''Pax Iulia'' (also known as ''Colonia Civitas Pacensis'') was a city in the Roman province of

Lusitania Lusitania (; ) was an ancient Iberian Roman province located where modern Portugal (south of the Douro river) and a portion of western Spain (the present Extremadura and the province of Salamanca) lie. It was named after the Lusitani or Lusita ...

(today situated in the Portuguese municipality of Beja).

History

The region was inhabited during 400 BC by

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 ...

tribes, but there are indications that

Carthaginian The term Carthaginian ( la, Carthaginiensis ) usually refers to a citizen of Ancient Carthage. It can also refer to: * Carthaginian (ship), a three-masted schooner built in 1921 * Insurgent privateers; nineteenth-century South American privateers, ...

settlers occupied the territory, from the writings of 2nd century scholars

Polybius Polybius (; grc-gre, Πολύβιος, ; ) was a Greek historian of the Hellenistic period. He is noted for his work , which covered the period of 264–146 BC and the Punic Wars in detail. Polybius is important for his analysis of the mixed ...

and Claudius Ptolemy.. In 48 BC, it was renamed ''Pax Iulia'' (referring to the "peace of the ''gens'' Julia") 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, and ...

following the peace between Rome and the Lusitani. The settlement became the centre of the ''

conventus iuridicus In Ancient Rome territorial organization, a ''conventus iuridicus'' was the capital city of a subdivision of some provinces (Dalmatia, Hispania, Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either cons ...

Pacensis ''Pax Iulia'' (also known as ''Colonia Civitas Pacensis'') was a city in the Roman province of Lusitania (today situated in the Portugal, Portuguese Concelho, municipality of Beja (Portugal), Beja). History The region was inhabited during 400 BC b ...

, (in the Roman province of Lusitania), since it was located on a strategic roadway junction with connection

Myrtilis Iulia ''Myrtilis Iulia'' was the Roman name given to present day Mértola, Portugal. During Classical Antiquity, Mértola was inhabited by Phoenicians, Carthaginians and finally the Romans, who called it ''Myrtilis Iulia''. The region was inhabited at ...

(a harbor city along the Guadiana river). Sometime between 31 and 27 BC, during the reign of the emperor Augustus, the city was granted the status of '' municipium'' following the Battle of Actium, and the colonists ascribed to the ''

gens In ancient Rome, a gens ( or , ; plural: ''gentes'' ) was a family consisting of individuals who shared the same Roman naming conventions#Nomen, nomen and who claimed descent from a common ancestor. A branch of a gens was called a ''stirps'' (p ...

Galeria''. It was at this time that a new designation began to appear: ''Pax Augusta'' (referring to the ''peace of Augustus'') as mentioned by

Strabo Strabo''Strabo'' (meaning "squinty", as in strabismus) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. The father of Pompey was called "Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-sighted that he could see ...

20th century

Archaeologic excavations during the 20th century uncovered the remains of a large Roman temple, , dating to the first century AD located within the settlement's forum, with several inscriptions, Roman arches, fortifications and an aqueduct. Possible locations for the theater and

amphitheater An amphitheatre (British English) or amphitheater (American English; both ) is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek ('), from ('), meaning "on both sides" or "around" and ...

were deduced from the urban layout. File:Arco Romano.jpg, Roman arch from Beja File:Beja46.jpg,

Roman oil lamps An oil lamp is a lamp used to produce light continuously for a period of time using an oil-based fuel source. The use of oil lamps began thousands of years ago and continues to this day, although their use is less common in modern times. Th ...

; Rainha D. Leonor Museum File:Beja50.jpg, Terra sigillata (ceramic ware made of porous clay fired at low heat); Rainha D. Leonor Museum File:Barragem romana N S Represa.JPG,

Roman dam This is a list of Roman dams and reservoirs. The study of Roman dam-building has received little scholarly attention in comparison to their other civil engineering activities, even though their contributions in this field have been ranked alo ...

, Cuba Municipality, Beja File:São Cucufate.jpg,

Roman Ruins of São Cucufate The Roman ruins of São Cucufate (or alternately, the ''Roman ruins of the Villa of São Cucufate'', ''Ruins of Santiago'', ''Archaeological ruins of São Cucufate'' or ''Roman villa of São Áulica'') is a Romanesque archaeological site, located o ...

, municipality of Vidigueira

References

Notes

Roman sites in Portugal Roman towns and cities in Portugal Beja, Portugal {{AncientRome-stub