Legio II Italica Roman Vexillum

Legio II Italica was a Danubian legion created during the reign of Marcus Aurelius to address the military crisis of the 2nd century.

Founded between 165 and 166, along with Legio III Italica, it served to reinforce the Germanic front while Lucius Verus was engaged in the East against the Parthians. Its emblem was the she-wolf with the twins Romulus and Remus, emphasizing its direct connection with Rome and the two founding emperors. Initially, the legion was stationed in the Alpine region, in the Praetentura Italiae et Alpium, to protect the northern approaches to the peninsula.

During the Marcomannic Wars, it was employed to repel the great invasion of 170 and was subsequently transferred to Noricum along the Danube, with bases at Albing and later, under Commodus, at Lauriacum (modern Enns), which became its stable headquarters. In 193, Legio II Italica supported Septimius Severus in his struggle for power, earning the honorary title of fidelis for its loyalty. Active throughout the 3rd century, it participated in campaigns in Dacia and against the Goths, remaining a pillar of Danubian defense until the late imperial age.