Milites

Milites were the trained regular footsoldiers of ancient Rome, and later a term used to describe "soldiers" in Medieval Europe.

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Roman Era

These men were the non-specialist regular soldiers that made up the bulk of a Legion's numbers and were the social superiors of ordinary footsoldiers known as pedites. Alongside soldiering, they also performed guard duties, labour work, building and other non-combat roles, which increased their status in urban centers.[1] Milites would usually have to serve for several years before becoming eligible for training to become immunes and thus become specialists with better pay.[2][3]

Medieval Era

The Latin term eventually became synonymous with "soldier", a general term that, in Western Europe, became associated with the mounted knight, because they composed the professional military corps during the Early Medieval Era.[4][5][6][7] The same term, however, was expanded to mean less distinguished infantry soldiers (Milites Pedites).[7][8]

Other usages include the "Milites Templi," referring to the Knights Templar, or Milites Sancti Jacobi (Order of Santiago).[9][10][11]

From the Latin root, "Miles" derived words such as "Military" and "Militia".

References
  1. Wickham, Chris (2014-11-06) [2013]. Medieval Rome: Stability and Crisis of a City, 900-1150. OUP Oxford. ISBN 978-0-19-103090-1.
  2. Berger, Adolf (1968). Encyclopedic Dictionary of Roman Law, Vol 43, p. 582. American Philosophical Society
  3. James, Charles (1810). A New and Enlarged Military Dictionary: In French and English, Vol. 1. T. Egerton
  4. Fleming, Donald F. (1990). "Milites as Attestors to Charters in England, 1101–1300". Albion. 22 (2): 185–198. doi:10.2307/4049596. ISSN 0095-1390.
  5. Bachrach, David Stewart (July 7, 2015). "Milites and Warfare in Pre-Crusade Germany". War in History. 22 (3): 298–343. doi:10.1177/0968344514524938. ISSN 0968-3445.
  6. Morillo, Stephen (2001). Milites, knights and samurai: Military terminology, comparative history, and the problem of translation (PDF).
  7. Kostick, Conor (May 31, 2008). "Milites: Knights or Simply Mounted Warriors?". The Social Structure of the First Crusade. BRILL. ISBN 978-90-04-16665-3.
  8. Hanson, Victor Davis (2007-12-18). Carnage and Culture: Landmark Battles in the Rise to Western Power. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-307-42518-8.
  9. Kostick, C. (2008). "Milites: Knights Or Simply Mounted Warriors?" in The Social Structure of the First Crusade, pp. 159-186. Brill. ISBN 9004166653
  10. Crawford, Paul (October 22, 2007) [1993]. Milites Christi: A Categorization and Assessment of the Military Orders of the Middle Ages. Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin--Madison.
  11. Constable, Giles (2008). Crusaders and Crusading in the Twelfth Century. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. ISBN 978-0-7546-6523-6.
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