Rome

[Boyar Son]

Nobody knows where the Rubicon is. Rome did have a garrison, btw, generals just couldn't take their legions past the gates, they had to camp on the Campus Martius, I believe. The exception to this was a Triumphus, of course.

No one knows where the Rubicon is?

Lame...

[MarcusAureliusAntoninus]

Presumed course of the Rubicon
(Wikipedia and its inaccurate accuracies)

The Rubicon was basically the border between Roman Italia and Gallic Italia (even afte the conquest of N.Italia).

The "Field of Mars" was were legions assembled and camped when near Rome. Though armies were not officially allowed to be deployed in Italia.

Rome had a 'police force' in prefects. They were men who fought fires. Though they normally fought the fire by knocking down the building. And they carried a kind of pick-axe with them to knock over buildings. They would also keep the peace (with their pick-axes). But for the most part, if you lived in Roma and had money, you hired your own guards. If you didn't have money you had to protect yourself. (Remember that throughout history, everyone carried a knife around with them as a multi-tool and protection.) In the Imperial Era, there were the Urban Cohorts. Sent in during large roits. I get the picture these guys didn't break up riots, but rather killed everyone roiting.

[Watchman]

Certainly sounds like a very Roman approach to disorderly subjects, that.

[CaesarAugustus]

The Praetorians also guarded Rome (and Constantinople, later), didn't they?

[MarcusAureliusAntoninus]

The Praetorians also guarded Rome (and Constantinople, later), didn't they?

They guarded the emporer from Rome...

[Boyar Son]

Pretorians were broken up by Constantine, so no.

[CaesarAugustus]

Damn, I hate Constantine! He ruined every good thing about the Roman Empire!

PS: I though that the Rubicon would have marked the border into Italy. So why was it such a big deal for Caesar to have crossed that one little river one third of the way down Italy?

[MarcusAureliusAntoninus]

Damn, I hate Constantine! He ruined every good thing about the Roman Empire!

He bailed out a sinking ship. Rome was broken long before him.

The Preatorian Guard was responsible for nearly all of the assassinations of emporers. One time selling the emporer possition to the highest bidder. They were corrupt and powerful. They needed to be removed, I'm surprised he was able to do it without being assassinated himself. (Reminds me of that time the Ottomans attacked their own Janissary army, just less bloody.)

[Watchman]

Yeah - who else has pawned off an empire to the highest bidder ? That's so badass it alone justifies the Praetorians' existence in history.

[Centurio Nixalsverdrus]

I though that the Rubicon would have marked the border into Italy. So why was it such a big deal for Caesar to have crossed that one little river one third of the way down Italy?

The Rubicon was the border between the territory of Rome and the province.

I think Caesar was proconsul of the provinces of Illyricum, Gallia Togata (Cisalpine Gaul) and Gallia Transalpina, plus of course the new provinces that he erected. Proconsul means "for the consul", so he had the full power of the consules for this determined territory. In Italia reigned the real consules of course, so it was a really severe crime to bring a legion into Italia. It was a bit like starting a world war.