Caeroesi
The Caeroesi were a tribe living in Belgic Gaul when Julius Caesars Roman forces entered the area in 57 BCE. They are known from his account of the Gallic War and they are generally equated with the Cæracates mentioned briefly by Tacitus in his Histories. They were one of a group of tribes listed by his local informants as the Germani, along with the Eburones, Condrusi and Segni. These tribes are referred to as the Germani Cisrhenani, to them from Germani living on the east of the Rhine, outside of the Gaulish. He said that the descendants of the original Germani in his time were the Tungri, the general area of the Belgian Germani was between the Scheldt and Rhine rivers, and north of Luxemburg and the Moselle, which is where the Treverii lived. In modern terms this area includes eastern Belgium, the parts of the Netherlands, and a part of Germany on the west of the Rhine. The Caeroesi appear to have lived in the south of this range, in the Eifel region, in the area which because the Roman pagus of Carucum, this became the Frankish pagus called Caroascus.
A Roman era boundary marker has been found near Neidenbach bei Kyllburg marked FINIS PAGI CARV CVM and this was on the Roman road between Trier, the main Roman city of the Treverii, and Cologne. This was an area, forming a boundary between regions. To the east of Neidenbach, the Vinxtbach, a river flowing eastwards to the Rhine. The name Vinxtbach is in fact thought to derive from the Latin word finis, today the Vinxtbach is still a boundary between modern German dialects, with Ripuarian to the north, and Moselle Frankish to the south. Also nearby is the boundary of modern German Länder of Rheinland-Pfalz. Their name is believed to mean sheep people, and to be Celtic in origin
Arverni
The Arverni were a Celtic tribe. The tribe was located in what is today the French Auvergne region, one of the most powerful tribes in ancient Gaul, the Arverni opposed the Romans on several occasions. Their most important stronghold was Gergovia, near the commune of Clermont-Ferrand. The Arverni are known to have had the most powerful tribal hegemony in Gaul during the 3rd and 2nd centuries BC under their kings and his son Bituitus. But when Arvern king Bituitus was defeated by the Romans of Quintus and Gnaeus Ahenobarbus in 121 BC, their ascendancy passed to the Aedui and Sequani. No further Arvernian kings are mentioned in the record between 121 BC and 52 BC, and they may have adopted a constitutional oligarchy at this time. However, there were at least two attempts to re-establish rulership by Celtillos and Vercingetorix. The King Luernios was mentioned in writing by the Greek ethnographer Posidonius, Luernios was known to have scattered gold and silver coins to his followers while riding in his chariot.
Under Luernios, the Arverni were at the head of a formidable Gallic military hegemony which stretched from the Rhine to the Atlantic coast and they joined Bellovesus migrations towards Italy, together with the Aeduii, Aulerci and Senones. The Arverni played an important role in the Gallic Wars of Julius Caesar from 58 BC to 51 BC, at first the Arvenian nobles tried to avoid confronting Caesar during his early incursions. They executed the leader Celtillus, evidently for trying to gain sovereignty over all the Gauls, in 52 BC, Celtillus son Vercingetorix rallied his supporters to fight the Romans, but was expelled from Gergovia by the nobles, including his uncle Gobanitio. He raised an army in the country, and returned to the city where he ejected his opponents and was declared king. This accomplished, Vercingetorix forged an alliance with at least 15 Gallic tribes and he led the majority of the Gauls and won the Gergovia battle against Julius Caesar and his cavalry did marvels in pursuing the Roman troops.
After Julius Caesar saved half of his legions and received food from other Gauls, Vercingetorix was defeated by Caesar at the Battle of Alesia, after several months where the legions built 14 ranges of military equipment to block the Gallic soldiers. After several weeks of support from the western Gallic people with huge troops coming to support Vercingetorix, when the western Gallic people decided to depart, Vercingetorix took the decision to surrender to save the people of Alesia. The Arverni territories and over 75% of the Gauls were subsequently incorporated into the Roman imperium, Quintus Fabius Maximus Allobrogicus, conquered King Bituitus Alba Fucens, town where Bituitus was held after capture
Baiocasses
The Baiocasses were a Celtic tribe in ancient Gaul. They were a division of the civitas of the Lexovii. The Baiocasses were located east of the Venelli and west of the Belgic Veliocasses, the Latin name for their territory was the Pagus Baiocensis, corresponding to the area in Normandy now known as le Bessin. This is the location of the city of Bayeux, which takes its name from the tribe. Their principal city was known during the late Roman Imperial era as Civitas Baiocassium, by Merovingian times, the city was called Baiocas. In the time of William the Conqueror the name was already being written as Bayeaux, the Celtic word badios or bodios, blond, forms several personal names found in Gaulish inscriptions. The meaning of the element -casses is less certain, it may mean hair, perhaps a particular warrior coiffure, or tin, bronze. The Baiocasses minted base gold and billon coins in the denomination of one stater and in the case of gold coins sometimes quarter staters. Most of the show a Celtic-style male head with elaborated hair on the obverse, and on the reverse a horse with a chariot rider above or behind.
A number of these are in existence, the 4th-century Bordelaise poet Ausonius teases a friend as a Baiocassis who claimed to be of druidic heritage and descended from priests of Belenus. Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography, illustrated by numerous engravings on wood, london and Maberly Hazlit, William. Online version at AncientLibrary. com Gaul List of peoples of Gaul List of Celtic tribes
Curiosolitae
The Curiosolites or Curiosolitae were a people in the region now called Brittany, in Celtica, who are mentioned by Julius Caesar several times. The name only occurs in the form, as there are variations in the manuscripts. They are mentioned by Caesar with the Veneti, Unelli and others that Caesar calls maritimae civitates, maritime cities, and border on the Atlantic Ocean. In another place he describes the position of the Curiosolitae on the ocean in the terms, and includes them among the Armoric states. The name occurs in Pliny in the form Cariosvelites, and he mentions them with the Unelli, the Curiosolitae are not mentioned by Ptolemy. No city of people is mentioned, and the Itineraries give no roads in this part of Brittany. The name seems to be preserved in Corseul, a village between Dinan and Lamballe, where there are the remains of an old Roman town and we may conclude that, after the fashion of Gallic names, Corseul represents the capital of the Curiosolitae. The neighbors of the Curiosolitae on the east were the Rhedones, on the west were the Osismi or Osismii, who occupied the extremity of the peninsula of Brittany.
But Charles Athanase Walckenaer places, between the Osismi and the Curiosolitae, the Biducasii of Ptolemy, in the diocese of St. Bidué or St. Brieuc, whom he distinguishes from the Viducasses. This article incorporates text from a now in the public domain, William. Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography
Suessiones
The Suessiones were a Belgic tribe of western Gallia Belgica in the 1st century BC, inhabiting the region between the Oise and the Marne, around the present-day city of Soissons. They were conquered in 57 BC by Julius Caesar, pliny the Elder apparently gives their name as Suaeuconi. Coinage minted by Belgic Gauls first appeared in Britain in the mid-2nd century BC with the coinage now categorized as the Gallo-Belgic A type, coins associated with King Diviciacus of the Suessiones, issued near or between 90 and 60 BC, have been categorized as Gallo-Belgic C. Finds of this issue of coin extend from Sussex to the Wash, a issue of coin, Gallo-Belgic F, has concentrated finds near Paris, throughout the lands of the Suessiones, and the southern, coastal areas of Britain. These finds lead scholars to suggest that the Suessiones had significant trade and migration into Britain during the 2nd, Caesar mentions that their capital was Noviodunum, the present-day city of Soissons. Soissons was the city of the Merovingian Kingdom of Soissons from 511 to 613.
Soissons was the birthplace of the Frankish Prince Charlemagne in the year 747, son of King Pippin the Short and it is today the capital of the département of the Aisne, in the northern part of Champagne. The region is commonly referred to as the Soissonnais and people of the region are called Soissonaires. List of peoples of Gaul List of Celtic tribes
Ambiani
The Ambiani were a Belgic people of Celtic language, who were said to be able to muster 10,000 armed men, in 57 BC, the year of Julius Caesars Belgic campaign. Their country lay in the valley of the Samara, and their chief town Samarobriva, afterwards called Ambiani and they were among the people who took part in the great insurrection against the Romans, which is described in the seventh book of Caesars Gallic War. The Ambiani were consummate minters and Ambianic coinage has been throughout the territories of the Belgic tribes. There is some evidence from coins that bear a stag on one side, a few Ambiani coins have been found along the south coast of the West Country possibly as the result of trade across the English channel. This article incorporates text from a now in the public domain, William. Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography
Aedui
The Aedui, Haedui, or Hedui were a Gallic people of Gallia Lugdunensis, who inhabited the country between the Arar and Liger, in todays France. Their territory thus included the part of the modern departments of Saône-et-Loire, Côte-dOr. The country of the Aedui is defined by reports of them in ancient writings, the upper Loire formed their western border, separating them from the Bituriges. The Saône formed their eastern border, separating them from the Sequani, both statements are true, the first in the south, and the second to the north. Outside of the Roman province and prior to Roman rule, Independent Gaul was occupied by self-governing tribes divided into cantons, the Aedui, like other powerful tribes in the region, had replaced their monarchy with a council of magistrates called grand-judges. The grand-judges were under the authority of the senate, the senate was made up of the descendants of ancient royal families. Free men in the tribes were vassals to the heads of families in exchange for military.
According to Livy, they part in the expedition of Bellovesus into Italy in the 6th century BC. Before Julius Caesars time, they had attached themselves to the Romans and were honoured with the title of brothers, on his arrival in Gaul, Caesar restored their independence. In spite of this, the Aedui joined the Gallic coalition against Caesar, augustus dismantled their native capital Bibracte on Mont Beuvray and substituted a new town with a half-Roman, half-Gaulish name, Augustodunum. In 21, during the reign of Tiberius, they revolted under Julius Sacrovir, and seized Augustodunum, the Aedui were the first of the Gauls to receive from the emperor Claudius the distinction of jus honorum, thus being the first Gauls permitted to become senators. The oration of Eumenius, in which he pleaded for the restoration of the schools of his native place Augustodunum, shows that the district was neglected. The chief magistrate of the Aedui in Caesars time was called Vergobretus, certain clientes, or small communities, were dependent upon the Aedui.
It is thought that other Celtic tribes, such as the Remi, list of peoples of Gaul Caesar, Julius. A. E. Desjardins, Geographie de la Gaule, ii, T. Rice Holmes, Caesars Conquest of Gaul
Eburones
Though living in Gaul, they were described as being both Belgae, and Germani. The Eburones played a role in Julius Caesars account of his Gallic Wars, as the most important tribe within the Germani cisrhenani group of tribes. Germani living west of the Rhine amongst the Belgae, Caesar claimed that the name of the Eburones was wiped out after their failed revolt against his forces during the Gallic Wars. Whether any significant part of the population lived on in the area as Tungri, Caesar is the primary source for the location of the Eburones. In the early medieval church this evolved into the church province of Cologne. This large area included parts of what are now the southern Netherlands, eastern Belgium. At one point Caesar reported that the greatest part of the Eburones settled between the Mosa and the Rhine, and on this basis German scholars place them in the northern Eifel. More generally Caesars description of a narrow defile to its west, suitable for ambush, is a type of landscape less common as one goes north in this region, towards the low-lying Campine.
In the same passage, Caesar describes the Segni and Condrusi as being south of the Eburones, between them and the Treviri, who lived near the Moselle. This is difficult to reconcile with a territory near the Eifel because the Condrusi are the origin of the name of the Condroz region in the Ardennes, south of the Meuse, and west of the Eifel. No cultural groupings can be isolated to suit the Eburones in the north Eifel according to Edith Mary Wightman, in contrast, she writes that Belgian archaeologists identify them with the cultural group in northern Limburg and Kempen which showed such strong continuity in Urnfield times. This would certainly account for the propinquity of Eburones and Menapii mentioned by Caesar and this is seen to indicate that at least part of the Eburones lived west of the Maas, closer to the river deltas. Neighbouring both the Nervii and the Eburones, possibly between them, were the Aduatuci. Caesar reported that Ambiorix had been forced to pay tribute to them before the Romans came, and it was with these two tribes, that the Eburones could quickly form a military alliance against Caesars forces.
Caesar reports that during his conflict with them, the Eburones had some sort of alliance, organized via their allies the Treveri, linguist Maurits Gysseling proposed that placenames such as Avendoren, Averdoingt and Avernas may be derived from the Eburones. Caesars forces clashed with an alliance of Belgic tribes in 57 BCE in the Battle of the Sabis, before that battle, information from the Remi, a tribe allied with Rome, stated that the Germani had collectively promised, they thought, about 40,000 men. The whole force was led by Galba, king of the Suessiones, the alliance did not work. The Suessiones and Bellovaci surrendered after the Romans defended the Remi, and after this the Ambiani offered no further resistance and the Nervii, along with the Atrebates and Viromandui, formed the most important force on the day of the battle
Gaul
It covered an area of 190,800 sq mi. According to the testimony of Julius Caesar, Gaul was divided into three parts, Gallia Celtica and Aquitania, during the 2nd and 1st centuries BC, Gaul fell under Roman rule, Gallia Cisalpina was conquered in 203 BC and Gallia Narbonensis in 123 BC. Gaul was invaded after 120 BC by the Cimbri and the Teutons, Gallia remains a name of France in modern Greek and modern Latin. The Greek and Latin names Galatia, and Gallia are ultimately derived from a Celtic ethnic term or clan Gal-to-. Galli of Gallia Celtica were reported to refer to themselves as Celtae by Caesar. Hellenistic folk etymology connected the name of the Galatians to the supposedly milk-white skin of the Gauls, modern researchers say it is related to Welsh gallu, Cornish galloes, power, thus meaning powerful people. The English Gaul is from French Gaule and is unrelated to Latin Gallia, as adjectives, English has the two variants and Gallic. The two adjectives are used synonymously, as pertaining to Gaul or the Gauls, although the Celtic language or languages spoken in Gaul is predominantly known as Gaulish.
The Germanic w- is regularly rendered as gu- / g- in French, unrelated in spite of superficial similarity is the name Gael. The Irish word gall did originally mean a Gaul, i. e. an inhabitant of Gaul, but its meaning was widened to foreigner, to describe the Vikings, and still the Normans. The dichotomic words gael and gall are sometimes used together for contrast, by 500 BC, there is strong Hallstatt influence throughout most of France. By the late 5th century BC, La Tène influence spreads rapidly across the territory of Gaul. The La Tène culture developed and flourished during the late Iron Age in France, Italy, southwest Germany, Moravia, farther north extended the contemporary pre-Roman Iron Age culture of northern Germany and Scandinavia. By the 2nd century BC, the Romans described Gallia Transalpina as distinct from Gallia Cisalpina, while some scholars believe the Belgae south of the Somme were a mixture of Celtic and Germanic elements, their ethnic affiliations have not been definitively resolved.
One of the reasons is political interference upon the French historical interpretation during the 19th century, in addition to the Gauls, there were other peoples living in Gaul, such as the Greeks and Phoenicians who had established outposts such as Massilia along the Mediterranean coast. Also, along the southeastern Mediterranean coast, the Ligures had merged with the Celts to form a Celto-Ligurian culture, the prosperity of Mediterranean Gaul encouraged Rome to respond to pleas for assistance from the inhabitants of Massilia, who were under attack by a coalition of Ligures and Gauls. The Romans intervened in Gaul in 154 BC and again in 125 BC, whereas on the first occasion they came and went, on the second they stayed. Massilia was allowed to keep its lands, but Rome added to its territories the lands of the conquered tribes. The direct result of conquests was that by now, Rome controlled an area extending from the Pyrenees to the lower Rhône river
Atrebates
The Atrebates were a Belgic tribe of Gaul and Britain before the Roman conquests. However it is possible that the Atrebates were a family of rulers, cognate with Old Irish aittrebaid meaning inhabitant, Atrebates comes from proto-Celtic *ad-treb-a-t-es, inhabitants. The Celtic root is treb- building, which has linked to the root of English thorpe. Edith Wightman suggested that their name may be intended to mean the people of the earth to contrast with that of the neighbouring coastal Morini, the Gaulish Atrebates lived in or around modern Artois in northern France. Their capital, Nemetocenna, is now the city of Arras, the place-name Arras is the result of a phonetic evolution from Atrebates and replaced the original name in the Late Empire, according to a well-known tradition in Gaul. The name Artois is the result of a different phonetic evolution from Atrebates, in 57 BC, they were part of a Belgic military alliance in response to Julius Caesars conquests elsewhere in Gaul, contributing 15,000 men.
Caesar took this build-up as a threat and marched against it, but the Belgae had the advantage of position, when no battle was forthcoming, the Belgic alliance broke up, determining to gather to defend whichever tribe Caesar attacked. Caesar subsequently marched against several tribes and achieved their submission, the Atrebates joined with the Nervii and Viromandui and attacked Caesar at the battle of the Sabis, but were there defeated. After thus conquering the Atrebates, Caesar appointed one of their countrymen, Commius was involved in Caesars two expeditions to Britain in 55 and 54 BC and negotiated the surrender of Cassivellaunus. In return for his loyalty, he was given authority over the Morini. However, he turned against the Romans and joined in the revolt led by Vercingetorix in 52 BC. After Vercingetorixs defeat at the Siege of Alesia, Commius had further confrontations with the Romans, negotiated a truce with Mark Antony, and ended up fleeing to Britain with a group of followers. Ptolemys 2nd century Geography refers to the Atribati living on the coast of Belgic Gaul, near the river Sequana, Commius soon established himself as king of the British Atrebates, a kingdom he may have founded.
Their territory comprised modern Hampshire, West Sussex and Berkshire, centred on the capital Calleva Atrebatum and they were bordered to the north by the Dobunni and Catuvellauni, to the east by the Regnenses, and to the south by the Belgae. The settlement of the Atrebates in Britain was not a population movement. Archaeologist Barry Cunliffe argues that they seem to have comprised a series of tribes, possibly with some intrusive Belgic element. After this time, the Atrebates were recognized as a client kingdom of Rome, coins stamped with Commiuss name were issued from Calleva from ca.30 BC to 20 BC. Three kings of the British Atrebates name themselves on their coins as sons of Commius, Eppillus, Tincomarus seems to have ruled jointly with his father from about 25 BC until Commiuss death in about 20 BC
Gallia Belgica
Gallia Belgica was a province of the Roman empire located in Belgium, in the northern and eastern parts of Roman Gaul. It began as one of the three provinces of Gaul described by its Roman conqueror Julius Caesar. An official Roman province was created by emperor Augustus in 22 BC. The province is named for the Belgae as the largest tribal confederation in the area, the southern border of Belgica, formed by the Marne and Seine rivers, was reported by Caesar as the original cultural boundary between the Belgae and the Gauls who he distinguished as Celts. The province was re-organized several times, first increased and decreased in size, the capital of Belgica Prima, became an important late western Roman capital. In 57 BC, Julius Caesar led the conquest of northern Gaul and this definition became the basis of the Roman province of Belgica. Indeed, the Belgian tribes closest to the Rhine he distinguished as the Germani cisrhenani, apart from the southern Remi, all the Belgic tribes allied against the Romans, angry at the Roman decision to garrison legions in their territory during the winter.
At the beginning of the conflict, Caesar reported the combined strength at 288,000, led by the Suessione king. Due to the Belgic coalitions size and reputation for uncommon bravery, instead, he used cavalry to skirmish with smaller contingents of tribesmen. Only when Caesar managed to isolate one of the tribes did he risk conventional battle, the tribes fell in a piecemeal fashion and Caesar claimed to offer lenient terms to the defeated, including Roman protection from the threat of surrounding tribes. Most tribes agreed to the conditions, a series of uprisings followed the 57 BC conquest. The largest revolt was led by the Bellovaci in 52 BC, during this rebellion, it was the Belgae who avoided direct conflict. They harassed the Roman legions, led personally by Caesar, with cavalry detachments, the rebellion was put down after a Bellovaci ambush of the Romans failed. Following a census of the region in 27 BC, Augustus ordered a restructuring of the provinces in Gaul, the capital of this territory was Reims, according to the geographer Strabo, though the capital moved to modern day Trier.
The date of this move is uncertain, successive Roman emperors struck a balance between Romanizing the people of Gallia Belgica and allowing pre-existing culture to survive. The Romans allowed local governments to survive, typically in the form of cantons, Roman government was run by Concilia in Reims or Trier. Additionally, local notables from Gallia Belgica were required to participate in a festival in Lugdunum which typically celebrated or worshiped the emperor’s genius, the gradual adoption of Romanized names by local elites and the Romanization of laws under local authority demonstrate the effectiveness of this concilium Galliarum. With that said, the concept and community of Gallia Belgica did not predate the Roman province, during the 1st century AD, the provinces of Gaul were restructured
