LEGIO IX HISPANA. A comprehensive study into the ancient mystery of the disappearance of the Ninth Legion of the Roman Empire.

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2025-01-15

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en

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Legio IX Hispana disappeared from Roman sources in the first decennia of the second century. For a long time it was thought that the legion was destroyed in an uprising of northern British peoples around 117 and this story echoed in popular literature. However, new sources indicating the legion's presence in Nijmegen combined with careers of officers who served in the ninth legion after its supposed destruction showed that Legio IX Hispana could not have been destroyed in this uprising. Rather, it could have met its end later in Britannia, in Nijmegen while it was stationed there or in the eastern parts of the Roman Empire. In this research, these three possible scenarios are analysed by looking at all available sources. This way, an attempt is made to provide the first comprehensive study of the disappearance of Legio IX Hispana carried out by a non-British historian.

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Faculteit der Letteren