I must not, however, omit to mention the manner in which Justinian
treated the soldiers. He appointed commissioners, called
Logothetae,[17] with directions to squeeze as much money as they could
out of them, a twelfth part of the sum thus obtained being assured to
them. The following was their mode of operation every year. It was an
established custom that the soldiers should not all have the same pay.
Those who were young, and had just joined, received less than those who
had undergone hardships in the field and were already half-way up the
list; while the veterans, whose term of service was all but over,
received a more considerable sum, that they might have sufficient to
live upon as private individuals, and, after their death, might be able
to leave a small inheritance by way of consolation to their families.
Thus, in course of time, the soldiers gradually rose in rank, according
as their comrades died or retired from the service, and their pay from
the public funds was regulated in accordance with their seniority. But
these commissioners would not allow the names of those who had died or
fallen in battle to be struck out, or the vacancies to be filled, until
a long interval had elapsed. The result was, that the army was short of
men, and the survivors, after the death of the veterans, were kept in a
position far inferior to their merits, and received less pay than they
ought to have done, while in the meantime the commissioners handed over
to Justinian the money they thus purloined from the soldiers. In
addition, they harassed the soldiers with several other kinds of
injustices, by way of recompense for the dangers they had undergone in
the field; they were taunted with the name of Greeks, as if Greece
could never produce a brave soldier; others were cashiered, as not
having been ordered by the Emperor to serve, although they showed their
commissions, the genuineness of which the Logothetae did not hesitate
to call in question; others, again, were disbanded for having absented
themselves a short time from their quarters. Afterwards, some of the
Palace Guards were sent into every part of the Empire to take an exact
inventory of the soldiers who were or were not fit for service. Some
were deprived of their belts, as being useless and too old, and for the
future were obliged to solicit alms from the charitable in the open
market-place—a sad and melancholy spectacle to all beholders. The rest
were reduced to such a state of terror that, in order to avoid similar
treatment, they offered large sums of money to buy themselves out, so
that the soldiers, being thus rendered destitute and in many ways
enfeebled, conceived an utter aversion to the service.
This endangered the authority of the Romans, especially in Italy.
Alexander, who was sent thither as commissioner, unhesitatingly
reproached the soldiers for this. He also exacted large sums of money
from the Italians, under the pretence of punishing them for their
negotiations with Theoderic and the Goths. The soldiers were not the
only persons who were reduced to poverty and privation by the
commissioners; but those who had accompanied the generals in different
capacities and had formerly enjoyed a high reputation, found themselves
in great distress, as they had no means of procuring the ordinary
necessaries. Since I am speaking of the soldiers, I will give a few
additional details. Preceding Emperors had, for a very long time past,
carefully posted upon all the frontiers of the Empire a large military
force to protect its boundaries, and particularly, in the Eastern
provinces, in order to repel the inroads of the Persians and Saracens,
they had established garrisons called “frontier troops.” Justinian at
first treated these troops with such shameful neglect that their pay
was four, or even five years in arrear; and, when peace was concluded
between Rome and Persia, these unhappy individuals, who expected to
enjoy the advantages of peace, were obliged to make a present to the
treasury of the money due to them; and the Emperor finally disbanded
them most unjustly. Thus the frontiers of the Roman Empire remained
ungarrisoned, and the troops had nothing to subsist upon except the
benevolence of the charitable.
There was a certain body of soldiers, about 3,500 in number, called
“Scholares,” who had been originally appointed as an imperial
palace-guard, and received a larger pay from the imperial treasury than
the rest of the army. They were first chosen according to merit from
the Armenians; but, from the reign of Zeno, anyone, however cowardly
and unwarlike, was allowed to enter this body. In course of time, even
slaves, on payment of a sum of money, were admitted to their ranks.
When Justin succeeded to the throne, Justinian enrolled a large number
on payment of considerable sums of money. When the list was filled up,
he added about 2,000 more who were called “Supernumeraries,” but
disbanded them, when he himself came to the throne, without any
reimbursement. In regard to these “Scholares,” he invented the
following plan: Whenever it was probable that an expedition would be
despatched to Italy, Libya, or Persia, he ordered them to make ready to
take part in the campaign, although he knew that they were utterly
unfit for war; and they, being afraid of this, surrendered their
salaries to the Emperor. This was a frequent occurrence. When Peter was
“Master of Offices,” he daily harassed them with monstrous thefts. This
man, although he was of a mild and by no means overbearing disposition,
was the greatest thief in the world and an absolute slave to sordid
avarice. He it was who (as I have related) contrived the murder of
Amalasunta, the daughter of Theodoric.
There are in the imperial household other officers of much higher
rank, who, having purchased their positions for a larger sum, receive
better pay in proportion. These are called “Domestics” and
“Protectors.” They have always been exempt from military service, and
are only reckoned members of the palace on account of their dignity and
rank. Some of them are constantly in Byzantium, while others have long
been established in Galatia or other provinces. Justinian frightened
these in the same manner into abandoning their salaries to him. In
conclusion, it was the custom that, every five years, the Emperor
should present each of the soldiers with a fixed sum in gold.
Accordingly, every five years, commissioners were despatched to all
parts of the Empire, to bestow five staters of gold upon every soldier
as a gift from the Emperor. This had long been an established and
inviolable practice. But, from the day that Justinian assumed the
management of affairs, he did nothing of the kind, and showed no
intention of doing so during the thirty-two years of his reign, so that
the custom was almost completely forgotten.