In
general terms, the Romans
coined the name 'Gaul' to describe the
Celtic tribes of what is now
central, northern and eastern
France. The Gauls were
divided from the Belgae
to the north by the Marne and the Seine, and from the Aquitani to the south
by the River Garonne, and they also extended into
Switzerland, northern
Italy, and along the Danube.
By the middle of the first century BC, the Raurici were a minor tribe that
was located on the outside of the corner formed by the Rhine turning
eastwards towards Lake Constance, around the modern border between
France's Alsace region and northern Switzerland. They were neighboured
across the upper reaches of the Rhine to the north-east by the
Latobrigi, to the east
by the Helvetii, and to
the west by the Sequani.
The Raurici tribal name is an apparent brick wall when it comes to trying to
break it down. There seems to be no meaning in proto-Celtic. The only way it
makes makes sense is if the name is
German. Then
they would be '[of the, or like the] roarers'. But there is no record of an
early Germanic influence in this region of Celtic territory, not even one
that could be linked to the Belgae who were themselves influenced by Germanic
language. The modern River Ruhr was then the Raura in its Celtic form, and
the tribe may be named after the river, so then what does the river's name
mean? The 'roar' or 'roaring river'? Again that would require a Germanic
influence where there was none at this time. Curiously the nearby
Seduni also appear to
exhibit similar Germanic or Belgic influences.
The only other realistic option for the origins of the name is that the
original form of 'Raura' predated the Celts and they picked up the name
when they arrived there. This may indeed be the case, but the name may
still be German. Very little is known about prehistory in central
Europe. The
proto-Indo-European
language split into a number of dialects, and it has to be wondered what
territory was covered by the North-Indo-European language that eventually
became German? When looking at a map of Celtic expansion one has to wonder
whether Germans were shoved by them into Scandinavia from central and
northern Germany. This could be the source of very early Germanic influences
on names in Switzerland in at least two apparent cases.
Little mention is made of the tribe, other than by Julius Caesar in his
Gallic Wars commentaries. Their chief settlement is unknown, although it
was likely to be the site of the later Roman colony of Augusta Raurica,
or very close to it. No archaeological evidence has been found to show Celtic
occupation, however, suggesting that the oppidum was erased by the
colony, or that an alternative site nearby has since been erased by the
expansion of Basel. The colony was probably not entirely successful at first,
as the Alpine tribes were not subdued until 15 BC. A wooden find dated to 6 BC
has been found there, so occupation did resume or was continuous. By the second
century AD it was a prosperous trading centre, but it was largely destroyed by
earthquake in AD 250 and by the
Alemanni around 260, with the
surviving fragments going on to form today's villages of Augst and
Kaiseraugst.
(Information by Peter Kessler and Edward Dawson, with additional information
from Roman History, Cassius Dio, from Research into the Physical
History of Mankind, James Cowles Pritchard, from Geography, Strabo,
translated by H C Hamilton Esq & W Falconer, M A, Ed (George Bell &
Sons, London, 1903), and from External Link:
The
Works of Julius Caesar: Gallic Wars.)
61 - 58 BC
The
Helvetii are
coming under greater pressure from migrating
Germanic tribes who have
now arrived to their north and are occupying territory on the east bank of
the Rhine. They plan to migrate into the lowlands to the west, but their
proposed path will take them through the territory of the
Aeduii, a
Roman
ally, and the tribes in the way fear that the Helvetii will plunder and
destroy as they go. Orgetorix of the Helvetii dies before the planned exodus
can go ahead, but the tribe decides to stick to those plans. Aquitania seems
to be their target, where they hope to tie up with the
Boii who have
settled there, close to the Atlantic coast. Julius Caesar recruits two new
legions to face the threat, but groups from several local tribes join the
Helvetii, including the Latobrigi,
Raurici, and Tulingi,
making them one of the largest and most powerful forces in all of Gaul. They
also unite themselves to the Boii who have crossed the Rhine to assault the
Taurisci.
As the Helvetii and their allies depart, they burn their villages and any
food stocks that cannot be carried. The statement is clear - they do not
intend to return. After some skirmishing, the Helvetii and the Romans
face each other at the Battle of Bibracte in 58 BC, just outside the Aeduii
oppidum of the same name. The Helvetii are mercilessly crushed by the six
Roman legions. Perhaps two thirds of their number, men, women and children,
are killed on the day, while another 20,000 are killed in the subsequent
pursuit.
The Roman troops of Julius Caesar prepare to face the Helvetii
and their allies (which probably include some Boii elements) at
the Battle of Bibracte in 58 BC, outside the oppidum of the
Aeduii tribe
The shattered remnants of the Helvetii and their allies are forced
back to their homeland, but having been greatly reduced, they will
be unable to fight off Germanic incursions that could also threaten
Gaul. Julius Caesar allows the relatively hospitable Boii to settle
a buffer zone to the north of the Helvetii and east of the Aeduii,
but even this shift leaves gaps for Germanic incursions, and one such
incursion is already underway to the north. Caesar receives a federation
of chiefs from tribes that include the
Sequani,
all of whom are suffering thanks to the
Suebic
invasion under Ariovistus. It is this campaign and its mixed outcome,
despite victory in battle, that triggers Julius Caesar's campaigns in
Gaul from this point onwards, which result in the eventual
annexation of the entire land into the Roman state.
53 BC
As noted by Julius Caesar in his Gallic Wars, the Hercynian Forest
(known to the Greeks as Orcynia) is home to a mixture of Germans and a
once-powerful arm of the Volcae
Tectosages. The forest lies on the east bank of the Rhine (this forms
the northern border of the lands known to the ancient writers of the
Mediterranean, and the modern Black Forest forms its western part). Its
breadth is such that it takes a quick traveller nine days to cross it
through uncertain paths, as there are no known roads. It begins at the
frontiers of the Helvetii,
Nemetes, and Raurici,
and extends in a line along the River Danube to the territories of the
Daci and the
Anarti. From
there its borders twist northwards into the vast lands that have not been
charted by the Mediterranean cultures.
52 BC
While Caesar is tied down in
Rome,
the Gauls begin their revolt, resolving to die in freedom rather than be
suppressed by the invaders. The
Carnutes take
the lead under Cotuatus and Conetodunus when they kill the Roman traders
who have settled in Genabum. News of the event reaches the
Arverni that
morning, and Vercingetorix summons his people to arms. Despite some
successes, the main Gaulish army is forced to retreat.
The site of Alesia, a major fort belonging to the Mandubii tribe
of Celts, was the scene of the final desperate stand-off between
Rome and the Gauls in 52 BC
Four relief forces amounting to a considerable number of
men and horses are assembled in the territory of the
Aeduii by
the council of the Gaulish nobility. Men are demanded from the tribes of
Gaul, and substantial numbers are sent by the
Boii,
Boiocasses,
and Raurici. Together they attempt to relieve Vercingetorix at the siege
of Alesia, but the combined relief force is soundly repulsed by Julius
Caesar's remarkable strategy of simultaneously conducting the siege of
Alesia on one front whilst being besieged on the other. Seeing that all
is lost, Vercingetorix surrenders to Caesar. The garrison is taken prisoner,
as are the survivors from the relief army. They are either sold into slavery
or given as booty to Caesar's legionaries, apart from the Aeduii and Arverni
warriors who are released and pardoned in order to secure the allegiance of
these important and powerful tribes.
With this action, all of Gaul has been brought under
Roman
domination, and the history of its population of
Celts
is tied to that of the empire.
44/43 BC
A former officer under Julius Caesar during the conquest of Gaul, Lucius
Munatius Plancus, now proconsul of Gallia Comata, founds the colony of
Augusta Raurica inside Raurici territory. It is located approximately
twenty kilometres east of modern Basel and is the earliest-known
Roman
colony on the Rhine. Today the colony's ruins survive as an archaeological
site that also serves as an open air museum in
Switzerland,
close to two villages that still bear part of its name - Augst and
Kaiseraugst.
