Page:The age of Justinian and Theodora (Volume 1).djvu/193

 whose military rule extended over the East, Thrace, and Illyricum respectively. The Palatine troops comprised about 50,000 men, the Comitatenses about 70,000. Cavalry formed a large proportion of all the forces, and may be estimated at about one third of the Limitanei and nearly one fourth of the other branches. In addition to these troops a fourth military class, the highest of all, was formed, the Imperial Guards already mentioned, viz., the Excubitors, Protectors, Candidates, and Scholars. The latter body consisted of seven troops of cavalry, each 500 strong, 3,500 in all. Owing their position solely to birth or veteran service, the three former groups were probably much less numerous, but their actual number is unknown. The usual division of the infantry was the legion of 1,000 men, that of the horse the vexillatio containing 500. The various bodies of foot soldiers were distinguished by the particular emblems which were depicted on their brightly painted shields, but amongst horse and foot alike each separate body was recognizable by an ensign of special design, for the former a vexillum, for the latter a