The Caturiges (
Gaulish
Gaulish was an ancient Celtic language spoken in parts of Continental Europe before and during the period of the Roman Empire. In the narrow sense, Gaulish was the language of the Celts of Gaul (now France, Luxembourg, Belgium, most of Switze ...
: ''Caturīges'', 'kings of combat') were a
Gallic tribe dwelling in the upper
Durance valley, around present-day towns of
Chorges and
Embrun, during the
Iron Age
The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age ( Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age ( Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostl ...
and the
Roman period.
Name
They are mentioned as ''Caturiges'' by
Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, an ...
(mid-1st c. BC) and
Pliny
Pliny may refer to:
People
* Pliny the Elder (23–79 CE), ancient Roman nobleman, scientist, historian, and author of ''Naturalis Historia'' (''Pliny's Natural History'')
* Pliny the Younger (died 113), ancient Roman statesman, orator, w ...
(1st c. AD), and as ''Katourgídōn'' (Κατουργίδων) by
Ptolemy
Claudius Ptolemy (; grc-gre, Πτολεμαῖος, ; la, Claudius Ptolemaeus; AD) was a mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and music theorist, who wrote about a dozen scientific treatises, three of which were of importance ...
(2nd c. AD).
The
Gaulish
Gaulish was an ancient Celtic language spoken in parts of Continental Europe before and during the period of the Roman Empire. In the narrow sense, Gaulish was the language of the Celts of Gaul (now France, Luxembourg, Belgium, most of Switze ...
ethnonym ''Caturīges'' (
sing. ''Caturix'') literally means 'kings of combat'. It stems from the
Celtic
Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to:
Language and ethnicity
*pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia
**Celts (modern)
*Celtic languages
**Proto-Celtic language
* Celtic music
*Celtic nations
Sports Fo ...
root ''catu''- ('combat, battle') attached to ''rīges'' ('kings').
The city of
Chorges, attested in the 4th c. AD as ''Caturrigas'' (''Cadorgas'' in 1062, ''Chaorgias'' in 1338), is named after the tribe.
Geography
Territory
The Caturiges dwelled in the upper course of the
Durance river. Their territory was located east of the
Tricorii,
Avantici
The Avantici (Gaulish: *''Auanticoi'') were a small Gallic tribe dwelling around present-day Gap, in the western part of the modern Hautes-Alpes department, during the Roman period.
Name
They are only mentioned once as ''Avanticos'' (var. ' ...
and
Edenates
The Adanates or Edenates were a small Gallic tribe dwelling around present-day Seyne, in the Alpes Cottiae, during the Iron Age.
Name
They are mentioned as ''Edenates'' (var. '-) by Pliny (1st c. AD), Pliny. ''Naturalis Historia''3:20 and as ...
(further west lived the
Vocontii
The Vocontii (Gaulish: *''Uocontioi''; Greek: Οὐοκόντιοι, Οὐοκοντίων) were a Gallic people dwelling on the western foothills of the Alps during the Iron Age and the Roman period.
The Vocontii settled in the region in the 3r ...
), south of the
Brigianii
The Brigianii (Gaulish: *''Brigianioi'') were a Gallic tribe dwelling around present-day Briançon during the Iron Age and the Roman period.
Name
They are mentioned as ''Brigianii'' by Pliny (1st c. AD), and as ''Brigiani'', ''Brigantionis'' ...
and
Quariates
The Quariates or Quadiates were a Gallic tribe dwelling in the valley of Queyras, in the Alps, during the Iron Age.
Name
They are mentioned as ''Quariates'' (var. ''quadr''-) by Pliny (1st c. AD),Pliny. ''Naturalis Historia'', 3:35. and as ''Qu ...
, west of the
Veneni and
Soti, and north of the
Savincates
The Savincates were a Gallic tribe dwelling in the Ubaye valley, around present-day Faucon-de-Barcelonnette in the Alpes Maritimae, during the Iron Age.
Name
They are mentioned as ''Savincatium'' on two inscriptions., s.v. ''Savincates''.
T ...
. They were probably clients to the larger Vocontian people as part of their confederation.
Initially part of the province of
Alpes Cottiae after the Roman conquest, the Caturiges were integrated into the province of
Alpes Maritimae
The Alpes Maritimae (; English: 'Maritime Alps') were a small province of the Roman Empire founded in 63 AD by Nero. It was one of the three provinces straddling the Alps between modern France and Italy, along with the Alpes Graiae et Poeninae a ...
during the reign of
Diocletian (284–305 AD).
Settlements
Their chief town was known as
Eburodunum (modern
Embrun), located on a rocky plinth that dominated the Durance river. It was an important station on the route between Gaul the
Italian Peninsula. After the western part of the province of
Alpes Cottiae was transferred to the
Alpes Maritimae
The Alpes Maritimae (; English: 'Maritime Alps') were a small province of the Roman Empire founded in 63 AD by Nero. It was one of the three provinces straddling the Alps between modern France and Italy, along with the Alpes Graiae et Poeninae a ...
under
Diocletian (284–305), Eburodunum replaced
Cemenelum
Cimiez (; Italian: ''Cimella'') is an upper class neighborhood in Nice, Southern France. The area contains the Musée Matisse and the ruins of ''Cemenelum'', capital of the Ancient Roman province Alpes Maritimae on the Ligurian coast. ''Ceme ...
as the capital of the Alpes Maritimae.
Caturigomagus ('market of the Caturiges'; modern
Chorges) was a frontier city located on the route to Italy via the
Col de Montgenèvre
The Col de Montgenèvre (; elevation 1860 m.) is a high mountain pass in the Cottian Alps, in France 2 kilometres away from Italy.
Description
The pass takes its name from the village Montgenèvre (Hautes-Alpes), which lies in the vicinity ...
, in the western part of the Caturigian territory near the border between the
Regnum Cottii and the
Vocontian confederation. Probably outshined by the neighbouring Eburodunum and Vappincum (
Gap), the city declined in the 4th century AD and was not listed as ''civitates'' by the ''
Notitia Galliarum
The ''Notitia Galliarum'' (or ''Notitia provinciarum et civitatum Galliae'') is a Roman register of cities dating to the 4th–6th centuries AD., contains the text of the ''Notitia'' with a map. The Latin register is divided into two headings. Te ...
'' ca. 400.
History
According to Pliny, the Caturiges were originally part of the
Insubres
The Insubres or Insubri were an ancient Celtic population settled in Insubria, in what is now the Italian region of Lombardy. They were the founders of Mediolanum (Milan). Though completely Gaulish at the time of Roman conquest, they were the r ...
. The presence of a ''Mars Caturix'' in another town named Eburodunum (
Yverdon-les-Bains
Yverdon-les-Bains () (called Eburodunum and Ebredunum during the Roman era) is a municipality in the district of Jura-Nord vaudois of the canton of Vaud in Switzerland. It is the seat of the district. The population of Yverdon-les-Bains, , wa ...
, Switzerland), as well as other mentions near
Barrois
Barrois () is a (a French territorial division roughly equivalent to a county) in eastern France. In the Middle Ages it was part of the Duchy of Bar, then bordering the Duchy of Lorraine
The Duchy of Lorraine (french: Lorraine ; german: Lot ...
, in the
Po Valley, and perhaps in
Haute-Savoie
Haute-Savoie (; Arpitan: ''Savouè d'Amont'' or ''Hiôta-Savouè''; en, Upper Savoy) or '; it, Alta Savoia. is a department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of Southeastern France, bordering both Switzerland and Italy. Its prefecture is Ann ...
, may indicate ancient migrations, although their period and direction remain unknown.
In the mid-first century BC, the Caturiges are mentioned by
Julius Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, ...
as a tribe hostile to Rome. In what appears to be a concerted attack, they attempted to prevent his passage through the upper
Durance along with the
Ceutrones
The Ceutrones (or Centrones) were a Gallic tribe dwelling in the Tarantaise Valley, in modern Savoie, during the Iron Age and Roman period.
Name
They are mentioned as ''Ceutrones'' by Caesar (mid-1st c. BC), ''Keútrōnes'' (Κεύτρωνε ...
and
Graioceli
The Graioceli were a small Gallic tribe dwelling in the valley of Maurienne, in the modern region of Savoie, during the Iron Age.
Name
They are mentioned as ''Graioceli'' (var. ''graiocaeli, gaioceli'') by Caesar (mid-1st c. BC)., s.v. ''Graioc ...
in 58 BC.
They are mentioned by Pliny the Elder as one of the Alpine tribes conquered by Rome in 16–15 BC, and whose name was engraved on the
Tropaeum Alpium
The Tropaeum Alpium (Latin 'Trophy of the Alps', French: ''Trophée des Alpes''), is a Roman trophy (''tropaeum'') celebrating the emperor Augustus's decisive victory over the tribes who populated the Alps. The monument's ruins are in La Turbi ...
.
Pliny
Pliny may refer to:
People
* Pliny the Elder (23–79 CE), ancient Roman nobleman, scientist, historian, and author of ''Naturalis Historia'' (''Pliny's Natural History'')
* Pliny the Younger (died 113), ancient Roman statesman, orator, w ...
. ''Naturalis Historia''
3:20
They also appear on the
Arch of Susa, erected by
Cottius
Marcus Julius Cottius was King of the Celtic and Ligurian inhabitants of the mountainous Roman province then known as '' Alpes Taurinae'' and now as the Cottian Alps early in the 1st century BC. Son and successor to King Donnus, he negotiated a ...
in 9–8 BC.
See also
*
Ceutrones
The Ceutrones (or Centrones) were a Gallic tribe dwelling in the Tarantaise Valley, in modern Savoie, during the Iron Age and Roman period.
Name
They are mentioned as ''Ceutrones'' by Caesar (mid-1st c. BC), ''Keútrōnes'' (Κεύτρωνε ...
*
Graioceli
The Graioceli were a small Gallic tribe dwelling in the valley of Maurienne, in the modern region of Savoie, during the Iron Age.
Name
They are mentioned as ''Graioceli'' (var. ''graiocaeli, gaioceli'') by Caesar (mid-1st c. BC)., s.v. ''Graioc ...
*
Vocontii
The Vocontii (Gaulish: *''Uocontioi''; Greek: Οὐοκόντιοι, Οὐοκοντίων) were a Gallic people dwelling on the western foothills of the Alps during the Iron Age and the Roman period.
The Vocontii settled in the region in the 3r ...
References
Primary sources
*
*
Bibliography
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
{{Gallic peoples
Historical Celtic peoples
Gauls
Tribes of pre-Roman Gaul
Ancient peoples
History of Hautes-Alpes