Aurelian's Palestinian Clubmen

[rodge]

Whats the current view on these troops gents?

Zosimus 'New History':
[1.52.3] Finding the Palmyrene army drawn up before Emesa, amounting to seventy thousand men, consisting of Palmyrenes and their allies, he opposed to them the Dalmatian cavalry, the Moesians and Pannonians, and the Celtic legions of Noricum and Rhaetia,

[1.52.4] and besides these the choicest of the imperial regiment selected man by man, the Mauritanian horse, the Tyaneans, the Mesopotamians, the Syrians, the Phoenicians, and the Palestinians, all men of acknowledged valor; the Palestinians besides other arms wielding clubs and staves.

Spiedel 'Ancient Germanic Warriors: Warrior Styles from Trajan's Column to Icelandic Sagas' believes that they were brought from the west by Aurelian and were Frankish and Alemannic warriors used to combatting cataphracts with clubs (he also mentions the formation of the Mattiarri 'by northmen' some 20 years later and also Constantine's victory at Torino in 312AD  by the use of clubs against clibanarri).

So how best to represent these troops in 15mm?

[Duncan Head]

The old WRG lists used to have these as irregulars actually raised in Palestine from the locals; the newer DBMM lists treat them as detachments from regular Roman army units based in Palestine, because of the parallels of Constantine's clubmen and other Roman examples which suggest a standard Roman method of cataphract-bashing.

I was not convinced by Speidel's argument, as (1) why would transported Germans be called Palestinian? and (b) one of his arguments is that the elite Germans with clubs are the same type of guys as the clubmen on Trajan's Column, who seem to me to be using quite feeble single-handed cudgels, not the sort of thing you'd bash a cataphract with to any effect. Anyone can use a club, and arguing that the Palestinians are Germans because some Germans hit people with bits of tree seems weak.

If you want club-armed Germans, there's Donnington EGF15 or Minifigs Z42 - though both based on the Column. I don't know if anyone makes a Roman club-wielder, you might have to convert.

[rodge]

'I don't know if anyone makes a Roman club-wielder, you might have to convert.'

From a Roman Auxiliary? Or from summat in Middle Eastern kit?

[Duncan Head]

Depends who you think they are  Take your pick.

Edit: Irregular PR25 is a Palestinian clubman, no idea what he looks like.

[rodge]

Well I think I'll try and convert staff slingers so they are auxiliary lads

https://shop.ancient-modern.co.uk/xrf33-staff-slinger-689-p.asp
https://www.essexminiatures.co.uk/products/bza13?_pos=2&_sid=e6087427d&_ss=r
https://shop.ancient-modern.co.uk/xrf15-staff-slinger-671-p.asp

Thanks for the Irregular suggestion, i'll have a dig about and see if I can find a visual

[Patrick Waterson]

Zosimus has the cataphract-bashers armed with 'clubs and staves' - I have not found a Greek text to see exactly what these are, but concussion weapons seem indicated.

They do however seem to have been very effective:

Observing that the Palmyrenes had broken their ranks when the horse commenced their pursuit, they [the Roman infantry] wheeled about, and attacked them while they were scattered and out of order. Upon which many were killed, because the one side fought with the usual weapons, while those of Palestine brought clubs and staves against coats of mail made of iron and brass. - Zosimus I.53.2

I begin to wonder if the weapons concerned were more like two-handed maces (a mace on a staff) than simple clubs.

[Swampster]

Zosimus has the cataphract-bashers armed with 'clubs and staves' - I have not found a Greek text to see exactly what these are, but concussion weapons seem indicated.

Greek text (and a Latin translation) here https://play.google.com/books/reader?id=DB8bAAAAIAAJ&hl=en&pg=GBS.PA47

Seems the relevant word is 'rhopalon'.

Woodhouse's dictionary gives another word and also gives the same word for 'mace', so perhaps 'rhopalon' can also mean a generic bashing weapon and not just a Captain Caveman style log.

[Patrick Waterson]

Thanks, Peter.

Given the general level and style of technology of Aurelian's time, this would certainly be consistent with a finished metal-headed bludgeoning weapon; we might even be tempted to equate it to the mediaeval maul, which served a not dissimilar purpose.