A legion at Thebes

Was there a legionary fortress at Thebes? I rather doubted Farnum's assertion (Positioning of the Roman Legions 2006) but his spare approach to referencing made it difficult to see on what basis he came to this conclusion (perhaps Speidel 1982 'Augustus' deployment of the legions in Egypt', ultimately). The argument is from Strabo 17.12 who says that there were three legions in Egypt (in the early Augustan period; one in the city (Alexandria) and two in the countryside). That one was in the south of the country is supposition. That is was based in a fortress at Thebes is more supposition. Yes, several centurions of leg XXII inscribed their names on the statue of Amenhotep III; yes, the legion III Diocletiana is listed there, very much later, in the Notitia Dignitatum; but no, there is no evidence of a full scale imperial legionary fortress (or at least if there is I'd love to hear about it).


Strabo goes on

17.30 at Babylon (Cairo) 'is an encampment of one of the three legions that guard Aegypt'

17.41 'One comes next to the Hermopolitic garrison, a kind of toll-station for goods brought down from the Thebaïs...and then to the Thebaïc garrison'

This does leave us needing to find a place for a third legion, but I'm not sure talk of a 'garrison' at Thebes is enough to assume a legionary fortress (but I ought really to look at the Greek text before drawing too many conclusions from precise terminology) .

Reading further, 17.53-4 would imply no more than three cohorts in the Thebaid (Syene) and when there is talk of a 'fortress' at Premnis this is to hold only 400 men. It would seem that an auxiliary garrison was considered enough to meet any external threat from this quarter.

Later legends of a Theban legion "legio militum, qui Thebaei appellabantur" converting en masse to Christianity are another thing entirely...