Classis Alexandrina

The Classis Alexandrina was a Fleet of the Roman Navy based in Egypt and located in the port of Alexandria.
It was created in c. 30 BCE by Augustus after the Battle of Actium (31 BCE).

The Admiral of the Fleet was a Procuratore Sexagenarii, meaning he received a salary of 60,000 Denarii per annum.
The Fleet consisted of both Triremes and Liburnians.
The squadron size is unknown but in general, records show that small Roman Squadrons in the Provinces seem to have consisted of between 10, 20, 40, and 60 vessels. 60 Warships was the size of the Fleet in which Pompey set sail to eliminate the nearby Pirates of Cilicia in 67 BCE, so 60 may have been the total in the Alexandrian Squadron.
The Roman Navy was manned by sailors called ‘Classiari’ who were Peregrini from the Provinces, and not Roman Slaves or Roman Citizens. The Peregrini received Roman Citizenship after 26 years of service.
The main role of the Alexandrian Squadron was to patrol the Nile, defend the Nile Delta, escort Roman Officials on business and escort the Alexandrian Grain Fleet.
The Navy may also have escorted the annual sailing along the Nile of cargo vessels between Alexandria and Coptos, carrying cargoes to and from the Red Sea and India.
However, there is no evidence to suggest that this Fleet operated in the Red Sea, although previously, the Greek Ptolemies did operate a naval patrol there against piracy.

The Harbour is described by Strabo in Geographia, Book XVII, chapter 9. It was divided into two harbours by the island of Pharos and a connected to the mainland by a breakwater with a road.
The Western Port
- Strabo describes the western port as wide and enclosing an artificial Inner Harbour.
The Eastern Port
- This had a narrow entrance which was also dangerous due to a number of ancient shipwrecks.
- The island of Antirrhodus (now sunken) protected an inner bay which was the location of the Base for the Alexandrian Squadron.

The Pharos of Alexandria was a giant lighthouse built in c.280 BCE on the Island of Pharos, which guarded the entrance to the Harbour of Alexandria and which was famous for being one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.
It was designed by Sostratos of Cnidus. a Greek Engineer. Possibly, it may have been used as a giant platform to launch Naptha missiles, protecting the entrance to the Harbour.
The Fortress of Qaitbay now stands on the Site of the Pharos of Alexandria.

Alexandria