Roman Emperor Augustus created the Vigiles. The Vigiles were an organization of freedmen that fought fires. They would use buckets and water pumps. Emperor Nero also created "bucket brigades" to help fight fires. Most ancient Roman cities had no firefighting organizations or equipment dedicated to fighting fires. [1] .

During the Great Fire of Rome in AD 64 over one third of Rome was destroyed by flames. The young Emperor Nero helped to direct the Vigiles in fighting the flames. It was rumoured that the Vigiles intentionally allowed the city to burn under orders from Nero, who later built his palace on land that was cleared by the fire.

Roman Emperor Augustus formed a group of slaves, Vigiles, in AD 6 to combat fires using bucket brigades and pumps, as well as poles, hooks and even ballistae to tear down buildings in advance of the flames. The Corps Vigiles patrolled the streets of Rome to …

We’ve heard previously about the great fire of Rome in AD 64; now let’s take a look at the men who had to face it! This week, J. Alcantara examines the unsung heroes of ancient Rome, the Vigiles. In a time when the average Roman house was largely wooden, when...

…corps of professional firemen (vigiles), comprising seven squads, or cohorts, of 1,000 freedmen apiece. The vigiles also had minor police duties, especially at night. He sought to impose order in the often violent streets by creating three cohorts under the command of the urban prefect; their main duty was…

2016年12月6日 · The idea of a permanent firefighting service spread to other Roman cities. Claudius (r. 41-54 CE) created two additional units of vigiles to safeguard Ostia and Puteoli, and other fire brigades are known at Carthage, Lyon, Ravenna, and Constantinople in Late Antiquity.

2025年4月2日 · Discover the crucial role of the Vigiles in ancient Rome as firefighters and nighttime police, ensuring public safety through fire prevention, suppression, and maintaining order in the city's streets.

2024年3月24日 · The Roman Empire Fire Service. In the early years of the Roman Empire, an organized service of professional firefighters was established to limit the damage of the frequent fires triggered by flame lamps and fueled by the wooden structures of homes in the city of Rome.

The Vigiles were urban military bodies, divided into 7 cohortes, so that each assured vigilance in 2 of the 14 Augustan regions. They had their barracks (statio) and the gatehouse (excubitorium) inside the Pomerio because the readiness of intervention was essential for the validity of the key service of the body, namely the fight against fire.

The Roman Fire Brigade, known as the Vigiles Urbani, was created to protect Rome and the ports of Ostia and Portus. The Vigiles were created by Augustus in circa 6-7 BCE, to form a Fire Brigade at the same time as Rome’s Police Force, the Cohortes Urbanae. Their organisation was copied from the Fire Brigade of Alexandria, in Egypt.