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75-590: Drobeta was originally a Dacian town. The Roman fort built by Emperor Trajan at the site preserved the Dacian name. (see "History" section). According to Hamp and Hyllested, Drobeta reflects a Roman misinterpretation of *Druwā-tā (the wooden place) with a postposed article, reflecting a proto-Albanian syntax for wood druwa-tai . "Severin" was originally linked by historians with the Roman Emperor Septimius Severus , during whose reign

150-601: A Roman Province , Dacia Felix . Written a few decades after Emperor Trajan 's Roman conquest of parts of Dacia in AD 105–106, Ptolemy's Geographia included the boundaries of Dacia. According to the scholars' interpretation of Ptolemy (Hrushevskyi 1997, Bunbury 1879, Mocsy 1974, Bărbulescu 2005) Dacia was the region between the rivers Tisza , Danube, upper Dniester, and Siret. Mainstream historians accept this interpretation: Avery (1972) Berenger (1994) Fol (1996) Mountain (1998), Waldman Mason (2006). Ptolemy also provided

225-455: A colony, Drobeta was a thriving city with temples, a basilica, a theatre, a forum, a port and guilds of craftsmen. In the middle of the 3rd century, Drobeta covered an area of 60 hectares and had a population of almost 40,000 inhabitants. After the retreat of the Roman administration from Dacia in the 4th century, the city was preserved under Roman occupation as a bridgehead on the north bank of

300-636: A couple of Dacian toponyms in south Poland in the Upper Vistula (Polish: Wisla) river basin: Susudava and Setidava (with a manuscript variant Getidava ). This could have been an "echo" of Burebista's expansion. It seems that this northern expansion of the Dacian language, as far as the Vistula river, lasted until AD 170–180 when the migration of the Vandal Hasdingi pushed out this northern Dacian group. This Dacian group, possibly

375-515: A decisive victory over the Goths. Since at that time Romans were still occupying Roman Dacia it is assumed that the Goths didn't cross the Danube from the Roman province. The Goths who survived their defeat didn't even attempt to escape through Dacia, but through Thrace . At the boundaries of Roman Dacia , Carpi ( Free Dacians ) were still strong enough to sustain five battles in eight years against

450-512: A new fort ( Constantiana Daphne ) was built, and ancient roads were repaired in Oltenia . The Lower Danube again became the empire's northern boundary in 369 at the latest, when Emperor Valens met Athanaric —the head of the Goths—in a boat in the middle of the river because the latter had taken an oath "never to set foot on Roman soil". Although Eastern Roman emperors made annual payments to

525-523: A series of conflicts between the Romans and Dacians ensued. Although the Romans gained a major strategic victory at Tapae in AD 88, Emperor Domitian offered the Dacians favourable terms, in exchange for which Roman suzerainty was recognised. However, Emperor Trajan restarted the conflicts in AD 101-102 and then again in AD 105–106, which ended with the annexation of most of Dacia and its reorganisation as

600-487: A steady economic, urban and social growth until 1972, when it received the name of Drobeta-Turnu Severin . In 1914, the Water Castle ( Castelul de Apă ) was opened. Considered an emblematic monument to the people of Severin, it gives identity to the city by being built in one of the major traffic roundabouts of the city. The central neighborhoods were spared from the countrywide campaign of demolitions unleashed by

675-533: A tribal confederacy, which was united only by charismatic leadership in both military-political and ideological-religious domains. At the beginning of the 2nd century BC, under the rule of Rubobostes , a Dacian king in present-day Transylvania , the Dacians' power in the Carpathian basin increased after they defeated the Celts , who previously held power in the region. A kingdom of Dacia also existed as early as

750-686: A village in Thracia , of unknown location. Thermi-daua , a town in Dalmatia . Probably a Grecized form of *Germidava . Pulpu-deva , (Phillipopolis) today Plovdiv in Bulgaria . Geto-Dacians inhabited both sides of the Tisa river prior to the rise of the Celtic Boii and again after the latter were defeated by the Dacians under the king Burebista. It seems likely that the Dacian state arose as

825-652: Is a city in Dolj County , southern Romania , in the region of Oltenia . It lies on the river Danube , opposite the Bulgarian city of Vidin , to which it is linked by the Calafat-Vidin Bridge , opened in 2013. After the destruction of the bridges of late antiquity, for centuries Calafat was connected with the southern bank of the Danube by boat, and later by ferryboat. The city administers three villages: Basarabi, Golenți, and Ciupercenii Vechi. It

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900-749: The Albis , the portion which is just contiguous to that river is occupied by the Suevi ; then immediately adjoining this is the land of the Getae , which, though narrow at first, stretching as it does along the Ister [ Danube ] on its southern side and on the opposite side along the mountain-side of the Hercynian Forest (for the land of the Getae also embraces a part of the mountains), afterwards broadens out towards

975-666: The Battle of Posada . Romanians then fought the Ottoman Empire , which threatened the area of the Danube. In this context, castles on the banks of the river, the area from Iron Gates to Calafat , began to be restored. When the Hungarians attacked Oltenia and conquered Severin's fortress, Andrew II of Hungary organized the Banate of Severin . The first Ban of Severin , Luca, was mentioned in 1233. This year may be taken as

1050-521: The Costoboci / Lipița culture , is associated by Gudmund Schütte with towns having the specific Dacian language ending " dava " i.e. Setidava . After the Marcomannic Wars (AD 166–180), Dacian groups from outside Roman Dacia had been set in motion. So too were the 12,000 Dacians "from the neighbourhood of Roman Dacia sent away from their own country". Their native country could have been

1125-515: The Dniester River . Constantine took the title Dacicus maximus in 336. Before 300, the Romans erected small forts at Dierna and in other places on the northern bank of the Danube in modern-day Banat. In their wider region, Roman coins from the period—mostly of bronze—have been found. The Huns destroyed Drobeta and Sucidava in the 440s, but the forts were restored under Emperor Justinian I (527–565). Eastern Roman coins from

1200-684: The Knights of St. John to the country, giving them Severin as a residence, where they built the medieval castle of Severin (this is the Castrul Zeurini mentioned in Diploma of the Joannites in 1247). Inside the strong fort a Gothic church was erected. This was presumably the headquarters of the Catholic episcopate of Severin that was there until 1502. The knights withdrew in 1259, while

1275-763: The 270s. There is no evidence that they were invaded in the following decades. Towns, including Apulum and Ulpia Traiana Sarmizegetusa , and the surrounding areas continued to be inhabited but the urban areas diminished. The existence of local Christian communities can be assumed in Porolissum , Potaissa and other settlements. On the other hand, evidence – mainly pottery with " Chi - rho " (Χ-Ρ) signs and other Christian symbols – is "shadowy and poorly understood", according to archaeologists Haynes and Hanson. Urns found in late 3rd-century cemeteries at Bezid , Mediaş , and in other Transylvanian settlements had clear analogies in sites east of

1350-599: The Black Sea littoral (between Apollonia and Pontic Olbia ) and from the Northern Carpathians to the Balkan Mountains. After the death of Burebista in 44 BCE, his Kingdom quickly unraveled, but the Dacians remained a significant enough force to frequently make incursions into Roman territory. Strabo, in his Geography written around AD 20, says: ″As for the southern part of Germany beyond

1425-689: The Carpathians, suggesting that the Carpians were the first new arrivals in the former province from the neighboring regions. Other Carpian groups, pressured by the Goths, also departed from their homeland and sought refuge in the Roman Empire around 300. Nevertheless, " Carpo-Dacians " were listed among the peoples "mixed with the Huns" as late as 379. The Sarmatians of the Banat were allies of

1500-683: The Carpi, who had then possessed themselves of Dacia and Moesia". Even so, the Germanic and Celtic kingdoms, particularly the Gothic tribes , slowly moved toward the Dacian borders, and within a generation were making assaults on the province. Ultimately, the Goths succeeded in dislodging the Romans and restoring the "independence" of Dacia following Emperor Aurelian 's withdrawal, in 275. In AD 268–269, at Naissus , Claudius II (Gothicus Maximus) obtained

1575-509: The Ceauşescu regime, allowing the historic architecture of the city to survive. In 1968, Turnu Severin became the capital of the county, concurrently becoming a city (" municipiu "). In 1972, the name of the ancient Drobeta was added to the city's name, and it became Drobeta-Turnu Severin. The region's climate gives Severin warm summers and mild winters, meaning the city is home to magnolia trees, Caucasian nut trees, and ginkgo biloba as well as

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1650-578: The Dacians became Romanised (see also Origin of Romanians ). In AD 183, war broke out in Dacia: few details are available, but it appears two future contenders for the throne of emperor Commodus , Clodius Albinus and Pescennius Niger , both distinguished themselves in the campaign. According to Lactantius , the Roman emperor Decius (AD 249–251) had to restore Roman Dacia from the Carpo-Dacians of Zosimus "having undertaken an expedition against

1725-416: The Dacians effectively independent. Decebalus was given the status of "king client to Rome", receiving military instructors, craftsmen and money from Rome. To Rome, Domitian brought Italian peasants in Dacian clothing because he couldn't take slaves in the war. To increase the glory of his reign, restore the finances of Rome, and end a treaty perceived as humiliating, Trajan resolved on the conquest of Dacia,

1800-457: The Danube until the 6th century. Destroyed by Huns in the 5th century, it was rebuilt by Justinian I (527-565). On the bank of the Danube are the remains of the celebrated Trajan's Bridge , the longest in the Empire. Here the Danube is about 1,200 m (3,900 ft) wide. The bridgehead fort has been extensively excavated and is visible today. Also visible are the extensive remains of

1875-635: The Elder ( Mircea cel Bătrân ) established Bănia Severinului (Banate of Severin) and, in 1406, concluded a treaty of alliance with Sigismund of Hungary right in Severin. After the death of Mircea, Sigismund freed the Severin Fortress occupied by the Turks, and even made some concessions to the monasteries of Vodița and Tismana . Then Banate of Severin returned to John Hunyadi , who consolidated all

1950-407: The Goths dearly: reportedly, nearly one hundred thousand died before they submitted to Rome. In celebration of this victory Constantine took the title Gothicus Maximus and claimed the subjugated territory as the new province of Gothia. In 334, after Sarmatian commoners had overthrown their leaders, Constantine led a campaign against the tribe. He won a victory in the war and extended his control over

2025-579: The Magnificent , only one tower of the Severin fortress was left standing, which led the people to name it Turnul lui Severin (Tower of Severinus ). Severin remained under Ottoman rule until 1829 except a Wallachian occupation between 1594 and 1599 and an Austrian one between 1718 and 1738. Under Ottoman occupation, the territory's administration moved to the west of Oltenia and was centered in Cerneţi . In 1936, Prof. Dr. Al. Bărăcilă executed excavations at

2100-486: The Roman agenda since before the days of Julius Caesar when a Roman army had been beaten at the Battle of Histria . From AD 85 to 89, the Dacians under Decebalus were engaged in two wars with the Romans. In AD 85, the Dacians had swarmed over the Danube and pillaged Moesia. In AD 87, the Roman troops sent by the Emperor Domitian against them under Cornelius Fuscus , were defeated and Cornelius Fuscus

2175-713: The Roman border, fortifications were erected by the Romans on both banks of the Danube . In 328 the emperor Constantine the Great inaugurated the Constantine's Bridge (Danube) at Sucidava, (today Corabia in Romania) in hopes of reconquering Dacia , a province that had been abandoned under Aurelian. In the late winter of 332, Constantine campaigned with the Sarmatians against the Goths . The weather and lack of food cost

2250-514: The Romans from AD 301–308. Roman Dacia was left in AD 275 by the Romans, to the Carpi again, and not to the Goths. There were still Dacians in AD 336, against whom Constantine the Great fought. The province was abandoned by Roman troops, and, according to the Breviarium historiae Romanae by Eutropius , Roman citizens "from the towns and lands of Dacia" were resettled to the interior of Moesia. Under Diocletian , c. AD 296, in order to defend

2325-521: The Romans, from whom they obtained the right to settle in Oltenia . In 376, the region was conquered by Huns , who kept it until the death of Attila in 453. The Gepid tribe, ruled by Ardaric , used it as their base, until in 566, when it was destroyed by the Lombards . Lombards abandoned the country and the Avars (second half of the 6th century) dominated the region for 230 years, until their kingdom

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2400-470: The Romans, though as yet they are not absolutely submissive, because of the hopes which they base on the Germans, who are enemies to the Romans." In fact, this occurred because Burebista 's empire split after his death into four and later five smaller states, as Strabo explains, "only recently, when Augustus Caesar sent an expedition against them, the number of parts into which the empire had been divided

2475-474: The Spanish company FCC . The project of constructing a Danubian bridge in the area of Calafat–Vidin dates back to 1925. Road traffic between Vidin and Calafat was doubling every year, so it became necessary to construct a bridge with four lanes of road traffic, a railway line, a lane two meters wide for bikes and a pavement for pedestrians. The bridge has a total length of 1,971 m (6,467 ft) and its cost

2550-536: The Tisa dating from the time of Burebista. According to Tacitus (AD 56–117) Dacians bordered Germania in the south-east, while Sarmatians bordered it in the east. In the 1st century AD, the Iazyges settled West of Dacia, on the plain between the Danube and the Tisa rivers, according to the scholars' interpretation of Pliny 's text: "The higher parts between the Danube and the Hercynian Forest as far as

2625-598: The Upper Tisa region, but other places cannot be excluded. The later Roman province Dacia Aureliana , was organized inside former Moesia Superior after the retreat of the Roman army from Dacia, during the reign of emperor Aurelian during AD 271–275. It was reorganized as Dacia Ripensis (as a military province) and Dacia Mediterranea (as a civil province). Ptolemy gives a list of 43 names of towns in Dacia, out of which arguably 33 were of Dacian origin. Most of

2700-627: The almond trees, figs, lilacs, lindens, and chestnut trees more common throughout Europe. Dacia Dacia ( / ˈ d eɪ ʃ ə / , DAY -shə ; Latin: [ˈd̪aː.ki.a] ) was the land inhabited by the Dacians , its core in Transylvania , stretching to the Danube in the south, the Black Sea in the east, and the Tisza in the west. The Carpathian Mountains were located in

2775-479: The ancient Kingdom of Dacia, a large remainder of the land remained outside of Roman Imperial authority. Additionally, the conquest changed the balance of power in the region and was the catalyst for a renewed alliance of Germanic and Celtic tribes and kingdoms against the Roman Empire. However, the material advantages of the Roman Imperial system was attractive to the surviving aristocracy. Afterwards, many of

2850-493: The capture of the famous Treasure of Decebalus, and control over the Dacian gold mines of Transylvania . The result of his first campaign (101–102) was the siege of the Dacian capital Sarmizegethusa and the occupation of part of the country. Emperor Trajan recommenced hostilities against Dacia and, following an uncertain number of battles, and with Trajan's troops pressing towards the Dacian capital Sarmizegethusa , Decebalus once more sought terms. Decebalus rebuilt his power over

2925-687: The castles on the Danube. Around 1432, possession passed to the Wallachian voivodes . After the fall of Constantinople in 1453, attacks on the Danubian fortresses were made, moving the Banate residence to Strehaia , the Severin population migrating to the Cerneți village, 6 km north, which became the capital of the Mehedinți district. In 1524, after a devastating attack by the Turks led by Suleiman

3000-534: The date of birth of a new castle over the ruins of Drobeta, under the name Severin (Severinopolis). It was a basis for the Banate of Severin, Terra Zeurino ( Țara Severinului – Country of Severin). Severin's name was taken in memory of Severinus of Noricum , who was the patron saint of the medieval colony Turnu, initially a suffragane of the Diocese of Kalocsa . In 1247, the Hungarian Kingdom brought

3075-519: The east. His conquests brought the Roman Empire to its greatest extent. Rome's borders in the east were governed indirectly in this period, through a system of client states , which led to less direct campaigning than in the west. Some of the history of the war is given by Cassius Dio . Trajan erected the Column of Trajan in Rome to commemorate his victory. Although the Romans conquered and destroyed

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3150-500: The empire, demonstrated by a Roman invasion in 332 against the Goths, their enemies. Sarmatians were admitted into the empire in 379, but other Sarmatian groups remained in the Tisa plains up until the 460s. The Victohali , Taifals , and Thervingians are tribes mentioned for inhabiting Dacia in 350, after the Romans left. Archeological evidence suggests that Gepids were disputing Transylvania with Taifals and Tervingians. Taifals, once independent from Gothia, became federati of

3225-516: The first half of the 2nd century BC under King Oroles . Conflicts with the Bastarnae and the Romans (112–109 BC, 74 BC), against whom they had assisted the Scordisci and Dardani , greatly weakened the resources of the Dacians. Burebista (Boerebista), a contemporary of Julius Caesar , ruled Geto-Dacian tribes between 82 BC and 44 BC. He thoroughly reorganised the army and attempted to raise

3300-484: The first half of the 6th century suggest a significant military presence in Oltenia —a region also characterized by the predominance of pottery with shapes of Roman tradition. The territory between the Lower Danube and the Black Sea (today Dobrogea in Romania) remained a fully integrated part of the Roman Empire, even after the abandonment of Trajan's Dacia. It was transformed into a separate province under

3375-558: The following years and attacked Roman garrisons again in AD 105. In response Trajan again marched into Dacia, attacking the Dacian capital in the Siege of Sarmizegethusa , and razing it to the ground; the defeated Dacian king Decebalus committed suicide to avoid capture. With part of Dacia quelled as the Roman province Dacia Traiana . Trajan subsequently invaded the Parthian empire to

3450-475: The fortress remained in the range of the cannons of Turks, Bulgarians and Tatars who wanted to cross the Danube. The Hungarians still wanted to attack Oltenia. Severin Fortress was the most important strategic redoubt on the Danube. Its conquest meant to gain an important bridgehead in the region. Romanian Voivodes have also fought for this powerful fortress, conquering it or claiming it from time to time. Litovoi and Basarab I died at this fortress. Mircea

3525-408: The fortress was an oven-hearth serving a weapons workshop. Inside the interior, to the north, was a tower with three floors used for defense; to the east a second tower, thicker, at the angle of the wall. The entrance to the castle was through a gate dome and the fortress was surrounded by a deep moat. After gaining freedom from Ottoman control as a consequence of the Treaty of Adrianople in 1829, it

3600-425: The fortress, where he managed to reconstruct the layout of the castle and recovered rich archaeological materials (rails, iron, copper, stone cannonballs, pipe of a bronze cannon etc.). The fortress was rectangular shaped with two walls made of unprocessed river stones, glued with mortar. In the center of the castle there was a chapel, surrounded by graves, built in part with materials taken from Drobeta Castrum. Also in

3675-419: The frozen Danube during the winter and ravaging the Roman cities in the province of Moesia , which was under Roman occupation. Strabo testified: "although the Getae and Daci once attained to very great power, so that they actually could send forth an expedition of two hundred thousand men, they now find themselves reduced to as few as forty thousand, and they have come close to the point of yielding obedience to

3750-469: The large Roman thermal baths and amphitheatre. The fortress of Severin was built by the Kingdom of Hungary under Ladislaus I (1077–1095) as a strategical point against the Second Bulgarian Empire . Along with the forming of the Vallachian Voivodeships (Voievodatele Valahe), the Severin fortress was a reason for a war over a period of several generations between Oltenian Voievodes ( Litovoi , Bărbat , then Basarab I ) and Hungarians. The war ended with

3825-428: The latter included the added suffix "dava" (meaning settlement, village). But, other Dacian names from his list lack the suffix (e.g. Zarmisegethusa regia = Zermizirga). In addition, nine other names of Dacian origin seem to have been Latinised. The cities of the Dacians were known as -dava , -deva , -δαυα ("-dawa" or "-dava", Anc. Gk. ), -δεβα ("-deva", Byz. Gk. ) or -δαβα ("-dava", Byz. Gk. ), etc. . Gil-doba ,

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3900-400: The middle of Dacia. It thus roughly corresponds to present-day Romania , as well as parts of Moldova , Bulgaria , Serbia , Hungary , Slovakia , and Ukraine . A Dacian kingdom that united the Dacians and the Getae was formed under the rule of Burebista in 82 BC and lasted until the Roman conquest in AD 106. As a result of the wars with the Roman Empire , after the conquest of Dacia,

3975-400: The moral standard and obedience of the people by persuading them to cut their vines and give up drinking wine. During his reign, the Dacian Kingdom expanded to its maximum extent. The Bastarnae and Boii were conquered, and even the Greek towns of Olbia and Apollonia on the Black Sea ( Pontus Euxinus ) recognized Burebista 's authority. In 53 BC, Caesar stated that the Dacian territory

4050-410: The name of Scythia Minor around 293. The existence of Christian communities in Scythia Minor became evident under Emperor Diocletian (284–305). He and his co-emperors ordered the persecution of Christians throughout the empire, causing the death of many between 303 and 313. Under Emperor Constantine the Great (306–337), a bridge across the Danube was constructed at Sucidava ,

4125-400: The name of the city was Drobeta Septimia Severiana. However, the name may be derived from Old Church Slavonic severno ("northern"), from sěverъ , "north". Another possibility is that Severin's name was taken in memory of Severinus of Noricum , who was the patron saint of the medieval colony Turnu, initially a suffragane of the Diocese of Kalocsa . Turnu ("Tower") refers to a tower on

4200-406: The neighboring peoples in an attempt to keep the peace in the Balkans, the Avars regularly invaded Scythia Minor from the 580s. The Romans abandoned Sucidava in 596 or 597, but Tomis , which was the last town in Scythia Minor to resist the invaders, only fell in 704. Transylvania and northern Banat, which belonged to Dacia before Trajan conquest, had no direct contact with the Roman Empire from

4275-408: The next century would become a modern school of national prestige. The building of industrial factories spurred the development of the city. In 1841, Severin became the capital of the county and in 1851 became a city. As a major port on the Danube, the freedom of trade facilitated the entry of goods by boat from Vienna and the exchange of material necessary for economic development. Severin experienced

4350-414: The north as far as the Tyregetae ; but I cannot tell the precise boundaries″ On this basis, Lengyel and Radan (1980), Hoddinott (1981) and Mountain (1998) consider that the Geto-Dacians inhabited both sides of the Tisza river prior to the rise of the Celtic Boii . The hold of the Dacians between the Danube and the Tisza was tenuous. However, the archaeologist Parducz argued for a Dacian presence west of

4425-447: The north bank of the Danube built by the Byzantines . Thus, the name of the city would mean "Northern Tower". Drobeta was first a Dacian town mentioned by Greek geographer Ptolemy of Alexandria (2nd century AD). Trajan's bridge was built here to cross the Danube in only three years (AD 103–105) by his favourite architect Apollodorus of Damascus for his invasion of Dacia which ended with Roman victory in 106 AD. The bridge

4500-400: The population was dispersed, and the capital city, Sarmizegetusa Regia , was destroyed by the Romans. However, the Romans built a settlement bearing the same name, Ulpia Traiana Sarmizegetuza 40 km away, to serve as the capital of the new Roman province of Dacia . A group of " Free Dacians ", may have remained outside the Roman Empire in the territory of modern-day Northern Romania until

4575-439: The region, as remains of camps and fortifications in the region indicate. Constantine resettled some Sarmatian exiles as farmers in Illyrian and Roman districts, and conscripted the rest into the army. The new frontier in Dacia was along the Brazda lui Novac line supported by Castra of Hinova , Rusidava and Castra of Pietroasele . The limes passed to the north of Castra of Tirighina-Bărboși and ended at Sasyk Lagoon near

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4650-570: The same year, Burebista was murdered, and the kingdom was divided into four (later five) parts under separate rulers. One of these entities was Cotiso 's state, to whom Augustus betrothed his own five-year-old daughter Julia. He is well known from the line in Horace ( Occidit Daci Cotisonis agmen , Odes, III. 8. 18). The Dacians are often mentioned under Augustus, according to whom they were compelled to recognize Roman supremacy. However they were by no means subdued, and in later times to maintain their independence they seized every opportunity to cross

4725-443: The start of the Migration Period . The Dacians are first mentioned in the writings of the Ancient Greeks , in Herodotus ( Histories Book IV XCIII: "[Getae] the noblest as well as the most just of all the Thracian tribes") and Thucydides ( Peloponnesian Wars , Book II: "[Getae] border on the Scythians and are armed in the same manner, being all mounted archers"). Some historians argue that Daxia (mentioned in 3rd century BC )

4800-402: The third urban centre in Dacia after Sarmizegetusa and Apullum . During the reign of Emperor Hadrian (AD 117–138), the settlement was declared a municipium in 121. At this point the population had reached 14,000. In 193 during the reign of Septimius Severus (193–211), the city was raised to the rank of a colony which gave its residents equal rights with citizens of Rome. As

4875-444: The winter quarters of Pannonia at Carnutum and the plains and level country of the German frontiers there are occupied by the Sarmatian Iazyges, while the Dacians whom they have driven out hold the mountains and forests as far as the river Theiss". Starting with AD 85, Dacia was once again reunified under King Decebalus . Following an incursion into Roman Moesia , which resulted in the death of its governor, Gaius Oppius Sabinus ,

4950-401: Was considered one of the most daring works in the Roman world. The bridge was composed of twenty arches between stone piers, two of which are visible. Each bridgehead had its own fort and portal monument, whose remains can still be seen on both sides of the Danube. Drobeta grew as a strategic point at the crossing of water and land routes which led to the north and south of the Danube. It became

5025-516: Was decided to rebuild the present city. A rigorous program started in 1836. It was followed, in 1858, by the construction of the harbor. By 1900 the national road, rail, the Carol and Elisabeta boulevards, Navigația Fluvială Românească (River Navigation of Romania), the railway workshops, the shipyard (which in 1914 was the largest in the country), the Roman Hall, the Municipal Palace, three churches and two hospitals were built. In 1883, on May 15, Theodor Costescu established Traian High School , which in

5100-438: Was declared a municipiu in 1997. Calafat lies on the river corridor VII-Danube and the pan-European corridor IV, which starts in Germany and ends in Istanbul and Thessaloniki . The city is at the crossroads of National Roads DN56, DN56A, and DN55A and European route E79 . The city of Calafat and its neighbour, Vidin (Bulgaria), are linked by a bridge over the Danube in the area called Bașcov ( Danube Bridge 2 ), built by

5175-412: Was destroyed by Charlemagne in 791. At the same time, Slavic people arrived. S.C. Automobile Dacia S.A. , also known as Dacia, is a Romanian car manufacturer that takes its name from the historical kingdom. It is Romania's largest company by revenue, and sells its products mainly in Europe and North Africa. Calafat Calafat ( Romanian pronunciation: [kalaˈfat] )

5250-456: Was five, though at the time of the insurrection it had been four. Such divisions, to be sure, are only temporary and vary with the times". Decebalus ruled the Dacians between AD 87 and 106. The frontiers of Decebal's Dacia were marked by the Tisa River to the west, by the trans-Carpathians to the north and by the Dniester River to the east. His name translates into " strong as ten men ". When Trajan turned his attention to Dacia, it had been on

5325-422: Was founded in the 14th century by Genoese colonists . These colonists generally employed large numbers of workmen ( Calafatis ) in repairing ships. This industry gave the town its name. In January 1854, during the Crimean War , when Russian forces were headed up the Danube, Ahmed Pasha , commanding the Turkish forces at Calafat, made a surprise attack on the temporary Russian garrison nearby Cetate , which

5400-472: Was killed by the Dacians by authority of their ruler, Diurpaneus. After this victory, Diurpaneus took the name of Decebalus , but the Romans were victorious in the Battle of Tapae in AD 88 and a truce was drawn up. The next year, AD 88, new Roman troops under Tettius Julianus , gained a significant advantage, but were obligated to make peace following the defeat of Domitian by the Marcomanni , leaving

5475-562: Was on the eastern border of the Hercynian Forest . Burebista suppressed the indigenous minting of coinages by four major tribal groups, adopting imported or copied Roman denarii as a monetary standard. During his reign, Burebista transferred Geto-Dacians capital from Argedava to Sarmizegetusa Regia . For at least one and a half centuries, Sarmizegetusa was the Dacians' capital and reached its peak under King Decebalus . The Dacians appeared so formidable that Caesar contemplated an expedition against them, which his death in 44 BC prevented. In

5550-523: Was the previous home of Indo-Iranian nomads who later came to form the Geto - Dacian people. The extent and location of Dacia varied in its three distinct historical periods (see below): The Dacia of King Burebista (82–44 BC) stretched from the Black Sea to the river Tisza . During that period, the Getae and Dacians conquered a wider territory and Dacia extended from the Middle Danube to

5625-520: Was under the command of Colonel Alexander Baumgarten  [ ru ; de ] . This diverted the initial Russian attack and allowed Ahmed Pasha to consolidate his forces in Calafat. On 28 January, the Russians under the command of General Joseph Carl von Anrep , reached Calafat and began the siege which lasted until May . Riddled by disease and unable to take the town, Anrep withdrew. Calafat

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