Cohors III Delmatarum equitata c . R . pf Cohors tertia Delmatarum equitata civium Romanorum pia fidelis ( " 3rd part - mounted Cohort of Dalmatae Roman citizens , dutiful and loyal " , abbreviated " COH III D " ) , was a Roman auxiliary mixed infantry and cavalry regiment . It is named after the Dalmatae , an Illyrian - speaking tribe that inhabited the Adriatic coastal mountain range of the eponymous Dalmatia . The ancient geographer Strabo describes these mountains as extremely rugged , and the Dalmatae as backward and warlike . He claims that they did not use money long after their neighbours adopted it and that they " made war on the Romans for a long time " . He also criticises the Dalmatae , a nation of pastoralists , for turning fertile plains into sheep pasture . Indeed , the name of the tribe itself is believed to mean " shepherds " , derived from the Illyrian word " delme " ( " sheep " ) . The final time this people fought against Rome was in the Illyrian revolt of 6 - 9 AD . The revolt was started by Dalmatae auxiliary forces and soon spread all over Dalmatia and Pannonia . The resulting war was described by the Roman writer Suetonius as the most difficult faced by Rome since the Punic Wars two centuries earlier . But after the war , the Dalmatae became a loyal and important source of recruits for the Roman army . According to Holder , a total of 12 " cohortes Delmatarum " appear to have been raised after the suppression of the Illyrian revolt in two series , of 7 and 5 respectively . All these units were in existence by the time of emperor Claudius ( r . 41 - 54 ) Of these , 9 appear to have survived into the 2nd century . The regiment was probably raised by founder - emperor Augustus ( r . 30BC - 14AD ) after 9 AD . It was certainly in existence by the time of Claudius ( r . 41 - 54 ) . Its early movements are unknown . It first appears in the datable epigraphic record in 80 , in Germania Superior . It was still there in 134 . Not later than 179 , it was transferred to Dacia Superior where it remained at least until 257 - 60 , the time of its last datable inscription , a stone dedicated to the safety of emperor Gallienus ( r . 260 - 8 ) . Shortly afterwards , Dacia was definitively evacuated by the Roman army and the regiment presumably withdrawn . Brick or tile stamps of this regiment have been found at the following Roman forts in Germania Superior , at Rottweil , Oberscheidenthal , Grosskrotzenburg , Rückingen , Wiesbaden , all on the line of the Main river . Attestations have also been found at Martinsfeld ( Noricum ) and Colonia Agrippina ( Germania Inferior ) . In Dacia Superior , the unit has left traces at Alt Moldava , Sucidava , Varheli and Praetorium ( Mehadia ) and Porolissum . The latter are the only datable evidence , for early / mid - 3rd century . The name of one " praefectus " ( regimental commander ) , one " signifer " ( standard - bearer ) and three " caligati " ( common soldiers ) are attested : The regiment ' s " c . R . " title does not appear in the record until 222 - 35 , but must have been granted considerably earlier , as after 212 all inhabitants of the empire were granted Roman citizenship . The regiment also appears to have acquired a number of titles . " Pia fidelis " first appears in 116 . In 222 , it was referred to as " Alexandriana " after emperor Severus Alexander ( r . ) . In 257 , it was called " Valeriana Galliena " after Gallienus . At that time it is also referred to as " milliaria " ( double - strength ) , likely a late upgrading . The last epigraphical record mentioning the unit dates around 268 .