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Germania Inferior ("Lower Germania") was a Roman province from AD 85 until the province was renamed Germania Secunda in the 4th century AD, on the west bank of the Rhine bordering the North Sea. The capital of the province was Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium (modern-day Cologne).
| Germania Inferior Lower Germania | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Province of the Roman Empire | |||||||
| 83–475 | |||||||
 The province of Germania Inferior within the Roman Empire, c. 117 | |||||||
| Capital | Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium (CCAA) | ||||||
| Historical era | Antiquity | ||||||
• Established after the Gallic wars | 83 | ||||||
• Gallic Empire | 260–274 | ||||||
• Francia | 475 | ||||||
| |||||||
| Today part of | Netherlands Belgium Germany Luxembourg | ||||||
Geography
According to Ptolemy (2.9), Germania Inferior included the Rhine from its mouth up to the mouth of the Obringa, a river identified with either the Aar or the Moselle. The territory included modern-day Luxembourg, the southern Netherlands, part of Belgium, and part of North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany, west of the Rhine.
The principal settlements of the province were Castra Vetera and Colonia Ulpia Traiana (both near Xanten), Coriovallum (Heerlen), Albaniana (Alphen aan den Rijn), Lugdunum Batavorum (Katwijk), Forum Hadriani (Voorburg), Ulpia Noviomagus Batavorum (Nijmegen), Traiectum (Utrecht), Atuatuca Tungrorum (Tongeren), Bona (Bonn), and Colonia Agrippinensis (Cologne), the capital of Germania Inferior.
History
The first confrontations between a Roman army and the peoples of Germania Inferior occurred during Julius Caesar's Gallic Wars. Caesar invaded the region in 57 BC and in the next three years annihilated several tribes, including the Eburones and the Menapii, whom Caesar called "Germanic" but who probably were Celtic or at least mixed Celtic-Germanic. Germanic influence (mainly through the Tungri) increased during Roman times, leading to the assimilation of all Celtic peoples in the area. In fact, Germania Inferior had Roman settlements since around 50 BC and was at first part of Gallia Belgica.
It was only under Domitian (r. AD 81–96) that new territories were acquired, between the high valleys of the Rhine and the Danube, following the campaigns conducted by his generals in AD 83–85, which led to the creation of two new imperial provinces, lower and upper Germany. Although this region had been occupied since the reign of Augustus, it wasn't formally established as a Roman province until around AD 85, with its capital at Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium (modern-day Cologne). It later became an imperial province. It lay north of Germania Superior; these two together made up Lesser Germania. The adjective Inferior refers to its downstream position.
The army of Germania Inferior, typically shown on inscriptions as EX.GER.INF. (Exercitus Germaniae Inferioris), included several legions at various times: of these, Legions I Minervia and XXX Ulpia Victrix were the most permanent. The Roman Navy's Classis Germanica (Germanic fleet), charged with patrolling the Rhine and the North Sea coast, were based at Castra Vetera and later at Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensis.
As attested in the early 5th century document Notitia Dignitatum, the province was renamed Germania Secunda (Germania II) in the 4th century. It was administered by a consularis and formed part of the Diocese of Gaul. Up to the end of Roman control, it was an intensely garrisoned province that was inhabited by Romans and Ripuarian Franks in the 5th century. Its capital remained at Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium, which also became the seat of a Christian bishopric, which was in charge of an ecclesiastical province that survived the fall of the Western Roman Empire.
After the final abandonment of the province it became the core of the Frankish Kingdom.
See also
- List of Roman governors of Germania Inferior
- Revolt of the Batavi, a major uprising against Roman rule
- Germanicus, the role of Germania Inferior in Roman politics
- Roman Britain's continental trade
- Germania
- Vetera
References
- "Obringa" in Bruzen la Martiniere, Le Grand Dictionnaire Geographique Volume 6, 1737; Albert Forbiger, Handbuch Der Alten Geographie Volume 3, Mayer und Wigand, 1848, fn (***) p. 126f.
- Carroll, Maureen (2002). Romans, Celts & Germans: the German provinces of Rome (Reprinted ed.). Stroud: Tempus Publ. p. 15. ISBN 978-0-7524-1912-1.
- Rüger, C. (2004) [1996]. "Germany". In Alan K. Bowman; Edward Champlin; Andrew Lintott (eds.). The Cambridge Ancient History: X, The Augustan Empire, 43 B.C. – A.D. 69. Vol. 10 (2nd ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 527–528. ISBN 0-521-26430-8.
Bibliography
- Lendering, Jona (2000). De randen van de aarde : de Romeinen tussen Schelde en Eems. Amsterdam. ISBN 90-263-1630-5.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
External links
- Livius.org: Germania inferior Archived 2020-06-07 at the Wayback Machine
- Blaeu Atlas Germania Inferior
- Hilary of Poitiers, "On the Councils". An open letter sent to the bishop of the province of Germania Secunda, among others.
- Documents: Province ecclésiastique de Cologne (Germania secunda)
This article has multiple issues Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page Learn how and when to remove these messages You can help expand this article with text translated from the corresponding article in Italian Click show for important translation instructions Machine translation like DeepL or Google Translate is a useful starting point for translations but translators must revise errors as necessary and confirm that the translation is accurate rather than simply copy pasting machine translated text into the English Wikipedia Do not translate text that appears unreliable or low quality If possible verify the text with references provided in the foreign language article You must provide copyright attribution in the edit summary accompanying your translation by providing an interlanguage link to the source of your translation A model attribution edit summary is Content in this edit is translated from the existing Italian Wikipedia article at it Germania inferiore see its history for attribution You may also add the template Translated it Germania inferiore to the talk page For more guidance see Wikipedia Translation You can help expand this article with text translated from the corresponding article in French Click show for important translation instructions Machine translation like DeepL or Google Translate is a useful starting point for translations but translators must revise errors as necessary and confirm that the translation is accurate rather than simply copy pasting machine translated text into the English Wikipedia Do not translate text that appears unreliable or low quality If possible verify the text with references provided in the foreign language article You must provide copyright attribution in the edit summary accompanying your translation by providing an interlanguage link to the source of your translation A model attribution edit summary is Content in this edit is translated from the existing French Wikipedia article at fr Germanie inferieure see its history for attribution You may also add the template Translated fr Germanie inferieure to the talk page For more guidance see Wikipedia Translation You can help expand this article with text translated from the corresponding article in German Click show for important translation instructions Machine translation like DeepL or Google Translate is a useful starting point for translations but translators must revise errors as necessary and confirm that the translation is accurate rather than simply copy pasting machine translated text into the English Wikipedia Do not translate text that appears unreliable or low quality If possible verify the text with references provided in the foreign language article You must provide copyright attribution in the edit summary accompanying your translation by providing an interlanguage link to the source of your translation A model attribution edit summary is Content in this edit is translated from the existing German Wikipedia article at de Germania inferior see its history for attribution You may also add the template Translated de Germania inferior to the talk page For more guidance see Wikipedia Translation This article includes a list of general references but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations October 2023 Learn how and when to remove this message Learn how and when to remove this message Germania Inferior Lower Germania was a Roman province from AD 85 until the province was renamed Germania Secunda in the 4th century AD on the west bank of the Rhine bordering the North Sea The capital of the province was Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium modern day Cologne Germania InferiorLower GermaniaProvince of the Roman Empire83 475The province of Germania Inferior within the Roman Empire c 117CapitalColonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium CCAA Historical eraAntiquity Established after the Gallic wars83 Gallic Empire260 274 Francia475Succeeded byFrankish EmpireToday part ofNetherlands Belgium Germany LuxembourgGeographyBorders of the Germania Inferior with main roads and cities forts According to Ptolemy 2 9 Germania Inferior included the Rhine from its mouth up to the mouth of the Obringa a river identified with either the Aar or the Moselle The territory included modern day Luxembourg the southern Netherlands part of Belgium and part of North Rhine Westphalia in Germany west of the Rhine The principal settlements of the province were Castra Vetera and Colonia Ulpia Traiana both near Xanten Coriovallum Heerlen Albaniana Alphen aan den Rijn Lugdunum Batavorum Katwijk Forum Hadriani Voorburg Ulpia Noviomagus Batavorum Nijmegen Traiectum Utrecht Atuatuca Tungrorum Tongeren Bona Bonn and Colonia Agrippinensis Cologne the capital of Germania Inferior HistorySeveral different regions called Germania in the Roman eraThe Roman empire in the time of Hadrian ruled 117 138 showing on the lower Rhine river the imperial province of Germania Inferior NW Germany S Netherlands E Belgium and the three legions deployed there in 125 Note that the coast lines shown in the map are those of today known to be different from those in Roman times in the North Sea area The first confrontations between a Roman army and the peoples of Germania Inferior occurred during Julius Caesar s Gallic Wars Caesar invaded the region in 57 BC and in the next three years annihilated several tribes including the Eburones and the Menapii whom Caesar called Germanic but who probably were Celtic or at least mixed Celtic Germanic Germanic influence mainly through the Tungri increased during Roman times leading to the assimilation of all Celtic peoples in the area In fact Germania Inferior had Roman settlements since around 50 BC and was at first part of Gallia Belgica It was only under Domitian r AD 81 96 that new territories were acquired between the high valleys of the Rhine and the Danube following the campaigns conducted by his generals in AD 83 85 which led to the creation of two new imperial provinces lower and upper Germany Although this region had been occupied since the reign of Augustus it wasn t formally established as a Roman province until around AD 85 with its capital at Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium modern day Cologne It later became an imperial province It lay north of Germania Superior these two together made up Lesser Germania The adjective Inferior refers to its downstream position The army of Germania Inferior typically shown on inscriptions as EX GER INF Exercitus Germaniae Inferioris included several legions at various times of these Legions I Minervia and XXX Ulpia Victrix were the most permanent The Roman Navy s Classis Germanica Germanic fleet charged with patrolling the Rhine and the North Sea coast were based at Castra Vetera and later at Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensis As attested in the early 5th century document Notitia Dignitatum the province was renamed Germania Secunda Germania II in the 4th century It was administered by a consularis and formed part of the Diocese of Gaul Up to the end of Roman control it was an intensely garrisoned province that was inhabited by Romans and Ripuarian Franks in the 5th century Its capital remained at Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium which also became the seat of a Christian bishopric which was in charge of an ecclesiastical province that survived the fall of the Western Roman Empire After the final abandonment of the province it became the core of the Frankish Kingdom See alsoList of Roman governors of Germania Inferior Revolt of the Batavi a major uprising against Roman rule Germanicus the role of Germania Inferior in Roman politics Roman Britain s continental trade Germania VeteraReferences Obringa in Bruzen la Martiniere Le Grand Dictionnaire Geographique Volume 6 1737 Albert Forbiger Handbuch Der Alten Geographie Volume 3 Mayer und Wigand 1848 fn p 126f Carroll Maureen 2002 Romans Celts amp Germans the German provinces of Rome Reprinted ed Stroud Tempus Publ p 15 ISBN 978 0 7524 1912 1 Ruger C 2004 1996 Germany In Alan K Bowman Edward Champlin Andrew Lintott eds The Cambridge Ancient History X The Augustan Empire 43 B C A D 69 Vol 10 2nd ed Cambridge University Press pp 527 528 ISBN 0 521 26430 8 BibliographyLendering Jona 2000 De randen van de aarde de Romeinen tussen Schelde en Eems Amsterdam ISBN 90 263 1630 5 a href wiki Template Cite book title Template Cite book cite book a CS1 maint location missing publisher link External linksLivius org Germania inferior Archived 2020 06 07 at the Wayback Machine Blaeu Atlas Germania Inferior Hilary of Poitiers On the Councils An open letter sent to the bishop of the province of Germania Secunda among others Documents Province ecclesiastique de Cologne Germania secunda
