![GalliaCisalpinaCartOrt](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/97/GalliaCisalpinaCartOrt.png)
Cisalpine Gaul ( la, Gallia Cisalpina, also called ''Gallia Citerior'' or ''Gallia Togata''
) was the part of
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
inhabited by
Celts
The Celts (, see pronunciation for different usages) or Celtic peoples () are. "CELTS location: Greater Europe time period: Second millennium B.C.E. to present ancestry: Celtic a collection of Indo-European peoples. "The Celts, an ancien ...
(
Gauls
The Gauls ( la, Galli; grc, Γαλάται, ''Galátai'') were a group of Celtic peoples of mainland Europe in the Iron Age and the Roman period (roughly 5th century BC to 5th century AD). Their homeland was known as Gaul (''Gallia''). They s ...
) during the 4th and 3rd centuries BC.
After its conquest by the
Roman Republic
The Roman Republic ( la, Res publica Romana ) was a form of government of Rome and the era of the classical Roman civilization when it was run through public representation of the Roman people. Beginning with the overthrow of the Roman Ki ...
in the 200s BC it was considered geographically part of
Roman Italy but remained administratively separated until 42 BC. It was a
Roman province
The Roman provinces (Latin: ''provincia'', pl. ''provinciae'') were the administrative regions of Ancient Rome outside Roman Italy that were controlled by the Romans under the Roman Republic and later the Roman Empire. Each province was rule ...
from c. 81 BC until 42 BC, when it was ''de jure'' merged into
Roman Italy as indicated in Caesar's unpublished acts (''Acta Caesaris'').
Cisalpine means "on this side of the
Alps
The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Swi ...
" (from the perspective of the Romans), as opposed to
Transalpine Gaul
Gallia Narbonensis (Latin for "Gaul of Narbonne", from its chief settlement) was a Roman province located in what is now Languedoc and Provence, in Southern France. It was also known as Provincia Nostra ("Our Province"), because it was the ...
("on the far side of the Alps").
Gallia Cisalpina was further subdivided into ''Gallia Cispadana'' and ''Gallia Transpadana'', i.e. its portions south and north of the
Po River, respectively.
The Roman province of the 1st century BC was bounded on the north and west by the Alps, in the south as far as
Placentia by the river
Po, and then by the
Apennines and the river
Rubicon
The Rubicon ( la, Rubico; it, Rubicone ; rgn, Rubicôn ) is a shallow river in northeastern Italy, just north of Rimini.
It was known as Fiumicino until 1933, when it was identified with the ancient river Rubicon, famously crossed by Julius Ca ...
, and in the east by the
Adriatic Sea
The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) to t ...
.
In 49 BC all inhabitants of Cisalpine Gaul received
Roman citizenship
Citizenship in ancient Rome (Latin: ''civitas'') was a privileged political and legal status afforded to free individuals with respect to laws, property, and governance. Citizenship in Ancient Rome was complex and based upon many different laws, t ...
,
[Cassius Dio XLI, 36.] and eventually the province was divided among four of the eleven
regions of Italy
The regions of Italy ( it, regioni d'Italia) are the first-level administrative divisions of the Italian Republic, constituting its second NUTS administrative level. There are twenty regions, five of which have higher autonomy than the rest. ...
: ''Regio VIII Gallia Cispadana'', ''Regio IX Liguria'',
''Regio X Venetia et Histria'' and ''Regio XI Gallia Transpadana''.
History
Early history
![Gallia Cisalpina-en](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/24/Gallia_Cisalpina-en.svg)
The
Canegrate culture
The Canegrate culture was a civilization of prehistoric Italy that developed from the late Bronze Age (13th century BC) until the Iron Age, in the areas that are now western Lombardy, eastern Piedmont, and Ticino. Canegrate had a cultural dynamic ...
(13th century BC) may represent the first migratory wave of the proto-Celtic population from the northwest part of the Alps that, through the
Alpine passes This article lists the principal mountain passes and tunnels in the Alps, and gives a history of transport across the Alps.
Main passes
The following are the main paved road passes across the Alps. Main indicates on the main chain of the Alps, fr ...
, penetrated and settled in the western
Po valley between
Lake Maggiore
Lake Maggiore (, ; it, Lago Maggiore ; lmo, label=Western Lombard, Lagh Maggior; pms, Lagh Magior; literally 'Greater Lake') or Verbano (; la, Lacus Verbanus) is a large lake located on the south side of the Alps. It is the second largest l ...
and
Lake Como (
Scamozzina culture
The Scamozzina culture (Italian ''Cultura della Scamozzina''), which takes its name from the necropolis found in Cascina Scamozzina of Albairate, was a prehistoric civilization of Italy that developed between the end of the middle Bronze Age and ...
). They brought a new
funerary
A funeral is a ceremony connected with the final disposition of a corpse, such as a burial or cremation, with the attendant observances. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember and respect ...
practice—
cremation
Cremation is a method of final disposition of a dead body through burning.
Cremation may serve as a funeral or post-funeral rite and as an alternative to burial. In some countries, including India and Nepal, cremation on an open-air pyre is ...
—which supplanted
inhumation
Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and objec ...
. It has also been proposed that a more ancient proto-Celtic presence can be traced back to the beginning of the Middle
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second prin ...
(16th-15th century BC), when, regarding the production of bronze artifacts, including ornaments, North Western Italy appears to have been closely linked to the western groups of the
Tumulus culture
__NOTOC__
The Tumulus culture (German::de:Mittlere Bronzezeit, ''Hügelgräberkultur'') dominated Central Europe during the European Bronze Age, Middle Bronze Age ( 1600 to 1300 BC).
It was the descendant of the Unetice culture. Its heartl ...
(
Central Europe
Central Europe is an area of Europe between Western Europe and Eastern Europe, based on a common historical, social and cultural identity. The Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) between Catholicism and Protestantism significantly shaped the a ...
, 1600 BC - 1200 BC). The bearers of the Canegrate culture maintained its homogeneity for only a century, after which it melded with the
Ligurian aboriginal populations and with this union gave rise to a new phase called the
Golasecca culture
The Golasecca culture (9th - 4th century BC) was a Late Bronze Age/Early Iron Age culture in northern Italy, whose type-site was excavated at Golasecca in the province of Varese, Lombardy, where, in the area of Monsorino at the beginning of the ...
, which is nowadays identified with the Celtic Lepontii. According to
Livy
Titus Livius (; 59 BC – AD 17), known in English as Livy ( ), was a Roman historian. He wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, titled , covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome before the traditional founding in ...
(v. 34), the
Bituriges The Gaulish name Bituriges, meaning 'kings of the world', can refer to:
* Bituriges Cubi, an ancient Gallic tribe dwelling around modern Bourges
* Bituriges Vivisci, an ancient Gallic tribe dwelling around modern Bordeaux
{{Disambiguation ...
,
Arverni,
Senones
The Senones or Senonii (Gaulish: "the ancient ones") were an ancient Gallic tribe dwelling in the Seine basin, around present-day Sens, during the Iron Age and the Roman period.
Part of the Senones settled in the Italian peninsula, where they ...
,
Aedui
The Aedui or Haedui (Gaulish: *''Aiduoi'', 'the Ardent'; grc, Aἴδουοι) were a Gallic tribe dwelling in the modern Burgundy region during the Iron Age and the Roman period.
The Aedui had an ambiguous relationship with the Roman Republic a ...
,
Ambarri
The Ambarri were a Gallic people dwelling in the modern Ain department during the Iron Age and the Roman period.
Name
They are mentioned as ''Ambarri'' and ''Ambarros'' by Caesar (mid-1st c. BC),Caesar. ''Commentarii de Bello Gallico''1:11< ...
,
Carnutes, and
Aulerci
The Aulerci were a group of Gallic peoples dwelling in the modern region of Normandy, between the Loire (Liger) and the Seine (Sequana) rivers, during the Iron Age and the Roman period. They were divided into the Cenomani, the most powerful of ...
led by
Bellovesus
Bellovesus (Gaulish: 'Worthy of Power') is a legendary Gallic chief of the Bituriges, said to have lived ca. 600 BC. According to a legend recounted by Livy, the king Ambigatus sent his sister's sons Bellovesus and Segovesus in search of new land ...
, arrived in northern Italy during the reign of
Tarquinius Priscus
Lucius Tarquinius Priscus, or Tarquin the Elder, was the legendary fifth king of Rome and first of its Etruscan dynasty. He reigned for thirty-eight years.Livy, ''ab urbe condita libri'', I Tarquinius expanded Roman power through military conqu ...
(7th-6th century BC) and occupied the area between
Milan
Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...
and
Cremona. Milan (''Mediolanum'') itself was presumably founded by Gauls in the early 6th century BC; its name has a Celtic etymology: "
ityin the middle of the
adanicplain".
Polybius, in the 2nd century BC, wrote that the
Celts
The Celts (, see pronunciation for different usages) or Celtic peoples () are. "CELTS location: Greater Europe time period: Second millennium B.C.E. to present ancestry: Celtic a collection of Indo-European peoples. "The Celts, an ancien ...
in northern
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
co-existed with Etruscan nations during a period before the
Sack of Rome in 390 BC.
Ligures
The Ligures (singular Ligur; Italian: liguri; English: Ligurians) were an ancient people after whom Liguria, a region of present-day north-western Italy, is named.
Ancient Liguria corresponded more or less to the current Italian regi ...
lived on the Northern Mediterranean Coast straddling South-east French and North-west Italian coasts, including parts of
Tuscany
it, Toscano (man) it, Toscana (woman)
, population_note =
, population_blank1_title =
, population_blank1 =
, demographics_type1 = Citizenship
, demographics1_footnotes =
, demographics1_title1 = Italian
, demogra ...
,
Elba
Elba ( it, isola d'Elba, ; la, Ilva) is a Mediterranean island in Tuscany, Italy, from the coastal town of Piombino on the Italian mainland, and the largest island of the Tuscan Archipelago. It is also part of the Arcipelago Toscano Nationa ...
island and
Corsica. Ligurian tribes were also present in Latium (see
Rutuli
The Rutuli or Rutulians were an ancient people in Italy. The Rutuli were located in a territory whose capital was the ancient town of Ardea, located about 35 km southeast of Rome.
Thought to have been descended from the Umbri and the Pelas ...
) and in Samnium. According to
Plutarch
Plutarch (; grc-gre, Πλούταρχος, ''Ploútarchos''; ; – after AD 119) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for hi ...
they called themselves ''Ambrones'', which suggests a possible relationship between them and the
Ambrones
The Ambrones ( grc, Ἄμβρωνες) were an ancient tribe mentioned by Roman authors. They are generally believed to have been a Germanic tribe from Jutland.
In the late 2nd century BC, along with the fellow Cimbri and Teutons, the Ambrones ...
of northern Europe. Little is known of the Ligurian language. Only place-names and personal names remain. It appears to be an
Indo-European language with both
Italic and particularly strong
Celtic affinities. Because of the strong Celtic influences on their language and culture, they were known in antiquity as Celto-Ligurians (in Greek , Keltolígues).
Modern linguists, like
Xavier Delamarre
Xavier Delamarre (; born 5 June 1954) is a French linguist, lexicographer, and diplomat. He is regarded as one of the world's foremost authorities on the Gaulish language.
Since 2019, he has been an associate researcher for the CNRS- PSL AOrOc ...
, argue that
Ligurian was a Celtic language with some similarity to Gaulish. The Ligurian-Celtic question is also discussed by Barruol (1999). Ancient Ligurian is listed either as Celtic (epigraphic)
or Para-Celtic (onomastic).
The
Veneti were an
Indo-European people
The Indo-European languages are a language family native to the overwhelming majority of Europe, the Iranian plateau, and the northern Indian subcontinent. Some European languages of this family, English, French, Portuguese, Russian, Dutc ...
who inhabited north-eastern
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
, in an area corresponding to the modern-day region of the
Veneto
it, Veneto (man) it, Veneta (woman)
, population_note =
, population_blank1_title =
, population_blank1 =
, demographics_type1 =
, demographics1_footnotes =
, demographics1_title1 =
, demographics1_info1 = ...
,
Friuli
Friuli ( fur, Friûl, sl, Furlanija, german: Friaul) is an area of Northeast Italy with its own particular cultural and historical identity containing 1,000,000 Friulians. It comprises the major part of the autonomous region Friuli Venezia Giuli ...
, and
Trentino
Trentino ( lld, Trentin), officially the Autonomous Province of Trento, is an autonomous province of Italy, in the country's far north. The Trentino and South Tyrol constitute the region of Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, an autonomous region ...
.
[Storia, vita, costumi, religiosità dei Veneti antichi](_blank)
at .www.venetoimage.com (in Italian). Accessed on 2009-08-18. By the 4th century BC the
Veneti had been so Celticized that
Polybius wrote that the Veneti of the 2nd century BC were identical to the Gauls except for their language. The Greek historian
Strabo (64 BC–AD 24), on the other hand, conjectured that the Adriatic Veneti were descended from Celts, who in turn were related to a later
Celtic tribe of the same name whose members lived on the
Armorica
Armorica or Aremorica (Gaulish: ; br, Arvorig, ) is the name given in ancient times to the part of Gaul between the Seine and the Loire that includes the Brittany Peninsula, extending inland to an indeterminate point and down the Atlantic Coast ...
n coast and fought against
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, ...
. He further suggested that the identification of the Adriatic Veneti with the
Paphlagonia
Paphlagonia (; el, Παφλαγονία, Paphlagonía, modern translit. ''Paflagonía''; tr, Paflagonya) was an ancient region on the Black Sea coast of north-central Anatolia, situated between Bithynia to the west and Pontus (region), Pontus t ...
n Enetoi led by Antenor — which he attributes to
Sophocles
Sophocles (; grc, Σοφοκλῆς, , Sophoklễs; 497/6 – winter 406/5 BC)Sommerstein (2002), p. 41. is one of three ancient Greek tragedians, at least one of whose plays has survived in full. His first plays were written later than, or c ...
(496–406 BC) — had been a mistake caused by the similarity of the names.
[Strabo, ''Geography'', ''Book IV, Chapter 4:'' "It is these Veneti ]he Gallic tribe of the Belgae
He or HE may refer to:
Language
* He (pronoun), an English pronoun
* He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ
* He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets
* He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' ...
I think, who settled the colony that is on the Adriatic (for about all the Celti that are in Italy migrated from the transalpine land, just as did the Boii
The Boii (Latin plural, singular ''Boius''; grc, Βόιοι) were a Celtic tribe of the later Iron Age, attested at various times in Cisalpine Gaul ( Northern Italy), Pannonia (Hungary), parts of Bavaria, in and around Bohemia (after whom ...
and Senones
The Senones or Senonii (Gaulish: "the ancient ones") were an ancient Gallic tribe dwelling in the Seine basin, around present-day Sens, during the Iron Age and the Roman period.
Part of the Senones settled in the Italian peninsula, where they ...
), although, on account of the likeness of name, people call them Paphlagonians. I do not speak positively, however, for with reference to such matters probability suffices." ''Book V, Chapter 1:'' "Concerning the Heneti there are two different accounts: Some say that the Heneti too are colonists of those Celti of like name who live on the ocean-coast; while others say that certain of the Heneti of Paphlagonia escaped hither with Antenor from the Trojan war, and, as testimony in this, adduce their devotion to the breeding of horses — a devotion which now, indeed, has wholly disappeared, although formerly it was prized among them, from the fact of their ancient rivalry in the matter of producing mares for mule-breeding." ''Book 13, Chapter 1:'' "At any rate, Sophocles
Sophocles (; grc, Σοφοκλῆς, , Sophoklễs; 497/6 – winter 406/5 BC)Sommerstein (2002), p. 41. is one of three ancient Greek tragedians, at least one of whose plays has survived in full. His first plays were written later than, or c ...
says that ..Antenor and his children safely escaped to Thrace with the survivors of the Heneti, and from there got across to the Adriatic Henetice, as it is called."
Gallic expansion and Roman conquest
![ORL 61 Tabula Peutingeriana](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/58/ORL_61_Tabula_Peutingeriana.jpg)
In 391 BC, Celts "who had their homes beyond the Alps, streamed through the passes in great strength and seized the territory that lay between the
Apennine mountains and the Alps" according to
Diodorus Siculus. The
Roman army
The Roman army (Latin: ) was the armed forces deployed by the Romans throughout the duration of Ancient Rome, from the Roman Kingdom (c. 500 BC) to the Roman Republic (500–31 BC) and the Roman Empire (31 BC–395 AD), and its medieval contin ...
was routed in the
battle of Allia
The Battle of the Allia was a battle fought between the Senones – a Gallic tribe led by Brennus, who had invaded Northern Italy – and the Roman Republic. The battle was fought at the confluence of the Tiber and Allia rivers, 11 Roman m ...
, and Rome was sacked in 390 BC by the
Senones
The Senones or Senonii (Gaulish: "the ancient ones") were an ancient Gallic tribe dwelling in the Seine basin, around present-day Sens, during the Iron Age and the Roman period.
Part of the Senones settled in the Italian peninsula, where they ...
.
The defeat of the combined
Samnite, Celtic and Etruscan alliance by the Romans in the
Third Samnite War
The First, Second, and Third Samnite Wars (343–341 BC, 326–304 BC, and 298–290 BC) were fought between the Roman Republic and the Samnites, who lived on a stretch of the Apennine Mountains south of Rome and north of the Lucanian tribe.
...
ending in 290 BC sounded the beginning of the end of the Celtic domination in mainland Europe. At the
Battle of Telamon in 225 BC, a large Celtic army was trapped between two Roman forces and crushed.
In the
Second Punic War, the
Boii
The Boii (Latin plural, singular ''Boius''; grc, Βόιοι) were a Celtic tribe of the later Iron Age, attested at various times in Cisalpine Gaul ( Northern Italy), Pannonia (Hungary), parts of Bavaria, in and around Bohemia (after whom ...
and
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 ...
allied themselves with the Carthaginians, laying siege to
Mutina (
Modena). In response, Rome sent an expedition led by
L. Manlius Vulso. Vulso's army was ambushed twice, and the Senate sent
Scipio with an additional force to provide support. These were the Roman forces encountered by
Hannibal after his crossing of the Alps. The Romans were defeated in the
Battle of the Ticinus, leading to all the Gauls except for the
Cenomani The Gaulish name Cenomani can refer to:
* Aulerci Cenomani, an ancient Gallic tribe dwelling around modern Le Mans
* Cenomani (Cisalpine Gaul)
The Cenomani (Greek: , Strabo, Ptol.; , Polyb.), was an ancient tribe of the Cisalpine Gauls, who ...
to join the insurgency. Rome then sent the army of
Tiberius Sempronius Longus who engaged Hannibal in the
Battle of the Trebia, also resulting in a Roman defeat, forcing Rome to temporarily abandon Gallia Cisalpina altogether, returning only after the
defeat of Carthage in 202 BC.
Publius Cornelius Scipio Nasica completed the conquest of the Boii in 191 BC, although the
Ligurians
The Ligures (singular Ligur; Italian: liguri; English: Ligurians) were an ancient people after whom Liguria, a region of present-day north-western Italy, is named.
Ancient Liguria corresponded more or less to the current Italian regi ...
were only finally subdued when the Apuani were defeated by
Marcus Claudius Marcellus
Marcus Claudius Marcellus (; 270 – 208 BC), five times elected as consul of the Roman Republic, was an important Roman military leader during the Gallic War of 225 BC and the Second Punic War. Marcellus gained the most prestigious award a Roma ...
in 155 BC.
Roman province
Sometimes referred to as ''Gallia Citerior'' ("Hither Gaul"), ''Provincia Ariminum'', or ''Gallia Togata'' ("Toga-wearing Gaul", indicating the region's early Romanization). ''Gallia Transpadana'' denoted that part of Cisalpine Gaul between the Padus (now the
Po River) and the Alps, while ''Gallia Cispadana'' was the part to the south of the river.
Probably officially established around 81 BC, the province was governed from Mutina (modern-day
Modena), where, in 73 BC, forces under
Spartacus
Spartacus ( el, Σπάρτακος '; la, Spartacus; c. 103–71 BC) was a Thracian gladiator who, along with Crixus, Gannicus, Castus, and Oenomaus, was one of the escaped slave leaders in the Third Servile War, a major slave uprisin ...
defeated the legion of
Gaius Cassius Longinus
Gaius Cassius Longinus (c. 86 BC – 3 October 42 BC) was a Roman senator and general best known as a leading instigator of the plot to assassinate Julius Caesar on 15 March 44 BC. He was the brother-in-law of Brutus, another leader of the co ...
, the provincial governor.
In 49 BC, with the
Lex Roscia,
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, ...
granted to the populations of the province the full Roman citizenship.
The
Rubicon
The Rubicon ( la, Rubico; it, Rubicone ; rgn, Rubicôn ) is a shallow river in northeastern Italy, just north of Rimini.
It was known as Fiumicino until 1933, when it was identified with the ancient river Rubicon, famously crossed by Julius Ca ...
River marked its southern boundary with
Italia
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the Italy (geographical region) ...
proper. By crossing this river in 49 BC with his loyal
XIII Legion, returning from the conquest of
Gaul
Gaul ( la, Gallia) was a region of Western Europe first described by the Romans. It was inhabited by Celtic and Aquitani tribes, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, most of Switzerland, parts of Northern Italy (only during ...
, Julius Caesar precipitated the civil war within the Roman Republic which led, eventually, to the establishment of the
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post- Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediter ...
. To this day the term "crossing the Rubicon" means, figuratively, "reaching the point of no return".
The province was merged into Italia about 42 BC, as part of
Octavian's "Italicization" program during the
Second Triumvirate. The dissolution of the ''provincia'' required a new governing law or ''lex'', although its contemporary title is unknown. The parts of it inscribed on a bronze tablet preserved in the museum at
Parma
Parma (; egl, Pärma, ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, music, art, prosciutto (ham), cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,292 inhabitants, Parma is the second mos ...
are entirely concerned with arranging the judiciary: the law appoints two ''viri'' and four ''viri juri dicundo'' and also mentions a
Prefect
Prefect (from the Latin ''praefectus'', substantive adjectival form of ''praeficere'': "put in front", meaning in charge) is a magisterial title of varying definition, but essentially refers to the leader of an administrative area.
A prefect's ...
of Mutina.
Virgil
Publius Vergilius Maro (; traditional dates 15 October 7021 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He composed three of the most famous poems in Latin literature: th ...
,
Catullus
Gaius Valerius Catullus (; 84 - 54 BCE), often referred to simply as Catullus (, ), was a Latin poet of the late Roman Republic who wrote chiefly in the neoteric style of poetry, focusing on personal life rather than classical heroes. His ...
and
Livy
Titus Livius (; 59 BC – AD 17), known in English as Livy ( ), was a Roman historian. He wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, titled , covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome before the traditional founding in ...
, three famous sons of the
province
A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman '' provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...
, were born in ''Gallia Cisalpina''.
Archaeology
![CelPha](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3c/CelPha.jpg)
The Canegrate culture
The
Canegrate culture
The Canegrate culture was a civilization of prehistoric Italy that developed from the late Bronze Age (13th century BC) until the Iron Age, in the areas that are now western Lombardy, eastern Piedmont, and Ticino. Canegrate had a cultural dynamic ...
reflects a late Bronze Age to early Iron Age culture in the
Pianura Padana
The Po Valley, Po Plain, Plain of the Po, or Padan Plain ( it, Pianura Padana , or ''Val Padana'') is a major geographical feature of Northern Italy. It extends approximately in an east-west direction, with an area of including its Venetic ex ...
. These areas are now known as western
Lombardy, eastern
Piedmont
it, Piemontese
, population_note =
, population_blank1_title =
, population_blank1 =
, demographics_type1 =
, demographics1_footnotes =
, demographics1_title1 =
, demographics1_info1 =
, demographics1_title2 ...
and
Canton Ticino
Ticino (), sometimes Tessin (), officially the Republic and Canton of Ticino or less formally the Canton of Ticino,, informally ''Canton Ticino'' ; lmo, Canton Tesin ; german: Kanton Tessin ; french: Canton du Tessin ; rm, Chantun dal Tessin . ...
.
The Canegrate culture testifies to the arrival of Urnfield
[Kruta, Venceslas: ''La grande storia dei celti. La nascita, l'affermazione e la decadenza'', Newton & Compton, 2003, , ] migratory wave of populations from the northwest part of the Alps that, crossing the alpine passes, had infiltrated and settled in the western
Po area between
Lake Maggiore
Lake Maggiore (, ; it, Lago Maggiore ; lmo, label=Western Lombard, Lagh Maggior; pms, Lagh Magior; literally 'Greater Lake') or Verbano (; la, Lacus Verbanus) is a large lake located on the south side of the Alps. It is the second largest l ...
and the
Lake of Como
Lake Como ( it, Lago di Como , ; lmo, label=Western Lombard, Lagh de Còmm , ''Cómm'' or ''Cùmm'' ), also known as Lario (; after the la, Larius Lacus), is a lake of glacial origin in Lombardy, Italy. It has an area of , making it the thir ...
(see:
Scamozzina culture
The Scamozzina culture (Italian ''Cultura della Scamozzina''), which takes its name from the necropolis found in Cascina Scamozzina of Albairate, was a prehistoric civilization of Italy that developed between the end of the middle Bronze Age and ...
). They were bearers of a new
funerary
A funeral is a ceremony connected with the final disposition of a corpse, such as a burial or cremation, with the attendant observances. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember and respect ...
practice, which supplanted the old culture of
inhumation
Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and objec ...
instead introducing
cremation
Cremation is a method of final disposition of a dead body through burning.
Cremation may serve as a funeral or post-funeral rite and as an alternative to burial. In some countries, including India and Nepal, cremation on an open-air pyre is ...
.
The population of Canegrate maintained its own homogeneity for a limited period of time, approximately a century, after which they blended with the
Ligurian aboriginal populations to create a new culture called the
Golasecca culture
The Golasecca culture (9th - 4th century BC) was a Late Bronze Age/Early Iron Age culture in northern Italy, whose type-site was excavated at Golasecca in the province of Varese, Lombardy, where, in the area of Monsorino at the beginning of the ...
.
Golasecca culture
The
Culture of Golasecca (9th to 4th centuries BC) spread between the end of the
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second prin ...
and the beginning of 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 ...
in the areas of northwestern
Lombardy and
Piedmont
it, Piemontese
, population_note =
, population_blank1_title =
, population_blank1 =
, demographics_type1 =
, demographics1_footnotes =
, demographics1_title1 =
, demographics1_info1 =
, demographics1_title2 ...
, and the
Canton Ticino
Ticino (), sometimes Tessin (), officially the Republic and Canton of Ticino or less formally the Canton of Ticino,, informally ''Canton Ticino'' ; lmo, Canton Tesin ; german: Kanton Tessin ; french: Canton du Tessin ; rm, Chantun dal Tessin . ...
br>
At the end of the
Prehistory, prehistoric period, this was an area where travelers frequently stopped and had contact with the
Hallstatt culture to the west, the
Urnfield culture
The Urnfield culture ( 1300 BC – 750 BC) was a late Bronze Age culture of Central Europe, often divided into several local cultures within a broader Urnfield tradition. The name comes from the custom of cremating the dead and p ...
to the north and with the
Villanova culture to the south. The Golasecca culture was initially concentrated in the foothills area south of the Alps. It later spread throughout the lakes area, and established many settlements representing this original culture. The oldest remains found thus far can be dated from the 9th century BC.
Language
There is some debate whether the
Lepontic language
Lepontic is an ancient Alpine Celtic languageJohn T. Koch (ed.) ''Celtic culture: a historical encyclopedia'' ABC-CLIO (2005) that was spoken in parts of Rhaetia and Cisalpine Gaul (now Northern Italy) between 550 and 100 BC. Lepontic is atte ...
should be considered as a Gaulish dialect or an independent branch within
Continental Celtic
The Continental Celtic languages are the now-extinct group of the Celtic languages that were spoken on the continent of Europe and in central Anatolia, as distinguished from the Insular Celtic languages of the British Isles and Brittany. ''Contine ...
. Apart from Lepontic, the "Cisalpine Gaulish language" proper would be the Gaulish language as spoken by the Gauls invading northern Italy in the 4th century BC. This is a dialect of the larger Gaulish language, with some known phonetic features distinguishing it from Transalpine dialects, such as ''-nn-'' replacing ''-nd-'' and ''s(s)'' replacing ''-χs-''.
See also
*
Northern Italy
*
Canegrate culture
The Canegrate culture was a civilization of prehistoric Italy that developed from the late Bronze Age (13th century BC) until the Iron Age, in the areas that are now western Lombardy, eastern Piedmont, and Ticino. Canegrate had a cultural dynamic ...
*
Golasecca culture
The Golasecca culture (9th - 4th century BC) was a Late Bronze Age/Early Iron Age culture in northern Italy, whose type-site was excavated at Golasecca in the province of Varese, Lombardy, where, in the area of Monsorino at the beginning of the ...
*
Cisalpine Gaulish
The Celtic Cisalpine Gaulish inscriptions are frequently combined with the Lepontic inscriptions under the term ''Celtic language remains in northern Italy''. While it is possible that the Lepontii were autochthonous to Northern Italy since the ...
*
Etruscans
The Etruscan civilization () was developed by a people of Etruria in ancient Italy with a common language and culture who formed a federation of city-states. After conquering adjacent lands, its territory covered, at its greatest extent, rou ...
*
Iron Age Italy
The prehistory of Italy began in the Paleolithic period, when species of ''Homo'' colonized the Italian territory for the first time, and ended in the Iron Age, when the first written records appeared in Italy.
Paleolithic
In prehistoric times ...
*
Ancient peoples of Italy
*
Transalpine Gaul
Gallia Narbonensis (Latin for "Gaul of Narbonne", from its chief settlement) was a Roman province located in what is now Languedoc and Provence, in Southern France. It was also known as Provincia Nostra ("Our Province"), because it was the ...
References
Further reading
*Arslan E. A. 1992 (1995), La Nécropole celtique de Garlasco (Province de Pavie), in ''L’Europe celtique du Ve au IIIe Siècle avant J.-C.'' (Hautvillers, 8-10 octobre 1992), Sceaux, pp. 169–188.
*Luigi Bossi
''Della istoria d'Italia antica e moderna'' Milano, 1819
*
Jean Bousquet''La Cisalpine gauloise du IIIe au Ier siècle avant J.-C.''*Corbella, Roberto: "Celti : itinerari storici e turistici tra Lombardia, Piemonte, Svizzera", Macchione, Varese c2000; 119 p., ill.; 20 cm;
*Corbella, Roberto: "Magia e mistero nella terra dei Celti : Como, Varesotto, Ossola"; Macchione, Varese 2004; 159 p. : ill. ; 25 cm;
*D'Aversa, Arnaldo: "La Valle Padana tra Etruschi, Celti e Romani", PAIDEIA, Brescia 1986, 101 p. ill., 21 cm,
*
Raffaele De Marinis and
Venceslas Kruta
Venceslas Kruta (born 4 November 1939) is a French archaeologist and historian. He is the director of European protohistory studies at the École pratique des Hautes Études (EPHE), and Professor emeritus at the Sorbonne University. Kruta has also ...
in ‘’Italia, omnium terrarum alumna’’, Garzanti-Scheiwiller, 1990
*
Grassi, Maria Teresa: "I Celti in Italia" - 2. ed, Longanesi, Milano 1991 (); 154 p., 32 c. di tav., ill. ; 21 cm;
*Grassi, Maria Teresa: "La ceramica a vernice nera di Calvatone-Bedriacum", All'Insegna del Giglio, Firenze 2008, pp. 224 brossura, ISSN/
*Grassi M. T. 1995, ''La romanizzazione degli Insubri. Celti e Romani in Transpadana attraverso la documentazione storica e archeologica'', Milano.
*Grassi M. T. 1999, ''I Celti della Cisalpina Centrale: dall’ager Insubrium alla XI Regio Transpadana, in Insubri e Cenomani tra Sesia e Adige'', Seminario di Studi (Milano 27-28.2.1998), “Rassegna di Studi del Civico Museo Archeologico e del Civico Gabinetto Numismatico di Milano”, LXIII-LXIV, pp. 101–108.
*
Lawrence Keppie, ''The Making of the Roman Army, From Republic to Empire'', University of Oklahoma, 1998
*Kruta, Venceslas: "I celti e il Mediterraneo", Jaca Book, 2004, 78 p., ,
*Kruta, Venceslas: "La grande storia dei celti. La nascita, l'affermazione e la decadenza", Newton & Compton, 2003, 512 p., ,
*Kruta, Venceslas &
Manfredi, Valerio M.: "I celti d'Italia", Mondadori, 2000 (Collana: Oscar storia), ,
*Giuseppe Micali
''L'Italia avanti il dominio dei Romani'' Genova, 1830
*
*Violante, Antonio; introduzione di
Venceslas Kruta
Venceslas Kruta (born 4 November 1939) is a French archaeologist and historian. He is the director of European protohistory studies at the École pratique des Hautes Études (EPHE), and Professor emeritus at the Sorbonne University. Kruta has also ...
: "I Celti a sud delle Alpi", Silvana, Milano 1993 (Popoli dell'Italia Antica), 137 p., ill., fot.; 32 cm;
{{coord missing, Italy
Pre-Roman Gaul
Provinces of Roman Gaul
Ancient Italian history
1st-century BC establishments in Italy
1st-century BC establishments in the Roman Republic
1st-century BC disestablishments