350px, The Ubii around AD 30 DM Fannius, natione Ubius, corporis custos

The Ubii were a Germanic tribe first encountered dwelling on the east bank of the Rhine in the time of

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 ...

, who formed an alliance with them in 55 BC in order to launch attacks across the river. They were transported in 39 BC by

Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa (; BC – 12 BC) was a Roman general, statesman, and architect who was a close friend, son-in-law, and lieutenant to the Roman emperor Augustus. He was responsible for the construction of some of the most notable buildi ...

to the west bank, apparently at their own request, as they feared the incursions of their neighbors, the Chatti. A colony for Roman veterans was founded in 50 AD under the patronage of Agrippa's granddaughter,

Agrippina the Younger Julia Agrippina (6 November AD 15 – 23 March AD 59), also referred to as Agrippina the Younger, was Roman empress from 49 to 54 AD, the fourth wife and niece of Emperor Claudius. Agrippina was one of the most prominent women in the Julio-Claud ...

, who had been born at Ara Ubiorum, the capital of the Ubii. The colony derived its title from the names of Agrippina and her husband, the emperor

Claudius Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (; 1 August 10 BC – 13 October AD 54) was the fourth Roman emperor, ruling from AD 41 to 54. A member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, Claudius was born to Nero Claudius Drusus, Drusu ...

, and received the name ''Colonia Claudia Ara Augusta Agrippinensium'', which is the origin of the city's modern name, Cologne. Alongside the allotment of land to veterans, the existing town of Ara Ubiorum was elevated to the status of a '' colonia'', which would have conferred many privileges on the inhabitants. The Ubii were also at Bonna ( Bonn) of the Eburones. The Ubii remained loyal allies of Rome; they were instrumental in crushing the Batavian rebellion in 70 AD and, although some of them made part of the invasion of

Pannonia Pannonia (, ) was a province of the Roman Empire bounded on the north and east by the Danube, coterminous westward with Noricum and upper Italy, and southward with Dalmatia and upper Moesia. Pannonia was located in the territory that is now wes ...

in 166 AD, they become ''

foederati ''Foederati'' (, singular: ''foederatus'' ) were peoples and cities bound by a treaty, known as ''foedus'', with Rome. During the Roman Republic, the term identified the ''socii'', but during the Roman Empire, it was used to describe foreign stat ...

'' supporting Roman troops in the

Marcomannic Wars The Marcomannic Wars (Latin: ''bellum Germanicum et Sarmaticum'', "German and Sarmatian War") were a series of wars lasting from about 166 until 180 AD. These wars pitted the Roman Empire against, principally, the Germanic Marcomanni and Quadi ...

in 166–67 AD. They seem to have been so thoroughly

Romanized Romanization or romanisation, in linguistics, is the conversion of text from a different writing system to the Roman (Latin) script, or a system for doing so. Methods of romanization include transliteration, for representing written text, and ...

that they adopted the name ''Agrippinenses'' in honour of their "founder", and their later history is submerged with other Franks in that of eastern Gaul as a whole.

Roman interactions

In 55 BC, Julius Caesar was preparing for an invasion of Britain, when several Germanic tribes, including the Ubii, Cassius Dio, Book 39, discussing Caesar's actions in 55 BCE, offderrs slightly different motivation and sequence of events: "the Ubii, whose land was coterminal with the Sugambri and who were at variance with them, invoked his aid"
on-line text
and Caesar crossed the Rhine; this is Dio's single mention of the Ubii. crossed the Rhine river. This movement included the

Usipetes The Usipetes or Usipii (in Plutarch's Greek, Ousipai, and possibly the same as the Ouispoi of Claudius Ptolemy) were an ancient tribe who moved into the area on the right bank (the northern or eastern bank) of the lower Rhine in the first century B ...

and Tencteri tribes, who wished to relocate to avoid contact with the

Suevi The Suebi (or Suebians, also spelled Suevi, Suavi) were a large group of Germanic peoples originally from the Elbe river region in what is now Germany and the Czech Republic. In the early Roman era they included many peoples with their own names ...

. Caesar, concerned that fighting might break out in the region and draw troops away from his planned invasion, marched toward the Rhine. He met with ambassadors from the Germanic tribe and offered them land with the Ubii and an alliance against the Suevi; however, Caesar soon became worried that the tribes were delaying until their cavalry could return. Together with the Batavi, the Ubii furnished soldiers for the Germanic bodyguard, the personal bodyguard of the early Roman emperors.

Notes

{{reflist

External links

Summary of Julius Caesar's Campaigns
Early Germanic peoples History of the Rhineland Istvaeones

Roman interactions

See also

Notes

External links