The IX Spanish Legion has existed since the first century BC. The legion fought in various provinces of the late Roman Republic and early Roman Empire. It was considered one of the best in history. During its existence, the legion achieved legendary status.

And suddenly, unexpectedly, the legion disappears from the surviving Roman records after 120 AD, and there is no record of what happened to it.

Let's start with the name. Here everything is simple - the Spanish Legion was named because it was formed by Pompey the Great in Spain.

For the first time actively showed itself during the war between the Romans and rebellious Italian tribes, the Roman army besieged the Italic fortress Ascolia in southern Italy.

Numerous objects from the siege have been discovered in the vicinity of the ancient city. Some of them are inscribed with various black humor messages, while others depict Roman numerals believed to indicate the legions of Roman besieging troops.

Among the inscriptions found are references to Legio IX, the ninth legion. This is the first confirmed evidence of the existence of a ninth legion in the Roman army.

Since then, the Ninth Legion has played a leading role in some of the great wars of antiquity. In 59 BC, it was one of the four original legions Caesar received from the Senate, the manpower he needed to launch his famous Gallic conquest. From the first battle with the Helvetians at Bibracte to the epic siege of Alesia, the Ninth Legion played a crucial role in the success of Caesar's Gallic campaign and his rise to prominence.

This legion probably accompanied Caesar on his short-lived second expedition to Britain in 54 BC. Little did anyone know that almost 100 years later, the Ninth Legion would return again to this distant island.

During the civil war between Caesar and Pompey the Great, the Ninth Legion continued to serve Caesar. Although the legion was badly damaged by Pompey's forces at the Battle of Dyrrhachium, it remained an integral part of Caesar's army. In particular, it played a role in his notable victories, first at Pharsalus and then at Thapsus.

It was not until 46-45 BC, after the victory at Thapsus, that Caesar finally disbanded the veterans of the Ninth Legion, many of whom he settled in Picenum. However, the legion soon returned to history.

Within ten years, the Ninth Legion was restored by either Ventidius or Octavian. It served Octavian until his final victory over Mark Antony and Cleopatra at the Battle of Accium in 31 BC. After this success, Octavian began to rule the entire Roman Empire.

The Ninth Legion was thrown into various hot spots.

In 29 BC, Augustus led the Ninth and a number of other legions into northern Spain. This was a campaign against the last unconquered tribes of the Iberian Peninsula: mainly Cantabrians and Asturians. Ten years lasted the war, during which the Ninth Legion was shown to have played an almost decisive role in the final victory.

From then on, the Ninth Legion seems to have been sent to the Roman frontier in Pannonia, where it remained for most of the first half of the first century AD. But there was an exception: on one occasion the legion was sent far from Pannonia.

In 21 AD, Emperor Tiberius transferred a legion to North Africa, the breadbasket of Rome. Tiberius sent them to quell the rebellion of what he considered an arrogant bandit, a man named Tacfarinatus. He was a former soldier in the Roman army who had deserted to lead a tribal revolt against Rome. Standard practice - the barbarians who took over Rome centuries later were also part of the regular Roman army.

It's hard to call Tacfarinatus a serious commander - he lost all open battles with the Romans. But he wore down the Roman army by guerrilla warfare. He attacked and captured wagons, robbed merchants. And if the Romans attacked, he fled with his companions into the desert.

With the support of the Ninth Legion, the Romans were soon victorious. Tiberius thought that the war was over, the commander of the Ninth Legion Publius Scipio was honored in Lepsis Magna, and the legion was recalled to Pannonia. Returning to Pannonia, the legion remained there until 43 AD, when it was again overseas.

In the same year, almost 100 years after Caesar's Ninth Legion accompanied its commander to Britain, the Ninth Legion again sailed to the island as part of Emperor Claudius' invasion force. It took part in the subsequent Roman occupation of southern Britain, and over the next 15 years the legion fought numerous battles with Celtic tribes.

In 61 A.D., Roman Britain was gripped by a bloody revolt. Boudicca, queen of the Iceni and a woman who longed for revenge against the Romans for the cruelty and humiliation of her family and her people, gathered a huge force of Britons to drive the Romans from the island.

Upon learning of the attack, the Ninth Legion traveled south to come to the aid of the city and help quell the rebellion. Boudicca and her large army overtook and destroyed most of the legion.

The Ninth Legion was not the only one to fall at the hands of Boudicca. In all, chroniclers estimate that up to 80,000 Roman soldiers and their allies died during the revolt.

It is amazing how the local militia were able to cope with the regular Roman army without having a serious numerical advantage. Knowledge of the terrain and high motivation played a role.

Despite the devastation at the hands of Boudicca, the Romans subsequently crushed the rebellion and got the Ninth Legion back on its feet with the help of reinforcements from the continent. The legion was later able to resuscitate and fight in Scotland.

The last records of the Ninth Legion date from 120, and by 197 there is documentation that the legion no longer exists. Thus, between 120 and 197, the famous Ninth Legion disappeared.

The prevailing hypothesis has been that the 9th Legion was destroyed in Northern Britain. A catastrophe occurred there when the legion was wiped out around 110 AD.

However, in 2015, a record was found of the existence of the 9th Legion in 120 AD. And since then, there have been two hypotheses as to how the legion disappeared:

They were wiped out during the Jewish revolts. The 22nd Legion fought in Judea. And it has a similar story - all records of it disappear after 120 AD.

From 161 to 166, Emperor Marcus Aurelius was at war with Parthia. During this period an unidentified legion was surrounded and destroyed, according to the historian Cassius Dio. This may have been the famous Ninth.

However, none of these events records the demise of the 9th Legion. So the disappearance of the IX Spanish Legion is still a mystery that may never be solved.