The Remi ( Gaulish: ''Rēmi'', 'the first, the princes') were a

Belgic Belgic may refer to: * an adjective referring to the Belgae, an ancient confederation of tribes * a rarer adjective referring to the Low Countries or to Belgium * , several ships with the name * Belgic ware Aylesford-Swarling pottery is part of a ...

tribe dwelling in the

Aisne Aisne ( , ; ; pcd, Ainne) is a French department in the Hauts-de-France region of northern France. It is named after the river Aisne. In 2019, it had a population of 531,345.Vesle and

Suippe The Suippe () is an long river in Marne and Aisne départements, in north-eastern France. Its source is at Somme-Suippe. It flows generally northwest. It is a left tributary of the Aisne, into which it flows at Condé-sur-Suippe. Départements ...

river valleys during the Iron Age and the

Roman period The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Roman Republic, Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings aro ...

. Their territory roughly corresponded the modern Marne and

Ardennes The Ardennes (french: Ardenne ; nl, Ardennen ; german: Ardennen; wa, Årdene ; lb, Ardennen ), also known as the Ardennes Forest or Forest of Ardennes, is a region of extensive forests, rough terrain, rolling hills and ridges primarily in Be ...

and parts of the

Aisne Aisne ( , ; ; pcd, Ainne) is a French department in the Hauts-de-France region of northern France. It is named after the river Aisne. In 2019, it had a population of 531,345.Meuse

departments Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

Name

They are mentioned as ''Remi'' by

Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman people, 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 Caes ...

(mid-1st c. BC) and Pliny (1st c. AD), ''Rhē̃moi'' (Ῥη̃μοι; var. Ῥημοὶ) 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 ...

(early 1st c. AD) and Ptolemy (2nd c. AD), ''Remos'' by Tacitus (early 2nd c. AD), ''Rhēmō̃n'' (Ῥημω̃ν) and ''Rhēmoĩs'' (Ῥημοι̃ς) by Cassius Dio (3rd c. AD), and as ''Nemorum'' in the ''

Notitia Dignitatum The ''Notitia Dignitatum'' (Latin for "The List of Offices") is a document of the late Roman Empire that details the administrative organization of the Western and the Eastern Roman Empire. It is unique as one of very few surviving documents of ...

'' (5th c. AD). The Gaulish

ethnonym An ethnonym () is a name applied to a given ethnic group. Ethnonyms can be divided into two categories: exonyms (whose name of the ethnic group has been created by another group of people) and autonyms, or endonyms (whose name is created and used ...

''Rēmi'' (sing. ''Rēmos'') literally means 'the first ones', that is to say 'the princes'. It stems from a Proto-Celtic form reconstructed as ''*reimos'' ('first, prince, chief'; cf. Old Irish ''rem''- 'in front of',

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peopl ...

''rwyf'' 'prince, chief', Mid. Cornish ''ruif'' 'king'), itself from Proto-Indo-European *''prei-mos'' ('first, leader'; cf. Latin ''prīmus'' 'furthest in front, foremost'). The city of

Reims Reims ( , , ; also spelled Rheims in English) is the most populous city in the French department of Marne, and the 12th most populous city in France. The city lies northeast of Paris on the Vesle river, a tributary of the Aisne. Founded by ...

, attested ca. 400 AD as ''civitate Remorum'' (''Rems'' in 1284), is named after the Belgic tribe.

Geography

Territory

The Remi dwelled in the

Aisne Aisne ( , ; ; pcd, Ainne) is a French department in the Hauts-de-France region of northern France. It is named after the river Aisne. In 2019, it had a population of 531,345.Vesle and

valleys, with a heavy concentration in the middle Aisne valley. Their territory was located south of the

Suessiones The Suessiones were a Belgic tribe, dwelling in the modern Aisne and Oise regions during the La Tène and Roman periods. During the Gallic Wars (58–50 BC), their oppidum Noviodunum ( Pommiers) was besieged and conquered by Caesar. Following th ...

. As they were encircled by forests, however, the lands under their control nowhere bordered on neighbouring tribes.

Settlements

La Tène period

Before the Roman conquest (57 BC), the villages of the Remi were located along natural pathways and terrestrial cross-ways such as at Nizy-le-Comte,

Thugny-Trugny Thugny-Trugny () is a commune in the Ardennes department in northern France. Population See also *Communes of the Ardennes department The following is a list of the 449 communes of the Ardennes department of France. The communes coo ...

, or

Acy-Romance Acy-Romance () is a commune in the Ardennes department in the Grand Est region of northern France. The inhabitants of the commune are known as ''Romanciers'' or ''Romancières''. The commune has been awarded two flowers by the ''National Counci ...

, which occupied from the early 2nd century BC up until the 1st century AD. The rural areas of the

Aisne Aisne ( , ; ; pcd, Ainne) is a French department in the Hauts-de-France region of northern France. It is named after the river Aisne. In 2019, it had a population of 531,345.oppida were erected at

Bibrax Bibrax is a Gallic oppidum (fortified settlement). Its position has long been debated, but the oppidum is now almost certainly identified with the site of Saint-Thomas (Aisne). History The oppidum, occupied by the Remi and their leader Icciu ...

(Vieux Laon, Saint-Thomas), Nandin ( Château-Porcien), Moulin à Vent (

Voncq Voncq () is a commune in the Ardennes department and Grand Est region of north-eastern France. Population See also *Communes of the Ardennes department The following is a list of the 449 communes of the Ardennes department of France. Th ...

), La Cheppe, and Vieux Reims ( Condé-sur-Suippe/

Variscourt Variscourt is a commune in the Aisne department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Geography The commune is traversed by the river Suippe. Aguilcourt-Variscourt halt has rail connections to Reims and Laon. Politics and administration ...

Roman period

At the beginning of the

, the Remi left the villages and oppida that were in unfavourable positions within the emerging economic system of the Empire. For instance, the oppidum of Saint-Thomas (

) was abandoned in the middle of the 1st century BC, whereas Le Moulin à Vent, which bordered the trade route between

and Trier, developed into the town of

, attested as ''Vongo vicus'' in the 3rd c. AD. Durocortorum (modern

), a former oppidum probably built in the late 2nd–early 1st century BC and mentioned by Caesar in the mid-1st century BC, was promoted as the capital of their

civitas In Ancient Rome, the Latin term (; plural ), according to Cicero in the time of the late Roman Republic, was the social body of the , or citizens, united by law (). It is the law that binds them together, giving them responsibilities () on th ...

at the end of the 1st century BC. The name of the settlement stems from the Gaulish word ''duron'' ('gates' > 'enclosed town, market town'). Secondary agglomerations of the Roman period are also known at Vervins, Chaourse, Nizy-le-Comte, Laon or Coucy-les-Eppes. Nizy-le-Comte, occupied at least until the end of the 4th century AD, probably reached around 80 hectares at its height.

History

La Tène period

According to archaeologist Jean-Louis Brunaux, large-scale migrations occurred in the northern part of Gaul in the late 4th–early 3rd century BC, which may correspond to the coming of the

Belgae The Belgae () were a large confederation of tribes living in northern Gaul, between the English Channel, the west bank of the Rhine, and the northern bank of the river Seine, from at least the third century BC. They were discussed in depth by Ju ...

. However, those cultural changes emerged later among the Remi: whereas new funerary customs (from burial to cremation) are noticeable from 250 to 200 BC onward on the territories of the Ambi or Bellovaci, incineration did not occur before 200–150 in the

Aisne Aisne ( , ; ; pcd, Ainne) is a French department in the Hauts-de-France region of northern France. It is named after the river Aisne. In 2019, it had a population of 531,345.Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman people, 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 Caes ...

's conquest of the region. Bronze gaulois à légende REMO

By the mid-1st century BC, the Remi already possessed a structured economic system with monetary issuance, since they had prospered from their local agricultural production and from trade between northern Gaul and the Mediterranean area. After a period of regression in the 4th–3rd century, trade relations eventually recovered and gained in intensity during the second part of the 2nd century. A local landed nobility founded on agricultural and mining possessions subsequently emerged in the

Aisne Aisne ( , ; ; pcd, Ainne) is a French department in the Hauts-de-France region of northern France. It is named after the river Aisne. In 2019, it had a population of 531,345.Wine, in particular, was imported in large quantity from southern Europe by the local Remi elite before the Roman conquest.

Gallic Wars

During the Gallic Wars (58–50 BC), under the leadership of

Iccius The gens Iccia was a minor plebeian family at Rome. It is known primarily from a small number of individuals who lived during the first century BC,''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology'', vol. II, p. 559 ("Iccius"). as well as ...

and Andecombogius, the Remi allied themselves with

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 ...

: They maintained their loyalty to Rome throughout the entire war, and were one of the few Gallic polities not to join in the rebellion of Vercingetorix. When the Belgae besieged the oppidum of

( Saint-Thomas), defended by the Remi and their leader Iccius at the

Battle of the Axona The Battle of the Axona was fought in 57 BC, between the Roman army of Gaius Julius Caesar and the Belgae. The Belgae, led by King Galba of the Suessiones, attacked, only to be repelled by Caesar. Fearing an ambush, the Romans delayed their pur ...

(57 BC),

sent Numidian, Cretan and Balearic soldiers to avoid the seizure of the stronghold.

Roman period

A founding myth preserved or invented by Flodoard of Reims (d. 966) makes Remus, brother of Romulus, the eponymous founder of the Remi, having escaped their fraternal rivalry instead of dying in Latium.Michel Sot, “Les temps mythiques: les origines païennes et chrétiennes de Reims. I. Les origines païennes,” in ''Un historien et son Église au Xe siècle: Flodoard de Reims'' ( aris Fayard, 1993).

Political organization

Until the Gallic Wars (58–50 BC), the Remi shared a common cultural identity with the neighbouring

, with whom with they were linked by the same law, the same magistrates and a unified commander-in-chief. In reality, this virtual state of union between the two tribes probably leaned in favour of the Suessiones. When

entered Gallia Belgica in 57 BC, the Remi asked the protection of the Romans, thus gaining independence from a possibly asymmetrical relationship.

Economy

In the second part of the 2nd century BC, as the result of early trade contacts with the Mediterranean world, and encouraged by a political will to build economic relations with Rome, the Remi were the first people to issue coins in Gallia Belgica. Their oppida were responsible for the minting of coins in the late 2nd and early 1st centuries BC.

Religion

Two pre-Roman sanctuaries located at La Soragne ( Bâalons- Bouvellemont) and Flavier ( Mouzon) attest the religious offering of miniature weapons. In another sanctuary (Nepellier, in Nanteuil-sur-Aisne) were found Celtic sun crosses, along with destroyed weapons, coins, and human remains. Nepellier dates back to 250–200 BC and continued to be used during the Roman period until its destruction in Late Antiquity. During the Roman period, Mars Camulus was probably the principal god of the Remi. Gallo-Roman sanctuaries are attested at Nizy-le-Comte, Versigny, and Sissonne. A statuette of Jupiter with a wheel was found in

Landouzy-la-Ville Landouzy-la-Ville () is a commune in the Aisne department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Population See also *Communes of the Aisne department The following is a list of the 799 communes in the French department of Aisne. ...

. Although it features distinct Gallic characteristics, the inscription honours the Roman god Jupiter and the Imperial numen. Another inscription from Nizy-le-Comte was dedicated to Apollo.

References

Primary sources

* * * * *

Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * * * {{Authority control Tribes of pre-Roman Gaul Tribes involved in the Gallic Wars Historical Celtic peoples Belgae Gauls