Page "Roman legion" Paragraph 74

* Other Centurions: Each legion had 59 or 60 centurions, one to command each century of the 10 cohorts.

They were the backbone of the professional army and were the career soldiers who ran the day to day life of the soldiers and issued commands in the field.

They were generally moved up from the ranks, but in some cases could be direct appointments from the Emperor or other higher-ranking officials.

The cohorts were ranked from the first to the tenth and the century within each cohort ranked from 1 to 6, with only 5 centuries in the first cohort ( for a total of 59 centurions and the primus pilus ).

The century that each centurion commanded was a direct reflection of his rank: command of the 1st century of the first cohort was the highest, and the 6th century of the 10th cohort was the lowest.

Paid ten times the basic wage.