Scholae Palatinae

Scholar Palatinae
Σχολαί
Emperor Justinian I and his court, from the Basilica of San Vitale in Ravenna. The soldiers left, with the golden neck-torques typical of Byzantine guardsmen, are scholares.
Active312 – c. 1068/9
AllegianceRoman Empire/Byzantine Empire
BranchByzantine army
Roman army
TypeImperial guard
RoleCavalry tactics
Charge
Executive protection
Force protection
Hand-to-hand combat
Maneuver warfare
Raiding
Reconnaissance
Shock tactics

The Scholae Palatinae (lit.'Palatine Schools'; Greek: Σχολαί, romanizedScholai) were an elite military imperial guard unit, usually ascribed to the Roman Emperor Constantine the Great as a replacement for the equites singulares Augusti, the cavalry arm of the Praetorian Guard. The Scholae survived in Roman and later Byzantine service until they disappeared from the historical record in the late 11th century, during the reign of Alexios I Komnenos.