back
back--Provance in the Year 14 CE--
The following information will, hopefully, prove useful as you create characters.
I've tried to draw from as many historical sources as possible, but Gaul was
pretty much a backwater of the early Empire. Combined with its location, near
Rome, its relative importance was a large factor in why we chose this area,
but it does mean the history of the area is sorely lacking. Where I could find
no history I have made stuff up that sounded plausible. Further, where the history
suited the story badly (which was quite rare) I have also made stuff up.
Narbonensis has gone by several names over time. Its currently known as Provance, before the Roman conquest of the rest of Gaul it was known as Gaullia Transalpina, and for a while in between those times it was known as Narbonensis after its capitol city, Narbo. Gaullia Transalpina came into being shortly after the Third Punic war and the Destruction of Carthage (146 BCE). Rome had controlled Hispania since the end of the Second Punic War (~200 BCE) and to some degree the taking of Trans-alpine Gaul was motivated by a desire to build a road linking Italy with Hispania. Gaul itself was not a very interesting area, that much is certain.
Before the Romans Gaul was, unsurprisingly, inhabited by the Gauls. In the south the principle tribes were the Volcae, who lived in the Rhodanus (Rhone) river valley, the Allobroges, who lived in the Alpine foothills, and the Arverni who lived in the hills west of the Rhodanus. The word "tribe" brings up certain connotations of poor villagers with spears who were conquered by the gold and bronze clad Romans. This is not really accurate. The local "tribesmen" were mostly farmers and likely fought in the old Greek style, the phalanx. They were lead by a king who likely ruled a number of people in the tens of thousands. They also organized themselves into cities of ten thousand people or so, the largest of which was Narbo (Narbonne). These cities were probably not too different from medieval cities that would stand in the same places a thousand years later, overcrowded and full of disease and hunger, but centers of trade and rule.
Among the Volcae, the Allobroges, and the Arverni, were another people, the Greeks. The city of Massilia was founded around 350 BCE, in the last wave of Greek colonization. Massilia was not a Greek city such as Athens and Sparta, there were no philosophers walking along marble colonnades. The focus of the city was its port and the city teemed with both Greeks and Gauls buying and selling their wares. Massilia (Marseilles) was on the small side for a Greek city, around 2000 inhabitants. Its Greek inhabitants were almost exclusively merchants who made up the aristocracy of the city. Supporting them were Gaulic artisans and servants who supplied the luxuries that the Greek’s wealth demanded.
The Romans had dealings with these Southern Gaul beginning in the Second Punic wars when a Roman army attempted to stop Hannibal's march to Italy. The final invasion would wait until 124 BCE. The invasion itself proved to be largely peaceful. Massilia accepted the status of an ally of Rome; it would be governed internally, but would have to supply troops and taxes to Rome. The Volcae and the Allobroges also submitted for the most part, though they received less favorable terms. Narbo, capitol of the Volcae would become the capitol of the Romans as well. These two tribes would be directly ruled by the Romans, but they would not be displaced for the most part. The Arverni put up much more of a fight however, and though they were driven from the coastal plain, they remained strong in the hills of southern Gaul. In 121 a road was built between Italy, Narbo, and Spain and passing just north of Massilia (a spur connected that town to the main road). The road was named the Via Domita after one of the consuls who ordered its construction. New towns, colonies, were constructed along this road from a standard roman plan. These new towns were, initially, populated by veterans of the campaign and their families, all Roman citizens.
Things were only quiet in the new Province of Gaullia Transalpina for about 20 years however. In 113 BCE two Germanic tribes, defeated a Roman army in Raetia (Austria). These tribes, the Cimbri and the Teutones, invaded Italy shortly after their victory and Gaul a few years later in 105 BCE. The combined tribes won a large battle on the Rhodanus. The campaign continued however, and the Romans rallied under Gaius Marius. With rebels in Numidia and a slave revolt in Sicily Marius had plenty of other things to do though. It was not until 102 BCE that he was able to bring in a large enough army to defeat the Teutones outside the walls of Aquae Sextiae (Aix-en-Provance) in Gaullia Transalpina. The next year he would defeat the Cimbri on the other side of the Alps in Italy. Even more towns were founded after this campaign to provide a home for veterans, including the town of Lugdunum (Lyon) about 150 miles up the Rhodanus.
Around 40 years later in 59 BCE peaceful Gaul was once again thrust into war, this time by a Roman you may heard of, Julius Caesar. Caesar was appointed governor of Gaullia Transalpina and northern Italy in that year, and did not waste any time governing; he much preferred the glory of war. After a year of alliance building among the northern Gallic tribes Caesar invaded, ranging as far north as Britannica (England) and as far west as the Rhenus (Rhine). Victory was declared in 53 BCE, but a revolt in 52 and the conquest of Aquitania (Aquitane) in 51-50 extended the war a bit. Roman Gaul had tripled in size in only 9 years, adding a number of new provinces: Aquitania, Lugdenensis, Belgica, Germania Inferior and Germania Superior. The name Gaullia Transalpina now applied to all Roman land west of the Alps that did not border the Rhenus so that province gained the name Narbonensis. By whatever name, this province did not suffer from the wars as they were fought outside its borders. In fact, it prospered, as goods were shipped to Narbo and Massilia and from there through Lugdunum for use by the army in the north. Caesar left Gaul in 49 BCE to take control of the Republic, but he left Narbonensis better than he found it.
Narbonensis continued to be important as a trading post for army goods in the coming years. After Caesar’s death in 44 BCE Octavian constructed a naval base in Narbonensis. This base was built in 37 BCE at Forum Iulii and the ships built there were used to suppress rebels in Sicily. About the same time, Octavian’s greatest general, Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, constructed more roads through out all of Gaul, most importantly roads linking Narbonensis to the north. Supplies for the armies on the German border would continue to use these roads for the next four hundred years. Octavian won the wars against various rebels by 30 BCE and took the title of Augustus in 27 BCE. Augustus intensified the German wars, and Narbonensis’s prosperity, from 12 BCE to 9 AD, when he ultimately had to withdraw back to the Rhenus. The end of this period left Narbonensis as the most prosperous and most developed of the provinces of Gaul, though it was still a backwater of the Empire as a whole as it had little internal culture and produced almost nothing for export.
The geography of Narbonensis can be imagined in terms of its avenues of transportation. Running east-west is the Via Domita, running north-south is the river Rhodanus. The Via Domita runs parallel to the ocean, never straying more than 30 miles from it and in some places running within sight of the waves. Arelate (Arles) lies where these two transportation routes meet, about 25 miles from the ocean. Moving east along the Via Domita, towards Italy, one reaches Aquae Sextiae, then Massilia (10 miles off the Via) and then Forum Iulii. Moving west along the via, towards Hispania, one reaches Nemausus (Nimes) and then Narbo. Moving north along the Rhodanus (and the road that runs along side it) one reaches Vienna (Vienne) and then Lugdunum (which is in the Province of Gallia Lugdunensis). Finally, off both major routes lies Tolosa (Toulouse), north and west of Narbo with roads connecting it both to Narbo and to Aquitania.
It should be noted that there are two common feature of all these cities. First they all have fora of some type, locations that served to house marketplaces, schools and temples. Second, no matter the other inhabitants of the town, every city has slaves that make up 10 to 20 percent of its population.
Aquae Sextiae (30,000) - This colony was founded after the initial conquest of Gallia Transalpina and was the site of a major battle against the Teutones. It is less than 10 miles from Massilia and may have been founded to provide a check on that more independent city’s power, a check that was needed durring Caesar's civil war. As a colony it is constructed on a regular grid with a central forum. Its citizens are almost all the descendants of old legionaries; men who fought in Gaul or Germany, though naturally the original founders have long since died. As the trade passing through the city is limited there has been little incentive for others to immigrate to this city. So Roman citizens make up the whole of the population and perform just about every job that needs doing, save those left to slaves. Aquae Sextiae has no public places for entertainment.
Arelate (60,000) - This is the largest city in Narbonensis. The spot was long occupied by the natives, and a Roman colony was founded relatively late in Narbonensis's history here The city was founded to control much of Massilia's lands after Caesar's civil war, about 46 BCE. Massilia had sided with Pompey, which proved a poor choice. Its position at the junction of the Via Domita and the Rhodanus River make it center of trade between Rome and Hispania and the point where all military goods flowing to Germany must eventually pass. This town was constructed as a colony and shares that regular and regulated street plan. It is a bit larger than a colony can be as initially planned, as there is a large block of insulae (cheep apartment buildings) that reside illegally outside the city walls. The city consists almost exclusively of the descendants of old legionaries, most of whom fought in Gaul or Germany. Most of the original founders are dead, but a few late comers who served with Agrippa in Germany are still around, though the youngest is more than 50 years old. These people form the largest portion of the city and perform anything from the most menial service jobs to the work of major merchants and bankers. These descendants of legionaries are all full Roman citizens. Immigrants from Rome take a few of the merchant and most of the government jobs. These outsiders have the backing of the patrician families and are generally disliked, but there is little that can be done. Arelate has stone amphitheater and theater as well as a circus outside the city walls.
Forum Iulii (20,000) - This is primarily a military town, and so is technically a colony, but most of its citizens are serving sailors and legionaries and hence do not have families or full citizenship. The fleet is about 20 ships, or around 6000 sailors and 1000 marines. In addition there are around another 1000 legionaries and 100 horsemen, or roughly half a legion including the marines. The remaining inhabitants were a combination of “camp followers” and suppliers of goods to the army. The city itself has a very large number of empty buildings and barracks as the fleet here used to be about twice as large. In 22 BCE half of the fleet as transferred to the main western naval base at Misene in southern Italy. Since then Forum Iulii has declined in importance. Most of the camp followers are Gallic while all of the merchants are Roman citizens. This town has an earthen amphitheater of impressive size to entertain the soldiers.
Massilia (50,000) - This city is in the unique position within this province of being a poleis (Greek city). This distinction means that the citizens have a fair amount of local autonomy, the right to choose the city consuls and even to set “foreign” policy, to a limited extent. As such Massilia does not fall under the jurisdiction of the governor and levies different taxes and duties compared to the rest of the province. This proves a boon for some goods and a bane for others, depending on what goods a merchant wishes to move through Narbonensis. The wealthy population is largely Greek, though they have been romanized to a large extent. Greek learning is valued here more than anywhere else in Narbonensis. The few Roman citizens in town form a middle class of artisans, shop owners and minor merchants. As with just about every other town founded before the Romans came, the majority of the population is Gallic. Massilia's history is a glorious one, it was once the largest city in Gaul, and many other cities owed fealty to it. But it sided with Pompey in the civil wars of the 40's BCE, and most of its lands were given to Arelate after Caesar won that war. Massilia does not have any entertainment facilities within its walls, though there is a small forum.
Narbo (40,000) - Probably the oldest city in Gaul, this city is still largely native. It is the capitol of Narbonensis and so a center of Roman government, but it is not positioned well to take advantage of the goods flowing from Rome to Germania. As such there are few Roman citizens there, but those few are quite important to the larger Roman establishment. The governor is traditionally a senator, though for practical reasons the senator would stay at home and allow a family member (brother or son) to govern. Narbo does serve as an outlet for iron and bronze mined in the hills near Tolosa however. Narbo, as the seat of Imperial power, is graced with a stone theater and wooden amphitheater.
Nemausus (40,000) - Founded before the Roman invasion, this city was never really absorbed into the empire. It was long the capitol city of the Volcae, and so Roman influence was minimized. It has recently grown large enough that it has to be recognized as a city by Augustus in 24 BCE and so its leaders gained Roman citizenship. For the most part Romans have had little interest in the place. It is between Arelate and Narbo on the Via Domita, but the other two cities are sufficiently close that there is no need to stop at Nemausus. The city's major export is wine, as it lies in the heart of Narbonensis's wine country. The Gallic citizens are able to occupy most of the rungs on the social ladder, but they also lack the basic (state funded) amenities of Roman life, such as an aqueduct or a forum. This is beginning to change though, as the native Romanized leaders wish to assert their cities place in the colony. One patrician family in particular, in a bid to gain social status has recently put funds towards the construction of what will be the largest temple in Narbonensis, a temple to the Deified Augustus. The non-Romanized populous of Nemanusus may not be ready for this change however.
Tolosa (20,000) - This city was founded as a military fort to defend against the Arverni after 124 BCE. It was granted colony status about 60 years later as it had grown to be a center of iron and bronze mining. The legionnaires left after the conquest of the rest of Gaul, as they served no more purpose. The town has since grown slowly and haphazardly, unlike most roman towns it has little plan to it. Tolosa is located on the Garunna (Garonne) river which flows to the Atlantic through Aquitania, and so it is loosely connected to the rest of Narbonensis. Many goods do go by road to Narbo however. There is a very large slave population working the mines in the area. Freed slaves, many of them quite old, spend the end of their lives in the city and make up a third of its population. Natives Gauls make up the remainder, with Roman mine owners ruling the town. The town does not have any forms of entertainment.
Vienna (30,000) - Yet another colony city, it was founded in the first wave of colonization. Like Arelate and Aquae Sextiae the descendants of former legionaries form the majority of its population. The representatives of the patrician families of Rome are quite strong in Vienna; all of the wealthy merchants are patrician. Nemausus has a earthen amphitheater and a wooden theater.
Like many of those in the Roman world, the people of Narbonensis can be broken up into a relatively small number of social groups. Of course, Marx thought that true of any group of people. The social haves are exclusively Roman citizens. In fact, Roman administration plans it that way so that even when leaders of a city are not ethnically Roman they are given Roman citizenship to give them something in common with those they rule for. The poorest of the poor, on the other hand, are exclusively not Roman citizens. These poorest are slaves, and Roman law forbids the enslavement of a Roman citizen. In between the high proletariat and middle classes are made up of a mix of Romans, Gauls and foreigners
Before we get into those groups, it's worth briefly talking about professions. Walk down any street in New York City and you will get a good idea of the types of jobs around during the Roman empire. "While collar" jobs tended to be as priests, lawyers, doctors, clerks, and government officials. Small business owners might have run a snack shop, full scale restaurant, bakery, carpentry shop, school, shoe store, or laundry mat (don't ask how they got the whites white, you don't want to know). About half of these small businesses owned their own slave. The main difference between a modern business and an ancient one is that the ancient one commonly started from raw materials, restaurants ground their own flour for example. Merchants might simply sell local food to local markets, export wine or metal, transport military goods to Germany or import luxury items like worked gold and silver, exotic beasts, or slaves. Being anything other than a local merchant generally required a lot of capitol as the risks were high, but profits were often quite good. Service jobs might include maids or man servants at a large house, assisting in a shop, or menial tasks like carrying items from place to place, though the latter was almost always done by slaves. Jobs that were done by animals in later ages were often done by slave labor in Roman times, such as pulling wagons or transporting bulk goods.
Slaves - Slaves in Gaul are most commonly Gaullic or German, but the more educated are Greek, and a few will be from Mauretania (Morocco/Algeria). The child of a slave is also a slave, so the Gaullic and Mauretanian slaves are generally the descendants of people captured during the wars of the first century BCE. Slaves most often are put to work doing manual labor. The government is the largest single holder of slaves, who are used to construct aqueducts, roads and public buildings. Private slave owners often use them for mining, which is sufficiently dangerous that no one would choose to do it. Luckier slaves work as personal servants in the households of the rich. Despite the movies the number of slaves who serve as gladiators is fairly low compared to the total number of slaves, though the arenas are always hungry for fresh “talent.” The most select group of slaves are those from Greece or other parts of the Hellenized east and who are employed as personal tutors to the sons (and sometimes daughters) of the rich. Slaves have essentially no rights, but abuse is limited simply because of the high cost of a slave. An owner needs to get as many years work out of him as possible.
Freedmen - A slave may be freed in one of two ways. A formal manumission is an expensive legal process, but gives the slave and his or her descendants citizenship. An informal manumission is as simple as saying, “you are free” in front of enough witnesses, but the freedman’s property will revert to his former owner on his death (including children), and he is not a citizen. Masters will often rid themselves of old slaves in the second, informal manner, simply as a cost saving device. Formal manumission is reserved for the most valued, and often educated slaves. Freedmen of this sort are often employed by the rich as trusted administrators. Because they owe everything they have to their masters these freedmen are commonly trusted more than an ordinary citizen, with good reason in most cases. The common citizens are generally displeased by this sort of manumission though as it prevents a government office from going to a “real” citizen.
Gauls - Its important to note that the only people who call Gauls "Gauls" are outsiders. The two tribal divisions of the Volcae and the Allobroges are still important in the same way that someone from Barcelona is Catalyna, not Castilian. The Gauls are not against those of other tribes, they just don't identify themselves as members of the other tribes, or collectively. Except in Vienna the Gauls are one of the lowest rungs on the social ladder. When you aren't rich enough to buy a slave, you hire a Gaul. Some Gauls have been able to remain in artisan or shop owner professions, but the vast majority live outside the city as farmers or work in the city as servants. In the whole province Gallic farmers probably make up perhaps 75% of the population. Vienna is the general exception to the trend of the poor Gauls.
Greeks - The Greeks of Narbonensis are divided into two categories, those who rule Massilia and those who are slaves. Ironically, it is the slaves who are often the better educated of the two groups as they are often imported from Greece itself and they are valued specifically for their education. These slave Greeks are discussed in more detail in the slave's section. The free Greeks are concentrated in Massilia. There they serve as the upper crust of society, functioning as the government and the merchant class. These Greeks are the descendants of Greek families that first came to Massilia more than three hundred years ago, and as such they have little true connection to their homeland. Practically they have been assimilated into Roman culture, though they would never admit this. Pride, more than anything else prevents them from joining the rest of the province and accepting Roman citizenship.
Foreigners - There are fairly limited number of other foreigners in Narbonensis. Typically they act as mid-level merchants, trading Gaullic wine and metal for the silver and olives of Hispania or the wheat of Africa. They are treated with respect primarily for their wealth, but legal and social preference is given to citizen traders performing the same function.
Soldiers - The legionaries and sailors of Narbonensis are all Roman citizens, but by joining the army they have forfeited most of the rights of citizenship and are little different from slaves. A soldier can be killed for just about any infraction and must serve until discharged, something that does not happen with any regularity. The veterans of a major campaign are often discharged to form colonies, but as there is little chance of such a war in Narbonensis the soldiers are likely condemned to the army till they die or are seriously wounded. On the other hand, a soldier is handsomely paid. They receive something like ten times the average farmer’s salary and, if discharged, are granted a large plot of land to live and farm on. Soldiers come from the lowest classes of society and a third of them are Romans proper, the rest are Italian. Soldiers are viewed with caution by other citizens. They are clearly a necessary part of the Empire, but they are also loutish drunkards with swords.
Citizens - Naturally, all Romans are citizens, but at this period of time, not all citizens are Romans, not even most of them. In around 80 BCE, and after a civil war, all Italians were granted Roman citizenship. These citizens form the majority of the Imperial army, and the vast majority of citizens in the provinces. It is these citizens that this section deals with. These people are generally the lower class of Roman citizens in the provinces. They are often the descendants of soldiers and sometimes simple immigrants. As such they are most often farmers, shop owners or artisans. In some cities these people are merchants as well, though they are generally poorer than merchants from Rome itself. They have little sense of identity as anything other than Romans, though "real" Romans look down on them to some degree. There is a final type of Roman citizen as well, ethnic Gauls who play an important role in leading one of the old cities. They are granted Roman citizenship, as are their children. They are socially distinct from the average citizen because of their great wealth and power, but are generally accepted by the Romans.
Romans - Because of the massive state sponsored efforts to make the plebeians of Rome happy, few plebeians have any desire to leave that city. Consequently most of the true Romans in Narbonensis are part of patrician families or freedmen of patrician families. As such they are the richest of any of the different groups in the province. They make up the merchants and governmental officials of the province. Rome is only about four days by boat from Narbonensis, so in the summer the trip is quite feasible. As such many Romans live in Rome while their freedmen, brothers or nephews oversee their holdings.
That details Narbonensis pretty exhaustively. The most important thing I have left uncovered is religion, which is not dealt with because it was largely the same as in Rome itself. Everyone, including the Gauls, was sufficiently assimilated into Roman culture that they worshiped the Roman gods.
Overall it’s worth repeating that Narbonensis was a backwater. It was important primarily because it was between Italy and Hispania and between Rome and Germany. It simply didn't have enough exportable resources to make it very important economically, nor did it have the culture of Greece or Egypt that would be “exported” to Rome. Which is not to say that the province was a boring place, far from it, as I hope you now think.