The Campaigns of the Tenth Legion

In “Commentaries on the Gallic War,” Julius Caesar wrote, as usual, about himself in the third person: “If no one else will follow him (Caesar), then he will march even with just the Tenth Legion alone: in it he trusts, and it will be his Praetorian Cohort. It must be said that Caesar always granted this legion special privileges and relied greatly on its bravery…” What was this chosen Legion of Caesar’s, and why did he love it so much and count on its reciprocal loyalty? <img alt="" src="https://miro.medium.com/v2/resize:fit:630/1*0d36yJBe2GOpM_qEhajpbQ.png" style="height:541px; width:700px" /> Julius Caesar in a Roman military camp. A modern illustration. The full Latin name of the Tenth Legion was: “Legio X Gemina Pia VI Fidelis VI Domitiana Antoniniana, Gordiana, Deciana, Floriana, Cariniana, Maximiniana.” “Gemina,” meaning “twin” (literally “twin”), signified that there was another legion in the list of Roman legions with the same number — in this case, it was the Tenth Legion “Fretensis Antoniniana Pia Fidelis,” named after its base near the strait between Sicily and Italy, in Messina. The Tenth “Twin” was initially called “Equestris” (cavalry). <a href="https://medium.com/@ancient.rome/the-campaigns-of-the-tenth-legion-9bc88df4b278">Website</a>