The Via Domitia was the first Roman road built in Gaul , to link Italy and Hispania through Gallia Narbonensis , across what is now Southern France . The route that the Romans regularised and paved was ancient when they set out to survey it, and traces the mythic route travelled by Heracles .
17-497: The construction of the road was commissioned by Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus , whose name it bore, following the defeat of the Allobroges and Averni by himself and Quintus Fabius Maximus Allobrogicus in 122 BCE. Domitius also established a fortified garrison at Narbo (modern Narbonne ) on the coast, near Hispania, to guard construction of the road. It soon developed into a full Roman colony Colonia Narbo Martius . The lands on
34-686: A very important asset, and was treated as such (see Narbonne ). In between the cities that it linked, the Via Domitia was provided with a series of mansiones at distances of a day's journey for a loaded cart, at which shelter, provender and fresh horses could be obtained for travellers on official business. The route as it was in Late Antiquity is represented in schematic fashion on the Tabula Peutingeriana . This route can be traced on topographical maps overprinted with
51-526: Is from this line Domitius is an ancestor of the last Julio-Claudian emperor Nero (AD 54 - 68), born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus. In the 120s BC Rome had become increasingly active in Mediterranean Gaul, launching three separate campaigns into the region in the years immediately before Ahenobarbus' consulship: in 125 to protect Rome's ally Massalia from the Salluvii , in 124 BC Rome seized
68-692: The Gulf of Lion . At Narbonne, it met the Via Aquitania (which led toward the Atlantic Ocean through Toulouse and Bordeaux ). Thus Narbonne was a crucial strategic crossroads of the Via Domitia and the Via Aquitania, and it was an accessible, but easily defensible port at that time. This "cusp point" in the Roman westwards expansion and ensuing supply, communication and fortification was
85-425: The senate . Domitius was made pontifex at an uncertain date and later died around 104 BC. Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus (consul 192 BC) Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus was a consul of Rome in 192 BC. As plebeian aedile in 196 BC, he successfully prosecuted, in conjunction with his colleague Gaius Curio, many pecuarii , that is, people who were grazing their cattle on public land. He used
102-500: The Senate's reaction to their victories that stands out. Firstly, Fabius was awarded a triumphal agnomen "Allobrogicus" for his victory, whereas Domitius was not. Secondly, Fabius conducted his triumphal procession first. This is unusual considering Domitius was the senior of the two and would normally go first in such a procession. The triumph in 120 BC marks the end of his three-year command over Transalpine Gaul. Having completed
119-604: The ancient route, in G. Castellve, J.-B. Compsa, J. Kotarba and A. Pezin, eds. Voies romaines du Rhône à l'Èbre: Via Domitia et Via Augusta ( DAF 61 ) Paris 1997. At Ruscino, the road separates in two: the Inland Route and the Coastal Route, which rejoin at La Junquera . Coastal Route Inland Route Rejoins at: Here the Via Augusta begins. There are the remains of several Roman bridges along
136-551: The capital of the Salluvii (the city of the Gauls near the oppidum of Entremont , near modern Aix-en-Provence ), and in 123 BC again defeating the Salluvii and establishing a permanent garrison for Roman troops at a nearby place hence called Aquae Sextiae (modern Aix-en-Provence). The following year, 122 BC, begins the consulship of Domitius in which he led the campaign against the Allobroges . The Allobroges did harm to
153-749: The conquests of what is now in western Languedoc , Domitius established the first Roman colony in Gaul called Colonia Narbo Martius ( Narbonne ) in 118 BC. It is also around this time he constructed the Via Domitia , a road connecting Italy to Rome provinces in Spain. The road is named after himself. It was built along an ancient trading road, crossing the Alps by one of the easiest passages, the Col de Montgenèvre . As censor in 115 BC, he expelled thirty-two senators from
170-634: The pro-Roman Aedui tribe and harbored a leader of the Salluvii, King Teutomalius, who escaped the destruction of his city and enslavement by the Romans from the previous year. Along his way to the Allobroges, Domitius met with an ambassador of King Bituitus of the powerful Arverni . The discussions did not go in Rome's favor, however, and the Arverni joined the Allobroges against Rome in 121 BC. Domitius
187-526: The proceeds to build a temple to Faunus on the island of the Tiber during his praetorship in 194 BC. He was then elected to the consulship in 192 BC, in which he fought and defeated the Boii , although he remained in their country until the following year, when he was succeeded by the consul Scipio Nasica . In 190 BC, he served as legate with Lucius Cornelius Scipio Asiaticus in the war against Antiochus
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#1732766154796204-684: The road, including the Roman Bridge of Saint-Thibéry , the Pont Ambroix at Ambrussum , the Pont Julien and the Pont Serme . Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus (consul 122 BC) Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus (d. ca. 104 BC) was a Roman general and senator who served as consul in 122 BC. He led a campaign to conquer southern Gaul against the Allobroges together with his successor Quintus Fabius Maximus Allobrogicus . Domitius
221-692: The western part of the route, beyond the River Rhône had been under the control of the Averni who, according to Strabo , had stretched their control to Narbo and the Pyrenees. Crossing the Alps by the easiest passage, the Col de Montgenèvre (1850 m), the Via Domitia followed the valley of the Durance , crossed the Rhône at Beaucaire passed through Nîmes (Nemausus) then followed the coastal plain along
238-439: Was a member of the prestigious Domitii Ahenobarbi , a plebeian family. His father was Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus , who served as consul suffect in 162 BC. His grandfather Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus was consul in 192 BC. He was survived by two sons, Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus (consul in 96 BC) and Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus (consul in 94 BC). He was the grandfather of Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus (consul in 54 BC). It
255-555: Was active in the early development of southern Roman Gaul , establishing the first Roman colony at Colonia Narbon Martius , and sponsored projects such as the Via Domitia connecting Italy to Spain through southern Gaul. He was probably also the sponsor of the Altar of Domitius Ahenobarbus in the Temple of Neptune in Rome. Ahenobarbus was censor in 115 BC and became pontifex at an unknown date before dying c. 104 BC . He
272-420: Was complete enough; there wouldn't be another campaign in the area for two decades afterward. Domitius took Bituitus and sent him off to a prison in Rome out of jealousy of Fabius as to prevent the slain enemy commander from being paraded in Rome for Fabius' triumph. For his victory at Vindalium he was awarded a triumph and the title imperator , as is Maximus for the victory at Isère. There are two facts about
289-563: Was no longer consul, but led his army anyway as proconsul . At the conflux of the Rhône and Sulga he defeated the Allobroges at the Battle of Vindalium . At the same time, consul Quintus Fabius Maximus Allobrogicus led another force to the north near modern Valence at the convergence of the Rhône and Isère rivers where they achieved a resounding victory over a significantly larger force of Celts, suffering minimal casualties. Rome's victory
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