Legio II Traiana Fortis Roman Standard

The Legio II Traiana Fortis was founded by the emperor Trajan in AD 105, together with the XXX Ulpia Victrix, for the campaigns against the Dacians, which ended with the annexation of Dacia to Rome in 106.

Its emblem was the demigod Hercules, a clear allusion to strength and military valour. After the victory in Dacia, the legion followed Trajan in the great war against the Parthians that began in 115, operating on the eastern front of the empire.

In 117 it was transferred to Judaea to keep order after local revolts, a role it would fulfil in other periods of provincial unrest. Around 125 the II Traiana was sent to Egypt and stationed at Nicopolis, near Alexandria, sharing the camp with the XXII Deiotariana. During the Bucolic War, when Egypt rose against Rome, the legion heroically defended Alexandria, enduring famine and plague until the arrival of Avidius Cassius in 172; for this episode it earned the cognomen “Fortis”. Documents still attest the presence of the II Traiana Fortis in Egypt in the 5th century, testifying to its long history of imperial service.