Armed Forces and Units
Praetorian Guard
Ancient
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The Praetorian Guard was the personal bodyguard of the Roman emperors, formally established by Augustus around 27 BC from earlier republican-era commanders' guard cohorts. Based at the Castra Praetoria in Rome, the Guard's proximity to the throne made it a political force in its own right: Praetorian prefects and cohorts repeatedly made and unmade emperors, most infamously auctioning the throne to Didius Julianus in 193 CE. Constantine I disbanded the Guard in 312 CE after it backed his rival Maxentius at the Battle of the Milvian Bridge.
Facts
Force TypeImperial bodyguard: elite infantry cohorts protecting the emperor and Rome itself, with unique privileges of pay, term of service and proximity to power 1 Founded Year CountryRoman Empire (Roman Republic origins) 1 Sources
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