TheTreveri (Gaulish: *Treweroi) were aGermanic orCeltic[1] tribe of theBelgae group who inhabited the lower valley of theMoselle in modern dayGermany from around 150 BCE, if not earlier,[2] until their displacement by theFranks.[3] Their domain lay within the southern fringes of theSilva Arduenna (Ardennes Forest), a part of the vastSilva Carbonaria, in what are nowLuxembourg, southeasternBelgium and western Germany;[4] its centre was the city ofAugusta Treverorum (Trier), to which the Treveri give their name.[5]Celtic in language,[6] according toTacitus they claimed Germanic descent.[7] They contained bothGallic and Germanic influences.[8]
Although early adopters of Romanmaterial culture,[9] the Treveri had a chequered relationship with Roman power. Their leaderIndutiomarus led them in revolt againstJulius Caesar during theGallic Wars;[10] much later, they played a key role in theGaulish revolt during theYear of the Four Emperors.[11] On the other hand, the Treveri supplied the Roman army with some of its most famous cavalry,[10] and the city of Augusta Treverorum was home for a time to the family ofGermanicus, including the future emperorGaius (Caligula).[12] During theCrisis of the Third Century, the territory of the Treveri was overrun byGermanicAlamanni andFranks[13] and later formed part of theGallic Empire.
UnderConstantine and his 4th-century successors, Augusta Treverorum became a large, favoured, rich and influential city that served as one of the capitals of the Roman Empire (together withNicomedia (present-dayİzmit, Turkey),Eboracum (present-dayYork, England),[citation needed]Mediolanum (present-dayMilan, Italy) andSirmium).[14] During this period, Christianity began to succeed the imperial cult and the worship of Roman and Celtic deities as the favoured religion of the city. Such Christian luminaries asAmbrose,Jerome,Martin of Tours andAthanasius of Alexandria spent time in Augusta Treverorum.[15]
Among the surviving legacies of the ancient Treveri areMoselle wine from Luxembourg and Germany (introduced during Roman times)[16] and the many Roman monuments of Trier and its surroundings, including neighbouring Luxembourg.[17]
Three Roman roads, very important for their role in transregional trade and military deployment capability, went through the territory of the Treveri:
They are mentioned asTreveri byCaesar (mid-1st c. BC),Pliny (1st c. AD) andTacitus (early 2nd c. AD),[19][20][21]Trēoúēroi (Τρηούηροι) byStrabo (early 1st c. AD),[22]Tríbēroi (Τρίβηροι) byPtolemy (2nd c. AD),[23]Trēouḗrōn (Τρηουήρων) byCassius Dio (3rd c. AD),[24]Treuerorum(gen.) byOrosius (early 5th c. AD),[25] and asTriberorum in theNotitia Dignitatum (5th c. AD).[26][27] The variantTreberi also appears inPliny, and few highly deviant variant forms are also attested asTrēoũsgroi (Τρηου̃σγροι) in Strabo orTriḗrōn (Τριήρων) in Cassius Dio.[27]
The first syllable is shown long and stressed(Trēverī) in Latin dictionaries,[28] thus giving the Classical Latin pronunciation[ˈtreːwɛriː].
TheethnonymTrēverī is a latinized form ofGaulish*Trēueroi (sing.Trēueros). It is generally viewed as referring to 'crossing a river' or to a 'flowing river'.[27] LinguistsRudolf Thurneysen andXavier Delamarre have proposed to interpret the name astrē-uer- ('ferrymen'), composed of a suffixtrē- (earlier*trei- 'through, across'; cf.Lat.trāns,Skttiráh) attached to -uer- ('water, river'; cf. Sktvār,ONvari 'water'), This etymology is reinforced by theOld Irishcognatetreóir (from*trē-uori-), meaning 'ford, place to cross a river'.[29][30] The Treveri also had a special goddess calledRitona, which either means 'that of the ford' (from the stemritu- 'ford') or 'that of the course' (from thehomonymritu-,rito- 'course'), and a temple dedicated toUorioni Deo ('goddess of the watercourse').[31][30]
The city ofTrier, attested 1st c. AD asTreueris Augusta and on inscriptions asAugusta Trēvērorum (Treuiris in 1065), is named after the tribe.[32][27]
In the time ofJulius Caesar their territory extended as far as theRhine north of theTriboci;[33] across the Rhine from them lived theUbii. Caesar mentions that theSegni and theCondrusi lived between the Treveri and theEburones, and that the Condrusii and Eburones wereclients of the Treveri.[34]Caesar bridged the Rhine in the territory of the Treveri.[10][35] They were bordered on the northwest by theBelgicTungri (living where theGermani cisrhenani had lived in the time of Caesar and, according to Tacitus, the same people), on the southwest by theRemi, and on the north, beyond theArdennes and Eifel, by the Eburones. To the south their neighbours were theMediomatrici[36]
Later theVangiones andNemetes, whom ancient sources identify as Germanic, would settle to the east of the Treveri along the Rhine;[37] thereafter, Treveran territory in present-day Germany was probably similar to that which afterwards became theDiocese of Trier.[38] In addition to this area which is formed mainly by the northern part of the Moselle river valley and the neighbouring Eifel region, the Treveri populated also the area of the present-dayGrand Duchy of Luxembourg and the major part of the adjacent BelgianProvince of Luxembourg.[39] The Rhine valley was removed from Treveran authority with the formation of the province ofGermania Superior in the 80s CE.[40] The valley of theAhr would have marked their northern boundary.
Colonia Augusta Treverorum (nowTrier, Germany), established underAugustus ca. 17 BCE to guard a crossing of the Moselle, was the capital of theircivitas under the Empire.[5][41] There is strong evidence that the recently excavatedoppidum on theTitelberg plateau in the extreme southwest of theGrand Duchy of Luxembourg was the Treveran capital during the 1st century BCE.[42] An important secondary centre wasOrolaunum (nowArlon, capital of the BelgianProvince of Luxembourg), which, in Edith Wightman's assessment, "became a kind of regional capital for the western Treveri", attaining "a degree of prosperity only otherwise reached bycivitas capitals".[43] The site ofLa Tranchée des Portes nearÉtalle, the largest of Belgium by its size (100 hectares) has not still revealed its rank. A recent study shows that it had already human presence around 4000 BCE.[citation needed] Other important pre-Roman centres were located atMartberg,Donnersberg,Wallendorf,Kastel-Staadt, andOtzenhausen.[41]
The transfer of their activities to Trier followed the construction ofAgrippa's road linking Trier withReims which bypassed the Titelberg. During the Roman period, Trier became a Roman colony (in 16 BCE), and the provincial capital ofBelgica itself. It was the frequent residence of a number of emperors.[citation needed] Archaeological evidence suggests that the Treveri were divided into five cantons centred respectively on the pre-Romanoppida of the Titelberg, Wallendorf, Kastel, Otzenhausen and the Martberg.[44] Inscriptions from the Roman imperial period indicate that thecivitas was divided into at least fourpagi: thepagus Vilcias, thepagus Teucorias, thepagus Carucum extending north ofBitburg, and thepagus Ac[...] orAg[...] (the inscription is incomplete). Wightman tentatively suggests that thepagus Vilcias might have been the western region aroundArlon andLonguyon, and thepagus Teucorias the southern region aroundTholey.[45] Wightman considers it uncertain whether theAresaces andCairacates may originally have beenpagi of the Treveri, but asserts that their territory – lying around Mogontiacum (Mainz) – "always showed particularly close cultural connections with Treveran territory".[46] External to the Treveri, but subject to them as clients, were theEburones and perhaps also theCaeroesi andPaemani.[47]
The 4th-century poetAusonius lived in Trier under theGratian's patronage; he is most famous for his poemMosella, evoking life and scenery along the Treveri's arterial river.[15]
Caesar is not explicit inDe Bello Gallico about whether the Treveri are to be considered to belong to Gallia Celtica or Gallia Belgica, although the former hypothesis enjoys some favour.[38] Writing about a century after Caesar,Pomponius Mela identifies the Treveri as the "most renowned" of theBelgae[48] (not to be confounded with the modern-dayBelgians).
According to the Roman consulAulus Hirtius in the 1st century BCE, the Treveri differed little from Germanic peoples in their manner of life and "savage" behaviour.[49] The Treveri boasted of their Germanic origin, according toTacitus, in order to distance themselves from "Gallic laziness" (inertia Gallorum). But Tacitus does not include them with theVangiones,Triboci orNemetes as "tribes unquestionably German".[7] The presence of hall villas of the same type as found in indisputably Germanic territory in northern Germany, alongside Celtic types of villas, corroborates the idea that they had both Celtic and Germanic affinities.[50]
Strabo says that theirNervian and Tribocan neighbours were Germanic peoples who by that point had settled on the left bank of the Rhine, while the Treveri are implied to be Gaulish.[35]
Jerome states that as of the 4th century their language was similar to that of the Celts ofAsia Minor (theGalatians).[51] Jerome probably had first-hand knowledge of theseCeltic languages, as he had visited bothAugusta Treverorum andGalatia.[52]
Very few personal names among the Treveri are of Germanic origin; instead, they are generally Celtic or Latin. Certain distinctively Treveran names are apparently none of the three and may represent a pre-Celtic stratum, according to Wightman (she givesIbliomarus, Cletussto andArgaippo as examples).[53]
After the Roman conquest,Latin was used extensively by the Treveri for public and official purposes.[54]
Originally theoppida of theTitelberg,Wallendorf, Kastel, Otzenhausen and the Martberg were roughly equal in significance; however, sometime between 100 and 80 BCE, the Titelberg experienced an upsurge of growth which made it "the centraloppidum of the Treveri".[55] A large open space in the central square of the Titelberg which would have been used for public meetings of a religious or political nature during the 1st century BCE. By the time ofCaesar's invasion, the Treveri seemed to have adopted anoligarchic system of government.[56]
The Treveri had a strong cavalry and infantry, and during theGallic Wars would provideJulius Caesar with his best cavalry.[57] Under their leaderCingetorix, the Treveri served as Roman auxiliaries. However, their loyalties began to change in 54 BCE under the influence of Cingetorix' rivalIndutiomarus.[58] According to Caesar, Indutiomarus instigated the revolt of theEburones underAmbiorix that year and led the Treveri in joining the revolt and enticing Germanic tribes to attack the Romans.[59] The Romans underTitus Labienus killed Indutiomarus and then put down the Treveran revolt; afterwards, Indutiomarus' relatives crossed theRhine to settle among the Germanic tribes.[60] The Treveri remained neutral during the revolt ofVercingetorix, and were attacked again by Labienus after it.[61] On the whole, the Treveri were more successful than mostGallic tribes in cooperating with the Romans. They probably emerged from the Gallic Wars with the status of a freecivitas exempt from tribute.[62]
In 30–29 BCE, a revolt of the Treveri was suppressed by Marcus Nonius Gallus, and the Titelberg was occupied by a garrison of the Roman army.[63][41]Agrippa andAugustus undertook the organization of Roman administration in Gaul, laying out an extensive series ofroads beginning with Agrippa's governorship of Gaul in 39 BCE, and imposing acensus in 27 BCE for purposes of taxation. The Romans built a new road from Trier toReims viaMamer, to the north, andArlon, thus by-passing by 25 kilometres theTitelberg and the older Celtic route, and the capital was displaced to Augusta Treverorum (Trier) with no signs of conflict.[63] The vicinity of Trier had been inhabited by isolated farms and hamlets before the Romans, but there had been no urban settlement here.[15]
Following the reorganisation of theRoman provinces inGermany in 16 BCE,Augustus decided that the Treveri should become part of the province ofBelgica. At an unknown date, the capital of Belgica was moved from Durocortorum Remorum (Reims) to Augusta Treverorum. A significant layer of the Treveran élite seems to have been granted Roman citizenship under Caesar and/or Augustus, by whom they were given thenomenJulius.[56]
During the reigns of Augustus,Tiberius andClaudius, and particularly whenDrusus andGermanicus were active in Gaul, Augusta Treverorum rose to considerable importance as a base and supply centre for campaigns in Germany. The city was endowed with an amphitheatre, baths, and other amenities,[64] and for a while Germanicus' family lived in the city.[12]Pliny the Elder reports that Germanicus' son, the future emperorGaius (Caligula), was born "among the Treveri, at the village of Ambiatinus, above Confluentes (Koblenz)", butSuetonius notes that this birthplace was disputed by other sources.[65]
A faction of Treveri, led byJulius Florus and allied with theAeduanJulius Sacrovir, led arebellion of Gaulish debtors against the Romans in 21 CE. Florus was defeated by his rivalJulius Indus, while Sacrovir led the Aedui in revolt.[66] The Romans quickly re-established cordial relations with the Treveri under Indus, who promised obedience to Rome; in contrast, they completely annihilated the Aedui who had sided with Sacrovir. Perhaps underClaudius, the Treveri obtained the status ofcolonia and probably theLatin Right without actually being colonized by Roman veterans.[67] Under Roman rule, there was a senate of the Treveri including about a hundred decurions, of which the executive was formed by twoduoviri.[40]
More serious was the revolt that began withCivilis'Batavian insurrection during theYear of the Four Emperors. In 70, the Treveri underJulius Classicus andJulius Tutor and theLingones underJulius Sabinus joined theBatavian rebellion and declared Sabinus as Caesar.[68] The revolt was quashed, and more than a hundred rebel Treveran noblemen fled across the Rhine to join theirGermanic allies; in the assessment of historian Jeannot Metzler, this event marks the end of aristocratic Treveran cavalry service in the Roman army, the rise of the local bourgeoisie, and the beginnings of "a second thrust of Romanization".[69]Camille Jullian attributes to this rebellion the promotion of Durocortorum Remorum (Reims), capital of the perennially loyalRemi, at the expense of the Treveri.[64] By the 2nd and 3rd centuries, representatives of the old élite bearing thenomen Julius had practically disappeared, and a new élite arose to take their place; these would have originated mainly from the indigenous middle class, according to Wightman.[70]
The Treveri suffered from their proximity to the Rhine frontier during theCrisis of the Third Century.Frankish andAlamannic invasions during the 250s led to significant destruction, particularly in rural areas; given the failure of the Roman military to defend effectively against Germanic invasion, country dwellers improvised their own fortifications, often using the stones from tombs and mausoleums.[13]
Meanwhile, Augusta Treverorum was becoming an urban centre of the first importance, overtaking even Lugdunum (Lyon). During theCrisis of the Third Century, the city served as the capital of theGallic Empire under the emperorsTetricus I andII from 271 to 274. The Treveri suffered further devastation from theAlamanni in 275, following which, according to Jeannot Metzler, "The great majority of agricultural domains lay waste and would never be rebuilt".[71] It is unclear whether Augusta Treverorum itself fell victim to the Alamannic invasion.[15]
From 285 to 395, Augusta Treverorum was one of the residences of thewestern Roman Emperor, includingMaximian,Constantine the Great,Constantius II,Valentinian I,Magnus Maximus, andTheodosius I;[72] from 318 to 407, it served as the seat of thepraetorian prefecture of Gaul. By the mid-4th century, the city was counted in a Roman manuscript as one of the four capitals of the world, alongside Rome,Alexandria, andConstantinople.[15] New defensive structures, including fortresses atNeumagen,Bitburg andArlon, were constructed to defend against Germanic invasion. After aVandal invasion in 406, however, the imperial residence was moved to Mediolanum (Milan) while the praetorian guard was withdrawn to Arelate (Arles).[73]
The Treveri were originallypolytheists, and following the Roman conquest many of their gods wereidentified with Roman equivalents or coupled with Roman gods. Among the most important gods worshipped in Treveran territory wereMercury andRosmerta,Lenus Mars andAncamna,Jupiter Optimus Maximus,Apollo,Intarabus, andMinerva.[75][76] Among the deities unique to the Treveri were Intarabus,Ritona,Inciona andVeraudunus, and theXulsigiae.[75] J.-J. Hatt considers that the Treveri, along with their neighbours theMediomatrici,Leuci, andTriboci, "appeared as pilots in the conservation of native Celtic and pre-Celtic [religious] traditions".[77]
During the Roman period, Lenus Mars (or MarsIovantucarus) has been deemed "the main god of the Treveri", as evidenced by dedications found across the different sections ofcivitas Treverorum. They are connected in particular with a monumental sanctuary situated just outside thecivitas capital ofTrier.[78] The cult of Lenus Mars was probably registered as a public cult in the official calendar of thecivitas Treverorum.[79] Three important pagan sanctuaries in the immediate vicinity of Trier alone are well-known: the extensive Altbachtal temple complex, the nearby temple Am Herrenbrünnchen, and the important Lenus Mars Temple on the left bank of the Moselle. Inscriptions attest to the existence of a Treveran cult to Rome and Augustus, but the location of the temple is uncertain. Wightman suggests that the wholly classical and well-endowed temple Am Herrenbrünnchen would be a possibility,[80] while Metzger argues that it can only have been a poorly known fourth temple in the city – the so-called Asclepius Temple not far from the bridge over theMoselle.[81]
The Altbachtal complex has yielded a wealth of inscriptions and the remains of a theatre and over a dozen temples or shrines, mostly Romano-Celticfana dedicated to native, Roman, and Oriental deities. Outside of the city, many sacred sites are known; they are typically enclosed by a wall. Among these may be mentioned the temple of Apollo andSirona atHochscheid, that of Lenus Mars on theMartberg byPommern, the temple and theatre of MarsSmertrius andAncamna atMöhn, and a mother-goddess sanctuary at Dhronecken.[82] Under Roman influence, a variety of new cults were introduced:Mithras had atemple in the Altbachtal,[83]Cybele andAttis were worshipped there and at Dhronecken,[84] and inscriptions and artwork attest to otherOriental deities such asSabazius,[85]Isis andSerapis.[86] Besides the temple of Rome and Augustus mentioned above, theimperial cult is also evidenced by numerous religious inscriptions "in honour of the divine house" (i.e. the imperial family).[87]
In the 4th century, Christianity rose to prominence in Augusta Treverorum. The city became the seat of a Christianarchbishopric during the second half of the 3rd century,[88] and underConstantine I, it became an important centre for the diffusion of Christianity. The present-day cathedral has its origins in a 4th-century double church built close to the imperial palace, probably around 321 and perhaps thanks to a donation fromHelena Augusta. Approximately four times larger than today's cathedral, this church was one of Constantine's great imperial foundations, ranking with other major churches at Rome,Constantinople,Jerusalem, andBethlehem.[14][89]Jerome,Athanasius of Alexandria andMartin of Tours all lived and worked in Trier during the 4th century, whileAmbrose was born there.[15] In the time ofGratian, the Altbachtal complex was "not so much given up as deliberately destroyed"; cult statues were smashed, and some temples were secularized and made into homes.[90] In 384, the ChristianheresiarchPriscillian was executed in Augusta Treverorum on the orders ofMagnus Maximus, the Emperor in Britain and Gaul, nominally on charges of sorcery. TheGallic Chronicle of 452 describes the Priscillianists as "Manichaeans", a differentGnostic heresy already outlawed underDiocletian, and states that the emperor had them "caught and exterminated with the greatest zeal" from among the Treveri.[citation needed][91]
The territory of the Treveri had formed part of theHunsrück-Eifel culture, covering theHallstatt D andLa Tène A-B periods (from 600 to 250 BCE).[92]
During the century from 250 to 150 BCE, the area between the Rhine and the Meuse underwent a drastic population restructuring as some crisis forced most signs of inhabitation onto the heights of theHunsrück. Following this crisis, population returned to the lowlands and it is possible to speak with confidence of the Treveri by name. Much of the Treveran countryside seems to have been organized into rural settlements by the end of the 2nd century BCE, and this organization persisted into Roman times.[2]
Even before Roman times, the Treveri had developed trade, agriculture and metal-working. They had adopted a money-based economy based upon silver coins, aligned with the Romandenarius, along with cheaper bronze or bronze-lead coins. Trade goods made their way to the Treveri fromEtruria and the Greek world; monetary evidence suggests strong trade links with the neighbouringRemi. Iron ore deposits in Treveran territory were heavily worked and formed part of the basis for the area's wealth.[93]
Before and for some time after the Roman conquest, Treveran nobles were buried in chamber tombs which were covered withtumuli and filled with sumptuous goods including importedamphorae, weaponry andandirons.[56] By the 2nd century CE, wealthy Treveri were building elaborate funerary monuments such as theWorld Heritage-listedIgel Column, or the sculpted grave-stones found atArlon,Neumagen andBuzenol, all of which depict the deceased's livelihood and/or interests during life. As cremation had become more common under Roman rule, gravestones often had special niches to receive urns of ashes as well as grave-goods. Roman-era grave-goods included the remains of animals used as food (particularly pigs and birds), coins,amphorae, pottery, glassware, jewellery and scissors. Burial replaced cremation again in the late 3rd century.[94]
The Treveri adapted readily to Roman civilization, adopting certain Mediterranean practices in cuisine, clothing, and decorative arts starting as early as the Roman occupation of the Titelberg in 30 BCE.[95] As early as 21 CE, according toGreg Woolf, "the Treveri and theAedui [were] arguably those tribes which had undergone the greatest cultural change since the conquest".[9] The Romans introducedviticulture to theMoselle valley (seeMoselle wine). In general, the archaeological record attests to ongoing rural development and prosperity into the 3rd century CE.[40] Along with the neighbouringRemi, the Treveri can be credited with a significant innovation inRoman technology: thevallus, a machine drawn by horses or mules to reap wheat. Thevallus is known from funerary reliefs and literary descriptions.[96] The many individual Treveri attested epigraphically in othercivitates may attest to the development of a Treveran commercial network within the western parts of the Empire.[97] During the early 2nd century CE, Augusta Treverorum was an important centre for the production ofsamian ware (along withLezoux andRheinzabern), supplying the Rhineland with high-quality glossy red pottery which was often elaborately decorated with moulded designs.[98]
Treveran villa architecture shows both coexistence and mixture of typically Gallic and Germanic traits. In some villas, such as atOtrang andEchternach, small rooms opened onto a large central hall, rather than onto the front verandah as in most places in Gaul; this arrangement has been considered typically ‘Germanic’, and may reflect a social structure in which extended families and clients all lived in a patron's home. On the other hand, typically ‘Gaulish’ villas are also found in Treveran territory.[50]
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Treveri, a Celtic people in the Moselle basin
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