous centurions getting too rich.

Edited May 18, 2021 by caldrail